Author: Maimuna Bashir Isa

THE National Assembly and the 36 state assemblies of the federation as well as their agencies will spend about N724bn this year, an analysis of their 2024 budgets by this newspaper has shown. Further findings also showed that the salaries and allowances for federal and state lawmakers would cost the country about N50bn this year. This means that the federal and state governments earmarked N673.94bn for the national and state assemblies as well as their related agencies in the 2024 budget. The salaries and allowances are based on data collated from a document obtained from the website of the Revenue…

THE Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has ordered a department within the Transmission Company of Nigeria, the System Operator (SO), to cap power supply to cross-border customers in the Benin Republic, Niger, and Togo to six per cent. NERC’s order, published on Friday, May 3rd was dated April 29, 2024, and effective from May 1, 2024, was jointly signed by the commission’s Chairman, Sanusi Garba, and Vice Chairman, Musiliu Oseni. The directive, outlined in a document titled ‘Interim Order on Transmission System Dispatch Operations, Cross-border Supply, and Related Matters,’ will be in effect for six months, subject to review. Nigeria…

THE Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, has identified the huge purchases of food items by the government as palliatives for distribution to vulnerable citizens as a contributor to the galloping food inflation in the country. He disclosed this in his contributions during the March Monetary Policy Committee meeting, which was published on the CBN website on Monday. At the meeting, the MPC raised the benchmark interest rate to 24.75 percent from 22.75 percent, which it said was aimed at tackling inflation. But according to to the Consumer Price Index report released by the Nigerian Bureau of…

THE Duke of Dutchess, Prince Harry, and his wife, the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, will visit Nigeria in May. In a statement on Monday, the Defence Headquarters’ Director of Defence Information, Brigadier General Tukur Gusau, said during their stay in the country, they will be meeting with service members and hosting an array of cultural activities. Prince Harry founded the Invictus Games, an international multi-sporting event that offers a recovery pathway for international wounded, injured, and sick service men and women. It also gives soldiers awareness and recognition in society to support their path to rehabilitation. The Invictus Games…

A FEDERAL High Court sitting in Apo, Abuja has ordered the arrest of the former Director General of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies Ladi Hamalai for her failure to appear in the corruption case preferred against her by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC). Trial judge, Justice Christopher Oba, issued the bench warrant on Monday, 22nd of April, 2024 for the arrest of the Professor following her repeated failure to show up in the court. The ICPC Counsel, Michael Adesola, had informed the court that this is the fourth consecutive time that the…

THE Federal Government says the recent price increases in MultiChoice cable subscriptions will reviewed by relevant stakeholders to ensure subscribers in Nigeria get value for their money. The Acting Chairman, Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), Adamu Abdullahi, spoke exclusively to Channels Television on its Dateline Abuja programme on Thursday monitored by News Point Nigeria. During the interview, he provided an update on the summons issued to the owner of a Chinese store in Abuja accused of discriminatory and sharp practices. He also commented on the adherence to the order given to the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, stating that…

GERMAN police said Wednesday they had arrested 11 suspected members of a Nigerian mafia group behind a large-scale dating scam. The Black Axe gang was involved internationally in “multiple areas of criminal activity”, with a focus in Germany on romance scams and money-laundering, Bavarian police said in a statement. The dating trick was a “modern form of marriage fraud”, police said. “Using false identities, the fraudsters for example signalled their intention to marry and in the course of further contact repeatedly demand money under various pretexts,” police said. The money was subsequently transferred to Black Axe in Nigeria “via financial…

THE Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has freed a former Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Patrick Akpobolokemi, over an alleged N8.5bn fraud brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Justice Ayokunle Faji acquitted and discharged the former NIMASA boss on Monday while ruling on a no-case submission filed by him and one other defendant, a staff of NIMASA, Josphine Otuaga, in the 22-count charge made against them. Justice Faji held that the EFCC failed to establish a prima facie case against them. The court also ruled that a former Commander…

NIGERIA’s  Minister of Foreign Afairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar said the Rwandan Genocide is one of the stark reminders of “intolerance, hate, and division” in our world, calling for peace, reconciliation, and human rights as a basis of nation building and development. In a statement signed by the minister, Tuggar said Rwandan Genocide “serves as a testament to the immense suffering inflicted upon innocent lives and the devastating impact of violence and conflict on our communities. “Kwibuka 30, marks the solemn commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Rwandan Genocide, a tragic chapter in human history that shook the conscience…

THE Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has hiked the benchmark interest rate by 200 basis points to 24.75 percent. This is according to a Tuesday communique by the CBN governor Yemi Cardoso after the second MPC meeting of his tenure in Abuja. The new interest rate is a jump from the 22.75 percent announced by the MPC about a month ago and the second rate hike by the current committee. Cardoso announced the retention of the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) of deposit money banks at 45 percent. However, the MPC adjusted the CRR of…

