Joseph Stalin famously said: “Those who cast the votes decide nothing. Those who count the votes decide everything.”
Stalin was right.
And today we are seeing this play out in the United States of America.
Smartmatic, a UK based company, is a George Soros linked company thathas provided voting technologyin 16 states including battleground zones like Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Virginia.
The company was formed in 2000 and a Chavez campaign adviser was placed on the board as well.
The chairman of Smartmaticis Lord Mark Malloch-Brown, who sits in the British House of Lords and on the board of George Soros’s Open Society Foundations. He was formerly the vice-chairman of Soros’s Investment Funds and even the deputy secretary-general of the United Nations when he worked as chief of staff to Kofi Annan.
According to Wikileaks documents Smartmatic machines were used to…
WARNING: ORIENTALIST PAINTINGS DEPICTING FEMALE NUDITY FOLLOW. Last year, a political party in Germany provoked controversy when it used the following painting in its election campaign to illustrate one of the reasons it was against immigration. Painted in France in 1866 and titled “Slave Market,” the painting was described as “show[ing] a black, apparently Muslim […]
Ethiopian national defense army operation in tigray region is aimed due to the TPLF which un lawfully braked in the national symbol of unity as well the existence over the Sovereignty of the tigray region .
The National Army has now taken control of a number of towns from the TPLF and it is clear that 95% of the major victories have now been achieved by the Ethiopian National Army (ENDF). Has fully captured almost half of the tigray region administrative distination However the national defense forces of Ethiopia is currently situating in Mekele, which is recently escalating with a heavy fighting, were the
Ethiopian FDRE national defense forces restoring in the rule of law and specifically fighting with the TPLF junta escalating Therefore the currently bottle issuing by the national defense forces of Ethiopia is radically expecting to take full control of all towns in Tigray.
Words can change meaning over time—sometimes dramatically. For example, “manufactured” originally meant “handmade” (manu (hand) + facere (make)). The word “decimate” used to mean “to reduce by a tenth” (decem = ten); now people usually use it mean “to wipe out completely.” The list of examples could go on and on. Yes, words do change meaning over time.
One word that has changed meaning dramatically over time is “nice.” Today it is an overused word that usually means pleasant, kind, or easygoing: “Stop fighting and be nice now!”
But the adjective “nice” once meant anything but nice in the modern sense. Rather, it was a derogatory word used to describe a person as something of a fool.
The word “nice” comes from the Latinnescius, meaning “ignorant, unaware” (ne (not) + scire (know)). The Old French word “nice” (12thcentury) also came from this Latin root and meant “careless, clumsy, weak, simple, foolish, or stupid.”
In the 13th century, “nice” meant “foolish, stupid, or senseless.” In the 14th century, the word started to morph into meaning “fussy.” In the 15th century it meant “dainty, delicate.” By the 18th century, it shifted to meaning “agreeable, delightful.” And by the 19th century, it had acquired its current connotation of “kind and thoughtful.”
The word “nice” has certainly had a tortured history!
Given its older meaning of “ignorant, stupid, or foolish,” it is not surprising that the word “nice” is used only twice in the Douay-Rheims Bible, (which was published in the 16th Century) and in both cases the word is used pejoratively:
“The man that is nice among you, and very delicate, shall envy his own brother, and his wife, that lieth in his bosom,” [Deuteronomy 28:54]”
But to pursue brevity of speech, and to avoid nice declarations of things, is to be granted to him that maketh an abridgment.”[2 Machabees 2:32]
In the first quote “nice” is likened to an effeminate or dainty man. In the second quote brevity is commended to avoid “nice” (unkowning, erroneous or stupid) speech. So “nice” was not a nice word in the 16th Century.
Today the word can have a meaning that is properly praiseworthy and is basically a synonym for “good.” For example, one might comment, “That was a nice distinction you made.” Or, observing a sporting event, one might say, “That was a nice move!”
However, I am also convinced that the word “nice” is beginning to return to its less noble meanings. This takes place when it is used in a reductionist manner that seeks to simplify the entire moral life to being “nice.” Here, nice is used in the sense of being pleasant and agreeable. To the modern world, in which “pseudo-tolerance” is one of the only “virtues” left, being nice is about the only commandment left. It seems that much will be forgiven a person just so long as he is “nice.” And little will be accepted from a person who is not thought of as “nice.”
