Author: Amina Ibrahim

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…

THERE was a mild drama at the House of Representatives on Wednesday when a member who came to the chamber “improperly dressed” was walked out. The lawmaker, whose identity could not be ascertained because he is one of the newly elected members, entered the chamber casually dressed in a red t-shirt and brown trousers. The lawmaker walked in and took his seat at the upper gallery of the temporary chamber of the House when the House was almost rounding off the proceeding for the day. Shortly after taking his seat, a member of the House, Billy Osaweru, raised a point…

PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu, on Wednesday, met with the class of 1999 Governors at the council chamber of the Aso Villa, Abuja. The ex-governors were at the State House to identify with Tinubu, who was the governor of Lagos State from May 1999 to 2007, and to express solidarity over his recent policies since assumption of office as Nigeria’s President on May 29, 2023. Among the former Governors present are James Ibori of Delta State; Donald Duke of Cross River State; Orji Kalu of Abia State; Victor Attah of Akwa Ibom State; Adamu Mu’azu of Bauchi State; Sam Egwu of Ebonyi…

PRESIDENT Bola Ahmed Tinubu has written to the House of Representatives, seeking an amendment to the 2022 supplementary appropriation act to accommodate N500 billion for provisions of palliatives for Nigerians. Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas read the president’s letter at plenary on Wednesday. He said the request became necessary to enable the government provide palliatives for Nigerians to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal. “I write to request for the amendment of the 2022 supplementary appropriation act. The request became necessary among others things, to source for funds to provide necessary palliatives to mitigate the effects…

THE Vice President, Senator Kashima Shettima has called on the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, and other principal officers of the lower chamber of the National Assembly to support President Bola Tinubu’s administration. He made the call on Tuesday while receiving members of the House at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. Shettima observed that the state of affairs in the country requires the cooperation of all citizens irrespective of differences in political affiliations or religious persuasions, tribal and sectional backgrounds to support the Tinubu administration in its noble objective of transforming the nation. “The President is determined…

NOT all land borders shut by the Federal Government across Nigeria in 2018 have been reopened, the acting Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Wale Adeniyi, has said. He said only six strategic land borders were reopened in 2021. Adeniyi stated this on Tuesday after a private meeting with the President Bola Tinubu at Aso Villa in Abuja. The Customs boss told State House correspondents that there are ongoing processes to review the situation and the quest to achieve border security and regional integration. He noted, however, that the reopening of the borders will be made public. Adeniyi lamented…

PRESIDENT Bola Ahmed Tinubu has expressed sadness and grief over the latest round of violence and killings in Plateau State. The President condemned in strong terms the most recent internecine killings in Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State and parts of Benue State. President Tinubu found very depressing the festering reprisal attacks, needless and avoidable bloodletting among communities in the two States. “It is most unfortunate that in this orgy of violence, an innocent eight-month-old baby in Farin Lamba community of Vwang District, Jos South Local Government, died in a conflict she knew nothing about. “A major consequence of…

THE House of Representatives has asked the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to stop the implementation of its directive that banks should add customers’ social media handles as means of identification. This was the resolution of the House following a motion sponsored by nine members. The CBN had released its Customer Due Diligence Regulations 2023, noting that the inclusion of social media handles on “Know Your Customer” would galvanize compliance with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing provisions. However, the House was worried that if the directive takes effect, Nigerians, who are not on social media with large turnovers from their…

SENATE President Godswill Akpabio has also announced some standing committees, namely Appropriations, Public Accounts, Ethics, and Public Petitions and Establishment. Akpabio, who spoke at Tuesday’s plenary session, revealed that Senator Solomon Adeola would chair the Appropriations Committee, while Senator Ahmed Wadada is to chair the Public Accounts Committee. See the announced Special Senate Committees and their Chairpersons below: Rules and Business — Titus Zam (chairman), Opeyemi Bamidele (deputy) Senate Services — Sunday Karimi (chairman), Williams Eteng Jonah (deputy) Ethics and Public Petitions — Okechukwu Ezea (chairman), Khalid Ibrahim Mustapha (deputy) Public Accounts — Aliu Wadada Ahmed (chairman), Onyeka Peter (deputy)…

A HIGH Court of the Federal Capital Territory yesterday deferred hearing on a case instituted against the immediate past Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami, SAN, for allegedly abusing his office. ‘ Justice Oluyemisi Adelaja adjourned the case for definite hearing, even as he directed the service of all the necessary court papers on the ex-AGF, Malami, SAN, to enable him to enter his defence in the matter. He further directed that a proof of service of the suit and hearing notice on Malami, should be made available to the court. The suit is seeking…