COVER
Nigeria Ranks Fifth in Global Humanitarian Crises
…Boko Haram Remnants Turn Bandits – Buhari
By Mathew Dadiya, Abuja
Amid insecurity occasioned by Boko Haram insurgency, banditry and herdsmen attacks on communities across the nation, the International Committee on Red Cross (ICRC) has disclosed that Nigeria is rated fifth largest humanitarian crises country in the world.
President of the Committee, Mr Peter Maurer made the disclosure yesterday when he met President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja.
President Buhari had told Maurer that remnants of Boko Haram in the North-east region of the country were bandits, warning that the government would continue to treat them as such.
According to him, Boko Haram had been degraded, but its members were still a nuisance around Lake Chad and surrounding islands.
“We are cooperating with Chad, Cameroon, Niger Republic, and other countries. We are also using the Air Force quite effectively. They are bandits, and we will continue to treat them as such”, President Buhari stated.
He said the government was concentrating on repairing damaged infrastructure, rehabilitation of internally displaced persons, securing their communities, so that they can return home.
He applauded the support of the ICRC and other humanitarian organizations, noting: “The situation of the displaced persons is very pathetic. Some children don’t know where their parents are, neither do they know where they come from.
“We are focusing on education and healthcare, along with rebuilding of infrastructure.
“The agency formerly under the leadership of Gen. Theophilus Danjuma (retd) and now headed by Major-General Paul Tarfa (retd) is quietly making an impression. We are dedicating lots of resources to the area”. He added.
Buhari disclosed that great progress has equally been made in disabusing the minds of people that the insurgency was religious.
“How can you kill people, and say ‘God is great.’ It’s either you don’t know that God, or you don’t know what you are talking about. God is God of justice. And the people have understood the message well, so recruiting is now difficult for the insurgents,” the President said.
Maurer said Nigeria was the 5th largest operation of ICRC worldwide, and the organization would continue to render humanitarian action to people affected by violence.
Peter Maurer also stressed upon the need for the ICRC to engage with all stakeholders to be able to carry out its neutral, impartial and independent humanitarian action. “The essence of the ICRC’s role as a guardian of the Geneva Convention is to talk to all parties to armed conflicts. This does not confer any legitimacy on any party. It means we do our utmost to ensure a minimum of humanity in war.”
Maurer noted that as a result of ICRC’s engagement in Nigeria, since January 2019 over 258,000 people from areas affected by armed violence got access to health care and over 640,000 received food or agricultural support. During the same period, over 22,000 detainees were visited.
On the recent killing of two officials in the North-east, he said: “We are shaken by the killing of our staff, but not discouraged. Humanitarian assistance should continue, and we applaud the hospitality of Nigeria.”
The ICRC President said relationship will be further strengthened with Nigeria, submitting that “the more we see activity from Nigerian authorities, the easier it is for us to add here and there.”
Early the ICRC stated that international humanitarian law more relevant than ever in Nigeria today.
According to the ICRC, the meeting with President Buhari followed a two-day visit of Mr Peter Maurer to Maiduguri and Monguno.
The humanitarian agency stated: ”The suffering of hundreds of thousands of people who have been displaced several times due to the armed conflict is alarming.”
According to ICRC, as August 2019 marked the 70th Anniversary of the universally ratified Geneva Conventions, the meeting highlighted how international humanitarian law (IHL) is more relevant than ever in Nigeria today.
Maurer highlighted the commitment of the ICRC to continue alleviating the suffering of the people affected by the armed conflict in the North-East, by delivering humanitarian relief and fostering an environment for an increasing respect of international humanitarian law.
At the heart of IHL lies the protection of civilians, of detainees, of the wounded and sick and other not participating in hostilities. In Nigeria, the authorities have taken several steps – ICRC has provided support to some, such as the strengthening of IHL training for the military – to improve respect for IHL. These efforts and other efforts need to be sustained and amplified. Full respect for the law requires effective mechanisms at the domestic level to ensure incidents are investigated and perpetrators held accountable.
United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) has announced plans to raise N157 billion through a rights issue.The disclosure was made via a notice to the Nigerian Exchange Ltd (NGX).It said in a statement on Thursday that its stock brokers, United Capital Securities Ltd., had submitted an application to the Nigerian Exchange Ltd.
to that effect. It added its stock brokers had requested for approval and listing of a Rights Issue of 3,156,869,665 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N50. 00 per share“Trading License Holders are hereby notified that United Bank for Africa Plc, through its Stockbrokers, United Capital Securities Ltd., has submitted an application to the Nigerian Exchange Ltd.” in that regard.“The rights issue will be on the basis of one new ordinary share for every 13 ordinary shares held as of the close of business on Wednesday, July 16, 2025.“The qualification date for the Rights Issue is July 16, 2025,” the bank noted.The move is part of UBA’s strategy to strengthen its capital base and support its expansion and growth objectives across Africa.(NAN)
From Attah Ede, Makurdi
Over 4000 substandard and illegal schools have been uncovered and ready to be shut down across the state.The chief press secretary to the Benue State Governor, Tersoo Kula disclosed this at a press conference in Makurdi.Kula was reacting to a statement credited to former commissioner for education and knowledge management, Prof.