I suppose niceness has its place, but being nice is too akin to being harmless, to being someone who introduces no tension and is most often agreeable. As such, a nice person is not so far away from being a pushover, one who is easily manipulated, silenced, and pressured into tacit approval. And thus “nice” begins to move backward into its older meanings: dainty, agreeable, weak, simple, and even further back into weak, simple, unaware, and ignorant.
The pressure to “be nice” easily translates into pressure to put a dumb grin on your face and pretend that things are great even when they’re not. And to the degree that we succumb to this pressure, we allow those who seek to shame us if we aren’t nice get to watch with glee as we walk around with s dumb grin. And they get to think of us, “What an ignorant fool. What a useful idiot.” And thus “nice” takes up its original meaning.
We follow a Lord who was anything but a harmless hippie, or a kind pushover. He introduced tension, was a sign of contradiction, and was opposed by many because he didn’t always say and do pleasant things. Not everything he said was “nice.” He often used strong words: hypocrites, brood of vipers, whitewashed tombs, murderers of the prophets, and evildoers. He warned of judgment and Hell. He spoke in parables about burning cities, doom, destruction, wailing and grinding of teeth, and of seeing enemies slain. These are not kind words, but they are loving words, because they seek to shock us unto conversion. They speak to us of our true state if we remain rebels. Jesus certainly didn’t end up nailed to cross by being nice in any sense of the word.
In the end, “nice” is a weird word. Its meaning has shifted so many times as to be practically without a stable meaning. Today it has further degraded and increasingly returned to its original meaning. Those who insist on the importance of being “nice” usually mean it for you, but not for themselves. They want to have you walk around with a silly grin on your face, being foolishly pleasant, while they laugh behind your back.
To be sure, being “nice” in its best modern sense has its place. We surely should not go around acting like a grouch all day. But just as being nice has its place, so does being insistent, bold, and uncompromising.
“A blind man was sitting by the roadside begging” (Luke 18:35).
Rev 1:1-4; 2:1-5; Luke 18: 35-43
Despite the chaos and continued suspense of our national elections, something positive can be said about the level of participation. People who have been on the sidelines are now involved in our political process as voters, activists and demonstrators. Today’s Gospel is also about a man who had lived his whole life on the sidelines because he was blind. Being able to see enabled him to get involved. When Jesus healed him, the man jumped up and followed him on the road.
Another less positive aspect of our election process was how forces were at work to keep people from participating through voter suppression, disinformation and by making it harder to cast their ballots. The crowd in today’s Gospel also tried to keep the blind beggar from getting to Jesus, but he was determined to be heard. Jesus called him from the crowd, then asked him a question that is directed to all of us: “What do you want me to do for you?”
The blind beggar showed his readiness to be a disciple by answering, “Lord, I want to see.” This is the first step in our own discipleship. Only if we see can we follow Jesus. Spiritual or moral blindness, either inflicted or self-imposed, keeps us in the dark, unable to begin our journey with him. Discipleship begins when our eyes are opened to the realities around us, to the plight of others, to our own responsibility to use our lives and gifts purposefully instead of sitting on the sidelines as others pass by.
Opening our eyes is just the beginning. We must learn to see. Some ways of seeing, like myopia and prejudice, distort reality and narrow our vision. Seeing without wisdom or empathy becomes another form of blindness, even more dangerous because we think we see. Jesus first healed the blind man physically, then healed him again in an even deeper way because the first thing he saw was the face of Jesus. The look of love he saw was his first glimpse into the mystery of God’s will for him, which was to rise up and follow Jesus.
Today’s Gospel offers a wonderful chance to experience what the blind man experienced in his encounter with Jesus. Benedictines practice a way of entering the scriptures in three steps: Lectio (reading); Meditatio (reflection); and Oratio (prayer). Read the text slowly three times, imagining the scene and the characters, letting the dialogue become personal. Enter the crucial moment when Jesus asks, “What do you want me to do for you?”
Consider doing this. Clear your mind of any preconceived ideas or “correct” responses and listen to the silence in your heart before you answer the question.
