The experts insist that unless urgent and very drastic steps are immediately taken, the crisis may worsen as floods continue to ravage farmlands in the northern states.

Ten states, namely Kaduna, Kano, Jigawa, Nasarawa, Taraba, Bauchi, Zamfara, Yobe, Sokoto and Kebbi are highly affected, following heavy rainfall in the region.

An agricultural investor in Toro LGA of Bauchi State, Bello Yakazsi, urged the government to declare an emergency in the food sector across the country.

Yakazsi, said, “While the situation we are currently experiencing in the North can be said to be a peculiar one, it is high time that the Federal Government declared a state of emergency in the country’s agricultural sector.

“We have limited powers over the strange and dynamic play of Mother Nature but the little efforts we can muster to save ourselves from hunger and starvation must be put in place by all the government agencies. This is not the time for politics.”

As a result of the effect of the twin threat of flood and drought, some farmers in Kano State, especially those within the 14 LGAs that are at a high risk of flooding as predicted by the National Emergency Management Agency, have continued to express fears about possible flooding in the state and have begun praying against flooding as rainfall persists across the 44 Local Government Areas.

One of the farmers in Rimin Gado, Mallam Musa Sani, told The PUNCH, “Since the beginning of August, we’ve been experiencing heavy rainfall, which lasts for long hours, on a daily basis.

“As you know, too much rainfall does not allow crops to grow speedily. So, we fear that once flood occurs, farmers are at the risk of losing their crops.”

An official of the State Emergency Management Agency, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the matter, confirmed to The PUNCH on Saturday that “even though the agency has yet to receive the comprehensive report on the flood from our assessment team, we are very worried about the situation but, we cannot act without any official report.”

Meanwhile, the Secretary of the Jigawa State Emergency Management Agency, Dr. Haruna Mairiga, told our correspondent in Dutse that over 2,744 hectares of farmlands had been washed away by flood in Jigawa State. The floods ravaged 12 LGAs, namely Buji, Kafin Hausa, Auyo, Hadejia, Birniwa, Malam Madori, Garki, Taura, Gwaram, Dutse, Kiyawa and Jahun.

“No fewer than 2,744 hectares of farmlands have been washed away by the flood across the 12 affected LGAs. From August 1 to 13, 2024, the state witnessed intermittent downpours leading to several incidences of flood and the death of 21 persons as well as the destruction of farmlands and houses,” Mairiga said.

He added that farmers in the state had lost over N1bn of farm produce and crops to flood.

Mansur Musa, Chairman of Kiyawa LGA, one of the worst-hit LGAs, said many farmlands and villages, as well as the LGA secretariat, have been submerged by water.

In Zamfara State, Shehu Shinkafi, a farmer on the outskirts of Shinkafi LGA told The PUNCH that many farmers were expecting a bumper harvest following the stability of water in their farms.

However, he expressed fears following the emergence of heavy rains in the state in recent times.

According to a report by NEMA, more heavy rainfall is expected in the state.

The agency had predicted that eight LGAs in the state ­- Bungudu, Gummi, Gusau, Bakura, Maradun, Talata-Mafara, Shinkafi, and Zurmi – would be affected by flooding during this year’s rainy season.

This was disclosed by the agency’s Director-General, Zubaida Umar, in Gusau during the sensitisation programme for the 2024 downscaling of flood early warning strategies for early actions.

Also, the Nigerian Hydrological Services Agency predicted that in this year’s annual flooding outlook, 31 states with 148 LGAs would be within the high flood-risk areas, while 35 states, including the FCT and 249 LGAs, were considered within the moderate flood-risk areas. The remaining 377 LGAs were forecasted for the low flood-risk areas.

The Force spokesperson, Muyiwa Adejobi, said 873 other protesters have been arrested by the police, including a tailor, identified as Ahmed Bello, who was arrested with a large number of flags in Kano.

This comes as President Bola Tinubu directed security agencies to crack down on those flying Russian flags in the country.

Gen. Christopher Musa, the Chief of Defence Staff, said this on Monday while briefing State House correspondents after the National Security Council meeting.

All the service chiefs, including Vice President Kashim Shetima, Nuhu Ribadu, National Security Adviser; and Kayode Egbetokun, Inspector-General of Police; attended the meeting.

He said the service chiefs briefed the President on the current security situation in the country.

He added that the briefing was necessitated by the ongoing nationwide protests, which resulted into violence in some states.

“Initially, when the protest started, they said it was a peaceful protest, but we have realised that there are individuals willing to take advantage of it to cause mayhem.

