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Breaking: CBN Governor’s wife kidnapped, N100m ransom demanded

The abductors of Margaret, the wife of the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, have demanded a ransom of N100 million, The Eagle Online has learnt.
Impeccable sources told The Eagle Online that the demand was made shortly after the kidnap of Margaret on Thursday.

She was said to have been kidnapped along the Benin-Agbor Road.
The kidnappers, who got in touch with Emefiele, a top police officer in the Office of the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, told The Eagle Online, vowed not to release their victim until the ransom is paid.
It was gathered that Idris has deployed the Intelligence Response Team under his office and other crack detectives within the Force to rescue Margaret unhurt and without paying any ransom.

TARASHA : CHAPTER SIX - PART TWO

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

** 01.12.2030 **

Tarasha inhaled a huge quantity of the the moisture filled air as she parked her bike close to the bush, she removed her helmet and hung it on the bike. She gently brushed back part of the long hair which covered her left eye with her hand. She looked right and saw another bike approaching, ignoring it she began to walk slowly towards the narrow path of the bush which probably led to a village.

After riding the expressway for about two hours she decided to take a break, walking around the bush a little. She surged forward through the narrow path, playing with the leaves as she moved.

She suddenly stopped midway on hearing the sounds of some movement behind her, she looked behind her, nobody was there. She took another two steps and paused, she bent to pick a stone. She turned backward and aimed something at the left side of the bush.

'Yaaay!' Someone moaned and came out from the bush, using his hand to massage the part of his forehead where the stone hit him. Tarasha ignored and kept walking forward.

'That was cruel' he shouted at her.

'What was cruel?' She stopped and asked, without turning back. 'Why have you been following me?'

'Huh? Did you look now I was following you?' He trotted closer , still rubbing his forehead.

She turned back and proceeded out of the bush path without looking at him. He paused and stared at her before following.

'Your bike started following me from the Solid Quarry junction' Tarasha stated, heading for her bike. His bike was parked just behind hers.

'Huh? You knew? Why didn't you stop then?' He was perplexed, his shoulders dropped as he stood still after getting out of the bush part. He wondered why Tarasha did not take a look at him, he walked further closer to her.

'What?' Tarasha growled, offended as his hand was on hers resisting her from putting on the helmet.

'Why are you shy? You can't even look at my face' he mocked.

'Shy?' She took his hand away and wore the helmet.

'If you aren't shy, then why are you hiding your pretty face? You don't want me to see it clearly?' He taunted.

She ignored him and sat on the bike, after wearing her gloves well she started the engine. She attempted to ride off but he stopped her, standing at the front with the front tyre in between his legs.

'Come on, I won't hurt you. I just want to have a little chat. Let's get to know each other'

She raised her head and stared into his face through the helmet transparent cover. She spoke in a harsh voice, 'Your name is Henry and you're a rider, I have no time for your association'

She pushed him with her right hand gently, but powerfully enough to make him stagger backwards. She reversed the bike and drove off, narrowly missing him as he jumped away quickly.

He stood still watching as she raced off, wondering what type of girl she was. Her declaration of his name affirmed to him that she was the same girl he had met on the same expressway some few weeks ago.

Since that day, he had been riding through that location every Sunday evening, hoping to  meet her again. Now that he had the opportunity, she didn't give even listen to him, rather she put up a wild behavior.

Maybe she was scared that he was dangerous or that he might harm her. But he was just a rider who wanted to make friends with a female rider who he viewed to be very skillful. He wished she could see that his intention was pure.

He heaved a sigh and headed for his bike, he bent to dodge a nylon of sachet water thrown at his direction as an inter-state passenger's bus sped past. 

He tried to picture Tarasha's face in his mind as he sat on the bike, putting on the helmet. He didn't get a very clear view but he could conclude with the little he got that she was pretty and had a light skinned complexion.


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

'Officer James' James stood up from the cell's cold rigid floor as he heard his name. He saw a uniformed warder with the approaching with Officer Segun.

He moved closer to the room bars, the warder opened the door and motioned him outside. Segun saluted him,trying fruitlessly to hide the look of pity in his face.

'You're free to go, officer James' the warder said, handing over his clothes in a nylon bag to him. 

**few minutes later**

Segun drove in the black Camry, with neatly dressed James at the front seat with him. He glanced occasionally at his boss, trying to figure out the right way to begin a conversation.

'You said Oga is waiting for me?' James began, using Oga to refer to his immediate superior.

'Yes, he says he wants to speak with you as soon as you're out' Segun answered.

James heaved a sigh and paused for a moment before talking again.

'What about Emeka?' He asked of the stout officer who drove with him in the jeep that picked the Ghanaian minister.

'He should also be released today' Segun replied.

'So he was put in detention too?' James posed a rhetorical question. 'What about Officer Tunde and the others?'

'Officer Tunde is dead o' Segun voice was full of pity. 'He was found dead in the car, the others were found drugged in the mechanic workshop beside our office'

'So there's no way to find out if Tunde was a party to the assassination?' He questioned without expecting an answer, he rubbed his palm on his forehead and on his face.

Silence reigned for the rest of the journey to the station. James immediate boss was standing in the compound with his hands at his back, facing the station building. James' eyes met with his when the man looked back as they drove in. The man turned well to face their direction and watched as they drove the car to a halt and stepped out.

'Good afternoon sir' James and Segun saluted, waking towards the man.

'How are you James?' The man responded and extended his hand to James. 'Well done Segun'

'Fine sir' James replied, taking the man's feeble hand in his.

They began walking slowly into the station as they talked.

'James, the truth is I'm really disappointed in you' the man continued with a note of regret in his voice. 'I didn't believe something like that could happen when you're in charge'

James bowed his head in shame, avoiding the look on the various officers’ faces as they walked through the opened offices to the man's office.

'What were you thinking when an escort car suddenly disappeared and then reappeared? Why didn't you stop to check?' The man reprimanded loudly as they moved away from earshot. 'This shouldn't have happened to a officer of so much experience and training like you'

'I'm s...sorry sir' James replied almost in whispers, trying to find his voice. 'I was only trying not to disturb the minister's comfort'

The man punched in the pass code to the office door and metal door slid gently open. He took off his suit jacket and hung it before taking his seat.

'Sit down' he said to James who still remained standing, waiting for the order.

'Thank you sir'

'There's more work now, the killers have to be found before the end of next month, that's the deadline given to us by the commissioner' the man explained. 'That means that there's no rest for you, you have to get to work immediately and you must not fail'

'I will not fail sir' James replied, swearing under his breath to do everything possible to nab the killers within the given time.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

'Damn! Slash his head dude' Cole exclaimed excitedly, punching the buttons on his joystick as his avatar stood over Benny's after taking it down with a uppercut, it stood over the opponent drew out a sword. Cole sat on the rug close to the TV, in order to have a close view and enjoy the game. Benny was sitting on a stool not far from Cole at the other side, eyes glued to the TV screen with the other game pad in his hand.

'Never' Benny retaliated; his avatar sent a heavy kick to Cole's, making it stagger far behind. He smiled as his avatar stood up and charged towards Cole's avatar in rage but Cole was faster, he dogged Benny's attack, returning it with a heavy kick.

'Hey guys' Tarasha walked into the sitting room, dividing their attention.

'Welcome Boss' Cole replied, he paused the game and stood up. 

'Good afternoon Boss' Benny greeted, also getting up to his feet. 'We've been expecting you'

'Been trying to get something done' she replied and took a seat. 'We're leaving for Rivers this week'

'Rivers?' They asked simultaneously, surprised.

'Yes Rivers, we have a job to do there' Tarasha continued. 'Which of you knows the city very well?'

Both stared at each other for a moment before Benny spoke, 'I've only been there once'

'That means we have more work to do' she crossed her leg and leaned on the chair arm. 'Cole would get some geographical and street maps of the city for us to study'

'Okay, but what job is it? Who's the target now?' Cole curiosity pushed him to ask.

'I'll keep that to myself for now' Tarasha denied him the answer. 'Let's focus on getting there first'

'Why don't you want to tell us?' Benny interrupted. 'It would help us in guiding, you know we are used to the country more than you are. Or are you scared that we're going to sell you out?'

Tarasha narrowed her look at the guys and gave a long wicked laugh. She suddenly stopped and asked, 'where's Aisha?'