“With filial affection, I embrace the threshold of the home of my birth, giving thanks to divine Providence for the gift of life passed on to me by my beloved parents, for the warmth of the family home, for the love of my dear ones, who gave me a sense of security and strength, even …
The complex rule of King Herod, from his use of architecture as a manifestation and extension of power, to his “horrid” demise that many suggest was well-deserved after a notoriously cruel reign is being examined in the Biblical Archaeology Review. Photo: Hulton-Archive/Getty Images. King Herod the Great ruled Judea from 37 B.C.E. until his death in 4 B.C.E. Outside of Judea, the Greeks and Romans found his charm (and his extravagant benefactions) irresistible. He generously endowed the Greek Olympic Games, sponsored building projects in prestigious cities such as Athens and Rhodes, and erected public buildings, palaces, and even entire cities, some of which still astonish visitors.
At home, however, King Herod was despised for his ruthless oppression and cruelty. His many endeavors came at a considerable cost to his Jewish subjects through heavy taxes. He executed his wife, Miriamme, because he suspected her of adultery. And he may be most well-known by biblical scholars for his order to kill all children under the age of two in and around Bethlehem shortly after the birth of Jesus. A new special collection from Biblical Archaeology Review brings together a hand-picked selection of articles recounting the impact of King Herod’s dominion over ancient Mediterranean lands. Read about Herod the man, the cruelty that defined his rule, and learn about the archaeological explorations of his buildings, and the Roman-inspired style that came to be known as “Herodian.”
Even with his extensive fame (or infamy), little is known about Herod’s appearance. In two mosaics from the church of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, Herod appears bearded and wearing a military costume with a blue cloak and a white diadem, framed by a nimbus (a circle of light around his head). This kind of portrait is typical in early Christian art, but it’s important to remember that these depictions of Herod were created several hundred years after his death, since Jewish laws of the time prohibited depictions of living beings. Herod followed this law in an effort to appease his Jewish subjects, and as a result, there is no indication of any portrait of King Herod in Judea.
To determine if any contemporary portraits of Herod exist, we have to leave his Judean kingdom. In the Greco-Roman world it was traditional to honor kings and benefactors with statues. In Athens, Kos, and the Syrian sanctuary of Sia, the inscribed bases of statues erected to acknowledge Herod are well preserved. Two statues of the king were placed on the Acropolis, and a third on the Agora. But do these depict the real Herod? It is quite possible that these statues were pre-existing and the bases were re-inscribed for him. In “Searching for Portraits of King Herod,” Ralf Krumeich and Achim Lichtenberger attempt to discover what can be known about Herod’s appearance from the scant evidence that remains.
THE Presidential Artisanal Gold Mining Development Initiative (PAGMI) was conceived by the Federal Government as a means of transforming the country’s abundant, largely untapped gold deposits into a major source of revenue for the country.
But controversy surrounding the establishment of a gold reserve by the Zamfara State government, and reports of the purchase of gold from the state by the Central Bank of Nigeria under the PAGMI arrangement, has ressurected the age-long clamour for resource control by oil producing states of the Niger Delta.
PAGMI is a comprehensive artisanal and small-scale gold mining development programme, launched in 2019 to foster the formalisation and integration of artisanal, or illegal, gold mining activities into Nigeria’s legal, economic, and institutional framework. It was designed as a broader strategy to address the structural and institutional factors such as rural poverty, lack of alternative livelihoods, and difficulties in meeting legal and regulatory requirements that tend to push artisanal gold mining operators deeper into the informal economy.
The provision of access to markets for the artisanal miners through a National Gold Purchase Program and the deployment of enhanced mining methods at artisanal and small-scale mining sites are to serve as catalysts for the planned integration.
In line with the National Gold Purchase Program, the Central Bank of Nigeria will be purchasing gold that has been mined, processed and refined under the Presidential Artisanal Gold Mining Development Initiative for use as part of Nigeria’s external reserves.
Offering more insight on PAGMI, the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, on its website, explained, “PAGMI will deploy safer and more efficient mining and processing technologies across artisanal mining locations across the country, starting with Kebbi and Osun States as the Pilot States with intervention in Kaduna, Zamfara and Niger States to commence immediately after the Pilot.
“Using a Centralised Off-take and Supply System supported by a Decentralised Aggregation and Production Network, PAGMI will buy all the gold produced by artisanal and small-scale miners and aggregated by licensed buying centers and aggregators for supply to the Central Bank of Nigeria.”
