Ambassador John Metchie, the Deputy Commander General (DCG), Intelligence, of the Nigerian Forest Security Service (NFSS) on Saturday, May 10, 2025, received award as the Best and Most Accommodating DGC Intelligence.

The award was bestowed on Metchie by the Commander General of NFSS, Dr. Joshua Wole Osatimehin, at the closing ceremony of the 2025 Training Workshop organized by NFSS management for senior officers and men of the Intelligence, Surveillance, and Provost units. Over 400 personnel of the Service participated in the training.

While handing over the trophy to Metchie, who is also the African Director, International Association of World Peace Advocates, (IAWPA), at the event that took place at the MKO Abiola Stadium, Abuja, the Commissioner of Police, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Command, Ajao Adewale praised the NFSS for its contributory role in the fight against violent crimes in Nigeria and commended Amb. Metchie for the honour, which he described as well deserved.

In his address, Dr. Osatimehin said the training was designed to equip participants with both the technical skills and the mental resilience, critical thinking, and leadership required to excel in their duties, adding that the instructors selected were among the best, urging them to take full advantage of the knowledge and experience they bring.

He reminded them that competence without character was dangerous and advised them to keep their focus on the values of loyalty, integrity, accountability, and patriotism.

In his own remark, Amb. John Metchie said that the Nigeria Forest Security Service (NFSS) has the capacity to strengthen the country’s security framework, especially in hard-to-reach forested areas and emphasized the critical role of intelligence in ensuring national security, even as he stressed that forest guards possess valuable on-ground information capable of addressing insecurity in remote regions.

He said that with the NFSS Bill passed by the two chambers of the national assembly, the ball was now in the court of President Bola Tinubu to assent to it, in order for the Service to contribute towards the realization of Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, one of which he was to empower and deploy a special force to secure the vast forested areas of the country which he noted was critical to ending terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and other forms of criminalities in the country.

Metchie also praised the strategic leadership of NFSS Commander-General, Dr. Joshua Osatimehin, particularly for his efforts in pushing for legal recognition of the service and organizing capacity-building for its personnel.

One of the Special Guests at the occasion, Magnus Ibezimako, who is a security and crime mediation expert, said having well-respectable personalities like Dr. Osatimehin and Ambassador Metchie as top management members of NFSS, was a testimony that the Service has a great future, saying it was no surprise that the activities of NFSS have been receiving accolades from the public while mainstream security agencies like the Police, Military and others have been collaborating with the Service, especially in surveillance and intelligence sharing.

Senate President, Godswill Akpabio has been criticized for his comments targeted against the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi.

Akpabio recently stated that Obi who was clamouring to lead a country as big as Nigeria, has not been able to solve a crisis bedeviling his ‘small’ party, LP.

But in reply to this, Obedient Movement in a press statement released on Saturday and made available to reporters in Awka by the group’s Director of Strategic Communication and Media, Nana Kazaure accused Akpabio’s party, the All Progressives Congress, APC, of being behind the LP Crisis by shielding sacked National Chairman of LP, Mr Julius Abure with state sponsored security.

Kazaure said it is not a wonder that the 10th Senate being led by Akpabio has been described as the worst in Nigeria’s history because his character as a man who lacks discretion in speaking and self control in action is already in public domain.

Part of the release read: “It is well known that the President of the 10th Senate is not particularly renowned for the substance or depth of his public utterances. However, we did not anticipate that he would descend to such an embarrassing low.

“For the benefit of Senator Akpabio, the internal issues within the Labour Party were duly taken before the courts by stakeholders of the party, under the leadership of Mr. Peter Obi.

“The Supreme Court – the highest court in the land – gave a clear and unambiguous ruling, affirming that the individual currently parading himself as the party chairman is doing so illegally.

“Rather than comply with the court’s directive, this usurper has been emboldened by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), which continues to provide him with state security cover. These actions have rendered the Senate President’s insinuation that Mr. Obi is
overwhelmed by intra-party crises not only disingenuous but also hypocritical.”

Kazaure added that: “It is deeply ironic and unbecoming for Senator Akpabio to publicly highlight a situation his own party has played a key role in manufacturing and sustaining. If anything, his comments serve only to advertise his complicity in the artificial and externally-driven disruptions to the Labour Party.

“There is, in fact, no crisis within the Labour Party. What persists is the shameless interference of the APC – Senator Akpabio’s party – in facilitating the illegal tenure of Julius Abure, despite the clear ruling of the Supreme Court.”

One of Nigeria’s opposition group, Labour Party, LP, has said it would forgive its presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, Peter Obi if he meets a certain condition.

Dr. Ayo Olorunfemi, the Deputy National chairman of the faction of the party ed by Barrister Julius Abure said the party will forgive Obi, if he returns with a genuine heart of repentance, after associating himself with Governor Alex Otti of Abia State and others who are supporting the faction led by Senator Esther Nenadi Usman.

Speaking during a townhall meeting held on Saturday at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja, which was organized by the Labour Party Southwest, Olorunfemi took a swipe at Governor Otti, senator representing FCT, Ireti Kingibe and some other politicians who are of the position that the tenure of Abure as the national chairman was over.

He wondered why people they gave soft-lading to join the political party would now be seeking their removal, but vowed that they would go nowhere. According to him, the Supreme Court judgement on the matter favoured his faction, that political parties have the powers to resolve all their internal matters.

Olorunfemi who called Alex Otti an ingrate narrated how the Abia governor was coming to plead with them to allow him run under the platform of the Labour Party. He said Senator Ireti Kingibe, after contesting for senate at three consecutive times was given Labour Party platform to run in 2023, but today she is supporting the other faction.

Also speaking, the FCT chairman of the party, Comrade Peter Diugwu supported positions averred by Olorunfemi. He vowed that nobody can remove them and that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, will not even recognize their opponents because Abure’s faction is the one in charge of the party.

Diugwu encouraged officials of other geopolitical zones of the party in the FCT to organize their own townhall meetings like the Southwest had done.

Abure was represented at the event by the national youth leader of the party, Barrister Kennedy Chigozie Ahanotu.