'Humm' Aisha answered with a shaky voice before any of the two guys could respond. She appeared with a bottle of wine and three glass cups from the corridor leading to the other rooms

From the way she appeared swiftly, one could easily conclude that she had been listening silently to their conversation and was shocked to hear Tarasha ask about her.

'Good afternoon' Aisha curtsied.

'Hi, where have you been? And where did you go on Friday night?' Tarasha asked with a frown.

'I went to my boyfriend's place' she gave an already prepared answer, ignoring the first question.

Tarasha smiled and turning back to face the two guys, she took a sip from the wine Aisha served her. 'We'll leave on Thursday with two vehicles'

'Huh?' The surprised trio exchanged glances and returned their focus on Tarasha

'Why land transport? Port Harcourt is a long distance from here' Benny questioned.

'How many hours journey is it?' Tarasha inquired.

'I'm not sure, but it shouldn't be less than seven hours' Benny replied.

'Which of you can fly a jet?' She paused, staring at their faces to get an answer. She continued when she got none, 'I can fly a jet but we won't be able to use it for to travel for this operation because there's no personal landing space for us to use'

‘We could get one to use, if you talk to Chief Gab, he can provide one for us’ Cole suggested

‘No’ Tarasha objected, ‘ that would announce our presence, it would make us exposed to the authorities’

‘True’ Benny whispered, aligning his thoughts with hers.

‘We’ll go in two vehicles, a truck which would carry some cartons of books with our instruments hidden in them’ Tarasha elaborated on the plan. ‘I and Benny would drive in the truck while Cole and Aisha would follow in a car. We’ll buy another car when we get there’

‘Have you gotten a place for us to stay when we get there?’

‘Yes, there’s a building prepared for our use in Oro…ro…gboom’ She struggled to pronounce the town’s name, she brought out a tablet device and scrolled through. ‘Latitude 4.79071, longitude 7.01174’

Cole got up from his seat and proceeded to where Tarasha was seated, he placed a knee on the floor and bent to have a study the map on Tarasha’s device. She handed the device to him.

‘Orogbum’ He pronounced correctly, staring at his Boss’ face. ‘It is very close to Port Harcourt’

‘Its Okay, does anyone of you have questions to ask?’ She got up from her seat, collecting the device from Cole.

‘For how long would the operation last?’ Cole asked.

‘I don’t know yet, it depends on how fast we are able to come up with ideas’ she gave a quick reply. ‘Any other question?’
They trio exchanged gazes in silence, not having any question.

‘I’m sure that you guys are trained enough to keep all we’ve said here to yourselves’ she admonished with a serious look on her face. Turning to Aisha, she added with a contorted look on her face ‘no one else should hear about this, including your boyfriend’

...to be continued

NIGERIA CAN GENERATE OVER N20 TRILLION REVENUE FROM CASSAVA

pastor  Segun Adewumi, the National President, Nigeria Cassava Growers Association says cassava can generate over N20 trillion for the country, annually if adequately utilised. Adewumi stated this in an interview with newsmen in Abuja on Monday.

He said that cassava which was one of the most reliable cash crops in the world that could also be used to trigger industrial revolution and solve Nigeria’s economic problems.

Adewumi lamented that the country spent over N600 billion yearly to import ethanol and starch which were cassava derivatives that could be processed and sourced locally. 

According to him, cassava has over 20 food types and three major industrial products like ethanol, starch and cassava flour which are raw materials for other products. 

“Government should pay more attention to cassava, it has been neglected. “By the time cassava is accorded the needed attention, it will take over crude oil. We have been trying to set up industries that will utilise cassava for the benefit of this country,’’ he said. 

Adewumi called on both the Federal and State Governments to provide lands for farmers to boost mechanise cassava farming. 

The national president noted that modern cassava cultivation required mechanisation to meet up with international best practices. He explained that making cultivable land available to cassava farmers would improve yields and create employment.

“When we import, we are exporting our job opportunities. The government should encourage setting up of industries and mechanise cassava farms.

 “I do not expect the government to give us free money, but to provide enabling environment by making loans and lands available. “The only area where the government can come in with money is provision of infrastructure. “ By the time we begin to have 500,000 hectares for mechanisation, the country will get out of this foreign exchange problem,’’ he explained.

RECESSION: NIGERIANS LOSING FAITH IN FG’S ABILITY TO END SUFFERINGS – NLC

IGERIA Labour Congress, NLC, has said Nigerians were beginning to feel the Federal Government lacked the capacity to end the hardship and sufferings caused by economic recession currently weighing down workers and the masses.

The NLC in a statement signed by the Joe Ajaero faction, therefore, called on President Muhammadu Buhari to provide the needed socio-economic and political leadership to restore hope and douse the mounting despair and sufferings in the country.

The statement read: “Nigerians want to see new jobs or a guarantee that the spate of job losses have ceased. They want to see rice, garri, beverages and utilities within their reach and functioning.

‘’We want to see the cost of transport come down and the roads being repaired. We want to see that the rot has stopped and the run on the economy turning around for the better.

“While Congress’ commends the President for convening the national stakeholders meeting to confront the challenges, Nigerians, however, need to see actions on the ground and not intentions and talk shops. 

‘’It is the concrete steps that the people see that will rekindle hope and help the people stand together as a collective to weather this economic storm. “In the midst of all these, we urge the President to talk to Nigerians now. 

He should address the people to reassure us of government’s programs and actions with guarantees of meeting stated timelines.

This is not the time to talk through proxies but directly to the people. ‘’He is the President the people elected and should reconnect with them. 

This present challenge is an opportunity presented to him by providence to redefine his perhaps already waning Presidency.

Great leaders are made in the furnaces created by this kind of challenge. “We want to point out to the President and the ruling elite that Nigerians elected them into office, perhaps as an alternative to taking matters into their hands.

This is borne out of the belief that we shall experience real departure from the rot and decadence of the previous governments. 

‘’Whether this trust will be fulfilled depends on what the government decides to do as from now. 

Oshiomhole says these 3 politicians will suffered from Obaseki’s victory

Premium Times reports that in his reaction to the electoral victory of Godwin Obaseki of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the governorship election in Edo state, Governor Adams Oshiomhole says it is a signal that the acclaimed godfathers in the state have been rendered powerless.
He said Obaseki’s success in the poll marked the end of three notable politicians in the state. He gave their names as Raymond Dokpesi, Tom Ikimi, and Gabriel Igbinedion, all members of the Peoples Democratic Party.

Obaseki won the election after scoring 319,483 votes against Osagie Ize-Iyamu of the PDP, who scored 253,173 votes.
Speaking after the election result was declared, Oshiomhole said the exercise had humbled the trio.
The governor said: “We have a rerun in 2012 with all the godfathers on one side and new forces of change on my side, I won in all the 18 local government areas.
“Our people have spoken loud and clear that they believe in democracy, they just don’t want to be beneficiaries, they want to be the drivers of the process. This was showed by the way they conducted themselves on election day.
“It is outstanding and remarkable that tensed as the election was with all the predictions the APC out of 18 local government, we won in 15 decisively.
“Those who were loudest in making noise has been revealed where they stand in relation with Edo people.
“We have humbled Chief Tom Ikimi even in the local government he claimed to have created. We defeated Chief Raymond Dokpesi in his polling unit, his Ward and his local government.
“That reassures that the ruthless deployment of media machinery is not enough to distort or the will of Edo people to determine their choice.
“In Okada, the political family that has boasted that they will continue to govern this state and even compelled the state to adopt them as the queen of England whose birthday must be celebrated. In Okada, the APC was the preferred party by the people than that family in Okada.
“There is something unique in the way things have turn out. In Esan land, the senatorial zone of the PDP godfather, we won two out of the five local government.
“We gave him a fight that he manages to escape.  He used the factor of his age to play on the emotion of the people. It is a victory for the people of the state.
“Edo people are now proud they can now determine who rule them and no one godfathers can choose a leader for them. When you look at the propaganda, you will think we have fell for the lion,” the governor said.