A major feature of PAGMI, the biometric data capture and enrolment exercise for artisanal miners, kicked-off in Yauri Local Government Area of Kebbi State in February.
However, controversy is trailing the implementation of PAGMI after the announcement by the Zamfara State government that it had established a gold reserve was followed by reports that the CBN is to purchase N5 billion worth of gold from the state government.
Under the PAGMI arrangement, the CBN had, earlier in July 2020, paid the sum of N268m for 12.5kg of locally mined gold bars. Advertisement
Also, in August, 2020, Zamfara State governor, Dr. Bello Matawalle, visited the Presidential Villa, Abuja, to present gold bars mined in the state to President Muhammadu Buhari.
Then, in October 2020, Matawalle announced, at a press briefing in Gusau, that Zamfara has established a ‘gold reserve’ with gold that was, reportedly, entirely mined and refined by artisanal miners in the state. The gold reserve, the first of its kind in Nigeria, was launched with 31kg of processed gold that is to be deposited in a bank.
The governor explained that the establishment of the gold reserve would boost the economy of the state.
“My administration will subsequently continue to buy gold from our local miners so as to gradually improve the reserve. Even though our state, like other states of the Federation, is grappling with competing demands from the public, the resources at our disposal are meagre. We feel it is of utmost significance to invest in the future of our people.
“The establishment of the gold reserve, therefore, is part of the relentless efforts by my administration to diversify the state’s economy by exploring all potentials of the state, and maximally utilising them for the benefit of the present and future generations,” Matawalle said.
Going by the PAGMI arrangement, it is expected that the CBN will purchase gold from the ‘gold reserve’ of the Zamfara State government.
The Federal Government had banned mining activities in Zamfara after illegal mining by artisanal miners was linked to the banditry in the state. But Zamfara State Commissioner for Finance, Rabiu Garba, while shedding further light on the ‘gold reserve’, noted that “When the ban is lifted and mining activities resume fully, we (Zamfara State government) are hopeful that we will be receiving royalties from miners while the Federal Government will also be giving us something”.
Governor Bello Matawalle of Zamfara State and President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House, Abuja.
However, the entire arrangement, which appeared to have given Zamfara State the powers to control the gold resources in its territory, has become a cause for concern among the oil producing states of the Niger Delta, whose oil and gas resources have been the mainstay of the Nigerian economy for years.
Wondering why the PAGMI programme would allow Zamfara to control its gold deposits while the oil in the Niger Delta is shared by the entire nation, leaders of the oil producing states were quick to point out that the situation concerning Zamfara gold was unconstitutional, as it violated provisions of the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act, 2007.
The Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act, 2007, stated that “All mineral resources in, under or upon any land in Nigeria, its contiguous continental shelf and all rivers, streams and watercourses throughout Nigeria, any area covered by its territorial waters or constituency and the Exclusive Economic Zone is and shall be vested in the Government of the Federation for and on behalf of the people of Nigeria”. Advertisement
Also, mining and mineral resources, just as oil, was listed in the Exclusive List, under the exclusive control of the Federal Government, in the 1999 Constitution.
The Niger Delta region is crying foul over the PAGMI arrangement which appeared to have given Zamfara State control of gold deposits in its territory.
Addressing journalists in Asaba on November 11, Delta State governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, stressed that no law in the country gave Zamfara State the powers to manage and control gold deposits in its territory.
Delta State governor, Ifeanyi Okowa
Insisting that the establishment of the gold reserve by Zamfara State was illegal, Okowa warned that if the matter was not addressed, governors of the South-South states would follow suit by assuming control of oil and gas resources in their states.
Resource control will be top on the agenda of a meeting of South-South political leaders, include governors, ministers, lawmakers and other stakeholders, which is to hold in Port Harcourt, according to Okowa.
The Delta State governor observed that the actions taken by Zamfara State suggests that the country’s laws are being applied in a discriminatory manner, with Zamfara’s gold being for the state why the oil in the Niger Delta belongs to the entire country.
Okowa said, “South-South governors have been talking about the need for restructuring and need for resource control. Obviously we are on that because we feel there is the need to restructure not only the country, but the management of resources.
“As at today, there are Acts in the National Assembly that guide the issue of oil production and with the solid minerals, those are not covered in these Acts and this is already a sore point in our nation’s governance system and we hope to express this very strongly during the meeting taking place in Port Harcourt.
