News
Gun-wielding Abuja Pastor, clamped into detention *Policeman, on trial, faces dismissal, for lending gun
Things are presently not at ease with Uche Aigbe, the House on the Rock, Abuja Chapter, pastor, who was pictured on Sunday with an Ak-47 slung on his shoulders, as he mounted the pulpit to preach to church faithful, an outing that not only confounded the worshippers, but has equally generated a lot of dust in the larger polity.
The pastor, is currently cooling his feet in police detention where he is speaking to operatives, is reportedly being detained on the orders of Sadiqq Abubakar, Commissioner of Police, Federal Capital Territory Command, alongside one Musa Audu, a police Inspector, said to have handed him the weapon.
In fact, the offending police officer said to be currently facing an orderly room trial for the supposed indiscretion, could be facing the exit door from the police system, as he has reportedly been recommended for dismissal to the Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba.
The PUNCH, reports that the gun-wielding Pastor, is being detained at the facility of the IG Intelligence Response Team (IG-IRT), at the Force Intelligence Bureau, Garki, Abuja, on Monday, after the incident, where he was said to have mounted the pulpit carrying an AK 47 rifle during the second service, said to be notable for frequently recording a high turnout of the congregation who come from different parts of the FCT.
Brandishing the gun, the pastor picked his way to the altar as many members of his congregation exchanged glances trying to understand what was happening.
Though it was not known whether the gun he brandished was loaded or not, an unflinching Aigbe, was said to have walked up to the lectern, aware of the tension his action had created, without looking at his worshippers, with a quip as he tried to open his bible:“Some people are looking for my trouble. And I came here prepared.
“Today, there are some pastors with gift of divination who go about ripping people. This is why we should carry our ‘guns’ and defend ourselves. I will particularly be coming very soon for some of you sleeping in the church.”
The paper also quoted sources, who said the police immediately swung into action over the development, quoting him as saying: “We got the report at about 10:50 pm on Sunday on PUNCH Newspaper’s online publication that Pastor Uche Aigbe of the House on the Rock Church mounted the pulpit with an AK 47 rifle. Our discrete investigation later revealed that a police officer, Inspector Musa Audu, while on church duty on the same day had released his rifle to the pastor without permission.”
Another source, said to have confirmed that the officer had been detained and would be facing orderly trial, added: “The Inspector has been arrested. When he was questioned, he noted that he gave the gun to the pastor for demonstration purposes during church service.
“Audu has now been detained alongside the pastor. But the FCT CP has submitted a recommendation to the IG for Audu’s dismissal, and he will be facing an orderly room trial soon.”
The latest development, the paper reported, is coming as sources within House on the Rock Church revealed that the church founder, Pastor Paul Adefarasin, was not been happy with Aigbe concerning the situation, and may likely transfer him out of his current station in Abuja, adding that some senior church members had been angry with the Pastor throughout Sunday, and that the cleric had also not been himself since the matter, which he intended to be private, went public.
Force spokesman, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, using his official Twitter message to react to the issue on Sunday and Monday, said the police had commenced an investigation into the incident, IG had ordered the CP, FCT to handle the case.
“We have requested the video of the service to hear what the pastor was saying. How did he get the gun, maybe from a security agent. He has been invited by the CP FCT. The IGP has ordered the CP to handle it and revert, so that Nigerians will know what transpired. Thanks,” Adejobi tweeted on Monday.
Tweeting on Sunday, he said, “If it’s true, the pastor will have a case to answer. AK47?? It falls under prohibited firearms in Nigeria, and no one bears it except an officer of the law, and not all of them have the right, only selected security operatives, but no individual has the right to bear it.”
The Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi says he is aware of some evil designs against himself and his supporters in the coming months.
The former Anambra State governor disclosed this in a statement released on his verified Twitter handle on Monday, May 29, 2023.
The release of the statement coincided with the inauguration of Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as Nigeria’s President at the Eagle Square in Abuja.
I am aware of some evil designs being hatched against me and my supporters in the coming months. Efforts will be made to taint my image. Campaigns of calumny are being perfected to defame my character and diminish my hard-earned integrity.
— Peter Obi (@PeterObi) May 28, 2023
See full statement:
For all Nigerians, this is a time for deep reflection. It is also a time to re-examine our assumptions, even as we reaffirm our hopes. Let us calmly review our aspirations, in order to recalibrate our expectations and pin down the causes of our missed opportunities and disappointments.
