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Obajana Cement: Group chides Dangote Company over plot to destabilize Kogi

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Labour Party Chieftain support call by TY Danjuma for communities to arm and defend themselves Danjuma Attah, Gombe A chieftain of the Labour Party and Governorship candidate in the 2024 general elections, Keftin E Amuga, has reiterated to his people in Billiri, the call by General TY Danjuma on communities to stand up and defend themselves against terrorists and land grabbers. Keftin Amuga made the call in a press statement sent to our Correspondent and gave reasons for reiterating TY Danjuma’s call to the continued attack on his people in Billiri LGA of Gombe State Amuga, also the Gombe State Chairman of the Middle Belt Forum, while condemning what he described as the barbaric, wicked and inhumane Easter Monday Suicide truck attack on the Christians faithful of Billiri, condoled families of victims of the attack. According to him, “this deliberately planned attack which left five dead and 13 injured is about the third one, two of which were deadly. Essentially the attack was born out of pure hatred and intended to maximize deadly impact on Christian faithful’s of Gombe State”, he stated. Recalling two similar attacks on Christian in the State in the past, the Easter celebrations in 2019 and the Christmas celebrations of 2024 when Christians were attacked by moving vehicles, Amuga said the recent attack during this year’s Easter celebrations indicated a pattern in the attack. He said, “the third and most current one which occurred on the 21st April, 2025 by another fanatic named Usman Muhammad aged 28, a resident of Afghanistan Quarters (a name synonymous with the hometown of the Late Taliban leader Osama Bin Laden) killed over 5 persons and injuring scores of Christian youth during the Easter Monday celebration. “Yet the Police PPRO came up with another narrative that was uncalled for after a very shallow investigation into the incident. “The question is, why this recurring decimal? Ironically while investigation was supposed to be going on, some government security outfits had already announced the conclusion of the investigation and the arrest of some Tangale youth for alleged vandalism at the scene of the suicide attack, insisting that the incidence was only a vehicular accident! This is very sad indeed”, he decried. Questioning government’s actions towards the Tangale people of the State, Amuga said, “When one recalls the unprovoked incident, with the state Government, following the aftermath of the Tangale Chieftaincy crisis in 2021, whereby the Tangale people were denied the choice of Dr. Musa Idris as the Mai (Chief) Tangle, because he is a Christian and further arrested some youth, some of whom have died in prison and others are rendered useless due various illnesses while still in prison, one begins to wonder, which of the law is in use in Gombe State, the Nigerian constitution or the Sharia Law? “Accordingly I have no option than to support and call on the ethnic nationalities, the Christians and Tangale people in particular, that in their own interest, they should comply immediately with the Clarion call made in May 2018 and repeated this April 2025 by our Elder Statesman, Gen. Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma, that all indigenous ethnic nationalities of the nation should stand up to defend themselves and their God given land, otherwise very soon, there may be no land and communities to call our own”. He then called on all the elected and appointed political representatives who have benefitted in one way or the other from the support and votes of the Tangale people, the Christian population and the indigenous ethnic nationalities of Gombe State, to as a matter of duty required by the Oath of their various offices, prevail over Governor Inuwa Yahaya to put an end to the discrimination, persecution and maltreatment against the Tangale people, the Christians and the indigenous ethnic nationalities of Gombe State. He also called for the release without delay of all prisoners of conscience and politics, related to the Tangale Chieftaincy crisis and the recent Easter Monday Suicide Truck attack, recognize Dr. Musa Idris, as recommended by the Tangale Traditional Council, as the legitimate Choice for the stool of the (MAI) Chief of Tangale, thereby rendering unnecessary the present court case and Institute without delay a “Truth and Reconciliation committee” to fence-up the deeply fractured population down the line along Tribal and religious cleavages. End.

