Egyptians awake to uncertainty as Adly Mansour is sworn in as New Interim President

Egyptians awoke up on Thursday to an uncertain new political order, a day after the military deposed and reportedly detained the country’s first democratically elected president, put a top judge in his place and suspended the constitution. The coup that toppled Mohamed Morsy as president on Wednesday prompted hundreds of thousands of people in the streets across Egypt to both applaud and assail the generals’ decision to step into the country’s political fray for the second time in a little over two years. It also left a series of significant questions unanswered. What will happen to Morsy, who insists he remains the country’s legitimate leader, and his key supporters? Will the sporadic outbreaks of violence…

Bombs still litter Igboland …43 Years After Civil War

It has been revealed that no fewer than  50,000 latent bombs and landmines could be found in the South East and South-South Nigeria.  They are remnants of explosives deployed during the Biafra/Nigeria war. which lasted from July 1967-January 1970. The disclosure came from the Media Director and Field Administrator of the Nigerian Mines Action Centre Owerri, Dr. Emeka Uhegbu, who spoke with The Leader recently. However he did not explain how they came about the number. The spokesman of the centre explained that more than four decades after the war ended, the region that was the theatre of war then, have remained unsafe as unexploded bombs, landmines and other forms of explosives have continued to…

Reckless comment: Arrest Buhari now - CAN demands

President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, has called on security agencies to arrest a former Head of State and presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change in the 2011 general elections, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd.) saying he constitutes a security risk. The call, he said, followed comments by Buhari condemning the military operations in the three northern states of Yobe, Borno and Adamawa, where a state of emergency has been declared by the Federal Government. The association, according to a statement by the Special Assistant to the CAN President on Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Kenny Ashaka, on Tuesday, also described as unfortunate Buhari’s decision to throw his weight “behind…

Soldiers leak tactics to Boko Haram …says Chief of Army Staff

Disloyal soldiers were warned to stop fraternizing with enemies of the state. Some military men have been leaking information to the Boko Haram Insurgents, who the military are battling in three North east states. Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, who issued the warning, revealed that the attack on a Mali-bound military convoy in Kogi State early this year followed the leaking of information on their movement to the insurgents. Two soldiers were killed after the ambush on 190 troops who were travelling through Kogi State enroute Kaduna on their way to Mali on January 19. Factional Boko Haram group Ansaru claimed responsibility for the attack. Gen. Ihejirika said a suspect who is…

War against Boko Haram begins – We’ll crush them – Defence Headquarters

With a massive deployment of troops and equipment, the army, navy, air force and other security agencies have begun operation to “rid the nation’s border territories of terrorists’ bases and operations. President Jonathan had in a nationwide broadcast admitted that the Federal Government no longer controlled the entire territory of Nigeria. Three states where the emergency action was declared share common borders with Cameroon, Chad and Niger.  These border communities have become bases for training, insurgency and other criminal activities against Nigeria. The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) gave indication that the time was up for the Boko Haram sect and other terrorists groups in the country as it announced the deployment of massive troops to take…

Tribute To Monsignor Dr. Georg Huessler Of Caritas Fame

Only a few months into the Nigeria- Biafra war, the imbalance in the disposition of military hardware was already definitive in favour of Nigeria. U.S.S.R and Britain literally flung the gates of their armouries wide open for Nigeria to satisfy her wish-list of weapons on credit, while Biafra struggled to purchase obsolete bolt- action rifles at cut-throat black market prices. It was the peak of the cold war, the ideological conflict between the Communist East bloc (Russia and her allies) and the Capitalist West bloc (U.S and allies). To survive as a country then, you needed to belong to one bloc. Biafra belonged to none. An ideological orphan! Having denied Biafra access to weapons to…