47 presidential candidates for Benin Republic's election

The Republic of Benin National Electoral Commission (CENA) said 47 candidates had filed their papers to contest Benin's presidential election scheduled for February 28.

It said in a release on Wednesday in Cotonou, the country's capital, that among the candidates are economic operators, former ministers, Members of Parliament and two army generals.

CENA said Forces for Emerging Benin (FCBE), the coalition of outgoing president, Boni Yayi, is presenting Lionel Zinsou, current prime minister, as its candidate.

It said the opposition Union for the Nation (UN) is fielding Erick Houndete, second vice-president of the Beninese Parliament while the Party for Democratic Change (PRD) of Mr Adrien Houngbédji, who the opposition mobilised to elect as Speaker of Parliament in May 2015, is backing the candidature of the prime minister.

CENA said the list of candidates would be transmitted to the Constitutional Court for validation.

It said further that there are 4,726,923 voters, with 99 per cent of them in the country.

CENA said the 14 days of campaign would be from February 12 to 26.

"The second round of the election would be held on March 13 if no candidate secures more than half of the votes in the first round," it said.

Although the campaign has not been officially launched, several potential candidates or their supporters are going round the country mobilising voters.

Governor says one person died of Lassa fever, commissioner says nobody died

THERE was a disagreement between Benue State governor, Chief Samuel Ortom and the Commissioner for Health, Dr (Mrs) Cecilia Ojabo, over the outbreak of Lassa fever in the state.

The governor, while fielding questions from State House correspondents in Abuja, on Tuesday, confirmed that the disease had hit the state with the death of one person.

As of the time the governor was saying this in Abuja, the commissioner was also briefing newsmen in Makurdi, the Benue State capital, where she said the state was free of Lassa fever and that no one died of the disease.

The commissioner explained that the only person admitted at the State University Teaching Hospital, Makurdi, though manifested symptoms related to Lassa Fever, the final report from the victim's blood samples done in Edo State showed that it was negative.

While the governor has advised residents to stop eating rodents at the moment, the commissioner allayed the fear of residents of the state over the issue.

Army establishes new division in northern Borno, plans another division in south south

The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai, on Wednesday, announced the establishment of the Nigerian Army 8 Division located in the northern part of Borno State.

Buratai disclosed this while delivering a lecture entitled: `Nigerian Army: Challenges and Future Perspectives,’ at the National Defence College, Abuja.

He said the establishment of the new division was part of a strategic plan by the army to boost military operations against terrorists, particularly in areas around the Lake Chad Basin.

It would be recalled that the Nigerian Army had in August 2013 established the 7th Infantry Division in Maiduguri to boost the military’s counter-insurgency operation in the North-East.

Though details of the new establishment were not disclosed, Buratai said the division would soon become fully operational with logistics and manpower deployments.

The chief of army staff also said that plans were underway to establish another division to be known as the Nigerian Army 6 Division with headquarters in the South-South region of the country.

He said the establishment of the new divisions was part of a strategic plan to improve on the Nigerian Army’s operational capabilities in the face of emerging threats to national security.

He said the establishment of the additional formations would bring the number of divisions in the Nigerian Army to eight.

"Emerging threats to the security of our nation which have been aggravated by the proliferation of armed groups have added to the task of the military in protecting the lives of Nigerians and the integrity of its territory.

"The focus of the Nigerian Army today is to find lasting solutions to these contemporary threats posed by the activities of the armed groups and their allies.

"The Nigerian Army, therefore, remains poised to the extermination of the Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria. Today, they can no longer hold any territory as it used to be in the past, that is why they have resorted to the use of IEDs to hit soft targets.

"We have established the 8 division located in the northern part of Borno specifically to clear the area of the remaining terrorists elements while another division, 6 Division, will be established in the South-South," he said.

He said the Army planned to increase its personnel strength from its present 100,000 strength-force to slightly above 200,000 in the next eight years.

According to him, 12,000 personnel would be recruited in 2016 alone to fill the vacancies created as a result of the new establishments in the army.