Power outage causes chaos in Spain and Portugal A massive power cut hit large parts of Spain and Portugal on Monday, causing widespread chaos and disruption. The outage left millions of people without electricity, while internet and phone networks were also down. Trains were cancelled and evacuated in some regions, and traffic lights stopped working as delays mounted at airports. With shops, homes and restaurants plunged into darkness – and some people stuck in lifts – Spain’s electricity network said by mid-afternoon that restoring power could take several hours. Spain’s political leaders said the cause of the disruption was still unknown but there was no indication of a cyber attack. When did the outage begin? The first reports of an outage began around midday (10:00 GMT) on Monday and its impact quickly escalated. As the scale of the disruption became clear, residents of Madrid were warned to stay put, keep off the roads and not to call emergency services unless “truly urgent”. A Spanish operator said power restoration would take up to 10 hours, while Portugal’s power firm REN said getting back to full power could take up to a week. Queues formed at cash machines as card payments were affected by the outage, and there were reports that some petrol stations are closed. Spanish media reported that some hospitals had implemented emergency plans, including halting routine work, news agencies reported. By early evening and after several hours of blackouts, residents in some parts of the country reported the lights are back on. Power was being restored “in several areas of the north, south and west of the [Iberian] peninsula”, the Spanish grid operator said. The authorities in Spain and Portugal are still trying to work out what caused the power cuts. “There are no indications of any cyberattack” at this point, the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, said. As panic spread earlier in the day, residents of Madrid were warned to stay off the roads. In a video on social media, the mayor of the Spanish capital, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, told residents to “keep their movements to an absolute minimum and, if at all possible, to remain where they are. We want to keep all roads clear.” People should only call emergency services if it is “truly urgent”, he said. “If emergency calls go unanswered, go to the police and the fire stations in person, where they will try to deal with all the emergencies.” What has been the impact? The country’s nuclear power plants automatically stopped when the blackout hit, and the Spanish oil company Moeve said it halted operations at its oil refineries. Flights were also impacted, with delays and cancellations at some airports. EasyJet said it was experiencing some disruption to operations at Lisbon and Madrid. It said the situation was “fluid” and told customers to check local advice. Aviation data company Cirium said 96 flights departing from Portugal – and 45 from Spain – had been cancelled. Businesses have been severely affected. Some Ikea branches in Spain switched to backup generators and stopped customers from entering its stores. The Madrid Open Tennis organisers have decided to cancel Monday’s event. Elsewhere, Andorra and parts of France were also hit, but the Balearic and Canary Islands were not affected.

The management of Dangote Cement has been accised of plotting to disrupt the peace and security in Kogi State over the government’s insistence to recover its shares in the company.

The group, a Coalition for Truth and Justice (CTJ) said Dangote failed to address issues raised by the Kogi State government.

The group’s Secretary-General, Comrade Musa Attah alleged that the company has resorted to name-calling and underarm tactics ultimately causing turmoil and threat to the security.

Attah who spoke at a press conference, said: “The absurd has been playing out since the Kogi State Government recently sealed the cement company in Obajana, Kogi state. The company was originally Obajana Cement Company Plc but then renamed Dangote Cement Company Plc, and its ownership is at the centre of the ongoing contention between the state and Dangote Industries.

“Let us state from the onset that we are shocked that rather than addressing the weighty issues contained in the documents that the Kogi State Government has released to the public, Dangote Industries rather resorted to name-calling and underarm tactics. The worrisome component of this underarm tactics is that Dangote Industries is yet to satisfactorily refute the claims by the Kogi state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Kingsley Femi Fanwo, that the company held a clandestine meeting at which it plotted to sabotage the state using federal might.

“The dangerous plot includes actions to disrupt the peace and destabilize Kogi State over the insistence of the state to recover its shares in the company. These planned activities by the Dangote Group of Company will have far reaching effects. Considering that the plan of using Dangote trucks to block the flow of traffic for instance would hamper recovery from the fuel shortages caused by the disruptions from the flooding of road that had prevented haulage of petrol.

“Dangote Industries has been peddling stories that suggest that its operation in Obajana was the product of a mob action sanctioned by the Kogi State Government. But we have discovered that there were fora, including a public hearing and a judicial commission of inquiry into the conduct of public officers in Kogi state between May 29, 2003, and January 27 2016. Liman Salihu Esq. was counsel for Dangote Cement plc/Obajana Cement Company at the inquiry. The report of that inquiry, which found evidence of shady dealings, recommended the constitution of a specialized technical committee to evaluate the entire transaction on Obajana Cement Company Limited.

“The resulting Specialized Technical Committee on the Evaluation of the Legality of the Alleged Acquisition of Obajana Cement Company Plc by Dangote Cement Company Limited concluded that the transfer of Obajana Cement Company Plc to Dangote Industries Limited was invalid, null, and void. That Committee’s report went on to ask the Kogi State Government to take steps to recover Obajana Cement Company Plc now changed to Dangote Cement Company Plc situated in Obajana Kogi state. It further recommended that the state government should recover all accrued dividends with interest while canceling existing Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) issued to Dangote Industries.

