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48 — Vanguard, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2020 Members of emergency services help families leave flooded houses by rescue boat in Nantgarw as Storm Dennis sweeps across the UK US Democrats face internal strife ahead of Nevada, S’Carolina primaries US presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders should be taking a victory lap or two following back-to-back wins in the 2020 election’s first votes. Instead, both Sanders and the party he wants to lead find themselves bogged down in a struggle between the progressive and moderate wings of the Democratic party. Establishment Democrats are terrified of Sanders’ momentum after his popular-vote victories in both Iowa and New Hampshire. They see the independent Vermont senator, a selfavowed democratic socialist, as potentially off-putting to the moderates and independents they need to corral to defeat President Donald Trump in the general election in November. Sanders’ sweeping policy proposals, including nationalisation of the healthcare system and free university tuition, enjoy wide support among his base of mainly younger voters. And national polls suggest that support for him and his policies may be broadening, with Sanders opening up a doubledigit lead over former Vice President Joe Biden, his closest competitor, in national polls taken after the New Hampshire vote. In many ways, the Democratic party in 2020 faces the same issue that the Republicans faced in 2016. A charismatic outlier popular with the fringes of the party but disliked by its traditional base has, for the moment at least, a better chance of securing the nomination than any of his establishment challengers. James Carville, an architect of former President Bill Clinton’s victories three decades ago, echoed the sentiments of many in the party when he described himself in an interview on MSNBC as “not very impressed” with the Democratic field and singled out Sanders for particular scorn. “I’m scared to death. I really am,” Carville said. “If we go the way of the British Labour party, if we nominate Jeremy Corbyn, it’s going to be the end of days.” Most voters, he added, “are looking for somebody who can come in and not just excite them, but talk about things that really matter and everyday life. They are not interested in socialism and revolution.” Moderate Democrats in Congress, especially those elected in 2018 in districts carried by the president two years earlier, are said to be worried that the presence of Sanders at the top of the ticket could be costly to the party come November. “There is a growing concern among especially those of us on the front lines that we will not only lose the White House but the House of Representatives,” one of them told the New York Times anonymously. The Sanders campaign, however, says it is expanding the electorate and motivating new groups of voters to come to the polls. SYRIA CONFLICT: 900,000 people displaced since December — UN A Russian-backed regime offensive in northwest Syria has displaced 900,000 people since the start of December, and babies are dying of cold because aid camps are full, the UN said Monday. That figure is 100,000 more than the United Nations had previously recorded. “The crisis in northwest Syria has reached a horrifying new level,” said Mark Lowcock, the UN head of humanitarian affairs and emergency relief. He said the displaced were overwhelmingly women and children who are “traumatized and forced to sleep outside in freezing temperatures because camps are full. Mothers burn plastic to keep children warm. Babies and small children are dying because of the cold.” The Idlib region, including parts of neighboring Aleppo province, is home to some three million people, half of them already displaced from other parts of the country. The offensive that began late last year has caused the biggest single displacement of people since the conflict began in 2011. The war has killed more than 380,000 people since it erupted almost nine years ago, following the brutal repression of popular demonstrations demanding regime change. Lowcock warned Monday that the violence in the northwest was “indiscriminate.” “Health facilities, schools, residential areas, mosques and markets have been hit. Schools are suspended, many health facilities have closed. There is a serious risk of disease outbreaks. Basic infrastructure is falling apart,” he said in a statement. “We are now receiving reports that settlements for displaced people are being hit, resulting in deaths, injuries and further displacement.” He said that a massive relief operation underway from the Turkish border is has been “overwhelmed. The equipment and facilities being used by aid workers are being damaged. Humanitarian workers themselves are being displaced and killed.” US President Donald Trump on Sunday called for Russia to end its support for the Syrian regime’s “atrocities” in the Idlib region, the White House said. Israeli soldiers duped by Hamas ‘fake women’ phone ruse Dozens of Israeli soldiers have had their smartphones hacked by the Hamas militant group posing as women seeking attention, Israel’s military says. A spokesman said the soldiers were sent fake photos of young females and lured into downloading an app without knowing it could access their handsets. He said