Author: Maimuna Bashir Isa

FOUR students of Nigerian descent have been sentenced for their involvement in a violent disorder that took place in Leicester during the early hours of November 4, 2021. News Point Nigeria gathered that the confrontation, involving knives and a baseball bat, escalated into a large fight on New Park Street, leaving an 18-year-old man with four stab wounds requiring hospital treatment. After a complex investigation involving CCTV analysis, phone tracking, and public appeals, the suspects were identified and charged. A six-week trial concluded in October, with the following sentences handed down on November 14. Destiny Ojo, 21, of Plumstead, London:…

THE National Security Adviser (NSA) Mallam Nuhu Ribadu on Saturday handed over 58 people rescued during joint security operations to the Kaduna State Government. The victims were presented by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen. Christopher Musa, to the Kaduna Chief of Staff, Sani Limankila, who represented Go Uba Sani during the ceremony. Gen. Musa emphasised that no ransom was paid for their release. “This rescue was achieved through the combined efforts of the military and other security agencies”, Musa said, adding “the operation utilized both kinetic and non-kinetic methods, underscoring the need for collective effort, not just military…

THE Executive Secretary, Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), Engr. Shehu Hadi Ahmad, has been suspended indefinitely. According to a terse statement on Thursday night by Lere Olayinka, the Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media to the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, the suspension of Engr. Hadi Ahmad was with immediate effect. The suspended FCDA Executive Secretary has consequently been directed to hand over to the Director of Engineering Services in the FCDA. More details shortly…

THE National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) says a total of 1,463 people were killed by non-state actors while 1,172 Nigerians were kidnapped between January to September 2024. According to the data from the commission sighted by News Point Nigeria, the month of May recorded the highest number of persons killed with 298 while March recorded the highest number of abductions with 499 kidnappings. These figures were presented on Wednesday at a workshop on the state of human rights in Nigeria by the commission and the European Union, in Abuja. In his remarks, NHRC Senior Human Rights Adviser, Hillary Ogbonna, gave a breakdown of the alarming…

THE Federal Government spent $3.58 billion servicing the country’s foreign debt in the first nine months of 2024. Data sourced from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) report on international payment statistics showed that the amount represents a 39.77 per cent increase from the $2.56bn spent during the same period in 2023. According to the report, while the highest monthly debt servicing payment in 2024 occurred in May, amounting to $854.37m, the highest monthly expenditure in 2023 was $641.70m, recorded in July. The trend in international debt servicing by the CBN highlights the rising cost of debt obligations by Nigeria.…

THE national grid has suffered another setback, according to the official handle of the Nigeria National Grid’s X Handle. News Point Nigeria reports that the development comes after the grid collapsed three times in one week towards the end of last month. The latest development brings grid disturbance incidences to nine in 2024 alone. “BREAKING: National Grid suffers another setback. Restoration soon!“, @NationalGridNg tweeted around 3 PM on Tuesday. The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) had yet to confirm the incident at the time of this report, leaving Nigerians in the dark as to the reason behind this round of…

JUSTICE Sylvanus Oriji of the Federal Capital Territory High Court Maitama in Abuja on Thursday adjourned till November 15 to continue the trial of former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika. Sirika, his daughter Fatima Sirika, his son-in-law Jalal Hamma and a firm, Al-Buraq Global Investment Limited, are facing a six-count bordering on abuse of office and contract fraud brought against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. The minister who served under former President Muhammadu Buhari was accused of abusing his office as a minister by awarding contracts to a company in which his daughter and son-in-law had an…

THE Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) says there is no going back on the strike action by the union and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) until their demands are met. SSANU and NASU embarked on an indefinite strike on Monday over the non-payment of their four months salary arrears. Despite calls for the unions to halt the industrial action, SSANU president Mohammed Ibrahim insists that can only happen when their demands are met. “So, it’s not the issue of meeting. The issue is that we want payment and that every procedure has been…

THE Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, through the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre has raised over USD 1.1billion in pledges to support displaced persons and refugees across the Sahel and Lake Chad regions. This was announced in a statement made available by Saudi Arabia’s Mission in Nigeria. According to the statement, the funding commitment is made possible by the contributions of more than 10 donor countries, agencies, and organizations dedicated to addressing the growing humanitarian needs in these crisis-hit areas. The donor conference was held in collaboration with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and the United Nations Office…

MEMBERS of the Joint Health Sector Unions and Assembly of Health Care Professionals (JOHESU) have declared a seven-day warning strike, commencing from midnight on Friday (today). The latest strike comes after a fifteen-day notice of industrial action issued to the Federal Government. While addressing journalists in Abuja, the national chairman of the union, Kabiru Minjibir listed some of its demands. They include the immediate implementation of the consolidated health salary structure, payment of a twenty-five percent review of its arrears from June to December 2023, upward review of retirement age for health workers, tax waiver on healthcare workers allowances, and…