“And we can see clearly what has happened since it commenced. Criminals have taken over, with a lot of looting, stealing, and all sorts happening,” he said.

He said the situation became worrisome as foreign flags were flown within Nigeria’s sovereignty, and that was totally unacceptable.

“We are warning in clear terms, and the President has also said we should convey this: We will not accept anybody, any individual flying any foreign flag in Nigeria.

“That is a treasonable offence, and it will be viewed and treated as such. So, nobody should allow himself to be used by any individual,” said the general.

He said those flying foreign flags were mainly children who were being pushed to do so.

“We’re following up with those who are sponsoring them. Some people are pushing them because the flags were also made. We have identified those behind it, and we are going to take serious action against them.

“The President is clear in his instructions that we do not accept anyone who wants to disrupt the peace and tranquillity of Nigeria,” he said.

He said all security agencies were ready to defend democracy and the nation’s sovereignty.

“We will not accept anyone taking any action, for whatever reason, to want to push for any change of government.

“Democracy is what we stand for; democracy is what we will continue to defend,” he said.

The CDS said he had earlier stated that the military would step in if the protests got out of hand.

“You can see that some subversive elements are pushing individuals to carry Russian flags in Nigeria; that is crossing the red line, and we will not accept that.

In a national broadcast on Sunday, President Tinubu pleaded with the organisers of the nationwide protest to suspend the action as it had gone violent in some states with the attendant loss of lives and destruction of property.

Speaking at the Strategic Communications Interagency Policy Committee joint press briefing, in Abuja, on Monday, Adejobi stated that the police were on the trail of other suspects, especially the sponsors of the protesters waving the Russian foreign flags.

Protesters in their numbers had been seen waving Russian flags around the busy Kano-Zaria Road, Hadejia Road and near the Nyanya bridge, a suburb of Abuja, among others.

Aside from protesting the economic hardship occasioned by the removal of fuel subsidy, the demonstrating youths also called for the intervention of the Russian President, Vladimir Putin.

Viral photos and videos showed demonstrators waving the flags as they chanted in Hausa, “We don’t want bad government.”

On Monday, protesters in Kaduna were also seen waving the Russian flags and chanting in Hausa, “Welcome, Russia; Welcome, Russia.”

The protesters regrouped at the Stadium Roundabout before they embarked on a procession at 10:15am Monday morning, marching along the Junction Road towards Ahmadu Bello Road and chanting in Hausa, “Tinubu ze soka’ kaa’sa,” which translates to, “Tinubu must step-down.”

They hailed military personnel, who patrolled the metropolis, chanting, “Tinubu yaa’so’ka, mu’na so soja”, meaning, “Tinubu step down, we want soldiers.”

A few of the protesters waved the Russian flag and chanted the Hausa refrain, “Bama so”, meaning “We don’t want hunger.”

Another group of the protesters tore the Nigerian flag into shreds.

When one of our correspondents asked one of the protesters why they were flying the Russian flag, he said they wanted Nigeria to embrace the Russian government’s style of leadership like some of the countries in the West African region had already done.

“The American and British governments are the ones teaching all our leaders how to kill Nigeria’s economy.

“We are tired of them. Nigeria is tired of their wickedness and hypocrisy. So, like Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, we want Nigeria to embrace Russia. We like Russia’s style. They are better than USA and Britain, who have nothing for the people except our leaders, who are benefitting from them,” the protester stated.

Russia, an Eastern power currently mired in a cold war with the West, has been blamed for the unconstitutional changes of government in West African countries Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso and others.

The Department of State Services stated on X.com that it had arrested some tailors sewing the Russian flags in Kano State, adding that some of their sponsors had also been nabbed.

The DSS post read, “Meanwhile, the Service has apprehended some tailors in Kano State responsible for making Russian flags being distributed in the area. Some of their sponsors have also been picked. An investigation is ongoing.”

This comes as some governors in the North held emergency meetings with security operatives to stop the protests, while curfews were imposed in Plateau, Kaduna and Bauchi states as tempers flared after day five of the protest.

As of the time of filing this report, the Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, was leading a Security Council Emergency Meeting at the Government House.

The Governor, while speaking at the opening of the meeting, noted that the meeting became necessary following the destruction of infrastructure in the state.

Representatives of various security personnel in the state, traditional and religious leaders, civil society organisations, youth groups, among others, attended the meeting.

Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, also held an emergency security meeting with heads of security agencies to assess the situation after protesters unexpectedly took to the streets, waving Russian national flags on Monday.