We stand at that critical moment in time when, as a people, we must collectively come to grips with the reality of our injured destiny as well as the reasons for that injury. It is for us to reassess our plight as a young democracy and identify clear pathways to a better and greater future for us all. As we await the verdict of the election tribunal, I urge all Nigerians to use this opportunity to renew their commitment to the Nigerian ideal. That ideal remains noble and worth every sacrifice we can make.
Nigeria remains our only patrimony and it is a patrimony we must protect, rather than violate. We have no other nation but this, so let us remain committed to rescuing and rebuilding it.
The judiciary is part of the democratic enterprise and a critical governance tool for determining the propriety of the decisions and actions of every citizen and every institution of state. To that extent, and for that reason, I urge everyone to treat it with the respect and dignity it deserves.
We expect that the Nigerian judiciary will use the election cases now before it to reaffirm its independence and integrity. It has to do so, for all our sakes and for itself.
Nigerians must, therefore, remain peaceful and law abiding. No matter the depth of anyone’s reservations about what is going on in the polity today, no matter the real and imagined provocations, and no matter the disagreement out there, we should remember that this will not last forever.
I remain committed, and untiring, in my determination to work with like-minded fellow Nigerians to end the curse of missed opportunities and squandered hope that has become our lot here.
I will never shrink from that original commitment, because I firmly believe that we must change from the present politics of criminality, and corruption, in order to make a new Nigeria possible.
I call on fellow Nigerians, especially the youths to remain steadfast, calm, patient, and peaceful. Our journey may be long and difficult but it is worth it in every way. Victory is assured.
We have to work together to move our beautiful country from corruption and criminality to a center of productivity rather than aimless consumption.
I am aware of some evil designs being hatched against me and my supporters in the coming months. Efforts will be made to taint my image. Campaigns of calumny are being perfected to defame my character and diminish my hard-earned integrity.
These schemes will aim at degrading our support base and confusing the public. But, no evil campaign will alter the substance of my character; nor diminish my patriotic commitment to a better Nigeria. It is about the future of our youths. it is about ending the Years of Locust.
In all of this, I thank Nigerians, our great party (LP) and the media. The latter, as the Fourth Estate of the realm, has remained a trusted ally.
This Estate must continue to guide our people on the immense promise of a future in a new Nigeria.
God bless Nigeria and protect the troops keeping us safe in this season of vaulting insecurity.
Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria. –PO
Channels
James Faleke, lawmaker and Secretary of the now defunct All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council (APC-PCC), has revealed that President Bola Tinubu would unveil members of his cabinet within 60 days.
Channels Television, which quoted him as saying on Monday, at the inauguration of of Tinubu and Kashim Shettima as president and vice-president of Nigeria was underway at the Eagle Square in Abuja, said the President, would , unveil his cabinet as soon as possible.
Faleke, who promised that the new President would bring a different approach to power, was quoted as saying: “Of course, within 60 days, that’s what the law says. He can announce anytime but I just know he must do it within 60 days.”
Eradication of terrorism, waging war against corruption and battling the crippling poverty in Nigeria, would form the fulcrum of a new Nigeria President Bola Tinubu, says he would strive to put in place as his new government began hours ago after assuming the reins of power as the 16th President, after Muhammadu Buhari handed over to him at an elaborate ceremony at the Eagle Square, Abuja, on Monday.
Vowing to defend Nigeria from all forms of terror, as well as end extreme poverty in the country, Tinubu, told Nigerians: “I will do that through job creation and food security and end to extreme poverty. I will ensure that corruption is tacked by strenghtening anti-corruption agencies.”
He also promised that his administration would discourage corruption through the introduction of a credit culture, stating: “Our government will continue to take proactive steps such as championing a credit culture to discourage corruption while strengthening the effectiveness and efficiency of the various anti-corruption agencies.”
It was also on a day the President, who had during his presidential campaigns, promised Nigerians that he would remove subsidy on petroleum products, made good his words by announcing suspension on them, adding that the era of payments on fuel was gone, as the 2023 Budget made no provision for fuel subsidy “and more so, subsidy payment is no longer justifiable.”
Obi to Nigerians: Don’t be despaired, your mandate won’t be lost
Tinubu will unveil Ministers in two months *He’ll be different – Faleke
Tinubu: My stand on corruption, insecurity *How I’ll banish poverty in Nigeria
In the military, INEC boss and his team would be executed – Bode George *Why put Tinubu’s boy in charge of IT?
I’ve paid a price for joining Obi to rescue Nigeria – Datti-Ahmed *Weeps on TV
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