Latest news with #Sokoto
BBC News
22-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Nnamdi Kanu lawyers play video of T.Y Danjuma, DG DSS, Hope Uzodinma for court to support dia case
Counsel for Nnamdi Kanu don play videos for court wey show retired Army General T.Y Danjuma and di Director General of DSS Adeola Ajayi wia dem dey tell di public make dem rise up and defend diasef from terrorists and bandits. Paul Erokoro (SAN) tender dis videos for court dis Wednesday, during di conclusion of cross examination of di second prosecution witness - Mr BBB - for di ongoing trial of Kanu, leader of di Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob). Ipob na group wey dey fight for separation for Nigeria, but goment don declare dem as a terrorist organisation and charge Kanu dia leader wit terrorism. Kanu don dey for di custody of di Department of State Services (DSS) since June 2021. Inside one of di videos, oga T.Y Danjuma dey tok for wetin look like academic gathering bicos e bin wear one academic gown. E tok say: "Di armed forces no dey neutral, dem dey collude wit armed bandits and terrorists who dey kill pipo. Dem dey give dem information, dem dey cover dem. And if una dey depend on di armed forces to stop di killings, una go all die one by one." Di second video show di DG of DSS, Adeola Ajayi as e dey give speech for one event, and e give example wit one community wey im name na Azare for Bauchi State, wia e took say dem fight back against Boko Haram terrorists wey attack dem and kpai all of dem, "and since den no attack don ever happen for Azare again". For di video, Ajayi give anoda example of one community - Tafawa Balewa for Sokoto State - who bin mobilize and stop bandit attacks for dia community, kpai all di bandits and take dia weapons. "You no expect say di army and police and security forces go secure everywhere for Nigeria. E dey impossible. We gatz get di community to rise and defend diasef and di time to do am na now," di DG tok for di video. Ajayi also say make di community come to di DSS and dem go give dem di necessary approval and strategy to organise diasef against attacks. Di last video wey Kanu lawyers play na wia di guvnor of Imo State hope Uzodinma tok say: "If anybodi tell you say Ipob dey responsible for di killings for Orlu zone, e no dey correct. Na wicked politicians dey sponsor di killings for Orlu." Uzodinma, for di video, ask politicians to embrace di spirit of Easter and comot hand for violence and killings fo di state. Afta di videos don play, Erokoro ask di witness wetin e think. Mr BBB ansa say e support wetin di DG of DSS tok one hundred percent, bicos e dey advice di pipo to get approval bifor dem go mobilise to defend diasef. On di TY Danjuma video, di witness say e hear wetin di retired General tok, but e no go make any comment about am. "You dey aware whether di DSS arrest Danjuma afta e make dis comments?" Erokoro ask, and BBB say e no dey aware of any arrest. For di video Hope Uzodinma, oga BBB say e belive say di guvnor dey refer to political killings for Imo State, but di killings wey IPOB members dey carry out cut across security pipo, civilians and evribodi including politicians. During re-examination, prosecution lawyer Adegboyega Awomolo ask di witness to clarify di difference betwin Amotekun and di Eastern Security Network wey be di security outfit dat Nnamdi Kanu and Ipob bin set up. BBB explain say dem no be di same tin bicos Amotekun dey recognised by law sake of say na all di state houses of assembly for di southwest make legislation to pass am into law, and e also dey registered, but ESN no dey like dat. 'Panel of enquiry on End SARS no indict Ipob' Also for di court session, Nnamdi Kanu lawyer, Erokoro tender di report of di Lagos state judicial panel of enquiry on restitution for victims of the end sars protest as evidence. Dis na afta e ask di witness e dey aware of di End SARS protest and di report of di panel wey investigate di protest. Mr BBB say im dey aware of di protest and di report. "You dey aware say di report bin indict security agencies for dat protest?" Erokoro ask, and BBB say e no dey aware. Erokoro den bring out di panel report and give am to di witness to read out di title and to check weda di document na certified true copy. Afta dat, e apply to tender di document in evidence. Trial Judge, James Omotosho admit di evidence and mark am as exhibit PWO, afta Awomolo say e no get any objection. Also durin di cross-examination, Kanu lawyer ask di witness weda di video of ESN members wey dem bin play for court show say any of di alleged ESN pipo bin carry arms. BBB say e no see any of dem wit gun, but arms fit dey inside dia clothes wey pesin no see. "What kind of arm fit dey concealed like dat," Erokoro ask am, and e reply say pesin fit hide pistols, daggers and even grenade inside dia cloth. Six days for prosecution to close dia case - Judge Afta di cross-examination and re-examination, Justice Omotosho say e dey determined to give accelerated hearing to di matter