“We cannot apply laws in our nation to the point that it becomes discriminatory because if people are allowed to process for their solid minerals, others should also be allowed to do same for their oil. So we are going to be very hard and make our voice as strong as possible during the meeting. I believe that these discriminatory tendencies will have to be revisited in our nation at some point in time.”
Earlier, in October, two youth groups in the Niger Delta – South-South Youth Assembly and Young Democratic Movement – had issued an ultimatum to the Federal Government, demanding that the proceeds from the gold bought by the CBN from the Zamfara State government should be shared among all the states, as is the case with oil and gas. Advertisement
The groups, while addressing journalists in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, insisted that the gold found in any state belongs to the Federal Government. “The revenue generated from such mineral resources like gold is to be shared among all the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory,” they said.
“The (Zamfara) state governor has no such audacity to sell the gold bars to the apex bank worth close to about N5bn. In the Niger Delta states we don’t sell oil. We are surprised that a governor of a state should be selling gold bars from Zamfara State to the CBN. Let it be known that whatever revenue that ought to come from that transaction belongs to the entire country and not the state government,” the Niger Delta youths said.
The Niger Delta youth groups warned that the action of the Zamfara State government, if not addressed, could jeopardise ‘the relative peace in the region and the achievement of 1.86 million barrels per day in oil production’.
The Niger Delta youths also demanded an upwards review of the 13 percent derivation from the Federation Account for oil and other minerals producing states, stressing that failing to do that, “the Federal Government must allow the Niger Delta to directly sell her oil just as the recent case of Zamfara gold”.
In addition to the issues raised by the oil producing Niger Delta states, a lawyer, Silas Onu, had petitioned the CBN to point out the illegality of the purported purchase of N5 billion worth of gold from the Zamfara State government by the apex bank.
In the petition, Onu described the transaction as “the highest insult on the sensitivities of Nigerians”, adding that “The Zamfara State government has no gold to sell, the gold is for the Federal Government, and CBN is not permitted by its enabling Act to engage in the business of buying solely commercial goods”. Citing section 1(4) of the CBN Act, 2007, the lawyer said the law that permits the apex bank to acquire, hold and dispose of movable and immovable property does not extend to engaging in a business venture such as the purchase of gold.
Onu also stressed that management and control of gold deposits in Zamfara by the state government was contrary to the provisions of the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act, 2007.
Reacting to the controversy trailing the establishment of the gold reserves by the Zamfara State government, the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development said the state government should ‘get their narrative right to the public’ and desist from giving the impression that the gold in its territory belongs to the state.
Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Olamilekan Adegbite, who said he discussed the matter with the Zamfara State government, said, “We have what we call private mineral buying centres, we issue licences; in fact, anybody that is interested should come to us and once you meet the criteria, we give you a licence to purchase the mineral and that is the angle the Zamfara government is exploiting.
“From their own fund, they are buying gold from their people and I spoke with the governor, you need to explain these to the people properly. It is not as if they are cornering the resources that belong to the Federal Government. All mineral resources in the country is vested in the Federal Government and that is in the exclusive list and that stays. And the right royalty should be paid to the Federal Government. Advertisement
“People feel that some parts of the nation are cornering the wealth of the nation. Everybody has partaken in the lunch of the Niger Delta, we have taken from the oil and gas and it has been used to develop this country and the mineral wealth of this country will also be used collectively to develop this country and not exclusively by one region.”
On its part, the Zamfara State government said there was no trade deal on gold between it and the CBN. The state government also explained that it does not directly mine the gold for itself, but purchases the commodity from Federal Government-registered mining companies in the state. But the explanation appeared to contradict initial reports that the gold in the state’s reserve was purchased from artisanal miners.
“The state government is not directly mining the gold for itself. It will rather purchase the gold from the Federal Government-registered mining companies in the state,” Zailani Baffa, spokesman to Zamfara State governor, said in a statement.
However, for Onu, the lawyer that petitioned the CBN over the ‘gold deal’, the explanations given by the Zamfara State government and the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development hold no water.
Speaking with The ICIR on Saturday, November 14, Onu said he would go to court over the matter.