One of our correspondents learnt that following the meeting, the state’s Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, announced a 24-hour curfew for Kaduna and Zaria metropolitan cities to maintain law and order.

The contractors revealed this during the visit of the Minister of Transportation, Saidu Alkali, to the site for an on-the-spot inspection of the project in Kano State on Thursday.

This follows an update from the contractors, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation indicating that the line has been connected to the Zawaciki Dala Dry Port in Kano, the commercial hub of the state.

The minister stated that starting freight operations would extend the lifespan of the nation’s highways and help reduce the number of auto accident-related deaths among Nigerians.

Alkali noted significant progress compared to his first visit and expressed satisfaction with the pace of work.

He also revealed that the project would be divided into segments to facilitate smoother, more efficient, and quicker completion.

He noted, “This is the second leg of my inspection since I took over as the minister of Transportation and the essence of the inspection is to see by myself with a team from the Ministry of Transportation and Engineers from the Railway Corporation and the consultant and the contractors, so that we ensure compliance in term of time and in term of specifications.

But the impression I have from the last visit I came is that the progress is remarkable from what I have seen.

“We came all the way from Kano, we drove on the formation that they did, they are doing the earthwork and the culvert and this is a station where they have started preparing the rail lines and the slippers so that they will use their locomotive to convey the materials on the rail line.”

The minister also said that, “I have just discussed with the contractor, we are going to segment the project by the grace of God. We are going to put Kano-Daura next year and Daura to Maradi in 2026 and Dutse to Kano in 2026.”

He said the lifting of the Forex ban will break the monopoly of the processing and marketing of the grain by local millers.

Alhaji Hassan Yaro, who grows rice in Kano, Jigawa and Borno states, is the Chairman of the Kano Council of Traders and Entrepreneurs.

The Central Bank of Nigeria lifted the foreign exchange restrictions it placed on importers of rice and 42 other items eight years ago.

Alhaji Yaro praised the President Bola Tinubu administration for the lifting of the ban, believing that it would flood the market with the grain and slash its price to an affordable rate for the common man.

“I could remember, rice millers reached an agreement in 2014 with the then President Buhari in Africa House, Kano, when he was campaigning for re-election, to process enough of the grain for the country at an affordable price,”

Yaro stated, “For whatever reason known, perhaps, only to the local millers, the grain, instead of flooding the markets at prices affordable to the ordinary Nigerian, went beyond the reach of most Nigerians in terms of both availability and affordability up to last week when the Forex ban was lifted.”

Alleging that most rice millers do not mean well for the country, he vowed to mobilise as many farmers of the grain as he can across the country to upscale the traditional milling method and pursue wavers for the importation of affordable milling machines from China, should the local millers attempt sabotaging the Tinubu administration on this.

The commission, in the list of winners posted on its Twitter timeline on Monday, said the result that declared the Majority Leader of the House, Alhassan Doguwa as the winner was done under duress.

It would be recalled that Section 65 of the Electoral Act gives the commission the power to void results declared under duress.

INEC had earlier announced Doguwa, a member of the All Progressives Congress, as the winner of the February 25 election in the Doguwa/Tudunwada constituency.

He polled 39,732 votes to defeat the candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party, Yushau Salisu Abdullahi, who polled 34,798 votes.

It was reported Doguwa was arrested for his alleged involvement in the killing of several persons and burning of the Secretariat of New Nigeria People’s Party in the just concluded general election.

Doguwa was on Wednesday remanded in prison custody by a chief magistrates’ court in Kano.

This is even as the death toll has hit 40 in the country.

The NCDC also said the suspected cases in the country are now 523 from five states – Kano, Yobe, Katsina, Lagos, and Osun states.

The Lead of the Diphtheria/Pertussis Technical Working Group in the NCDC, Dr Bola Lawal revealed this at a webinar titled ‘Diphtheria Outbreak in Nigeria: A Case of Re-Emergence or Improved Surveillance,’ monitored by our correspondent on Monday.

Diphtheria is a serious bacterial infection caused by the bacterium called Corynebacterium species that affects the nose, throat, and sometimes, skin of an individual. Diphtheria spreads easily between people through direct contact with infected people droplets from coughing or sneezing, and contact with contaminated clothing and objects.

Dr Lawal said the NCDC was notified of suspected diphtheria outbreaks from Kano state and Lagos state and the rapid response team was deployed to the states on December 12, 2022, where the outbreak was confirmed in the states.

