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1,617 civil servants with fake employment letters uncovered by FG

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The Head of Civil Service of the Federation, Folashade Yemi-Esan, Tuesday said that a total of 1,618 civil servants with fake employment letters were uncovered by the government.

She also noted that the government was working towards an upward review of the Duty Tour Allowances of civil servants.
Speaking with selected journalists in Abuja ahead of the 2023 Civil Servants Week, she noted that a committee was working towards salary harmonization in the civil service.

“The Presidential Committee on Salary Harmonization is working to review salaries to reduce the disparity. Earlier, 40 per cent of Basic salary approved by FEC as Peculiar allowance with effect from January 2023. Also, we are working towards Upward Review of Staff Duty Tour Allowance.

“On the issue of procurement of insurance cover for the federal government employees from 9th February 2023 to 8th February 2024; and payment of backlog of death benefits to over 1500 deceased officers to their beneficiaries from 2021 to date. On the third pillar of FCSSIP 25, the Office of the Head of Service has been working towards the implementation of HR Module of IPPIS with a view to bridging the identified gaps in the system. As you are aware, prior to the introduction of the current mechanisms put in place to drive the implementation of the IPPIS, the system was bedevilled with considerable leakages and wastes as well as the incessant infiltration of ‘ghost workers’ etc.

“Consequent upon the identified loopholes in the IPPIS, the Office introduced control mechanisms. Notable among others was the inauguration of a Committee on Enrolment of Newly Recruited Civil Servants on the 1st of March, 2021. Hence, this and other initiatives in accelerating the roll-out of the HR Module of the IPPIS has brought about the following: Detection of 1,618 fake/illegal employment letters; Continuous suspension of Officers from IPPIS platform for not uploading their records; Verification of 69,854 officers across the core MDAs in FCT and the six (6) geo-political zones.”

Meanwhile, the Accountant General of the Federation, Oluwatoyin Madein, on Tuesday noted that there won’t be a delay in payment of July 2023 salaries for civil servants. She made this clarification during the meeting with the HOS Abuja.

It was earlier reported that there were delays in the payment of May 2023 and June 2023 salaries.

Madein noted that the delay in May and June 2023 salaries were due to some bottlenecks beyond the control of the Office of the Accountant General. She, however, noted that modalities have been put in place to ensure that salaries are paid as and when due.

She said, “For May and June, we encountered some difficulties beyond our control but I can assure you that everything has been put in place to ensure that July 2023 salaries are not delayed and will be paid any moment from now.”

Crime

BREAKING: Nnamdi Kanu Sacks All Lawyers, To Represent Himself

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The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has informed the Federal High Court in Abuja that he will personally conduct his defense in the ongoing terrorism case brought against him by the Federal Government.

This declaration came during Thursday’s proceedings, following the withdrawal of his legal team, led by senior advocate Kanu Agabi (SAN), alongside other Senior Advocates of Nigeria who had been representing him.

The courtroom was thrown into mild surprise when Mr. Kanu told Justice James Omotosho that he intended to take charge of his own defense, stating his decision to act as his own counsel moving forward.

Justice Omotosho, in response, offered to assign a court-appointed lawyer to assist him, but Mr. Kanu declined the offer, insisting that he would proceed without any legal representation.

The court subsequently adjourned to allow Mr. Kanu to prepare for his defense under the new arrangement.

Mr. Kanu, who has been in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since his re-arrest and extradition to Nigeria in 2021, faces multiple charges bordering on terrorism, treasonable felony, and incitement.

The self-proclaimed IPOB leader has consistently denied all allegations, maintaining that his movement’s agitation for the independence of Biafra is rooted in self-determination and not in violence or terrorism.

The case, which has drawn both national and international attention, is expected to resume in the coming weeks as Mr. Kanu opens his defense without a legal team.

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Indonesia to Repatriate British Grandmother on Death Row, Says Official

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Indonesia will sign an agreement on Tuesday to repatriate two British nationals convicted of drug-related crimes, including Lindsay Sandiford, a grandmother sentenced to death, according to a senior Indonesian government source.