Dennis Ityavyar, said that Governor Alia has stabilised the educational sector since coming on board two years ago. ”No more strikes. Schools are moving on smoothly and in a bid to bring teaching and learning closer to the people and address the problem of younger school leavers in securing admission into tertiary institutions, the governor has established a new university.”The establishment of University of Agriculture Science and Technology Ihugh, Vandeikyaa LGA is real..The governor has secured the licence, acquired land and made appointments of principal officers.”This is to address the issue of providing admission for the teeming Benue indigenes seeking admission into Nigerian universities.”The Governor has employed over 9700 teachers to energize public primary schools in the state. Apart from the fact that our primary schools would be energized, 9700 youths have been taken off the streets.”The government of governor Alia has also paid the 38 months earned allowance owed to lecturers at the Moses Adasu University, formerly Benue State University Makurdi”, he said.He maintained that renovation of government secondary schools and colleges across the state are ongoing where ongoing construction of new structures is in some public primary and secondary schools to ensure conducive learning environment.”Public primary schools teachers are trained on ITCs to enhance the teaching and learning of information and technology innovations at elementary level.”This government has been able to identify over 4000 substandard schools in the state and have secured insurance cover for Benue State students and paid bursary allowances in law school students in the state”, Kula stated.Benue Moves to Domesticate National Policy on IDPsThe Benue State Government has commenced a validation process to domesticate the newly federal government policy on Internally Displaced Persons (PDP) in the State.Commissioner for Humanitarian and Disaster Management in the State, Aondowase Kunde, stated that upon stakeholders’ inputs into the Internally Displaced Persons policy document, it would be fully launched.He added that the aim is to improve the welfare of the displaced population in the state.Kunde stated this during a two policy validation meeting held at Benue Hotels Makurdi yesterday.He maintained that the document which was passed into law by the national assembly needed to be domesticated in the state in line with the peculiarities of the state.In his remarks, the chairman, House Committee on Humanitarian and Disaster Management, Benue State House of assembly, James Abu Umoro, noted that the state has suffered so many natural and man-made disasters that it requires the policy to be domesticated in the state.Umoru insisted that the house will not hesitate to pass the document into law when presented by the executive arm of government.He said the issue of IDP in the state is a concern for everyone and must be given accelerated consideration at any point in time.On his part, House committee chairman on SDG and Donor Agencies, Peter Uche, noted that in most cases, communities have suffered attacks for more than ten years.”Let me therefore, call on all to support the implementation of the policy document for the displaced to return to their ancestral homes to start their normal farming and business activities”, he stated.The Director General, Sustainable Development Goals, John Akuse, who spoke at the occasion, said the validation of the IDP policy document is vital in paving the way for the displaced population to be adequately taken care of regarding their peculiar needs.
By David Torough, Abuja
President Bola Tinubu has approved the renaming of the University of Maiduguri, Borno State as Muhammadu Buhari University.
“May we now adopt the University of Maduguri as the Muhammadu Buhari University,” Tinubu said at the close of a special session of the Federal Executive Council held to honour Buhari at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja on Thursday.
The President paid a glowing tribute to Buhari, describing him as “a good man, a decent man, an honourable man” whose legacy of discipline, patriotism and moral uprightness would endure for generations.
Tinubu said although the late president was not without flaws, his unwavering commitment to national service set him apart.
“President Buhari was not a perfect man, no leader is, but he was, in every sense of the word, a good man, a decent man, an honourable man.
“His record will be debated, as all legacies are, but the character he brought to public life, the moral force he carried, the incorruptible standard he represented, will not be forgotten.
“His was a life lived in full service to Nigeria, and in fidelity to God,” he said.
Reflecting on Buhari’s time in office and his long military and civil service, Tinubu praised the late leader’s simplicity, humility, and stoic resistance to the trappings of power.
He said, “He stood, always, ramrod straight; unmoved by the temptation of power, unseduced by applause and unafraid of the loneliness that often visits those who do what is right, rather than what is popular.
“His was a quiet courage, a righteousness that never announced itself. His patriotism lived more in action than in words.”
Tinubu also recounted their political alliance, which culminated in the historic 2015 elections that marked Nigeria’s first democratic transfer of power from one ruling party to another.
“We stood together, he and I. Alongside others drawn from across the political spectrum, regions and tongues, we formed an alliance that enabled Nigeria to experience its first true democratic transfer of power from one ruling party to another.
“When he was sworn in as our party’s first elected President, he led with restraint, governed with dignity, and bore the burdens of leadership without complaint,” he said.
The President expressed admiration for Buhari’s post-office modesty, noting that he returned to his hometown, Daura, without seeking to wield influence behind the scenes.
“When his tenure ended, he returned to Daura; not to command from the shadows or to hold court, but to live as he always had, never seeking to impose his will but content to let others carry the nation forward.
“Even in death, he maintained the serenity that defined him in life: not a sigh, not a groan, just a quiet submission to the will of God. Such was the man Nigeria has lost. Such was the man for whom our nation now mourns,” he added.
Tinubu thanked the Inter-Ministerial Committee and Katsina State Governor, Dikko Radda, for organising a befitting state funeral within 48 hours, describing it as a “profound honour” to lead the burial procession in Daura.
He concluded his tribute with a prayer: “Mai Gaskiya, the People’s General, the Farmer President, your duty is done. May Almighty Allah forgive his shortcomings and grant him Aljannah Firdaus. May his life continue to inspire generations of Nigerians to serve with courage, conviction, and selflessness. President Buhari, thank you. Nigeria will remember you.”
Buhari died on Sunday, July 13, at the age of 82.
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