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BREAKING: Pastor Taiwo Odukoya, Senior Pastor of Fountain of Life Church, Is Dead

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The Senior Pastor of Fountain of Life Church, Pastor Taiwo Odukoya, is dead.

His demise was confirmed via the officially Facebook page of the church.

He was said to have died on Monday, August 7, in the United States of America (USA).

His first wife, Pastor Bimbo Odukoya, was among the passengers who boarded the ill-fated Sosoliso Airlines Flight 1145 going to Port Harcourt from Abuja in 2005.

The plane was involved in a crash while landing at Port Harcourt International Airport on December 10th. Although the female cleric survived the initial impact, she died from injuries on December 11, 2005.

He later married another woman, who died in November 2021 after battling with cancer.

May his soul rest in peace.

BIG STORY

DSS Shouldn’t Be Searching Passengers’ Bags At Airports — Aviation Minister Keyamo

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Festus Keyamo, Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, has stated that the Department of State Services (DSS) should not be searching passengers’ bags at airports.

Keyamo made the remarks during the ‘This Morning’ programme on Arise News on Sunday.

“We’ll sit down, but we needed to take this step. DSS, you are not, you have no business searching people’s bags,” he said. “You are profiling individuals who are going out of the country, people who have been, maybe who are under security checks and all that.”

Addressing the issue of long queues at airports caused by multiple agency checks, Keyamo emphasized that customs officials should focus only on items imported into the country, not exported goods.

“All these agencies at our airports are not directly under our control; you have multiple agencies, DSS, NDLEA, Customs, and Quarantine,” he said. “And these were in place before we came into office, and they were not directly under my control for us to begin to remove them from the airport.”

On December 5, the federal government approved measures aimed at addressing the harassment faced by travelers due to the presence of various agencies at airports.

Commenting on the new measures, Keyamo clarified that the goal was not to remove the agencies but to streamline their operations.

“Nobody expects to go through an airport without security checks,” the minister said. “However, the complaints we have consistently received from Nigerians have been complaints bordering on extortion, corruption, and perhaps even the very tardy process of these security checks.”

“There are some practices we have noticed among the security agencies that are not under our control that we think do not align with the best practices all over the world.”

  • ‘JOINT INSPECTION TABLE CAUSED CONGESTION AT AIRPORT’

Using Lagos International Airport as an example, Keyamo explained that passengers enter through the arrival door and immediately encounter a screening machine for their bags.

After the screening, the minister said the bags are then inspected at a joint inspection table, which causes congestion due to space constraints.

He explained that the congestion often leads to blockages extending to the entrance gates.

“What is that joint inspection table? You will see customs, DSS, NDLEA, quarantine, and on and on, all lined up on the same table,” he said. “Each of them telling you to open your bags, and they’ll be dipping their hands into your bags one by one, passing you on to the next agency on the same table, and all, you know, I have not seen this in any part of the world.”

Keyamo said that the ministry has dismantled the joint inspection table at airports.

He explained that the agencies now collaborate with aviation security at the screening machine to avoid repetitive searches.

“So you can then observe all the bags passing through the machine jointly, without harassing anybody,” he said. “That is why the machines are there in the first place. You, NDLEA, customs, if you notice anything like drugs inside or suspicious packages, pull the person aside, take the person away into your private screening room, and do your further searches there.”

For the DSS, Keyamo said their role should be to profile those traveling in and out of the country for security checks.

“DSS, you are not, you have no business searching people’s bags,” the minister reiterated. “You are profiling individuals who are going out of the country, people who have been maybe who are under security checks and all that.”

“Go and stay with immigration. At the point of stamping their passports, you can pull the person aside—a person that ought not to travel. DSS can work with immigration at their table, and they can just roam around. Roam around the airport, check faces of people, profile them.”

“If you want to pull people aside as you think they should not travel, pull them aside to a private room, but don’t create a nuisance at airports where you see they are checking people’s bags.”