“We noted the several criminal behaviour of Dangote Industries, which is not surprising knowing that this is the modus operandi of this criminal enterprise in all the sectors in which it plays and across all the jurisdiction where it operates. This unwholesome behaviour includes securing tax holiday from a past administration in Kogi state when in reality a state government cannot grant such waiver as this the prerogative of the Federal Government. Dangote Industries obtained loans to the tune of N63 billion using the C of O of Obajana Cement Company, then tried to obtain a fresh C of O (one that would merge three existing C of O that it has already used as collaterals). To put this in perspective, a fresh C of O would have left the lending banks holding on to worthless papers while the Kogi state government would have lost all claims to the stolen cement company.

“So desperate is Dangote Industries that even its application for the new C of O was adjudged to have not followed due process especially when it is also glaring that state government retains the right to mineral sites that it is mining raw materials for cement manufacturing from”.

The group, therefore, advised the company to “halt further attacks on the people and government of Kogi”, adding that if the company thinks that it has a claim to Obajana Cement Company plc, in spite of the documents released by the state government, it should go to court.

“We warn that on no account should Dangote trucks obstruct traffic flow in any part of Kogi state. Even if any of its truck suffers a malfunction it must tow it to a conducive location within 30 minutes in order not to cause a gridlock. In addition to resolving the ownership issue and reclaiming unpaid dividends owed the people, we urge the Kogi State government to use the window of the ongoing crisis to identify and address other issues for which Dangote Industries must be held to regulatory account. This includes matters like damage to the environment and taking responsibility for the health damage its operations might have caused residents of communities that are contiguous to its operations.

“We advise other states where Dangote Industries operate to urgently review transactions entered into with the company by their past administration so that they can remedy any identified lapses since the company has proven to be addicted to policy manipulation and government capture.

“We urge the Federal Government to take steps to restore citizens’ confidence and prove that Dangote Industries does not own Nigeria as the company’s officials were captured on tape as saying at the meeting where they plotted to sabotage Kogi state and by extension the whole of Nigeria.

“We urge the people of Kogi State to unite along party, ethnic and sectarian lines to support their government in addressing the excesses of a monster that has too often made their state a killing field in its pursuit of profit”.

The CGGT, however, vowed to continue to monitor the development in Kogi state and will respond as necessary.

It warned that should “Dangote Industry continue its acts of aggression against the people and government of Kogi sate, we shall start campaign for Nigerians to boycott the company’s products and also target organizations that use its products as raw materials”.

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Labour Party Chieftain support call by TY Danjuma for communities to arm and defend themselves Danjuma Attah, Gombe A chieftain of the Labour Party and Governorship candidate in the 2024 general elections, Keftin E Amuga, has reiterated to his people in Billiri, the call by General TY Danjuma on communities to stand up and defend themselves against terrorists and land grabbers. Keftin Amuga made the call in a press statement sent to our Correspondent and gave reasons for reiterating TY Danjuma’s call to the continued attack on his people in Billiri LGA of Gombe State Amuga, also the Gombe State Chairman of the Middle Belt Forum, while condemning what he described as the barbaric, wicked and inhumane Easter Monday Suicide truck attack on the Christians faithful of Billiri, condoled families of victims of the attack. According to him, “this deliberately planned attack which left five dead and 13 injured is about the third one, two of which were deadly. Essentially the attack was born out of pure hatred and intended to maximize deadly impact on Christian faithful’s of Gombe State”, he stated. Recalling two similar attacks on Christian in the State in the past, the Easter celebrations in 2019 and the Christmas celebrations of 2024 when Christians were attacked by moving vehicles, Amuga said the recent attack during this year’s Easter celebrations indicated a pattern in the attack. He said, “the third and most current one which occurred on the 21st April, 2025 by another fanatic named Usman Muhammad aged 28, a resident of Afghanistan Quarters (a name synonymous with the hometown of the Late Taliban leader Osama Bin Laden) killed over 5 persons and injuring scores of Christian youth during the Easter Monday celebration. “Yet the Police PPRO came up with another narrative that was uncalled for after a very shallow investigation into the incident. “The question is, why this recurring decimal? Ironically while investigation was supposed to be going on, some government security outfits had already announced the conclusion of the investigation and the arrest of some Tangale youth for alleged vandalism at the scene of the suicide attack, insisting that the incidence was only a vehicular accident! This is very sad indeed”, he decried. Questioning government’s actions towards the Tangale people of the State, Amuga said, “When one recalls the unprovoked incident, with the state Government, following the aftermath of the Tangale Chieftaincy crisis in 2021, whereby the Tangale people were denied the choice of Dr. Musa Idris as the Mai (Chief) Tangle, because he is a Christian and further arrested some youth, some of whom have died in prison and others are rendered useless due various illnesses while still in prison, one begins to wonder, which of the law is in use in Gombe State, the Nigerian constitution or the Sharia Law? “Accordingly I have no option than to support and call on the ethnic nationalities, the Christians and Tangale people in particular, that in their own interest, they should comply immediately with the Clarion call made in May 2018 and repeated this April 2025 by our Elder Statesman, Gen. Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma, that all indigenous ethnic nationalities of the nation should stand up to defend themselves and their God given land, otherwise very soon, there may be no land and communities to call our own”. He then called on all the elected and appointed political representatives who have benefitted in one way or the other from the support and votes of the Tangale people, the Christian population and the indigenous ethnic nationalities of Gombe State, to as a matter of duty required by the Oath of their various offices, prevail over Governor Inuwa Yahaya to put an end to the discrimination, persecution and maltreatment against the Tangale people, the Christians and the indigenous ethnic nationalities of Gombe State. He also called for the release without delay of all prisoners of conscience and politics, related to the Tangale Chieftaincy crisis and the recent Easter Monday Suicide Truck attack, recognize Dr. Musa Idris, as recommended by the Tangale Traditional Council, as the legitimate Choice for the stool of the (MAI) Chief of Tangale, thereby rendering unnecessary the present court case and Institute without delay a “Truth and Reconciliation committee” to fence-up the deeply fractured population down the line along Tribal and religious cleavages. End.