APC United Front To Tinubu: Don't Destroy Party With Your Selfish Agenda

TINUBU HAS BEEN MADE A WAILER..... Tinubu was quoted to have made some remarks about Buhari, including that the latter begged him to emerge president in 2015. In a statement by the Tinubu Media Office yesterday, Jagaban as fondly called, stated that the story was concocted by political enemies. The statement reads: “In the past 48 hours, we have noticed the churning out of falacious and outright malicious stories in the social media concerning Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. “We want to state that the stories are patently false and we urge unsuspecting Nigerians to ignore the lies being spread and the wicked stories about what Tinubu purportedly said or did. “The stories being churned out are being done by some fifth columnists who seek to drive a wedge between these leaders. “One of such stories is the one entitled ‘Tinubu Bombs Buhari,’ which is fit only for the trash can and a figment of the writer’s imagination. “Asiwaju Tinubu remains a staunch APC stalwart and supporter of the APC government under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari. Tinubu is preoccupied with assisting to find solutions to the present challenges now confronting us as a nation and nothing will distract him from doing this.” Tinubu allegedly made the comments when he received a segment of APC chieftains from the South West who paid him a solidarity visit late on Monday. He was quoted to have said: “I regret building APC and giving Buhari a platform to become president. “We all knew he didn’t merit to be president, but you know how we politicians behave when we are desperate for electoral position; We beg. “That was how President Buhari always and frequently came to my private house here in Ikoyi with his entourage which included that Nasiru and others. “At a point, he was practically living in my house, under my roof. The room he was sleeping was just 6-7 steps from my own private room. I was building his confidence because he didn’t have it. He was even scared of Atiku and Rabiu. “What I ate, he ate. My security was his security because he expressed fears about the security provided by the Jonathan government. He was afraid of Jonathan. “Now they occupy Aso Rock and they think Asiwaju Tinubu is finished. He is using people I brought from obscurity against me. Now they say my mouth is smelling. They say I’m no longer relevant. The battle line is drawn, I will show them the meaning of Asiwaju. “I know they have surrounded my house. They are there outside. You can’t see them but I know where they are. I see them, but I am not afraid of them. They know that.” When asked “what next” by one of the loyalists, who said: “What do we do now?” Tinubu was quoted to have replied: “Don’t worry, just watch. Time will tell, I built this party and I can destroy it, but for now, I vow, PDP must win Ondo State

TARASHA : CHAPTER SIX - PART THREE

'How on earth were three officers like you abducted so easily? I wondered where you got your training from' James slammed at the three ex-officers seated before him. The guys had been dismissed from the force that morning, for incompetence and neglect of duty.

The trio stayed quiet, looking deeply grieved while James hurled insults at them.

'You guys are most incompetent fellows I ever came across in the force' he hammered. 'Imagine, you don't even remember a single thing that could help us with the investigation'

They remained mute with their heads bowed. Segun shook his head on contempt before he spoke, 'there's no need wasting time on this folks, I think we should just let them go and focus our investigation on something else'

James nodded in agreement, he stepped back gradually and turned, then he walked out of the room with Segun following closely.

'I still think there's something we can get from those guys' James spoke as they walked the corridor.

'I don't think so, sir' Segun retorted, 'the doctors already confirmed they had memory loss'

'But at least, they should remember what occurred before they were drugged' James argued.

'No, tests revealed that the impact of the drug on them was much and they lost memories of everything that happened two hours before they were drugged'

'Well' James sighed, he punched in the code to their office door and entered with Segun, he glanced at Sandra's seat which was empty. 'Where's Sandra?

'With the IG' Segun answered sharply.

James halted before his desk, 'I think the EFCC headquarters is our next place of visit now'

'Yes' Segun gave a short reply.

'Just pick anything you need' James said, picking up a pen and notepad. 'We might be out for the rest of the day'

'Sure' Segun replied, he picked his phone and car key from his desk. 'I'm ready sir'

'Okay, let's go' they matched out of the station and proceeded to Segun's car in the park. They drove out without wasting much time.

The Economic Financial Crime Commission, EFCC had immediately arraigned all the government officials involved in the planning of the dubious deal with late Nnamdi Okafor, using the video as the proof. Officials of the pharmacy which included Dr Hammed had also been invited to the headquarters for questioning.

'I think we should head for Derl pharmacy first' James suggested, making Segun halt to make a u-turn to the opposite direction.

They drove for another fifty minutes before they got to the Derl pharmacy headquarters. Entrance into the pharmacy was allowed by the security guard immediately the police officers flashed their ID cards.

James stepped out of the car first and walked into the pharmacy building, he was already discussing with the receptionist before Segun joined him.

'Good morning, I'm Inspector James' he displayed his ID card to the lady.

'Good Morning sir, how may I help you?' She replied politely.

'I need to get some information from you, I hope you'll help me' James said without facing her, his eyes searching round the pharmacy.

'Yes sir, I'll try my possible best sir' She answered.

'Good, I need to know everyone that was in charge of the health conference that was supposed to come up last Saturday' he began.

'Ermm' she stammered and gave a light frown. 'I'm not really in the position to help you with that but I can show you to someone who can'

'Please do immediately, thanks' James said and stepped a little backwards. He and Segun whispered something to themselves as they watched the receptionist pick up the landline and spoke to someone briefly.

'He will be here shortly' she said to the officers, motioning them to the waiting area.

'Thank you' James replied, but advanced towards her instead of going to sit down. He continued questioning, 'what about those doctors that were caught in that viral video? Where are they now?'

'I don't know where they are now but I know they've been fired already and invited by the EFCC for questioning' the receptionist confirmed.

'All of them?'

'Yes' she replied and looked towards a middle aged man approaching.

'Is that the person you called?' James asked, looking in the same direction.

'Yes, he is the one' she affirmed.

'Good morning officers' the man greeted as he approached them.

'Good morning sir. I'm Officer James, officer in charge of the minister's murder case' James introduced, displaying his ID card once again.

'Officer Segun' Segun displayed alongside with him.

'You're welcome officers' the man gave a faint smile. 'Please let's go to my office'

They took the elevator to the eighth floor, after which they walked another one minute to the office.

'How may I help you gentlemen?' He asked as he ushered the officers to the two visitors seat.

'Like I said before, we are here in connection to the murder of Minister Nnamdi Okafor' James started. 'We are aware that he came to Lagos for a conference organized by your pharmacy'

'No, the conference was being organized in conjunction with the ministry of health which the man controlled' he corrected.

James smiled and continued, 'we are also aware that he was in a meeting with the commissioner of health for Lagos state and some of your pharmacists that morning of the day he was murdered'

'Yes, there was a meeting that held in our small conference room'

'Were you aware of the meeting beforehand?'

'Yes but only the senior pharmacists were in attendance'

'The video of the meeting has gone viral, how did that happen? Why did your company release the video?'

'We did not release any video neither did we know that the meeting was been recorded, it took us by surprise when we saw the video' the man answered slowly, thinking deeply before he mentioned each word, he was being careful not to say anything that could further cause damage to the company's name.

'But you had a camera installed in the room? Who are those in charge of the cameras?' James pressed further.

'No camera was installed in that room, we only bring in cameras when there's a meeting that we plan to air'

'So you didn't plan to air that?'

'No, it was supposed to be a preparation meeting for the conference'

'Then how was it recorded if you guys had no camera there'

'I'm still confused about that, I personally checked the room after I saw the video but I found none of our cameras there'

'Could it be that one of the participators did the recording?' James queried.

'No, I don't think so. All of them were implicated in the video'

'That's true' James thought deeply for a while. 'Can we see the room where the meeting held?'

'Yes for sure' the man got up immediately. He removed a key from his drawer and led the way. 'It's on the tenth floor'

They used the elevator once again and got to the conference room in no time. James and Segun eyes wandered around the ceiling carefully, trying to locate any hidden camera.

After some minutes of searching, Segun got tired and spoke up. 'I think the camera has been taken away from here'

'Yea, I'm thinking the same too' James added, looking at the pharmacist's face for answers.

'I don't know about that' the man gave a frown.

'What about the cleaners and other people that gained entrance into here before and after the meeting?' James asked.

'We can call the cleaners and ask' he answered, bringing out his cell phone.

'Please do' James joined Segun who was still inspecting the large table and chairs.

Twenty six people appeared ten minutes later in their cleaners uniform, most were middle aged women, only four young men and two ladies were among them.

'Come inside properly' Officer James ordered.

'Which of you cleaned up this place in preparation for the meeting held last Thursday?' the pharmacist asked the cleaners the first question.