He noted that the agency is currently supporting the response activities in Kano, Katsina, Lagos, Osun, Yobe, and other states.

Giving a breakdown of the epidemiological situation, he said “Kano state has recorded 396 suspected cases with 211 confirmed cases, Yobe state has recorded 78 suspected cases with two confirmed cases; Katsina has 34 suspected cases but no confirmed case yet; Lagos state has recorded 14 suspected cases and two confirmed cases; Osun state has one confirmed case so far.

“We have also recorded 40 deaths with a case fatality rate of 18.5 per cent.

“Of the 216 confirmed cases, 184 (85.2 per cent) were aged two to 14 years from both sexes.”

He added that 40 deaths were recorded in Kano State (38) and Lagos State (two).

On the vaccination status, he said of the 216 confirmed cases, 27  were fully vaccinated, 84 were unvaccinated and 20 were partly vaccinated.

The expert said diphtheria is very much in the country with sub-optimal coverage for the pentavalent vaccine and the burden of diphtheria is under-reported due to poor surveillance and limited capacity for laboratory confirmation.

“For effective control of diphtheria, there must be a high index of suspicion among health care workers, strong laboratory capacity, timely access to diphtheria antitoxin and vaccination against diphtheria.”

In his remarks, the Director General of the NCDC, Dr Ifedayo Adetifa said the fight against disease outbreaks in the country is a joint effort involving everyone.

“Surveillance is everybody’s responsibility, it is not just enough to see. If you see something suspicious, report it to your local government, report to NCDC and then they can investigate.

“The idea is that it allows us to pick up soon after it occurs and provide more time to respond so that we can save lives and reduce suffering and protect our health workers from both known and unknown dangerous pathogens,” Adetifa said.

The skit maker was on Thursday arraigned on charges that border on defamation of character, vulgarity, public nuisance and breach of public peace.

The defamation charge was added to the counts following a complaint filed by two other TikTokers, namely Aisha Najamu and Idris Maiwushirya, accusing Murja of defaming their character, according to Daily Post.

After all the charges were read to the accused by the prosecuting counsel, Lamido Sorondinki, she pleaded not guilty.

Thereafter, Murja’s lawyer Yasir Musa moved an application for her bail, but was opposed by the prosecution counsel.

The Judge, Abdullahi Halliru, ordered that the accused person be remanded in prison custody and subsequently adjourned the case till February 16 for ruling on the bail application.

Murja was recently arrested by the police in Kano on the order of a Shari’a court.

The Presiding Judge, Justice Usman Na’abba, also sentenced Tanko to five years imprisonment for the four-count charges leveled against him.

Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, earlier this year had vowed to sign the death sentence without further delay if given by the court.

Until her death, Hanifa was a pupil of Noble Kids Comprehensive College – a school located in Kwanar ‘Yan Gana in Tudun Murtala Quarters in Nassarawa Local Government Area of the state.

She was abducted by Mr Tanko who demanded ransom from her parents and was reported to have killed her in December last year.

Following the suspect’s arrest, the state government arraigned Tanko alongside two others at the State High Court.

During his trial, Mati who is a resident of Falsa of Tsanyawa local government confessed to committing the crime and accepted his punishment of death by stoning.

However, in his ruling, the presiding judge, Abdullahi Sani Sarki Yola, said that Islamic teachings gave Audu the chance at three different court sittings to reverse his confession in order to save him from the punishment.

The rapist then disclosed that he defiled the minor and was willing to accept his punishment of death by stoning.

InsideOjodu reports that the flag off will be performed virtually by President Muhammadu Buhari from the Presidential Villa in Abuja

According to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) management who disclosed this via its Twitter handle @NNPCgroup on Tuesday Morning, it said flag off begins by 11am at two different locations; Ajaokuta (Kogi St) & Rigachikun (Kaduna St).

The Ajaokuta Kaduna-Kano gas pipeline project is a session of the Trans-Nigeria gas pipeline with a capacity to transport about 2.2Bcf/d of gas per day.

It will boost the domestic gas consumption, industrialization and power generation.

See Tweet below:

#HappeningToday:

Presidential Flag-off of Construction Phase of the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline Project holds today, June 30, 2020 in Ajaokuta (Kogi St) & Rigachikun (Kaduna St) @NGRPresident @GarShehu @FemAdesina @HETimipreSylva @MKKyari @kennieobateru @BashirAhmaad pic.twitter.com/4o5XGo4F6I

— NNPC Group (@NNPCgroup) June 30, 2020