22 hours ago
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Power outage causes chaos in Spain and Portugal A massive power cut hit large parts of Spain and Portugal on Monday, causing widespread chaos and disruption. The outage left millions of people without electricity, while internet and phone networks were also down. Trains were cancelled and evacuated in some regions, and traffic lights stopped working as delays mounted at airports. With shops, homes and restaurants plunged into darkness – and some people stuck in lifts – Spain’s electricity network said by mid-afternoon that restoring power could take several hours. Spain’s political leaders said the cause of the disruption was still unknown but there was no indication of a cyber attack. When did the outage begin? The first reports of an outage began around midday (10:00 GMT) on Monday and its impact quickly escalated. As the scale of the disruption became clear, residents of Madrid were warned to stay put, keep off the roads and not to call emergency services unless “truly urgent”. A Spanish operator said power restoration would take up to 10 hours, while Portugal’s power firm REN said getting back to full power could take up to a week. Queues formed at cash machines as card payments were affected by the outage, and there were reports that some petrol stations are closed. Spanish media reported that some hospitals had implemented emergency plans, including halting routine work, news agencies reported. By early evening and after several hours of blackouts, residents in some parts of the country reported the lights are back on. Power was being restored “in several areas of the north, south and west of the [Iberian] peninsula”, the Spanish grid operator said. The authorities in Spain and Portugal are still trying to work out what caused the power cuts. “There are no indications of any cyberattack” at this point, the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, said. As panic spread earlier in the day, residents of Madrid were warned to stay off the roads. In a video on social media, the mayor of the Spanish capital, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, told residents to “keep their movements to an absolute minimum and, if at all possible, to remain where they are. We want to keep all roads clear.” People should only call emergency services if it is “truly urgent”, he said. “If emergency calls go unanswered, go to the police and the fire stations in person, where they will try to deal with all the emergencies.” What has been the impact? The country’s nuclear power plants automatically stopped when the blackout hit, and the Spanish oil company Moeve said it halted operations at its oil refineries. Flights were also impacted, with delays and cancellations at some airports. EasyJet said it was experiencing some disruption to operations at Lisbon and Madrid. It said the situation was “fluid” and told customers to check local advice. Aviation data company Cirium said 96 flights departing from Portugal – and 45 from Spain – had been cancelled. Businesses have been severely affected. Some Ikea branches in Spain switched to backup generators and stopped customers from entering its stores. The Madrid Open Tennis organisers have decided to cancel Monday’s event. Elsewhere, Andorra and parts of France were also hit, but the Balearic and Canary Islands were not affected.

22 hours ago
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