'It was the both of us' a woman came forward shakily, pointing to one of the young men.

'Only two of you entered here on Thursday?' James asked, putting up a tough look.

'Yes except for me' another woman stepped forward, she was the head of the cleaners. 'I assigned both of them to do the job and I monitored them properly'

'Which job are you talking about?' James squinted.

'Cleaning the place of course' the woman answered confidently.

'Okay, where was the camera hidden?' James question took the cleaners a little off balance, he smirked at the look on their faces, he loved the effect he had on them except the cleaners' head who was looking indifferent.

'I mean the camera used to record the meeting' be reiterated when he got no answer.

'There was no camera when I inspected here that day'  the head replied.

'But there was a video'

'Maybe one of the guests brought it in and took it out when he was leaving'

'No, none of them could have done that. The video implicated all them'

'Well, there was no camera found here before or after the meeting that day'

'When last was this room used before that Thursday?' James asked more. 'Was it on that Thursday you started cleaning it?'

'No' she answered. 'We started cleaning here on Wednesday'

'No prior entrance before Wednesday?'

'There was, I came here with only Dr Hammed on Monday'

'So are you telling me you don't know when a camera got into this place?'

'No, there was no camera brou... Ermm' the woman paused, suddenly remembering something. 'There was a young lady who came in with Dr Hammed that morning'

'Young lady? Which young lady?'

'I don't know her, I've not seen her before' the woman answered and shook her head in doubt. 'She couldn't have brought in any camera, she was wearing a tag, I believe she's a just a student'

'Just a student?' James queried, a scornful smile appeared on his face.

'Yes and she didn't bring in any camera because I found none here after that day'

'Then how was the video recorded?' James barked angrily.

'We don't know' the woman bounced back, refusing to be intimidated.

'Three of you will have to report to the station this evening for further questioning, I'll make sure you pay if you had a hand in this' James threatened as he scribbled something into his notepad. 'You can all leave now'

'I think the receptionist would know about the student, we should ask her' Segun suggested after the cleaners left.

'Hmm nice suggestion. We would, let's go' James tucked back his pen into his pocket. He looked around for the last time as Segun and the pharmacist proceeded outside, he followed after still searching with his eyes.

'Wait! What's this? ' James' eyes caught something at the door, a tiny and flat black device stuck to the frame of the door, camouflaging with the black colour of the frame.

'Wow! Wow! ' Segun exclaimed, his eyes widened as he saw the bug in James' hand.

...to be continued

TARASHA : CHAPTER SIX - PART TWO

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

** 01.12.2030 **

Tarasha inhaled a huge quantity of the the moisture filled air as she parked her bike close to the bush, she removed her helmet and hung it on the bike. She gently brushed back part of the long hair which covered her left eye with her hand. She looked right and saw another bike approaching, ignoring it she began to walk slowly towards the narrow path of the bush which probably led to a village.

After riding the expressway for about two hours she decided to take a break, walking around the bush a little. She surged forward through the narrow path, playing with the leaves as she moved.

She suddenly stopped midway on hearing the sounds of some movement behind her, she looked behind her, nobody was there. She took another two steps and paused, she bent to pick a stone. She turned backward and aimed something at the left side of the bush.

'Yaaay!' Someone moaned and came out from the bush, using his hand to massage the part of his forehead where the stone hit him. Tarasha ignored and kept walking forward.

'That was cruel' he shouted at her.

'What was cruel?' She stopped and asked, without turning back. 'Why have you been following me?'

'Huh? Did you look now I was following you?' He trotted closer , still rubbing his forehead.

She turned back and proceeded out of the bush path without looking at him. He paused and stared at her before following.

'Your bike started following me from the Solid Quarry junction' Tarasha stated, heading for her bike. His bike was parked just behind hers.

'Huh? You knew? Why didn't you stop then?' He was perplexed, his shoulders dropped as he stood still after getting out of the bush part. He wondered why Tarasha did not take a look at him, he walked further closer to her.

'What?' Tarasha growled, offended as his hand was on hers resisting her from putting on the helmet.

'Why are you shy? You can't even look at my face' he mocked.

'Shy?' She took his hand away and wore the helmet.

'If you aren't shy, then why are you hiding your pretty face? You don't want me to see it clearly?' He taunted.

She ignored him and sat on the bike, after wearing her gloves well she started the engine. She attempted to ride off but he stopped her, standing at the front with the front tyre in between his legs.

'Come on, I won't hurt you. I just want to have a little chat. Let's get to know each other'

She raised her head and stared into his face through the helmet transparent cover. She spoke in a harsh voice, 'Your name is Henry and you're a rider, I have no time for your association'

She pushed him with her right hand gently, but powerfully enough to make him stagger backwards. She reversed the bike and drove off, narrowly missing him as he jumped away quickly.

He stood still watching as she raced off, wondering what type of girl she was. Her declaration of his name affirmed to him that she was the same girl he had met on the same expressway some few weeks ago.

Since that day, he had been riding through that location every Sunday evening, hoping to  meet her again. Now that he had the opportunity, she didn't give even listen to him, rather she put up a wild behavior.

Maybe she was scared that he was dangerous or that he might harm her. But he was just a rider who wanted to make friends with a female rider who he viewed to be very skillful. He wished she could see that his intention was pure.

He heaved a sigh and headed for his bike, he bent to dodge a nylon of sachet water thrown at his direction as an inter-state passenger's bus sped past. 

He tried to picture Tarasha's face in his mind as he sat on the bike, putting on the helmet. He didn't get a very clear view but he could conclude with the little he got that she was pretty and had a light skinned complexion.


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

'Officer James' James stood up from the cell's cold rigid floor as he heard his name. He saw a uniformed warder with the approaching with Officer Segun.

He moved closer to the room bars, the warder opened the door and motioned him outside. Segun saluted him,trying fruitlessly to hide the look of pity in his face.

'You're free to go, officer James' the warder said, handing over his clothes in a nylon bag to him. 

**few minutes later**

Segun drove in the black Camry, with neatly dressed James at the front seat with him. He glanced occasionally at his boss, trying to figure out the right way to begin a conversation.

'You said Oga is waiting for me?' James began, using Oga to refer to his immediate superior.

'Yes, he says he wants to speak with you as soon as you're out' Segun answered.

James heaved a sigh and paused for a moment before talking again.

'What about Emeka?' He asked of the stout officer who drove with him in the jeep that picked the Ghanaian minister.

'He should also be released today' Segun replied.

'So he was put in detention too?' James posed a rhetorical question. 'What about Officer Tunde and the others?'

'Officer Tunde is dead o' Segun voice was full of pity. 'He was found dead in the car, the others were found drugged in the mechanic workshop beside our office'

'So there's no way to find out if Tunde was a party to the assassination?' He questioned without expecting an answer, he rubbed his palm on his forehead and on his face.

Silence reigned for the rest of the journey to the station. James immediate boss was standing in the compound with his hands at his back, facing the station building. James' eyes met with his when the man looked back as they drove in. The man turned well to face their direction and watched as they drove the car to a halt and stepped out.

'Good afternoon sir' James and Segun saluted, waking towards the man.

'How are you James?' The man responded and extended his hand to James. 'Well done Segun'

'Fine sir' James replied, taking the man's feeble hand in his.

They began walking slowly into the station as they talked.

'James, the truth is I'm really disappointed in you' the man continued with a note of regret in his voice. 'I didn't believe something like that could happen when you're in charge'

James bowed his head in shame, avoiding the look on the various officers’ faces as they walked through the opened offices to the man's office.

'What were you thinking when an escort car suddenly disappeared and then reappeared? Why didn't you stop to check?' The man reprimanded loudly as they moved away from earshot. 'This shouldn't have happened to a officer of so much experience and training like you'

'I'm s...sorry sir' James replied almost in whispers, trying to find his voice. 'I was only trying not to disturb the minister's comfort'

The man punched in the pass code to the office door and metal door slid gently open. He took off his suit jacket and hung it before taking his seat.

'Sit down' he said to James who still remained standing, waiting for the order.