He said, “There has not been any response from the CBN to the petition. I am thinking of sending them a reminder before I do any other thing. I am thinking of taking the matter to court because the action of the Zamfara State government is in breach of the 1999 Constitution and the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act, 2007. I want to get a declaration from the court that the action taken by the state and the CBN is illegal. A state cannot be dealing with solid minerals as if it belongs to them and the CBN is encouraging that. The money (for the purchase of the gold) is apparently going into the coffers of the state government.”
Picking holes in the explanations given by the Zamfara State government and the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Onu added, “What they claim is that the artisanal miners will mine this gold locally and the state government will buy the gold from them so as to prevent bandits from getting hold of the gold, then the CBN will buy it from the state government. This will totally remove any role or presence of the Federal Government in the whole process. So how does the Federal Government now benefit from the gold that is in Zamfara State? This therefore means that it is only the artisanal miners and the Zamfara State government that will benefit. They tried to give explanations but to me it did not fly.”
The lawyer stressed that what is good for a gold producing state like Zamfara in the North should also be good for the oil producing states in the South.
Onu said, “They are allowing artisanal miners, which is another word for illegal miners, to mine gold in Zamfara State. Are they also going to approve exploration of oil by illegal oil bunkerers in the South? What is good for the North should also be good for the South.”
Meanwhile, issues surrounding the mining of gold in Zamfara would be the focus of a meeting of six governors of the South-South region, under the aegis of the Forum of South-South Governors, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Monday November 16.
KAMISIYOCHUKWU Perpetual, an eye-witness at the Lekki tollgate where protesters were shot, has disclosed that she saw soldiers carrying no fewer than seven human bodies hit by bullets and dumped them in a waiting van.
Kamsiyochukwu, who was a petitioner before the Lagos State Panel of Judicial Inquiry on police brutality, also said she and two other protesters saw another dead body with a bullet-torn head at Reddington Hospital at Lekki the following morning when they went to collect the data of injured protesters.
And before she left the hospital, dead and injured bodies were still being brought in. But when she returned to the hospital in the evening the same day, she was told by a nurse at the hospital that the casualties have been evacuated from the hospital to an undisclosed location based on an order from above.
“I saw soldiers picking at least seven dead, limp bodies hit by bullets into their vans,” she said.
“We also requested to see the dead protesters who were brought in. The doctors refused us access to see the dead bodies. The media man intervened again and we could only see one of the dead bodies whose head was torn by a bullet. He laid at the emergency unit. The doctor called the corpse ‘John Doe’.
“While at Reddington Hospital, dead and injured bodies were still being brought in. By evening when I returned to Reddington Hospital, one of the nurses informed me that the dead and the injured had been transferred from Reddington Hospital to an unknown hospital based on orders from above.
She told the panel that she and her colleagues have the names of the injured bodies and that of the dead body.
“We have the record of the names of 22 injured persons and one of the dead persons we were allowed to see.”
She gave their names as Abiola Esther, RFK, Lekan Williams, Felix Nandip, Adams Moses, Akinyele Damilola, Samuela Iordyom, Emmanuel John, Isaac Amede, and Charles Uzoma.
When the media reported about the shooting at Lekki tollgate which happened on October 20, the Nigerian military feigned ignorance and denied the allegation, saying its men were not involved.
In subsequent press releases, Osoba Olaniyi, the Acting Deputy Director, 81 Division Army Public Relations, admitted that soldiers were deployed to Lekki but were only there to carry a request of the state government to enforce an earlier curfew imposed by the state government.
He however denied that the soldiers did not shoot any civilian and that there is glaring and convincing evidence to attest to this fact. He maintained that the allegations of shootings are the “handiwork of mischief-makers who will stop at nothing to tarnish the image of the Nigerian Army.”
In a bid to further discredit the media reports on the Lekki incident, John Enenche, the coordinator, Defence Media Operations, citing some military analysts, told newsmen in Abuja that videos of the incident circulating around the social media were fake or photoshops.
However, on Saturday, during his appearance before the Lagos State Judicial Panel of Enquiry, Ahmed Taiwo, Commander of the 81 Military Intelligence Brigade, said soldiers deployed to the scene did not shoot the protesters with live bullets but fired blank bullets into the air.
While explaining that the blank bullets used could not have caused any damage to the flesh, Taiwo said if real bullets were indeed fired, one bullet had the potency to kill three persons.
Photo: Hulton-Archive/Getty Images. 
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