so dat e no go enta di period wen judges go start dia vacation by late July. E ask both counsels to discus and pick six days inside di next two weeks, so dat di prosecution go call all dia witness and close dia case. "No matter di number of witness wey di prosecution get, if dem no call all of dem and close dia case within dis six days, I go deem dia case closed," Omotosho tok. Nnamdi Kanu lead counsel, Kanu Agabi, and Adegboyega Awomolo wey be di lead prosecutor later agree on May 28, 29 and June 6, 16, 18, 19, 2025. Justice Omotosho adjourn di matter to di dates for continuation of hearing and possible closing of prosecution case. Brief Background Nnamdi Kanu na di leader of Ipob, group we dey fight for di independence of di southeast region of Nigeria. He also be di owner of Radio Bifra wey dey for London wia e dey broadcast im secessionist messages. Di Nigeria goment bin first arrest and arraign Kanu for court in 2015, on top accuse of terrorism, treason, and plan to scatter di goment. Court later grant am bail on health grounds in 2017, but e run comot for Nigeria afta e claim say soldiers invade im house to kill am and dem kill 28 pipo. Kanu continue to dey spread im message on top Radio Biafra and for im social media handles. In June 2021, security forces arrest Kanu for Kenya and bring am by force to Nigeria to continue im trial. Kanu and im lawyers dey claim say e dey illegal how dem kidnap am from Kenya and rendition am by force. Di matter start again bifor Justice Binta Nyako; a total of 15-count charges na wetin di goment sama Kanu. Justice Nyako later strike out eight of di charges, remaining di following seven: Kanu lawyers take di matter to di court of appeal wia dem strike out all di charges and discharge and acquit Kanu. However, di Supreme Court rule say Kanu get case to ansa and dem return di matter to di High Court. Kanu later tok say e no get confidence on Binta Nyako to deliver Justice for di matter, and di judge las las wash her hand comot. Dem reassign di case to Justice James Omotosho and e start afresh as Nnamdi Kanu plead not guilty to di charges.
BBC News
13-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Villagers tori how thousands turn refugees, communities become ghost town as notorious bandit Bello Turji give dem eviction notice for Sokoto
Pipo from several villages for Isa Local Government area for Sokoto State, northern Nigeria, don leave dia homes after dem say notorious bandit leader tell dem to comot witin few days or im go attack. Di bandits tell dem to comot afta dem attack some villages for di local government on Saturday. Di villages wey di bandits attack and sack for dia communities na Sududdubu, Galadima, Tsulawa, and Bafarawa, wey be village of former oGvnor of Sokoto State, Attahiru Bafarawa. Reports say fear make some pipo for di communities comot go inside main town for Isa local goment for Sokoto, while odas run go Shinkafi local goment for Zamfara state as refugees. According to one Bashir Altine, wey dey live around Isa local goment area, e tok say di bandits attack na revenge for recent army attacks on bandits for di area. "Bello Turji and im boys dey in control of Sabon Birni and Isa local goments, and dem don dey terrorise dat area for years." "I fit tell you say more dan 30 villages don become ghost communities sake of di fear for dia lives," Altine tok. E add say, "na di bandits demself come direct to those villages come tell dem say make dem comot." Anoda resident for one of di villages tell BBC Pidgin say na Bello Turji pipo come dia village dey collect anytin wey get value and tell dem say make dem comot before dem come back. 'Afta soldiers comot, Bello Turji pipo come our village dey collect anytin wey get value from our hand. And dem tell us say make we comot if we wan live.' E add say, 'Di bandits kill seven to eight pipo during dia attack, while 20 odas bin injure.' "We don already tell di authority our situation sake of say we no get any security personnel for our village." According to di pipo wey comot from dia villages, dem tok say dem don dey live in fear for di past years becos of plenty attacks from bandits for dia region for Sokoto State, northern Nigeria. Police tok-tok persin for Sokoto, Rufa'i Ahmad, tell BBC Pidgin say di police no receive any official complaints from dat area, but e tok say deployment dey for di area. "Regarding dia mata, we never receive any official complaints from di pipo for dat area," Ahmad tok. But e add say since last week, Thursday and Friday, deployment don dey for dat area. Ahmad add say, "Since before dis incident wey pipo dey tok, deployment don already dey dat area. Sometin new fit happun wey we no know, dat na why e dey very important for residents to update us on wetin dey happun for dia areas." "As I dey now, we dey work and collaborate wit oda security personal to tackle insecurity kasala for dat region" E urge pipo for areas wey dey experience insecurity to dey update security pipo with informant so dem fit help dem well.