'Thank you sir'

'There's more work now, the killers have to be found before the end of next month, that's the deadline given to us by the commissioner' the man explained. 'That means that there's no rest for you, you have to get to work immediately and you must not fail'

'I will not fail sir' James replied, swearing under his breath to do everything possible to nab the killers within the given time.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

'Damn! Slash his head dude' Cole exclaimed excitedly, punching the buttons on his joystick as his avatar stood over Benny's after taking it down with a uppercut, it stood over the opponent drew out a sword. Cole sat on the rug close to the TV, in order to have a close view and enjoy the game. Benny was sitting on a stool not far from Cole at the other side, eyes glued to the TV screen with the other game pad in his hand.

'Never' Benny retaliated; his avatar sent a heavy kick to Cole's, making it stagger far behind. He smiled as his avatar stood up and charged towards Cole's avatar in rage but Cole was faster, he dogged Benny's attack, returning it with a heavy kick.

'Hey guys' Tarasha walked into the sitting room, dividing their attention.

'Welcome Boss' Cole replied, he paused the game and stood up. 

'Good afternoon Boss' Benny greeted, also getting up to his feet. 'We've been expecting you'

'Been trying to get something done' she replied and took a seat. 'We're leaving for Rivers this week'

'Rivers?' They asked simultaneously, surprised.

'Yes Rivers, we have a job to do there' Tarasha continued. 'Which of you knows the city very well?'

Both stared at each other for a moment before Benny spoke, 'I've only been there once'

'That means we have more work to do' she crossed her leg and leaned on the chair arm. 'Cole would get some geographical and street maps of the city for us to study'

'Okay, but what job is it? Who's the target now?' Cole curiosity pushed him to ask.

'I'll keep that to myself for now' Tarasha denied him the answer. 'Let's focus on getting there first'

'Why don't you want to tell us?' Benny interrupted. 'It would help us in guiding, you know we are used to the country more than you are. Or are you scared that we're going to sell you out?'

Tarasha narrowed her look at the guys and gave a long wicked laugh. She suddenly stopped and asked, 'where's Aisha?'

'Humm' Aisha answered with a shaky voice before any of the two guys could respond. She appeared with a bottle of wine and three glass cups from the corridor leading to the other rooms

From the way she appeared swiftly, one could easily conclude that she had been listening silently to their conversation and was shocked to hear Tarasha ask about her.

'Good afternoon' Aisha curtsied.

'Hi, where have you been? And where did you go on Friday night?' Tarasha asked with a frown.

'I went to my boyfriend's place' she gave an already prepared answer, ignoring the first question.

Tarasha smiled and turning back to face the two guys, she took a sip from the wine Aisha served her. 'We'll leave on Thursday with two vehicles'

'Huh?' The surprised trio exchanged glances and returned their focus on Tarasha

'Why land transport? Port Harcourt is a long distance from here' Benny questioned.

'How many hours journey is it?' Tarasha inquired.

'I'm not sure, but it shouldn't be less than seven hours' Benny replied.

'Which of you can fly a jet?' She paused, staring at their faces to get an answer. She continued when she got none, 'I can fly a jet but we won't be able to use it for to travel for this operation because there's no personal landing space for us to use'

‘We could get one to use, if you talk to Chief Gab, he can provide one for us’ Cole suggested

‘No’ Tarasha objected, ‘ that would announce our presence, it would make us exposed to the authorities’

‘True’ Benny whispered, aligning his thoughts with hers.

‘We’ll go in two vehicles, a truck which would carry some cartons of books with our instruments hidden in them’ Tarasha elaborated on the plan. ‘I and Benny would drive in the truck while Cole and Aisha would follow in a car. We’ll buy another car when we get there’

‘Have you gotten a place for us to stay when we get there?’

‘Yes, there’s a building prepared for our use in Oro…ro…gboom’ She struggled to pronounce the town’s name, she brought out a tablet device and scrolled through. ‘Latitude 4.79071, longitude 7.01174’

Cole got up from his seat and proceeded to where Tarasha was seated, he placed a knee on the floor and bent to have a study the map on Tarasha’s device. She handed the device to him.

‘Orogbum’ He pronounced correctly, staring at his Boss’ face. ‘It is very close to Port Harcourt’

‘Its Okay, does anyone of you have questions to ask?’ She got up from her seat, collecting the device from Cole.

‘For how long would the operation last?’ Cole asked.

‘I don’t know yet, it depends on how fast we are able to come up with ideas’ she gave a quick reply. ‘Any other question?’
They trio exchanged gazes in silence, not having any question.

‘I’m sure that you guys are trained enough to keep all we’ve said here to yourselves’ she admonished with a serious look on her face. Turning to Aisha, she added with a contorted look on her face ‘no one else should hear about this, including your boyfriend’

TARASHA : CHAPTER SIX- PART ONE

**29.11.2015**

*7am

The news of the minister's death was greeted with great shock and grief throughout the country and the African continent as a whole. Unemployed youths and adults remained indoors that morning, fixing their gazes on the TV screen as circumstances surrounding the minister's death were being unveiled. Workers who rushed to their offices also had their earphones stuck to their ears, listening to the news reported on the various radio stations.

At first, the country's news stations reported that the minister was shot by unknown gunmen in his residence and had been taken to the hospital ,immediately many well wishers and patriotic citizens  began to offer emergency prayers to God for the preservation of the man's life. It was till morning time that it was divulged that the man died immediately after been shot by escorts of the Ghanaian minister. The country's president also took to his Facebook page to pay tribute to the late minister.

'Excellent job done!' Chief Nonso exclaimed, his face beamed with smiles as he gave Chief Gab a high five and took his seat beside the man in the three seater sofa. 'She delivered at the set time'

'Yeah' Chief Gab replied happily, keeping his focus on the TV screen. 'The job was done neatly'

'That girl is good, she did it in a way that the street cameras did not capture anything' Chief Nonso continued.

'Shhhh!' Chief Gab hushed, he increased the TV volume with the remote control. The Lagos state commissioner of police was being interviewed by some journalists.

"The tragic loss of the honorable minister came as a shocking news to everyone of us in this nation including the security forces. What is  more painful to us is the fact that he died in the hands of our supposed trained security officials. But we are doing our best to capture all those responsible for this great offence and we promise to arrest the killers as soon as possible"

"How do you intend to find them?" A journalist posed a question. "We are aware that the security cameras failed at the time the murder took place"

"No, the security cameras were perfectly in shape" the commissioner lied. "We only had a little network issue with the transmission but we're already working towards recovering the files"

"How long will that take sir?" Another question was thrown at the minister.

"I have to go" the commisioner ignored the question, he was being led away hurriedly by the junior officers guarding him.

'Hahahaha' Chief Gab laughed loudly, he tuned down the TV volume. 'The commissioner looks so confused'

'He is really confused' Chief Nonso stood up to pick the bottle of wine on the center table, he removed the cover and poured the liquid into two glass cups.

'Let's toast to our success' He handed a cup to  Chief Gab who stood up merrily. Their glasses met and they took a sip before returning to their sitting position.

'One gone, three more to go' Chief Gab said as he settled back into the seat. 'I'll send Jubril's details to Tarasha today'

'No, not Jubril yet' Chief Nonso opposed, he dropped the glass cup on the table. 'Let's take down Kelechi Edwin first'

'Why Kelechi first? Chief Gab asked with a surprise tone. 'Don't you think we should still leave him to enjoy Rivers State money a little before he dies? I don't even understand why you want him down yet'

'Come on, he has enjoyed enough already'Chief Nonso retorted. 'He's gaining the trust of so many people already, they are beginning to like him for governing Rivers State very well'

'Well, that shouldn't be our problem, the people loved you for governing Abia Statements well during your tenure' Chief Gab argued.

'It is our problem if he continues to gain so much fans, he's done ten times of what I did in my right years in just six years of governing'

'Well...'

'I should have done better Gab, but remember that I couldn't abandon you...'.

'Don't remind me of all that Nonso' Chief Gab cut in. 'I would have done the same, if you were in my position'

'I know and that's why I decided to help you, that's why I saved so much from Abia. I knew we will need it some day' Chief Nonso replied calmly, trying not to heat up the situation.

'Okay, what are you saying now? I don't really understand why Kelechi should be the next'

'Simple, it is very obvious with the way things are going that he would succeed the president if something is not done' Chief Nonso explained. 'I won't be able to beat him at the Party's primaries, so if we take him down now, nobody would suspect be like they would if it happens close to the election period'

'Okay' Chief Gab prolonged the word as he nodded his head in realization. 'You should have explained better. We have to take him out first because he'll definitely step in your way'

'Yea, that's what I'm saying '

'Okay, Kelechi is it then'

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

*9pm*

Cole laughed loudly as he read the several comments of the previously grieved Nigerians, who now turned around to insult the late minister after seeing the video of the man, where he connived with the Lagos state commissioner and other organizers of the conference to defraud the federal government.