“The practical arrangement will be signed today. The transfer will be done immediately after the technical side is agreed,” the official told AFP, naming Sandiford and Shahab Shahabadi, 35, as the individuals to be returned to the UK.

Sandiford was sentenced to death in 2013 after she was caught smuggling cocaine worth over $2.1 million into Bali from Thailand. The drugs were discovered concealed in a false bottom of her suitcase. Shahabadi, arrested in 2014, is currently serving a life sentence for separate drug offences.

Although the Indonesian source listed Sandiford’s age as 68, public records indicate she is 69.

A joint press conference with Indonesian officials and the British ambassador to Indonesia was scheduled for later Tuesday, according to the Coordinating Ministry for Legal, Human Rights, Immigration and Correctional Affairs.

Tabloid Attention and Personal Testimony

Sandiford’s case received widespread attention in the UK after she admitted to the offences but claimed she was coerced by a drug syndicate that threatened to kill her son. In a 2015 article published in The Mail on Sunday, Sandiford wrote from prison about her fear of imminent execution:

“My execution is imminent, and I know I might die at any time now. I could be taken tomorrow from my cell. I have started to write goodbye letters to members of my family.”

Originally from Redcar, in northeast England, she also wrote that she planned to sing the Perry Como hit “Magic Moments” before facing the firing squad.

During her time in prison, Sandiford reportedly became close friends with Andrew Chan, one of the “Bali Nine” Australian drug smugglers who was executed in 2015.

Policy Shift on Repatriation

The planned transfer follows recent moves by the Prabowo Subianto administration to repatriate foreign nationals serving harsh sentences for drug crimes. In December 2024, Mary Jane Veloso, a Filipina who spent nearly 15 years on death row, was allowed to return home. In February 2025, Serge Atlaoui, a French national, was repatriated after 18 years on death row.

Indonesia, known for having some of the world’s strictest drug laws, last carried out executions in 2016, when three Nigerian citizens and an Indonesian were executed by firing squad. As of early November 2025, more than 90 foreign nationals remain on death row in the country, all for drug-related offences.

The British Embassy in Jakarta declined to comment, directing inquiries to the Indonesian government.

Indonesian authorities have recently signalled the potential resumption of executions, after nearly a decade-long de facto moratorium.

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Bauchi: Boy,17, plucks sister’s eyes for money ritual

The victim’s father told investigators that the suspect lured his daughter, who shares the same parents, into the bush, where he attacked her and forcefully plucked her eyes.

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Bauchi State Police Command, has arrested a teenager, Auwal Dahiru, aged 17, and five others for having forcefully plucked her sister’s eyes for money ritual.

His accomplishes are Mohammed Rabiu, aged 19; Saleh Ibrahim, aged 20; Nasiru Muhammad of Soro town, Ganjuwa LGA; Hassan Garba of Soro town, Ganjuwa LGA; and Garba Dahiru, aged 43, of Soro town.

The Command PPRO, CSP Mohammed Ahmed Wakil, in a statement made available to journalists in Bauchi on Monday, stated that Auwalu lured his seven-year-old sister to the bush, where her eyes were forcefully removed for ritual purposes.

The PPRO added that on 17 October 2025, at about 18:00 hours, one Muhammad Adamu of Bayan Dutse Village, Wailo, Kubi Ward, Ganjuwa LGA, Bauchi State, reported at the Soro Divisional Police Headquarters that on the same date at about 20:00 hours his daughter, Rukayya Muhammad, aged seven years, was attacked with the intention of killing her and an attempt was made to pluck out her eyes.

“Upon receipt of the report, a team of detectives led by CSP Aliyu Mohammad Goni, Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Soro Division, immediately dispatched to the scene, where the suspects were arrested.

At the same time, the victim was quickly evacuated to Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH), Bauchi, for medical treatment.”

A preliminary investigation’s findings revealed that the seven-year-old girl, Rukayya Muhammad, tragically lost her eyesight permanently after her elder brother allegedly removed both of her eyes in a money ritual, reportedly in a desperate attempt to gain wealth.

The victim’s father told investigators that the suspect lured his daughter, who shares the same parents, into the bush, where he attacked her and forcefully plucked her eyes.

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