Washington Post
13-05-2025
- Climate
- Washington Post
Nigeria has a food security problem as water for crops is harder to find
KWALKWALAWA, Nigeria — After two decades of working his farm in northwestern Nigeria, Umaru Muazu now struggles to find water for his crops. A murky puddle is all that remains of a river near his 5-hectare farm and those of others in this community in arid Sokoto state. Because the 62-year-old Muazu can't afford to dig a well to keep crops like millet and maize from withering, he might abandon farming.
The Independent
13-05-2025
- Climate
- The Independent
Nigeria has a food security problem as water for crops is harder to find
After two decades of working his farm in northwestern Nigeria, Umaru Muazu now struggles to find water for his crops. A murky puddle is all that remains of a river near his 5-hectare farm and those of others in this community in arid Sokoto state. Because the 62-year-old Muazu can't afford to dig a well to keep crops like millet and maize from withering, he might abandon farming. 'Before, with a small farm, you could get a lot," he said. Climate change is challenging agriculture in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country. With long dry spells and extreme heat, water bodies are drying because the arid season is becoming longer than usual. The wet season, though it can dump excessive rain, is short. It's fresh pain in a country where the World Food Program says 31 million people already face food insecurity. Efforts to recover from one climate shock are overlapped by the next, said WFP spokesperson Chi Lael. The challenges faced by farmers in the north, who account for most of what Nigeria eats, are affecting food prices and availability in the booming coastal south that's home to the megacity of Lagos. More than 80% of Nigeria's farmers are smallholder farmers, who account for 90% of the country's annual agricultural production. Some work their fields with little more than a piece of roughly carved wood and their bare hands. Farmers are facing low yields because the government has failed to develop infrastructure like dams to help mitigate the effects of climate change, said Daniel Obiora, national president of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria. There is little data available on the drying-up of smaller water bodies across the north. But farmers say the trend has been worsening. In Adamawa state, water scarcity caused by higher temperatures and changing rain patterns has affected over 1,250 hectares (3,088 acres) of farmland, disrupting food supply and livelihoods, Nigeria's National Emergency Management Agency said last year. Over-extraction of water and deforestation are other factors contributing to northern Nigeria's drying rivers, according to Abdulsamad Isah, co-founder of local Extension Africa nonprofit that often works with farmers. Elsewhere in Sokoto state, Nasiru Bello tilled his farm to cultivate onions without assurance of a meaningful harvest. With nearby rivers and wells drying up, he has resorted to pumping groundwater for the farm that provides the sole income for his family of 26. But the cost of pumping amid soaring gas prices has become unbearable. 'The plants do not grow well as it did,' he said. Nigeria is forecast to become the world's third most populous nation by 2025, alongside the United States and after India and China. With Nigeria's population expected to reach 400 million by 2050, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization has been encouraging climate-smart agriculture to help ensure food security, including drip irrigation, which delivers water slowly and directly to roots and helps conserve water, instead of traditional irrigation systems that flood entire fields. 'There should be more orientation for farmers about climate change,' said Yusuf Isah Sokoto, director of the College of Environmental Science at Sokoto's Umaru Ali Shinkafi Polytechnic. At least two-thirds of the trees in the state have been lost due to deforestation, contributing to rising temperatures, Sokoto said. Data from the government-run statistics agency show that local agriculture contributed 22% of Nigeria's GDP in the second quarter of 2024, down from 25% in the previous quarter. While the trend has fluctuated in recent years, experts have said agricultural production still does not reflect growing government investment in the sector. Household food imports, meanwhile, rose by 136% from 2023 to 2024, government statistics show. The decreasing farm yields are being felt elsewhere in Nigeria, especially the south. In Lagos, the price of several items grown in the north have nearly doubled in the last two years, partly due to decreasing supplies. A head of cabbage grown in the north is selling for 2,000 naira ($1.2), nearly double its price a year ago and more than five times the price in Sokoto. Nigerian authorities acknowledge the problem. Many farmers who once harvested up to 10 tons are hardly able to get half that these days, agriculture minister Aliyu Abdullahi said earlier this year. Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu and his government have touted agriculture as a means for economic prosperity. Shortly after he took office in May 2023, Tinubu's government declared a food security state of emergency and announced plans to activate 500,000 hectares of farmland in Nigeria's land banks, which are mostly in the north. The land banks, however, are yet to be activated. ___ For more on Africa and development: The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