The video circulated easily and quickly without need for special publicity since the minister's death news was still trending on the internet that day. It received more than six thousand views in less than one hour after Cole uploaded it with a new YouTube account. Most of the viewers were those redirected from Google search while they surfed to find out more about the minister's murder.

Now the video has reached over a million views in just five hours. Various social networks and forums like nairaland.com and LindaIkeji Blog also aided in the video spread; several comments on these forums revealed that the people were more shocked to discover that the minister was corrupt than they were at his death. Even the President's tribute speech on TV that evening was slightly changed to a speech warning other government officials from involving themselves in corrupt deals.

However, the police authorities vowed to track down the person behind the YouTube account, stating that they were positive that the YouTube account had a connection with the killers. They also encouraged that anyone who witnessed the crime or had any useful information should waste no time in releasing the information to the police.

More reports on various news platforms disclosed that the police officers accused of carrying out the assassination were found laying unconscious in a mechanic workshop, tests conducted on them proved that they were drugged. The policeman who drove the Camsol used for the crime was later found dead in the same car, parked at the front of an abandoned guesthouse.

'Cole' Benny called, walking into the sitting room with a bottle of beer. 'How ya doing man?'

'Hey, you're back' He placed his tablet device on the table and sat up. 'Where have you been?'

'Around town man, remember Boss says we can flex if we want to. She only warned us to be careful' Benny replied, he sat on another chair close to Cole and bent to take off his shoes. 'Where's Aisha?'

'She's gone out, she'll be back tomorrow morning' Cole answered, standing up to take the beer. He walked up to the mini bar in the sitting room to pick a cup.

'She's gone out?' Benny asked like he didn't hear the first time.

'Don't worry Benny, your food has been prepared' Cole laughed as he took a sip. 'I know that's what you're worried about'

'Better' Benny's face brightened up, he stood up and picked his shoes.

'I'm thinking of hitting the club tonight, are you in?' Cole inquired.

'What kind of question is that?' Benny gave him a funny look, he glanced at Cole's phone ringing on the table. 'You know I'm always in'

Cole walked to the table and picked up his phone with his left hand, the cup of beer was in the right hand.

'It's Boss' he whispered to Benny before answering the call. 'Hello Boss'

'Hey man, whats up with you?' Tarasha greeted in a friendly manner.

'Nothing much Boss, what about you?' Cole replied

'Same here, I'm just trying to get used to the country'

'Oh! Lagos is cool, you'll find it lovely'

'Maybe you should have taken me out, instead of staying indoors all day' she said.

'Huh? Me? Take you out?' He was a bit surprised hearing her suggest that he should take her out.

'Isn't that better than staying in all day like you're also new in the country?' She continued.

'Ermm...' Cole stammered, he cleared his throat, trying to gain more confidence. He finally did and asked, 'would you like clubbing tonight?'

'Oh! Not tonight, maybe some other time' she turned down his offer.

'Okay' he replied in a low tone, disappointed.

'Where's Aisha?' She demanded, ignoring the note of disappointment heard in his voice.

'Huh?' The question met him unprepared, it was her first time of ever asking about Aisha. 'She went out'

'Alright' Tarasha said with a concluding note, 'rest well, our job continues on Monday. Goodnight'

'Goodnight Boss'  the call ended.

Cole was lost in deep fantasy for a moment, he wondered what it would have been like clubbing with Tarasha, he wondered how it will feel having her on the same bed with him.

'What did she say?' Benny's voice jolted him to reality.

'Nothing' he returned sharply. 'She only said she'll like me to take her round town next time'

'You??' Benny asked with jealousy showing in his eyes. 'I'm sure she was joking with you?'

'No man, she was serious' Cole laughed, noticing the jealousy in Benny's voice. He stopped abruptly after something came into his mind, a confused look appeared on his face. 'How the hell did she know I was indoor all day?'

Benny hissed and walked away, leaving Cole to figure out things for himself.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

**30.11.2030**

*6am

Don got up sluggishly from the bed with a blanket tied round his body and opened the window curtains to have a view of his men working in the compound downstairs. He caught a glimpse of Aisha in his kitchen through the slightly opened door as he slumped back lazily into his bed, she was wearing one of his shirts on her pant.

His eyes met the trousers and boxers he scattered on the floor last night, when he couldn't control his urge on seeing her, after she had gone away for over a week. He remembered pleading with her to come spend the night with him that weekend, his pleading wasn't in vain as he had been compensated with several rounds of sex.

'Hi Don' Aisha greeted, walking into the room with two cups of hot liquid in her hands.

'Hi' he responded, getting up to pick his clothes on the floor, he got into another boxers.

She dropped the cups on a stool and sat on the bed, waiting for Don to join her.

'I made some... ' she was saying when Don gently pushed and laid her on the bed, covering her body with his.

'No coffee is sweater than you' he said and dragged up her shirt, revealing the upper region of her body.

'No Don, it's okay already' She resisted and rolled away. 'I have to leave soon, I didn't take permission to come here'

'Do you have to now take permission to come to me? Remember I sent you there' Don grumbled.

'Come on, you know I have to work by rules of the job' Aisha retorted. 'She has warned us against going out frequently to avoid suspicion from the neighborhood'

'Oh well! I really have to salute you guys for the Minister's job, I wouldn't have believed it wasn't police officials that gunned down the man if you didn't tell me' Don commended as he sat up. 'It was done neatly'

'Thanks, but please no one else has to know how we did the job' Aisha pleaded.

'Of course, you can trust me' Don took a sip of the hot coffee and mocked. 'I'm already overrating you people,It's not that the job was to hard though'

'Hehe' she chuckled. 'Could you have done the job without leaving any traces behind?'

'Yes I would have, I have the best team in Nigeria right now' Don boasted.

'No you couldn't have done it. Do you remember that little Doctor's job we did last?' She asked as she took her own cup of coffee.

'That was just an unusual error' Don defended his team. 'It doesn't mean we're not the best'

'No, it wasn't an error' She argued. 'You did your best in that job but we couldn't just cover up our tracks, we had to poison some of our members before the police took them'

'When are you going to find out where Tarasha lives?' Don changed the discussion, after a moment of awkward silence.

'I don't know yet, no one seems to know. She just appears and disappears'

'And you can't try to trail her?' Don pushed further.

'I dare not, I won't even go far before I'm caught'

'That's a lie, isn't she human? She has just succeeded in creating fear into you. All you need to do is watch and monitor her carefully'

'Don, please I don't want any trouble' Aisha said, looking straight into Don's eyes.

...to be continued

Naira drops to 490/$1, 600/£1 owing to ‘bombardment’ from Chad, Benin

Aminu Gwadabe, president of the Association of bureau de change operators of Nigeria (ABCON), says the free fall of the naira is due to activities of Nigeria’s immediate neighbours.

Over the week, the naira has been on a free fall at the parallel market, moving from 439 per dollar on Monday to 490 to the greenback on Friday morning.

The British pound and euro are also currently trading at N600 and N520 respectively.

According to Gwadabe, foreigners are mounting pressure on the naira by bringing in their dollar demand to Nigeria, hence, mopping up the dollars in the system.

“For the past few days, what we have been witnessing in the market is a kind of spike, a lot of volatility in exchange rate, and this has to do with fear,” Gwadabe told CNBC Africa.

“A lot of people are developing fear, and as a result of that, no naira is being kept. People are moving from naira to dollar.

“A very worrisome factor that we have been witnessing in the market is that the market has recently been bombarded by people from neighbouring countries to meet their demands.

“What I mean by neighbouring countries is that a lot of demand is coming from Benin Republic, from Chad. International demand is also accumulating; we see a lot of Chinese traders coming into the economy, mopping up any available dollar.”

Gwadabe said ABCON and Travelex are now into a partnership, which would take off soon, thereby easing the stress on the local currency.

The bureau de change boss expressed support for the proposed sale of some national assets to beef up foreign reserves and support the naira.