MEMBERS of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU), on Sunday, ended their seven-day warning strike. In a circular to branch chairmen at public universities all over the coutry, SSANU President, Mohammed Ibrahim, directed SSANU and NASU members to resume work from Monday, March 25, 2024. The two unions began a seven-day warning strike on Monday, March 18, 2024 over withheld salaries with workers in registry, bursary, works and maintenance, security, and students’ affairs withdrawing their services. Our correspondents who visited public universities across the country observed that nothing moved administratively within any…

THE United States government says it is willing to collaborate with the Ministry of Art, Culture, and the Creative Economy to roll out initiatives that will upskill creatives in music and television script writing. According to a statement by the Special Adviser, Media to the Minister, Nneka Ikem Anibeze, Friday, the US Assistant Secretary of State for Educational & Cultural Affairs Lee Satterfield made this known when she paid a courtesy visit to the Honourable Minister of Art Culture and the Creative Economy Hannatu Musa Musawa in Abuja on Thursday. Satterfield said that the  US government will use public diplomacy…

THE First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has reiterated the call to Nigerians, to get more involved in agricultural production, saying “We can grow our food. Everybody should grow something”. She spoke when she received the Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, Amina Mohammed in her office on Wednesday at the State House, Abuja. The First Lady noted, that the various interventions of the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI), especially in the areas of agriculture, empowerment, education, health and social welfare, were to complement the efforts of President Bola Tinubu’s administration. “The President has made…

THE Group Executive Director, Commercial Operations of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Hajiya Fatima Aliko Dangote, on Friday lauded and congratulated the Lagos State Consumer Protection Agency (LASCOPA) on the successful hosting of the 2024 World Consumer Rights Day, noting that consumers have the right to accurate, transparent, and easily understandable information about products and services. Speaking at the event, Fatima Aliko Dangote, said, “…in these days of artificial intelligence, where consumers are buffeted with information on many products and services which may turn out to be false or less than what is promised”, they have the rights to know all…

THE Katsina State Command of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) on Wednesday handed over six trucks and their contents to the owners as directed by President Bola Tinubu. The released trucks were mostly intercepted along the Kongolam Border Patrol Checkpoint in Mai-Adua Local Government Area of Katsina State. The presidential directive aimed to ensure food security and alleviate the hardship faced by most citizens of the country. The Katsina State Customs Area Comptroller Muhammad Umar while releasing the trucks loaded with assorted grains that were hitherto under the custody of the Nigerian Customs Service recalled that the Controller General of…

THE Minister of Art, Culture, and the Creative Economy Hannatu Musa Musawa has sought the support of Nobel Laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka, in providing strategies for the promotion and preservation of literary art in the country. The Minister who paid a courtesy visit at the weekend, to the renowned playwright , who is a visiting Professor at New York University Abu Dhabi, said that the sector needed to tap into the wealth of experience of the literary icon in promoting the rich cultural heritage of the nation. “It is an honor to share my vision for the development of the…

GOVERNORS of the 36 states of the federation say they have been introducing different strategies and measures to end the current economic hardship and food crisis in their states. In a report signed by its Acting Head of Media, Halimah Salihu Ahmed, the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) said the governors were committed to ending the pain and suffering of citizens in the land. Recall that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had met with the state governors at the Council Chambers of the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja, in February, where issues of hike in food prices, economic hardship and others were deliberated…

NIGERIA’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar has called for synergy between Nigeria and Qatar to foster gas diplomacy, energy transition from non-renewable energy and highlighted the key benefits of Nigeria-Qatari relations for Africa and global gas sectors. He made the call while delivering a lecture at the Doha Diplomatic Institute on February 29th, 2024, on the sidelines of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s State visit to the State of Qatar. The Minister posited that Qatar and Nigeria are blessed with hydrocarbon deposits that place them at the center of the new energy equation. He also said that while…

THE Nigerian Communications Commission has reiterated its directive to telecom operators to bar telephone subscribers not linked to their National Identification Numbers on or before February 28, 2024 (Today). The Executive Vice Chairman, National Communication Commission, Dr Aminu Maida, spoke at the NCC’s Special Day during the ongoing 45th Kaduna International Trade Fair on Wednesday. Maida who was represented by Mr Reuben Mouka, NCC’s Director of Public Affairs, insisted that as a matter of critical national security, telecom consumers must link their NIN to their SIM. He reaffirmed that the February 28th deadline given to telecom operators to bar subscribers…

– Governor Inuwa Says, Her Triumph Source Of Inspiration GOVERNOR Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya CON, has expressed excitement upon learning the outstanding victory of a young girl from Gombe, Hajara Ibrahim Dan’azumi, at an International Female Quranic Recitation Competition held in the Kingdom of Jordan. Hajara Ibrahim, from Abubakar Siddiq Islamiyya and 200 Level Botany Student at the Gombe State University who was selected to represent Nigeria, emerged the overall winner among other contestants from 39 countries in the 60 Hizb with Tajwid category at the 18th Edition of the Hashemite Jordan International Qur’anic Competition for Female. During the competition which…