there was no “significant breach of information” before the scam was foiled. Hamas, which controls Gaza, and Israel view each other as mortal enemies. It is the third such attempt in recent years by Hamas to infiltrate Israeli soldiers’ phones, but was the most sophisticated yet, according to Lt Col Jonathan Conricus. “We see that they’re of course learning and upping their game,” he said. Col Conricus said the 24 killed in Burkina Faso church attack GUNMEN have killed 24 people and wounded 18 in an attack on a Protestant church in a village in northern Burkina Faso, the regional governor said yesterday. A group of “armed terrorists” burst into the village of Pansi, in Yagha province “and attacked the peaceful local population after having identified them and separated them from non-residents”, Colonel Salfo Kabore said in a statement sent to AFP. The assault occurred on Sunday during a weekly service, security officials said. “The provisional toll is 24 killed, including the pastor… 18 wounded and individuals who were kidnapped,” Kabore said. A resident of the nearby town of Sebba said Pansi villagers had fled there for safety. One of the poorest countries in the world, Burkina Faso is on the front line of a jihadist insurgency advancing in the Sahel. Since 2015, around 750 people have been killed in Burkina and around 600,000 people have fled their homes. Christians and churches have become frequent targets in the north of the country. On February 10, suspected jihadists in Sebba seized seven people at the home of a pastor. Five bodies were found three days later, including the pastor, according to the local governor. According to UN figures, jihadist attacks in Burkina and neighbouring Mali and Niger left nearly 4,000 people dead last year. Their armed forces are weak, struggling with poor equipment and lack of training and funding. Bulgaria seeks gambling tycoon’s extradition from UAE BULGARIA has asked the United Arab Emirates to ex tradite gambling tycoon Vasil Bozhkov, charged in absentia with extortion, influence peddling and money laundering among other offences, the justice ministry said on Monday. Bozhkov, one of Bulgaria’s richest men, has denied wrongdoing. He has refused to return to the Balkan country, saying he fears for his life. Consecutive governments in the European Union’s poorest member state have pledged to combat organized crime and uproot endemic graft, with little success. The justice ministry said it had sent the extradition request and more than 200 pages of documents translated in Arabic to the Bulgarian embassy in the UAE to be handed to the authorities. Prosecutors have said Bozhkov, 63, owner of several gambling companies, a popular soccer club and a foundation that holds a rich collection of Thracian antiques, was detained in the United Arab Emirates at the end of January. On Sunday, Bulgarian National Television, citing unnamed sources, said he was released from custody but was banned from leaving the country and his passport was taken. Bulgaria does not have an extradition agreement with the UAE, but hopes that its request will be respected. “We want him returned to Bulgaria to be brought before the Bulgarian court,” Bulgarian chief prosecutor Ivan Geshev said. Libya conflict: EU agrees new patrols to stop arms flow EU states have agreed to launch a new military mission off the Libyan coast to enforce a shaky UN arms embargo. The 27 governments still have to draft a legal text for the mission, after agreeing it in principle in Brussels. “The main objective is the arms embargo,” said Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn. The UN-recognised government in Tripoli is under attack from the forces of Gen Khalifa Haftar, which control most of eastern and southern Libya. The EU’s new naval and air mission is to operate in the eastern Mediterranean, away from the migrant-smuggling routes from Libya which have caused bitter divisions in the EU. Italy’s Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said that if the EU ships proved to be a “pull factor” for migrants desperate to reach Europe “the mission will be stopped”. hackers had masqueraded as young women with imperfect Hebrew, claiming to be immigrants or to have visual or hearing impairments, in order to appear convincing. After striking up friendships, the “women” would send links which they said would enable them to exchange photos, but which in reality caused the soldiers to download malware - programmes that can attack smartphones or computer devices. Once the link was opened, the programme would install a virus which would give the hacker access to the phone’s data, including location, pictures and contacts. It could also remotely manipulate the phone, using it to take photos and recordings without the owner’s knowledge.