TARASHA : CHAPTER FIVE - PART FOUR (Conclusion)

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

'It's time to leave guys' James motioned his team members at exactly five pm. He got into the first car, a Bently Jeep with a stout officer who sat at the driver's seat, while the other four officers , two males and two females got into the Camsol. 

The stout man started the car engine and mumbled some words to James before they led the way out of the station compound, the Camsol followed behind.

The minister's plane was expected to arrive in Nigeria by six pm, but it was just few minutes after five pm when James commanded his team to leave for the airport. Though the distance of the airport to the station wasn't much, it only took fifteen minutes to drive there, James like every professional insisted on arriving the airport and getting settled very early before the minister arrives.

They had just gone a few distance away from the station when James' phone rang, he discovered that it was a call from one of his team members who was in the other car following them. He glanced back and couldn't find the Camsol behind them anymore, several cars had come in between them now.

'Where are you? Why are you guys driving slowly?' James inquired.

'I think one of the tyres is bad sir' the officer replied. 'I think something sharp pierced it on the road'

'You guys should fix it and join us at the airport as soon as possible, is that clear?' James ordered.

'Yes sir' the reply came in a faint voice, the call ended.

James and his partner continued to the airport without them, they arrived at the airport not more than ten minutes after.

Before they came out of the car, James called back to find out where the rest of his men were. He got a negative reply, no progress had be made, instead more fault had been discovered in the car.

Officer Segun's call came in when they got to the arrival hall,at exactly thirty minutes past five pm.

'Hello Sege' James hailed, addressing officer Segun by his nick.

'Good day sir' Segun voice replied cheerfully. 'We just dropped the minister home now and we're about to leave'

'Okay, are you sure he's not going out to anywhere else today?' James asked.

'He's going nowhere else' Segun answered with confidence. 'He returned home early to wait for Honorable Mensah, he was told the plane left Ghana already'

'Okay, we're in the airport already to wait for him'

'Ok sir, I just thought I should tell you I'm leaving'

'It's alright, just remember the job continues tomorrow. You should be with him whenever he's going out officially'

'Alright sir' The call ended.

James did not hear anything from the rest of his team members until five minutes past six pm, the same time when the minister arrived, the call came in before the minister came out of the plane.

'Where are you?' James demanded angrily.

'On our way sir, we'll get to the airport in the next three minutes' a voice responded shakily.

'You better do or you'll be sorry for yourself' James snapped and cut the call. He was too angry to notice the officer's shaky voice.

'Welcome sir, I'm officer James' Officer James welcomed Mr Mensah, displaying his ID card.

'Thank you' the minister replied, flashing his teeth, the stout officer took the man's small luggage from an airport attendant. 'Please take me one to Honorable Nnamdi's house immediately

'Oh yea sir, this way' James motioned the man forward, and followed behind, directing the man as they walked. The stout officer hurried to the park to drive the car forward to cut short their guest's trekking.

As they drove out through the exit gate, James spotted the Camsol car at the entrance, trying to sort out their entrance with the security officials at the gate. The stout driver waved to the driver of the other car and motioned them to turn back and follow their car.

Officer Tunde, driver of the Camsol who was the same person who communicated with officer James through the phone, drove in through the entrance first before making a u-turn to hollow the exit.

In no time, the Camsol car was following closely at the back of the jeep. James got a glimpse of them through the side mirror, he felt like coming down to discipline the juniors but had to compose himself because of the Ghanaian minister.

They drove into Chief Nnamdi's compound after twenty minutes, the compound wasn't a large one, the distance from the gate to the main house wasn't far.

Chief Nnamdi was spotted sitting under a shade in the compound waiting for their arrival, with one of his guards standing beside him. He smiled on sighting the Ghanaian minister's car drive in, he stood up from his seat and began walking slowly towards the park.

The Bently Jeep followed the direction  to the car park given by the guards, but the Camsol car made a surprise movement.

The car drove violently straight to Chief Nnamdi's direction, clearing the two guards who stood before the man, the first gunshot from a uniformed policewoman behind, hit Chief Nnamdi's personal guard.

Bang! A noise divided the attention of the other guards in the compound, before they could take any step, another explosion hit the house through the gate, creating an opening for the assailants' escape and killing the armed security men at the gate. Three more gunshots were heard and the Camsol made a turn and sped out unhampered through the destroyed gate.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Cole tucked back the grenade launcher into the bag and threw it at  the back seat. He sighted police officials rushing in their vans to attacked Minister's house, two of the police cars followed the directions of the escaped Camsol. He selected a rap music album on his car's music player before he started the car engine and drove out of Alex street.

The plan had worked out perfectly well; Tarasha, Benny and Aisha had left the office to a restaurant beside the police station before three o'clock. From there they monitored the movement of Inspector James' team via live transmission of the police activities to their tablet device.

Cole had hacked into the police control room server undetected, through a method Tarasha taught him, transmitting the video records in the station to Tarasha's device.

And the Camsol didn't just develop any fault, the back tyre was deflated by Tarasha while Benny and Aisha waited for the police officials to come to request for a tyre change at the mechanic workshop compound close to the station. The four officers except the driver were induced into deep sleep and locked inside the mechanic's shop alongside with the mechanic and his several apprentices. The driver of the car was hypnotized temporarily with a pin pierced into his arm.

Tarasha, Benny and Aisha after repairing the car, disguised and changed into the uniforms of the officers. The officer driving the car was returned to his normal state after the hypnotized pin was removed and forced to continue driving to the airport. He was also forced to keep reporting false information to Inspector James.

Cole did the job of monitoring Inspector James' movement on the road and reported live to Tarasha, then he returned to Alex street and waited at a reasonable distance to Minister's house from where he launched the grenade to the gate.

'Hey, over here' Cole shouted, motioning his three colleagues who stood at the front of the restaurant beside the police station, after returning from their successful job.

Tarasha, Benny and Aisha hopped into the car, Benny sitting in the front with Cole.

'Good job Boss' Cole praised, laughing widely as he pointed to a beard hanging loosely on Benny's jaw.

'Damn!' Benny removed the piece of hair and flung it away.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Everything had happened too fast, it seemed like a dream to James as the police medical team tidied up a total of nine dead bodies in the compound.

It all happened in less than one minute, the Jeep that conveyed him and the Ghanaian minister was not even parked yet when he heard the explosion and gunshot sounds. They narrowly escaped the impact of the grenade, the affected area was just a few metres to the Jeep.

The Camsol car already sped out of the compound before he could rush down from the Jeep. The first thing he did was to ensure the safety of Mr Mensah by taking him far into the house.

Chief Nnamdi Okafor could by no chance survive the gunshots, his personal bodyguard was first taken down. Then two bullets was sent into the minister's forehead and other one into his chest, he died instantly.

'Officer James' An elderly policeman called harshly. 'You were here when it all happened?'

'Yes sir' James replied in low tones, feeling greatly agitated.

'You were not just here, the assailants came with you' the man added as he moved closer. 'You brought them in, they were members of your team'

'No... Sir' James stuttered.

'Nooooo?' The officer stressed, looking suspiciously at James. 'You brought the murderers here, you must have known about the plan all along'

Officer James was speechless, he battled within himself to stop tears from dropping off as he watched the Ghanaian minister been taken into another car which was driven out of compound immediately.

'Are you not the one I'm talking to?' The elderly officer snapped angrily.

'Sir, we've got the signal back and the cameras are working perfectly well now' a junior office distracted the elder, trotting towards them with a tablet device in his hand.

'When did you say the signal went off again?' the elder turned back to face the junior.

'It went off by five pm and it returned few minutes ago' he replied, the sound of his breathing was heard as he spoke.

'That means it was switched off during the time of the operation?'

'Yes sir, the cameras didn't cover nor transmit anything all through. That's why it took us time to report the incident to the headquarters' he explained.

'That means someone close to us must have been involved' the man said sternly, turning back to James, he landed a slap on his face.

'I didn't... ' James wasn't allowed to complete his response, he was handcuffed and carried away in the police van.

TARASHA: CHAPTER FIVE- PART THREE

28/11/2030

** 10am **

Segun and his men stood up from their seats immediately they sighted the minister approaching with his two bodyguards. They walked closer to welcome them, one of Segun's men collected a small luggage from the short bodyguard.

'Officer Segun Kayode sir' Segun displayed his ID card and bowed in respect to the minister.

