Author: Amina Ibrahim

THE Kaduna State High Court has nullified the revocation of Durbar Hotel’s Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) by Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State. In January 2020, Governor El-Rufai demolished Durbar Hotel, a property belonging to the family of the late Head of State, General Sani Abacha. The Governor also revoked the C of O of the hotel while the case was still pending in Court. The Abacha family through their counsel, Dr. Reuben Atabo (SAN) dragged El-Rufai and three others to Kaduna High Court presided over by Justice Hannatu Balogun for the illegal demolition of the Hotel and…

A VIOLENT clash erupted between Abuja natives and Hausa youths in Gwarinpa 3rd Avenue during the weekend, spilled to today, Monday, leaving three dead. According to sources, the fight broke out when a group of Hausa youths, who reportedly sold hard drugs, attempted to burgle and rob the household of the councillor of the ward. This infuriated the natives, and the situation quickly escalated into a full-blown clash. Eyewitnesses reported that the violence resulted in the death of three people, with several others injured, and cars vandalised. On Saturday night, security personnel were called in to quell the unrest, and…

THE Federal Government has assured of the safety and evacuation of Nigerians stranded in crisis-ridden Sudan, saying it is “working round the clock” to make that happen. Foreign Affairs Minister Geoffrey Onyeama gave the assurance when he was featured on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics monitored by News Point Nigeria. “So, we have been working round the clock for the last two days to try and get the Nigerians out,” he said on the show, adding that the country’s embassy has been mandated to open a platform to register the nation’s citizens in Sudan. His comment comes amidst a wave of…

A WIDOWER, Ariyibi Ahmed Olaseinde and a divorcee, Akanbi Silifat Tunrayo who were going for lesser hajj in Saudi Arabia have been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA Ikeja Lagos for attempting to export 14.4 kilograms of cocaine concealed in lace and ankara fabrics. Ariyibi was intercepted on Thursday 20th April at the screening point of MMIA Terminal 2 during outward clearance of Qatar Airways passengers travelling from Lagos via Doha to Medina, Saudi Arabia. When his carry-on bag was checked, four sets of white lace material with…

THE Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has slammed the Federal Government for the delay in the evacuation of Nigerian citizens trapped in Sudan amid a raging war between two major military factions. In a statement signed by the President of the NLC, Joe Ajaero, on Saturday, the union said no Nigerian must be allowed to die in Sudan because of the negligence of the Nigerian government. The NLC also described as unacceptable, the government’s “excuse that attempting to evacuate our nationals through the Airport is risky”. The Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, had said the authorities…

BARELY 24 hours after News Point Nigeria had exclusively reported that the Federal Government will begin the evacuation of trapped Nigerians in Sudan next week as the crisis in the country continues to deepen. A senior official at the National Emergency Management Agency, (NEMA) had exclusively told News Point Nigeria that, the agency has had several meetings with the Embassy Of Sudan and all the relevant authorities within and outside the country over the unfortunate plight of Nigerians in Sudan. “We secured an approval for the evacuation of our people a while ago, we have met with all the relevant…

TWELVE days to the commencement of the national population and housing census, uncertainties have continued to trail the planned headcount and there are indications that it may be shifted due to funding and other logistic challenges. It was gathered on Friday that the National Population Commission might again postpone the census as it struggled to raise the required funds. Earlier in March, the Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, Clem Agba, disclosed that the Federal Government planned to establish a basket fund to collect donations for the 2023 population and housing census. He made this disclosure at a…

THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said that it has no idea of the whereabouts of the suspended Resident Electoral Commissioner of Adamawa State, Hudu Ari, since his infamous action during the supplementary governorship election in the state. Ari stirred controversy when he announced the supplementary governorship election results in Adamawa State on Sunday while collation was not yet concluded. “We don’t know where he is because, after this particular incident, the Commission wrote him and also called him on the phone. He never returned any of the calls, he never answered any of the calls. “We asked him…

TWITTER’s blue tick removal tsunami has affected Peter Obi, Bola Tinubu, Atiku Abubakar, and others’ verification badges. A check on the handles of the Labour Party, All Progressives Congress, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate’s Twitter handles late Thursday shows that the blue tick has disappeared. Owner Elon Musk, who has seen his $44 billion investment in the site shrivel, earlier pledged to get rid of what he described as a “lords & peasants system.” Earlier dates set for the rollback of the ticks — predominately used by celebrities, journalists, and politicians — have slipped by without noticeable…

PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has approved the suspension of the Residential Electoral Commissioner in Adamawa State, Hudu Yunusa-Ari. This is contained in a statement issued by the director media in the office of the secretary to the government of the federation, Willy Bassey. The President has also directed the immediate investigation and prosecution, if found liable, of Barr. Hudu Yunusa Ari, by the Inspector General of Police. Also, the President has directed investigation by the Inspector General of Police, Director-General of the Department of State Services, and the Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, of the role…