Keyamo also mentioned that customs officials claim that certain exportable items require inspection but suggested a simpler solution, such as using clear signage to indicate items that need to be declared.

“That’s what we see when we go around the world. Customs, so why can’t you do the same thing?” he asked. “And then, it is actually for arriving passengers, things to declare, things not to declare.”

“This issue of exportable items, it is actually the country you are flying into that should be more concerned about the things you are bringing into their country. Not us concerned about what you are taking out of the country.”

Keyamo further stated that corrupt individuals within the aviation security agency, which he oversees, must be identified and removed.

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BIG STORY

24-Yr Ruler Bashar al-Assad ‘Flees’ As Syrian Rebels Capture Damascus, Topple Government

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The 24-year rule of Bashar al-Assad in Syria appears to have come to an end after rebel groups seized Damascus in the early hours of Sunday.

The insurgent forces, led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), had previously entered Syria’s third-largest city of Homs before launching an offensive on Damascus.

Quoting senior military officials, Reuters reported that Assad had fled Damascus by plane.

The rebels have also reportedly freed inmates from Saydnaya prison, where thousands of opposition supporters were held.

HTS announced on Telegram that the prisoners had been released, calling it “the end of the era of injustice” in Saydnaya.

The United Nations had previously described the prison as a “human slaughterhouse,” where opponents of Assad’s regime were tortured and executed.

In a speech posted on social media, Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi al-Jalali declared he would remain in Damascus, stating that Syria “can be a normal country that builds good relations with its neighbours and the world.”

Hadi al-Bahra, Syria’s opposition leader, confirmed that the Assad government had been toppled while assuring citizens that their “dignity” would be respected.

“To our people of all sects and religions, as long as you do not raise arms against any other citizen and as long as you stay in your homes, you are safe,” he wrote on X.

“There will be no cases of revenge or retaliation, and no violations of human rights. People’s dignity will be respected and their dignity will be preserved.”

“UN, US REACTIONS”

As the situation escalated, the UN withdrew its “non-critical” staff from the country.

The White House said US President Joe Biden is monitoring the “extraordinary events,” while President-elect Donald Trump remarked: “Syria is a mess, but is not our friend.”

“The United States should have nothing to do with it. This is not our fight. Let it play out. Do not get involved,” he posted on Truth Social.

Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, leader of the rebel group HTS, stated that Syrian institutions “will remain under the supervision of the former prime minister until they are officially handed over.”

Before the recent events, the Assad family had ruled Syria for nearly 54 years.

Footage shared on social media Sunday morning showed people celebrating in Aleppo, Syria’s second-largest city.

In Damascus, residents trampled on the fallen statue of Hafez al-Assad, the president’s father, who ruled the country with an iron fist for nearly 30 years.

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BIG STORY

INSIDE RIVERS: Police Arrest Three Internet Fraud Suspects, Officers ‘Reject $17,000 Bribe’

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The police command in zone 16, Bayelsa State, has arrested three suspects in connection with alleged internet fraud and possession of illicit drugs.

The suspects are Billion Ndubuisi, Charles Amachree, and Martins Chinemike.

In a statement on Saturday, Gunn Emonena, spokesperson for zone 16, said the suspects were arrested at Rumukparali community, Obio/Akpo LGA in Rivers State, after operatives acted on “credible intelligence.”

Emonena stated that operatives recovered wraps of illicit hard drugs suspected to be Indian hemp, two vehicles, two laptops, and 10 phones during a search of the suspects’ premises.

The police spokesperson also revealed that the suspects attempted to bribe the operatives with $17,000 to conceal their crime, but the money was rejected.

“The suspects through their agent offered the sum of 17,000 US Dollars bribe, which was rejected by our well-trained reformed officers,” Emonena said.

“The money is registered and will be tendered as exhibits in court.”

Emonena further stated that the suspects confessed to impersonating Ryan Bill, a citizen of the United States of America, to defraud foreigners of $71,500.

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