Unbelievable! Dismissed, serving soldiers, policemen fight for escort jobs

• I get N1000 per trip – fake soldier

By Evelyn Usman and Faith Ake

CLAD in a complete Military regalia, 24-year-old Ugochukwu Iheanacho would not have passed for a fake soldier to any discerning person . From his stern looks to his  less warm approach towards ‘bloody civilians’,residents of  Muyibi street in Olodi Apapa area of Lagos,where he residents , concluded he was a personnel of the Nigerian Army  and accorded him the honour due to a Military personnel.

Fake soldier

But alas!  The father of one was discovered to have  merely been parading himself as a Soldier. His true identity was revealed last week following his arrest over  an alleged theft at a friend’s apartment.  A mild drama was said to have played out when policemen came to effect his arrest. Eye witnesses told Crime Alert that Iheanacho who boasted that he could not be arrested by the policemen, put up resistance, during which he allegedly fought with the policemen.

Escort of vehicles

But he was over powered and whisked to the station , where it was discovered during interrogation that he was not a soldier as claimed  afterall. In this interview with Crime Alert, Iheanacho said he used the uniform to escort vehicles to different parts of Lagos and beyond. He stated that he was not alone in this, revealing that both dismissed Military personnel and Policemen  converged somewhere around Orile area of the state ,where drivers come to pick them as escorts. He further disclosed that fight sometimes broke out between the ‘hustlers’ during argument on who should accompany  a particular vehicle.

According to the Imo state born , “ I used the uniform as escort. I do not rob with it. I am not alone in this. If you go to Orile as early as 4am, you will see both dismissed soldiers and policemen including those still in service and Merchant Navy  officials waiting for their turns. Drivers pay us N1000 for each trip. Some even escort vehicles outside Lagos State. The amount for that is much. But I do not go beyond Okokomaiko  because I am familiar with policemen along the route”.

Asked where he got the inform, he replied “A friend named Orji, gave it to me. He is serving in the Nigerian Army  He thought I was a naval personnel. Initially I was riding motorcycle. But my motorbike was seized by policemen.

Commercial bus drivers

I tried to use my Secondary School Certificate to get a job in order to take care of my wife and six months old baby  but that turned out to be a herculean task. I could also not raise money for any trade, as there was nobody to loan me some money “I was left with no other option than to join others at Orile to ‘hustle’. Nothing in life comes easy. At Orile, where we  converge  to be hired by commercial bus drivers , if one did not come early, he won’t get any bus to join as an escort.

At times, fight broke out between  dismissed and serving soldiers over who to join which vehicle. For instance,  if one did not come early,  another person would take over  the absentee’s regular bus. But trouble usually erupted when the new person  would refuse to leave the space for the original escort when he comes back.

Again, if one did not come early, another person automatically  joins the absentee’s regular bus driver. However when the absentee arrives, he would expect the new  person to vacate the front seat  for him. This situation usually resulted in a heated argument and possible fight. The fight is mainly because of the amount one gets.

“ For instance , we get N1000 per trip. At times, one could cover  five or even ten trips per day , depending on how lucrative business was.  Hiring our services is an added advantage for drivers because it prevents them from paying policemen on the way . It also prevents them from paying dues to agberos( motor park touts )

“I have written the Nigerian Army examination twice but did not pass. Things was going on well for me , as i could put food on my family’s table with the money i made as an escort, until my friend set me up. He accused me of being among those who burgled his apartment,thereby leading to my arrest “. The suspect according to the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Owoseni , would be charged to court.

Breaking: FIFA fires secretary general Valcke

FIFA has fired secretary general Jerome Valcke, who is under investigation for misconduct, world football’s governing body said Wednesday.

“The FIFA emergency committee decided, on 9 January 2016, to dismiss Jerome Valcke from the position of FIFA secretary general with immediate effect,” said a statement.

The Frenchman, effectively the number two behind president Sepp Blatter, who has been banned for eight years, was suspended on September 17 over allegations that he helped sell 2014 World Cup tickets on the black market