THE Federation Account Allocation Committee says it shared N714.63bn among the three tiers of government in March 2023. The figure represents a decrease of N8.05bn compared to the N722.68bn shared in February 2023. FAAC disclosed this in a communiqué issued at the end of its latest meeting in Abuja on Wednesday. The total amount includes gross statutory revenue, Value Added Tax, and electronic money transfer levies. The Federal Government received N276.14bn, the states received N232.13bn, and the local government councils got N171.26bn, while the oil-producing states received N35.1bn as derivation (13 per cent of mineral revenue). It was also noted…

THE rift between the Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom, and the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari has appeared to widen as the Presidency on Wednesday took a swipe at the governor. According to a statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, the people of Benue have “rejected” him over the myriad challenges bedevilling the state. The Presidency was reacting to recent publications in national dailies that allegedly attempted to lay the blame of the dire security situation in the state “entirely at the feet of the outgoing president”. Shehu argued that…

THE Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami and other government officials failed to appear before the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on Wednesday over the alleged loss of 2.4 billion dollars from the illegal sale of 48 million barrels of crude. News Point Nigeria reports that, the ad-hoc committee said it is giving one last opportunity to Malami; the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed; and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele to appear before the committee and speak on inflows from recoveries from whistleblowers. The Committee Chairman, Mark Gbillah stated this on Wednesday…

THE Governing Board of the Nigeria Immigration Service, on Wednesday, served a retirement notice to the acting Comptroller-General of the Service, Isah Idris, effective on or before April 24, 2023. In a secret memo obtained by News Point Nigeria, the board cited the expiration of the one-year extension of service granted by the President Muhammadu Buhari, directing the CGI to hand over to the most senior Deputy Comptroller General. The memo, dated April 17, 2023 with code number CDCFIB/APPT.CG&DCG/61/VOL.IV/74, was signed by the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board Secretary, Obasi Edmond, on the orders of the Board…

A STOWAWAY believed to be a Nigerian was on Monday found dead in the wheel well of a KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Boeing 777 plane. The dutch aircraft, registered PH-BQM, flew from Nigeria’s commercial hub, Lagos, according to Belgium’s Aviation24 Confirming the incident, the Royal Dutch Marechaussee noted that stowaways survive sometimes but do not in most cases. The Royal Marechaussee is the national force of the Netherlands, performing military and civilian police duties. “This morning a deceased stowaway was discovered in the wheel well of a KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Boeing 777 (registered PH-BQM). “The aircraft originated from Lagos,…

THE Inspector General of Police (IGP), Usman Baba has ordered that the Commissioner of Police on election duty in Adamawa State, Mohammed Barde withdraw from the state with immediate effect. News Point Nigeria reports that, the IGP also ordered that the Commissioner of Police in charge of Gombe State, CP Etim Equa immediately proceed to Adamawa State for election security of the yet-to-be concluded supplementary governorship poll. Force Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, while addressing pressmen on Tuesday in Abuja, said the IGP is committed to a free and fair process. He said, “The IGP has given directive that the…

JUSTICE Inyang Ekwo of a Federal High Court in Abuja has temporarily declined to hear an application by Senator Aisha ‘Binani’ Dahiru, seeking an order of court restraining the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from invalidating her declaration as winner of the governorship election in Adamawa State, News Point Nigeria gathered. Binani had on Monday approached the court for leave to file an application for judicial review of the administrative decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) made on April 16th in respect of her declaration as winner of the governorship elections of Adamawa State held on March 18…

THE Chinese Government has denied funding militants to access Nigerian mining sites, noting strongly that it will never be involved in any form of terrorism financing. In a statement on Monday, the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria described a report by The Times of the United Kingdom insinuating terrorism financing in Nigeria by the Chinese Government as totally irresponsible. The report dated April 15, 2023 and titled, ‘Chinese ‘bribed Nigerian militants for access to vast mineral reserves’ claimed that “Beijing could be indirectly funding terror” in Nigeria. However, the Chinese Embassy said the report is “based on unverified, unclear and unproven information,…

THE candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC) for the Adamawa governorship election Senator Aisha Binani Dahiru has filed a motion exparte before the Federal High Court in Abuja seeking a judicial review of the administrative decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on April 16th in respect of her declaration as the winner of the governorship elections held on March 18 and the supplementary poll of April 15. Senator Binani is also seeking an order of prohibition and certiorari preventing INEC and its agents from taking any further steps towards the declaration of the winner of the elections…

THE Independent National Electoral Commissioner (INEC) has tasked security agencies to arrest and prosecute those who brutalised one of its national commissioners deployed to Adamawa State for Saturday’s supplementary governorship poll. INEC National Commissioner, Festus Okoye, disclosed this to newsmen in Birnin Kebbi on Sunday. He said, “If you see what is trending, two national commissioners were deployed to Adamawa State. One of them was brutalised, one of them was stripped naked. That will not be allowed to stand. “The security agencies must unmask those who engaged in that particular act. They must be arrested, they must be investigated and…