FORMER President Olusegun Obasanjo on Monday lamented what he described as the inability of Nigeria to live up to expectations since independence in 1960. Obasanjo spoke virtually at the public presentation of a book titled ‘Reclaiming the Jewel of Africa’, written by former Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Olusegun Aganga. The event was held in Abuja. The former President stated that the country has disappointed Africa and the world. He also blamed the nation’s level of development on inconsistent policy by previous administrations. Besides Obasanjo, another former president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, who also spoke virtually, stated that policy consistency…
Author: Amina Ibrahim
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THE Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, is to meet with President Bola Tinubu in a move to avert the planned industrial action by the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD). Abbas, who met with the national leadership of NARD in Abuja on Monday, also announced the setup of an ad hoc committee to meet with all the stakeholders and address the matter. The Speaker further appealed to the resident doctors to give the house leadership a two-week period to find solutions to the issues raised. The meeting was held largely behind closed doors. NARD, on July 5,…
THE Deputy Senate President, Senator Jibrin Barau, has appointed Professor Muhammad Ibn Abdullahi as Chief of Staff; Professor Bashir Muhammad Fagge, Special Adviser (Policy & Monitoring), and the Deputy General Editor of Daily Trust Newspapers, Ismail Mudashir, Special Adviser (Media & Publicity). In a statement by his media office made available to News Point Nigeria, Sunday, Senator Barau also named Idris Abiola Ajimobi, the son of the late Oyo State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi, as Special Adviser (Special Duties); Yusuf Aliyu Tumfafi, Special Adviser (Political); Mrs. Ngozi Ndawi Nkemdirim, a pioneer staff of the National Assembly, Special Adviser (Administration); and Shitu…
THE Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima will represent President Bola Tinubu at the United Nations Food Systems Summit in Rome as well as the Russia-Africa Summit. Shettima is scheduled to depart Abuja on Sunday for the two major international Summits in Rome, Italy and St Petersburg, Russia. This was disclosed in a statement on Sunday by his spokesman, Olusola Abiola. At the Rome event, the Vice President will join other global leaders for the first Stocktaking Moment (STM) Summit themed “Transforming Food Systems for People, Planet and Prosperity,” scheduled from Monday, 24th to Wednesday, 26th July. During the summit, the…
IT was a rude shock to a notorious drug kingpin who specializes in sponsoring young Nigerians to traffick Class A drugs to Europe especially Italy, when operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), stormed his hotel room in Okota area of Lagos late on Friday 21st July when he was preparing a recruited courier to swallow 93 pellets of cocaine meant for distribution in Italy. The 48-year-old drug kingpin, Charles Uwagbale, had recruited Uju Dominic, 35, from his base in Italy with a deal to come to Nigeria, ingest 100 pellets of cocaine on Friday 21st July and…
THE Senate yesterday denied being in possession of the ministerial list from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. It notes that while it is waiting in the wings to do justice to any communication sent to it by the president, no one has violated the law when it comes to the issue of appointment of ministers. Speaking with LEADERSHIP last night, spokesman of the Senate, Yemi Adaramodu, said they were yet to receive the ministerial list. The Red Chamber was responding to reports by some media platforms that President Tinubu has sent the names of his ministers to the Senate for screening…
THE House of Representatives Tuesday mandated its committee on finance (when constituted) to investigate the alleged non-remittance of N2trn and other due taxes by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited into the federation account. This followed the adoption of a motion moved by Uduak Odudoh who said the Federation Account Allocation Committee had severally accused the NNPCL of allegedly short-changing it by refusing to pay over N2trn to the Federation Account from crude sales, royalties and taxes. He said the NNPCL had averred that the Federal Government owed it over N4trn of subsidy payments, power debt and other sundry charges…
PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu has ordered a review of his administration’s plan for a monthly N8,000 transfer to 12 million of the poorest households in the country for six months, in a bid to cushion the effects of the removal of fuel subsidy. The plan was contained in a letter read last Thursday on the floor of the House of Representatives regarding the $800 million loan request of the previous Muhammadu Buhari administration for a social safety net programme. The President’s Special Adviser on Special Duties, Communications and Strategy, Dele Alake, in a statement on Tuesday, noted that the cash programme…
THE Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Mele Kyari, says market forces are responsible for the rising pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) known as petrol. Kyari spoke on Tuesday afternoon after a meeting with Vice President Kashim Shettima at the Aso Rock. He said with deregulation of the oil sector, market realities will force the price of petrol up sometimes and at other times force it down. The NNPCL boss said the increase in the pump price per litre of petrol from N540 to N617 is not a supply issue, assuring Nigerians…
THE House of Representatives on Tuesday asked the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to take over the case involving the alleged killing of two-year-old Ivan Omorhiakogbe by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Delta State. Last Thursday, stray bullets allegedly from NDLEA personnel killed the two-year-old child and wounded his sibling. The victims had just returned from school to their mother’s shop when they were hit by stray bullets. A week after the incident, the House has regretted the killing of the child and is seeking for justice for the child. The lawmakers also want…
PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu arrived Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport at 4:20p.m., returning to Abuja from Nairobi, Kenya, where he participated in the 5th Mid-Year Coordination Meeting of the African Union, AU. The President was received at the airport by top government functionaries led by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume. Other in the welcome party were Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila; Imo Governor, Hope Uzodinnma, and former Kano State governor, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje. President Tinubu was at the meeting in his capacity as the Chairman of the Authority…
THE House of Representatives, on Monday, commenced the screening of the service chiefs recently appointed by President Bola Tinubu. The screening committee was led by the Majority Leader of the House, Julius Ihonvbere. The service chiefs include Maj. Gen. Christopher Musa (Chief of Defence Staff), Maj. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja (Chief of Army Staff), Rear Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla (Chief of Naval Staff), and AVM Hassan Abubakar (Chief of Air Staff). The Chairman of the Adhoc Committee of the House, Babajimi Benson, said members of the Armed Forces must adhere strictly to the provisions of the Appropriation Act and urged them to…
THE National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Abdullahi Adamu, tendered his resignation last night, this newspaper reliably gathered. Credible sources confirmed to this newspaper that Adamu, who emerged as the national chairman at the party’s national convention held in March 2022, has sent his resignation letter to the Presidential Villa, Abuja ahead of the return of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu from the African Union (AU) meeting in Kenya. One of the sources said Adamu, a former governor of Nasarawa State, sent the resignation letter to the Chief of Staff of the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, around 4pm on…
THE Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas Tajudeen, on Saturday, said the Green Chamber would work to ensure that traditional rulers have constitutional roles. Abbas said this has become necessary due to the critical roles traditional rulers play in the society. The Speaker spoke at the palace of the Emir of Zazzau, Nuhu Bamalli, during his first visit to Zaria in Kaduna State. Abbas, who holds the traditional title of Iyan Zazzau, represents Zaria Federal Constituency for the fourth time. During his visit to the emir’s palace, Abbas noted the important role of traditional institutions and called for their…
MANY Nigerians are currently unable to carry out transactions using their Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) applications. This is as a result of a major outage that has affected different transaction channels of the bank. An aggrieved customer said he started experiencing the problem after GTBank launched a new app for its customers on Wednesday. He said the problem reached its peak on Saturday after attempts to use the app and 737 code failed. “I went to a branch nearby to use the ATM for transfer, but still it did not work,” said the customer who simply identified himself as Omezia.…
ELEVEN successor electricity companies have applied for a review of their respective electricity tariffs, the Federal Government has disclosed. Disclosing this through a notice published by the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) on Friday, the Federal Government said the request for rate review is premised on the need to incorporate changes in macroeconomic parameters and other factors affecting the quality of service, operations and sustainability of the companies. In the notice obtained by Channels Television, NERC stated that Discos request for rate review is in pursuant to Section 116 (1) and 2(a&b) of the Electricity Act 2023 and other extant…
PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu has declared a state of emergency on food security in Nigeria. Presidential spokesman, Dele Alake, made this known while briefing State House correspondent on Thursday. The President directed that all matters pertaining to food and water availability and affordability, as essential livelihood items, be included within the purview of the National Security Council. The directive was said to be in line with the Tinubu administration’s position on ensuring that the most vulnerable are supported. Alake said President is not unmindful of the rising cost of food and its effect on the pocket of citizens. The President also…
THE Senate, on Thursday, confirmed the nomination of service chiefs and heads of security agencies newly appointed by President Bola Tinubu. This followed the screening of the top brass by the upper chamber. Senate President Godswill Akpabio said during the closed-door session, the service chiefs answered questions on defence-related matters and topical issues. The President had in a letter read on Monday on the floor of the Senate requested that the red chamber confirm the service chiefs. The Senate, upon resumption of plenary on Thursday, started the screening of the service chiefs, with each of them mounting the podium to…
THE Senate on Thursday screened the recently appointed Service Chiefs. President Bola Tinubu had in a letter to the Senate read on Monday, requested that the Upper Chamber confirm the nomination of the Service Chiefs. Senate President Godswill Akpabio did not disclose when the service chiefs will be screened but indicated that the screening will be conducted during plenary. Upon resumption of plenary on Thursday, the Upper Chamber suspended its rules to allow the Service Chiefs enter into the chamber. The Service Chiefs are: Maj. Gen. C.G Musa (Chief of Defence Staff), Maj. Gen. T. A Lagbaja (Chief of Army…
THE House of Representatives has resolved to constitute an ad hoc committee to investigate alleged fictitious contract awards, gross mismanagement of billions of naira and lopsided placement of directors by the Nigerian Maritime Administration And Safety Agency. The ad hoc committee was given three months to conclude the probe and report back to the House for further legislative action. The resolution, on Wednesday, followed the adoption of a motion on the “Need to Investigate Alleged Fictitious Contract Awards, Gross Mismanagement of Billions of Naira and Lopsided Placement of Directors by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency.” The motion was…