THE Federal Government has filed a six-count charge against nine defendants over allegations bordering on disseminating false information on the recent rumour about the impeachment of the Senate President, Godswil Akpabio. The charge, marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/555/2024, was filed at a Federal High Court in Abuja on October 21 by the Deputy Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation, A. A. Yusuf. This newspaper recalls that the defendants were alleged to have published the false information on October 16 that the Department of State Services laid siege to the National Assembly with a view to effecting Akpabio’s impeachment. The Federal Government sued…

AN ill-fated helicopter in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, on Thursday, had personnel of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) onboard. NNPCL spokesman Olufemi Soneye, in a statement, confirmed that the helicopter operated by East Winds Aviation was engaged by NNPC Limited. The copter crashed at 11:22 a.m. along the waterways in Port Harcourt when the helicopter, a Sikorsky SK76 with registration 5NBQG and operated by East Wind Aviation, took off from Port Harcourt Military Base (DNPM) to the FPSO – NUIMS ANTAN oil rig. A total of eight persons were confirmed on board, said a spokesperson for…

THE Federal Capital Territory Administration has issued a warning to roadside beggars to desist from the act or risk being arrested by enforcement agents. The minister disclosed at Katampe during the flag-off ceremony of the construction of the access road to the newly flag-off judges’ quarters. He lamented that the number of persons who stay on the road is alarming which poses a threat to security in the metropolis. He then issued an October 27, 2024 ultimatum to the concerned parties to vacate the streets. Wike had on Monday, recalled how he revoked the certificate of occupancy (C of O)…

SOME sacked Directors of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have approached an Abuja Division of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) seeking an interlocutory injunction to restrain the bank from replacing them. The sacked directors who are claimants/applicants in a motion on notice filed on Monday insisted their employments were “unlawfully terminated” by the bank “without a valid reason.” The CBN was listed as sole defendant/respondent in the motion filed on behalf of the dismissed directors by the Isa Mohammed & Associates (El-Shuayb Law Firm). In March this year, this newspaper had reported that not less than 27…

THE National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) says Oyelola Yisa Ashiru, deputy majority leader of the senate, is “bad-mouthing” it because drugs were allegedly found in his home. Last week, Ashiru, senator representing Kwara south, said the agency is the “most corrupt and compromised government agency” in the country and there is a need to establish a new organisation to curb drug addiction and trafficking. The senator was contributing to a debate on a bill seeking to establish an institute for drug awareness and rehabilitation. During that debate, Kawu Sumaila, senator representing Kano south, alleged that the homes of some…

BUDGET allocations for food and catering supplies for the offices of the President, Vice-President, and State House headquarters rose by 20 per cent from 2022 to 2024. Although the allocations remained static at N702.95m for 2022 and 2023, it grew to N845.07m in 2024. While the office of the President allocated a total of N856.57m for the three years, about N650.84m was earmarked for the Vice President’s office for the period. Budget documents showed that the State House Headquarters also earmarked N743.55m for the three years. On November 29, 2023, President Bola Tinubu presented the 2024 appropriations bill to a…

THE Governor of Zamfara State, Dauda Lawal, released 31 inmates who are serving their term at the Nigerian Correctional Service facility in Gusau, the state capital. On Friday, the governor visited the Gusau Medium Custodial Centre, where he signed to pardon the inmates in accordance with Nigeria’s constitution. A statement by the governor’s spokesperson, Sulaiman Bala Idris, revealed that the decision was made after a careful investigation of the inmates’ records. He said the Constitution allows governors to reduce sentences and pardon inmates. During his remarks at the event, Governor Lawal said inmates convicted of various crimes were pardoned to…

IN July 2024, President Bola Tinubu approved an increase in the minimum wage for Nigerian workers from N30,000 to N70,000. However, the implementation across states has been gradual, with some still yet to adopt the new minimum wage. While a number of states have pledged to meet the N70,000 minimum wage, others have gone further, committing to pay amounts higher than the federal mandate. Below is a list of states that have announced plans to pay above N70,000: Lagos State: On October 16, 2024, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu announced a new minimum wage of N85,000 for Lagos State workers, N15,000 above…

HADIZA El-Rufai, the former First Lady of Kaduna State, has engaged in a public exchange with Senator Shehu Sani on X (formerly Twitter). The former senator, who represented Kaduna Central in the 8th Assembly, had posted a comment on the platform about President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, which caught El-Rufai’s attention. In his post, Sani humorously suggested that President Tinubu’s international travels have an impact on the economy, particularly taxes and commodity prices. He wrote, “New law of economics; When the President travels out, Taxes and Prices goes up.” El-Rufai, well-known for correcting grammar on social media, pointed out the error…

THE Federal Government of Nigeria has generated N103.7bn in revenue from the Electronic Money Transfer Levies in the first half of 2024. According to data from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s statistical bulletin, this represents a 7.55 per cent increase compared to the N96.44bn collected during the same period in 2023 of last year. This figure shows the growing use of digital payment platforms and a higher volume of electronic transactions as more Nigerians and businesses embrace digital banking solutions. Electronic money transfer levy was introduced as a source of government revenue in the Finance Act 2020, which amended the…