Vanguard, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2020 — 49 8 corpses exhumed in Delta for investigation Continues from page 5 pursuing their legitimate livelihood of fishing and farming on their ancestral lands. Those who resists these demands have been known to be attacked, raped, maimed or killed by the herdsmen. “We find it ridiculous, insulting, offensive, unacceptable, unimaginable and disgusting that strangers we took in and accommodated as part of us, and as fellow Nigerians, should turn around to become our tormentors and killers? God forbid. We will no longer condone this. “For too long, we have chosen the path of peace which, unfortunately, has become our greatest undoing. The enemies we took in as friends, have taken us for cowards. “Let it be made categorically clear that the Urhobo nation cannot be conquered. We are a people with a history of independence. In the prevailing circumstances, we might be forced to defend ourselves and our lands if this unprovoked harassment and killings of our people is not halted forthwith. “The Urhobo people are peace-loving, whether at home or wherever they dwell. Therefore, we will no longer tolerate the nuisance of any unfriendly and troublesome stranger in our midst. “We want to plead with those who own or are supporting these rampaging herdsmen to call them to order. We are saying unequivocally that the Urhobo Nation will never, ever surrender or cede an inch of her territory to any stranger, no matter the situation. “The strangers in our land remain strangers and they must respect and obey the laws of the land. We shall no more condone these acts of unprovoked attacks on our people. “We want to warn trouble makers in our land to toe the line of peace and be reminded that our people have the capacity to defend themselves against any invaders. We shall not be cowed or intimidated by any group of strangers in our own land. We have remained patient over the years and our patience is fast running out.’’ Nigeria on reverse gear without steering — Anglican Bishop Meanwhile, the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Diocese of Ogbaru, Anambra State, yesterday described Nigeria as a country at crossroads, in reverse gear without steering. Addressing newsmen at the Basilica of St James Cathedral, Atani, Ogbaru Local Government, the Bishop, Diocese of Ogbaru, Rt. Rev. Prosper Amah, said what Nigeria needed now was divine and international intervention to save it from collapse. Bishop Amah, who expressed shock over the crumbling security situation in Nigeria, called on the Federal Government to listen to the cries of the masses by reshuffling the security apparatus in the country and make the necessary changes on the composition of service chiefs. "Nigeria, I must say, is gradually being consumed by insecurity, we are at crossroad, not just crossroad, but a dark one, that is in a reverse gear without steering. We do not know who is leading us now, we are confused, that is where we are now," he said. Bishop Amah said Nigeria’s frightening security situation has led to non-functionality of any sector in the country, adding that from the Executive, Legislature to the Judiciary, all seemed not to be working but comatose. He added: "No sector is working in Nigeria. Judiciary seems to be gambling and is no longer Naira depreciates to N364.95/$ in I&E window By Elizabeth Adegbesan The naira yesterday depreciated to N364.95 per dollar in the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window. Data from FMDQ showed that the indicative exchange rate for the window rose to N364.95 per dollar yesterday from N364.76 per dollar last week Friday, translating to 19 kobo depreciation of the naira. The volume of dollars (turnover) traded in the window yesterday dropped by 82 percent to $50.84 million from $282.33 million last week Friday. However, the naira, yesterday, was stable at N358.2 per dollar in the parallel. independent, Legislature is now rubber-stamp and the executive is busy fighting and calling those who are criticizing it or suggesting the way forward all sorts of names, with Presidential media aides castigating whoever that has different views from theirs. "What Nigeria needs now is divine and international intervention. God needs to intervene and then the international community must intervene in the unfolding events in Nigeria. "Nigerians have demanded the removal of service chiefs, following the crumbling security situation of the country and instead of the government to do the needful, it is busy issuing threats to people, while their media aides are attacking anybody or any group with different views. “The service chiefs have overstayed and Mr President must learn how to listen to the masses and not deceitful advisers by removing them. They must go before the country is finally consumed." CAN calls for unity among Christians Similarly, the National President, Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Rev Peter Ayokunle, yesterday called for unity among Christians in the midst of attacks from suspected terrorists, armed bandits and other violent crimes against Christians. He stated this in Benin City, Edo State capital, when he supervised the conduct of elections into the executive committee of the state chapter of the association which had been in crisis over the second term ambition of its chairman, Bishop Oyonnude Kure. Represented by a National Director from the headquarters, Bishop Stephen Adegbite, who was accompanied by other national officers, including the South-South chairman of the association, Archbishop Ige Israel, Ayokunle said Christians had no option but to remain united. He said: “The body of Christ must remain one, unity is not negotiable because God has been faithful. The leadership of CAN is always under threat but it must ensure unity because we have our members all over the country. "We were going to Maiduguri last week with our