'Oh officer!' Nnamdi Okafor exclaimed cheerfully, extending his hand to Segun for a handshake. 'How are you doing?'

'Fine sir, how was your flight?' Segun asked smiling.

'Wonderful' the man replied and looked around like someone searching for something.

Segun was quick to figure out what he searched for and he pointed out before the man asked, 'the car's over there sir'

'Ok, Beautiful' Chief Nnamdi smiled and nodded. The party journeyed the short distance to where the cars were parked.

Segun and one of the Chief's bodyguards sat in front of the jeep while the minister sat at the back. The rest of the party took the other car and followed closely behind.

**********

'Welcome Boss' Cole greeted, standing up as Tarasha walked gently in with Benny.

'Thank you' Tarasha answered, she took a glance at the fried rice Cole was eating and then dropped a USB device on the table. 'We planted the tracker on the Jeep as they made their way into the airport. You'll monitor their movement when you're done with your food'

Cole covered his food and stood up at once, 'I'm done already, I'll just tell Aisha to pack away the left over'

'Huh?' Benny made an unnecessary sound as he opened back Cole's food and threw the remaining meat into his mouth distracting Tarasha and Cole.

'Sorry'Benny apologized, he gulped down a cup of water and hurried after them to the computer room.

'I think he's on his way to the pharmacy' Cole said aloud after a minute, he pointed at a blinking green light moving on the map displayed on the screen, as the GPS tracking receiver App opened.

'Ok, he's working according to the schedule. I remember Dr Hammed told me...' Tarasha joined in, she paused and recalled her last meeting with Dr Hammed.

**flashback: 25.11.2030 **

'Good morning sir ' Samantha greeted, smiling as she took her seat in Doctor Hammed's office.

'Good morning Samantha' he replied, smiling back. 'I saw your book here on Friday and I was told by the receptionist that you came. So why didn't you wait to see me?'

'Sir?' She narrowed her eyes as she stared at him in surprise. 'I was here and we met'

'We met? No, we didn't. The only thing I saw here was your book in my office' The Doctor returned the surprise look, which later turned into a frown.

'Sir? I was here, right in your office. You told me you were a little bit tired and needed to rest, that I should return today' She refuted.

'Oh! I did that?' The look on the doctor's face changed to a confused one.

'Yes, you don't remember?'

'Off course I remember' Dr Hammed aloud, making a futile attempt in using a smile to cover up his confusion.

Tarasha chuckled.

'I really had to sleep that day because I used a particular new drug' He added a lie.

'Oh! I see' She smiled. 'So have you gone through my work now?'

'Yes, I did go through it but I noticed that the research is not completed yet and does not hold any valid conclusion' he answered.

'I'm about to complete it sir, I just thought I should share it with you so that you can help me further...'

Dr Hammed's phone rang, he motioned Tarasha to stop talking before he picked the call.

After speaking for about a minute, he ended the call and got up hurriedly. 'Sorry, I have to go check something now, if you like you can wait here or come back later'

'No problem sir, I'll come back' She replied and got up from the seat, proceeding towards the door.

'Please, I think I need your help' the Doctor called back. 'Can you help bring this bag along to where I'm going?'

'Of course sir' she smiled and hurriedly collected the bag from him. The Doctor carried another bag and led the way.

They took the elevator and headed for the tenth floor, continuing with their discussion as it moved

'I'm taking this to the conference room where we're having a meeting on Thursday and Friday before the conference' he said.

'Wow! I believe it's a meeting with the speakers' Tarasha guessed.

'Yes you're right. On Thursday we have a meeting with the country's minister of health and the commissioner and the company's board' He continued as they stepped out of the elevator. 'And on Friday we have a meeting with all the speakers including the foreign guys'

'Good... ' Tarasha said as they walked on to the room.

**PRESENT**

'It was then I planted the bug in the conference room. So keep monitoring them Cole, we might get helpful information from their meeting' Tarasha concluded with Cole and turned to Benny who stood with his arms folded and his back rested on the wall. 'The real job begins this evening two hours before the Ghanian minister arrives'

'Yes, I know. I'm prepared already' Benny added confidently.

'But where's your cook?' Tarasha asked, raising a brow. 'Didn't you tell her she's gonna work with it us?'

'Yes, let me get her' Benny walked out of the room and returned a minute later with Aisha.

'Good morning' Aisha curtsied.

'Hey! I heard you're a very good cook?' Tarasha replied on a lighter mode.

'Yes, I try' Aisha replied back smiling.

'Good' Tarasha smiled, she surveyed Aisha's from head to toe with her eyes and asked, 'do you use guns at all? In case there's any need to'

'Yes, I do. I'm not a novice, I also go on little operations' Aisha answered.

'Okay, we're working as police officials for this operation. "We" includes me, Benny and you, Cole's main job is here. We will get everything we need by this evening' Tarasha explained. 'Our job is to secure Ghana's  minister of health and escort him to Chief Nnamdi Okafor's house when he lands in Nigeria'

Aisha's mind was filled with questions as she listened, she waited for Tarasha to stop before she voiced out her concern. 'I've been briefed already about the job but I don't understand our main mission there, are we taking the job as real police officers?'

'No, we'll take care of the police officers assigned to the minister first. Your job there would end immediately we get to Chief Nnamdi's house and  you'll return here immediately'

'So what's the real...' She stopped abruptly, the look on Tarasha's face warned her against asking any more question.

'They're in the pharmacy now' Cole spoke aloud, diverting their attention to him. 'The car is no more in motion'

'Okay, just call me once the meeting starts' Tarasha got up from her seat and walked out of the room.

Aisha stared at Benny's face inquisitively for a moment, she hissed and walked away when he stared back at her, pretending not to understand what she wanted.

Benny laughed loudly, watching her backside bounce as she went away, he patted Cole on the back and took a seat beside him.

'This girl doesn't know we're working with someone different now' he made jest of her. 'She was expecting me to tell her something the Boss has hidden from her'

'Don't mind her' Cole added. 'We already gave her the rules here, she'll have herself to blame if she messes up'

'She won't mess up, she's not a kid' Benny assured.

** Two hours later **

'Have they discussed anything useful to us yet?' Tarasha walked into the room, fixing her gaze on the screen, the Derl Pharmacy meeting transmission was on.

'Not really' Cole answered, 'but I still think you need to hear what they're up to'

'Okay' Tarasha took a seat beside Benny and listened carefully.

'... all of these monies would be paid into your account directly and you have to transfer our own share to us within seventy two hours later' Dr Umaru was seen explaining. Six men, neatly dressed in suits were seated at the edge of the long conference table, the minister of health was seated at the middle of the table.

'That's no problem' Nnamdi Okafor replied. 'What I'm saying is we should calculate the money now, so that there'll be no arguments when the money is shared'

'The total is about one billion naira' Dr Umaru began breaking down the figures. 'In organizing the conference, we used only a hundred million out of the three hundred million the Federal Government gave us for it'

'That's just two hundred million, where did we get the rest from?' The inquisitive Lagos state commissioner put in.

Dr Umaru cleared his throat and continued, 'we were given five hundred million for Lee Cho's products but we are only paying one hundred and fifty million for it. We're only buying half of the required quantity and Lee Cho is giving us at a subsidized rate. Ken Benson is also giving us his drugs at a subsidized rate, we're getting four hundred million from his own deal'

'That makes it nine hundred and fifty million naira' Nnamdi put in, he stared at Dr. Umaru suspiciously. 'I was expecting much more than this'

'That's all, this administration is so tightfisted' Umaru added again. 'Not everything we requested for was given to us'

'It's okay, let's determine everyone's share right now...' Chief Nnamdi was saying

'Wow!' Tarasha distracted the other viewers, thinking aloud. She turned to Benny and asked, 'is this not the same minister that everyone speaks of as incorrupt?'

'He is' Benny answered softly, looking baffled. 'I'm as surprised as you seeing that he also involves himself in dubious deals'

'Our country is really messed up,  even the most trusted ones are corrupt too' Cole joined.

'Well, I think your country people would love to see this video later. Make sure you keep a copy' She instructed, standing up from her seat. 'And also take note of any other information that may be useful for us'

Tarasha who was already bored walked away, leaving the Cole and Benny to watch the rest of the shocking revelation.

...to be continued