Associated Press
13-05-2025
- Climate
- Associated Press
Nigeria has a food security problem as water for crops is harder to find
KWALKWALAWA, Nigeria (AP) — After two decades of working his farm in northwestern Nigeria, Umaru Muazu now struggles to find water for his crops. A murky puddle is all that remains of a river near his 5-hectare farm and those of others in this community in arid Sokoto state. Because the 62-year-old Muazu can't afford to dig a well to keep crops like millet and maize from withering, he might abandon farming. 'Before, with a small farm, you could get a lot,' he said. Climate change is challenging agriculture in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country. With long dry spells and extreme heat, water bodies are drying because the arid season is becoming longer than usual. The wet season, though it can dump excessive rain, is short. It's fresh pain in a country where the World Food Program says 31 million people already face food insecurity. Efforts to recover from one climate shock are overlapped by the next, said WFP spokesperson Chi Lael. The challenges faced by farmers in the north, who account for most of what Nigeria eats, are affecting food prices and availability in the booming coastal south that's home to the megacity of Lagos. More than 80% of Nigeria's farmers are smallholder farmers, who account for 90% of the country's annual agricultural production. Some work their fields with little more than a piece of roughly carved wood and their bare hands. Farmers are facing low yields because the government has failed to develop infrastructure like dams to help mitigate the effects of climate change, said Daniel Obiora, national president of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria. There is little data available on the drying-up of smaller water bodies across the north. But farmers say the trend has been worsening. In Adamawa state, water scarcity caused by higher temperatures and changing rain patterns has affected over 1,250 hectares (3,088 acres) of farmland, disrupting food supply and livelihoods, Nigeria's National Emergency Management Agency said last year. Over-extraction of water and deforestation are other factors contributing to northern Nigeria's drying rivers, according to Abdulsamad Isah, co-founder of local Extension Africa nonprofit that often works with farmers. Elsewhere in Sokoto state, Nasiru Bello tilled his farm to cultivate onions without assurance of a meaningful harvest. With nearby rivers and wells drying up, he has resorted to pumping groundwater for the farm that provides the sole income for his family of 26. But the cost of pumping amid soaring gas prices has become unbearable. 'The plants do not grow well as it did,' he said. Nigeria is forecast to become the world's third most populous nation by 2025, alongside the United States and after India and China. With Nigeria's population expected to reach 400 million by 2050, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization has been encouraging climate-smart agriculture to help ensure food security, including drip irrigation, which delivers water slowly and directly to roots and helps conserve water, instead of traditional irrigation systems that flood entire fields. 'There should be more orientation for farmers about climate change,' said Yusuf Isah Sokoto, director of the College of Environmental Science at Sokoto's Umaru Ali Shinkafi Polytechnic. At least two-thirds of the trees in the state have been lost due to deforestation, contributing to rising temperatures, Sokoto said. Data from the government-run statistics agency show that local agriculture contributed 22% of Nigeria's GDP in the second quarter of 2024, down from 25% in the previous quarter. While the trend has fluctuated in recent years, experts have said agricultural production still does not reflect growing government investment in the sector. Household food imports, meanwhile, rose by 136% from 2023 to 2024, government statistics show. The decreasing farm yields are being felt elsewhere in Nigeria, especially the south. In Lagos, the price of several items grown in the north have nearly doubled in the last two years, partly due to decreasing supplies. A head of cabbage grown in the north is selling for 2,000 naira ($1.2), nearly double its price a year ago and more than five times the price in Sokoto. Nigerian authorities acknowledge the problem. Many farmers who once harvested up to 10 tons are hardly able to get half that these days, agriculture minister Aliyu Abdullahi said earlier this year. Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu and his government have touted agriculture as a means for economic prosperity. Shortly after he took office in May 2023, Tinubu's government declared a food security state of emergency and announced plans to activate 500,000 hectares of farmland in Nigeria's land banks, which are mostly in the north. The land banks, however, are yet to be activated. ___ For more on Africa and development: The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