president, but God designed it to save us. Our vehicle broke down on the road and we had to take three taxis to our ON CORONAVIRUS—Minister of State for Health, Sen. Olorunnimbe Mamora (L); with the Director-General of the West African Health Organisation (WAHO), Prof. Stanley Okolo, during a joint press briefing on regional preparedness for Coronavrus Epidemic in Abuja, yesterday. Photo: NAN. destination. They (terrorists) laid ambush, expecting to see CAN vehicles and then attack, only for them to hear that we had arrived our destination. "They killed 31 people that night for missing their target, so what else do we need than remain united and work together?” Buhari still popular in Borno — Presidency In a similar development, The Presidency has said President Buhari’s recent visit to Borno State showed that he was still very popular and accepted. The President was booed by some residents of Maiduguri, while he was on a sympathy visit to Borno State, following the killing of travellers at Auno by Boko Haram insurgents. However, the Presidency said on Sunday night that the residents appreciated what he had done in tackling insurgency in the North-East. Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, who was on Channels Television politics programme on Sunday night, said the crowd that received President Buhari was huge, stressing that the few dissenting voices didn’t call for worry. "We don’t see it as a rejection; if you look at those who came to welcome the President from the airport to the palace of the Shehu of Borno, it was a huge crowd. “Some 90 to 95 per cent were waving brooms and welcomed the President; some dissenting voices in a large crowd like that do not call for worry, its normal in a democracy. “The President really, is still very accepted, still very popular and the people of Borno know what he has done; they appreciate what he has done in terms of tackling the insurgency,” he stated. On the war on insurgency, Mr Adesina explained that President Buhari was concerned because he took an oath to protect lives and property in the country. "There may be some reversals of the gains made, but then those gains can always be made again. "The President should be worried, he took an oath to protect the country so if we see lives and property being lost wantonly, the President must be concerned and he is,’’ Adesina said. President Buhari had expressed surprise that Boko Haram insurgents have continued to launch attacks on communities, despite the huge budgets expended on the counterinsurgency operations in the North-East. According to the President, operations against the insurgents will not be successful if the people do not cooperate with the military and other security agencies. We need to unite to address our challenges — Lawan President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has said for Nigeria to surmount the challenges bedeviling it, all leaders in the country must as a matter of urgency, come together to ensure that the security and welfare needs of the people are adequately met. According to Lawan, Nigeria is at a point where the provision of infrastructure alone by government cannot sufficiently address the underlying cause of growing insecurity and illiteracy in the country. The Senate President made this known in a speech delivered at the 60th birthday celebration of Governor Nasir El-rufai and Presentation of the book “These Times: Selected Writings and Speeches by Nasir El-rufai” in Kaduna on Monday. "Those of us in leadership positions, we know what we need to do. We need to have the courage and commitment and sustain them. "Nigeria is at a crossroads, and more than ever now require the unity of the people. The issues bedeviling Nigeria today requires that all leaders, at all levels and in all parts of Nigeria need to come together. "What we need is not only infrastructure, but we need the capacity building of the people. In this part of the country, this report has been consistent and apparently, little has been done to reverse it”, the Senate President lamented. Lawan, therefore, called on the Federal Government to immediately introduce policies that would return the over thirteen million (13m) out-of-schoolchildren back to school, so as to curb the rising number of illiteracy in Nigeria. The Senate President said the report of 13 million or 14 million out-of-school children mostly in the north is dangerous for the country. "Until we are able to reverse this kind of trend, no matter how much infrastructure you put, you will still have that social angle that will actually lead to serious insecurity, the kind that we experience or even worse, God forbid. So, we need to look at the people.” The Senate President further admonished leaders in the country to live up to the responsibilities of their respective offices by demonstrating courage and acting expeditiously to guarantee the protection of lives and properties of citizens. "Today, we are challenged by insecurity, sadly it is all over the country. This requires that all of us at every level of government come together and work to ensure that lives and properties of citizens are protected. "The story is bad, everyday it is either kidnapping, assassination or some kind of banditry that leaves our people and communities shattered and destroyed."
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