DANIEL Bwala, a former spokesperson for the Atiku Abubakar Presidential Campaign Council in the 2023 presidential poll, says the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, will be expelled from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the appropriate time. Bwala spoke on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Thursday night a day after Wike monitored by News Point Nigeria, a former Rivers State governor, dared the PDP leadership to suspend or expel him from the party for supporting the election of President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and ultimately working in his cabinet as minister.…
Author: Bala Muhammad
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THE Police Service Commission (PSC) has ordered four Deputy Inspector-Generals of Police to immediately proceed on compulsory retirement. The affected senior police officers include Dan-Mallam Mohammed, Moses Ambakina Jitiboh, Hafiz Mohammed Inuwa and Adeleke Adeyinka Bode. Ikechukwu Ani, spokesman of the commission, who disclosed this to journalists in Abuja on Monday, said the commission gave the order in the exercise of its statutory powers. According to him, the powers is in pursuant to the Third Schedule, Part 1 M, para A&B of the 1999 Constitution, reinforced with Section 6 of the Commissions (Establisment) Act 2001, para a, c, d, e,…
THE National Working Committee (NWC) of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) has announced the suspension of a founding member of the party, Boniface Aniebonam and its National Publicity Secretary, Agbo Major. According to the NWC, the suspension of the duo was with immediate effect pending the outcome of investigations by the Disciplinary Committee of the party. The party in a statement signed by the Acting National Chairman, Mallam Abba Kawu Alli, said the suspension was as a result of unruly activities of the founding chairman of the party whom he alleged felt the political platform was his personal estate.…
THE Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has arrested 13 suspected railway vandals with large quantities of long rails and sleepers worth N800m. They were nabbed around the Manchock area of Kaura LGA, the Zonkwa area in Zango Kataf LGA, and the Kaffanchan area in Jama’a LGA of Kaduna State, according to a Tuesday statement from NSCDC’s spokesman Babawale Afolabi. He said the suspects were arrested by the Commandant General’s Special Intelligence Squad (CGs SIS). The suspects were paraded alongside five trucks conveying the large quantities of vandalised rails and sleepers at the NSCDC Headquarters, Abuja on Tuesday. “The…
THE only surviving member of the old People’s Democratic Party PDP in Sokoto state and former Minister of Water Resources, Barrister Mukhtar Shehu Shagari has formally dumped the party for the All Progressives Congress (APC). Shagari, who was a former Minister of Water Resources in the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo formally received APC membership card from the party secretary, Abubakar Yabo in the company of other state APC executives. Shagari, who was a founding member of the PDP and has been in the party for over 25 years until August this year, when he decided to move to…
THE President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, says the N5 billion approved for each state and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to cushion the impact of fuel subsidy removal is inadequate to impact on the people. Ajaero, who was a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Friday monitored by News Point Nigeria, said that if calculated, the N5bn will not amount to N1,500 per person. According to him, it is unclear whether the money is a loan or a palliative to the states or to Nigerians. “But whichever might be the case, let’s assume that it…
THE Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has called on President Bola Tinubu to lift economic sanctions imposed on neighbouring Niger Republic. Democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum was deposed on July 26, leading to the imposition of sanctions including electricity cut and closure of borders by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) chaired by Tinubu. During ECOWAS extraordinary meeting on Thursday, the decision was made to deploy standby military troops to restore constitutional order in Niger Republic. The convener of NEF, Ango Abdullahi, expressed concern on the use of force to restore constitutional order in Niger Republic, suggesting that it…
PARIS St-Germain have agreed a deal to sell Brazil forward Neymar to Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal for about 90m euros (£77.6m) plus add-ons. The transfer is subject to the 31-year-old completing a medical and all necessary paperwork. Neymar, who joined PSG for a world record fee of 222m euros in 2017, was left out of the squad for their Ligue 1 draw against Lorient on Saturday. He was not part of coach Luis Enrique’s plans for the new season. His exit also fits PSG’s strategy of moving away from the ‘Galacticos’ era of signing high-profile players for big fees…
THE Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) says it has cancelled its planned nationwide protest, billed to take place today, Wednesday, August 9, 2023, following the intervention of the Senate. The resident doctors also hinted that they may call off their ongoing strike soon. The National President of the association, Dr Emeka Innocent Orji, disclosed this Tuesday while briefing newsmen after meeting behind a closed door with Senate President Godswill Akpabio and other Principal Officers of the Senate at the National Assembly, Abuja. NARD had on Saturday said it would embark on peaceful protests from Wednesday and picket the Federal…
NUHU Ribadu, the National Security Adviser to President Bola Tinubu, met with Governors from the five South-East states in Abuja on Monday. Although the agenda of the closed-door session was not made known to journalists, it might not be unconnected to the worsening security challenges in Anambra, Enugu, Abia, Imo and Ebonyi states. Last Wednesday, the Senate condemned the Monday sit-at-home in the South East geopolitical zone and asked the Federal Government to collaborate with the Finnish Government and extradite a pro-Biafran agitator, Simon Ekpa, for prosecution. The upper chamber resolved to invite the Minister of Foreign Affairs (when appointed)…
FORMER President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday met with President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. Also said to be meeting with the President were the Governors Hope Uzodimma (Imo), Dapo Abiodun (Ogun), and AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq (Kwara). While the purpose of the meetings remains unclear, Jonathan’s return to the Villa comes barely a month after his June 13 visit. Jonathan, who doubles as Head of the ECOWAS Mediation Team to Mali, noted that the visit was to discuss issues pertaining to Africa and the West Africa subregion. “I came to brief the president about some continental and subcontinental bodies,”…
RENOWNED businessman, Alhaji Dahiru Mangal, las lost his wife. Hajiya Aisha Daihuru Mangal died at a hospital in Abuja Saturday evening after a brief illness. A family source said her funeral prayer will be held at the Mangal’s country home, Kifar Guga, Katsina metropolis, by 11 am on Sunday. Late Hajiya Aisha was survived by her husband, children, and grandchildren. The loss is the third straight one to have affected the businessman in recent times. His younger brother who was CEO died last year, while his son died before he lost his brother.
PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu is currently meeting the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Adamu and the Party Secretary, Dr Iyiola Omisore, at the State House, Abuja. This newspaper observed that the duo arrived at the Aso Rock Villa a few minutes before 5 pm, and were ushered into the President’s office shortly afterwards. The meeting comes barely 24 hours after the party distanced itself from the principal officers of the 10th National Assembly announced on Tuesday by Senate President, Godswill Akpabio and House of Representatives Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas. At a meeting with the Progressives Governors’ Forum led by Governor…
THE Nigeria Immigration Service, on Wednesday, announced the promotion of no fewer than 7,000 officers nationwide. This was as it redeployed 12 new Comptrollers to their respective states of assignment. “The promotion was contained in a letter signed by the Secretary of the Immigration, Civil Defense, Correctional and Fire Service Board, Jafaru Ahmed,” a statement signed by the acting Service Spokesperson, Kenneth Kure, read on Wednesday. The statement is titled ‘NIS elevates 7,000 officers, redeploys 12 comptrollers.’ Kure, who was also elevated to the rank of Assistant Comptroller, revealed that the number of promoted officers and men included senior officers…
BILLIONAIRE businessman Aliko Dangote has encouraged African countries to be deliberate in liberalising integration and allow for easy entry and exit of Africans. The Dangote Group CEO, who spoke on Sunday at the 30th Afreximbank Annual Meetings held in Accra, Ghana, stated that if the continent was committed to boosting inter- and intra-African trade and investment opportunities, they should support visa on arrival. “I think what, maybe, African countries need to do is that, why don’t you give Africans visas on arrival that will facilitate trade?” he suggested, sharing a scenario where one has to get a visa to get…
THE Commandant General, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Dr Ahmed Audi, has ordered the immediate removal of the Rivers Commandant of the corps, Mr Michael Ogar. This is contained in a statement by NSCDC Director of Public Relations, Mr Olusola Odumosu, on Thursday in Abuja. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the removal of the commandant followed the blockade of the NSCDC Command Office in Rivers by members of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas on Wednesday. The blockade followed the impoundment of three oil trucks belonging to members of the union by NSCDC personnel. Odumosu…
PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu has congratulated the new Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, on their election as presiding officers of the 10th National Assembly. This followed an election in the Senate that saw Akpabio beat former Governor of Zamfara State, Senator-elect Abdulaziz Yari, by 63 votes to 46 to emerge President. In the House of Representatives, Abbas, who was the preferred candidate of the All Progressives Congress, polled 353 votes, beating his rivals, former Deputy Speaker, Ahmed Wase, and Aminu Jaji, who both secured three votes each. In a statement he personally signed…
A NATIONAL Industrial Court sitting in Abuja has ordered the arrest of the Inspector General of Police, Mr Usman Alkali, and the Force Secretary, AIG Hafeez Inuwa, for disobeying the court order, which was regarded as contempt. The court had earlier ordered the IG to reinstate some police officers, who are graduates of Courses 33, 34 and 35 of the police academy, who were said to have been forcefully retired by the force, but the court order was allegedly not obeyed by the IGP. The aggrieved officers approached the court and sought an order to nullify their compulsory retirement from…
BARELY 24 hours before the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly, the Chairman of the Progressive Governors’ Forum and Governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodimma says the outgoing President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan has agreed to work for the emergence of the Senator Godswill Akpabio as Senate President. Uzodimma stated this on Monday in a chat with State House correspondents after a meeting with President Bola Tinubu on the occasion of June 12 Democracy Day. He has expressed confidence that Akpabio, who is the preferred candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for choice for the Senate President…
A FORMER Minister of Health under President Goodluck Jonathan, Chief Gabriel Aduku is now the new chairman of the Arewa Consultative Forum. Aduku took over the mantle of leadership from a former Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbeh, whose tenure came to an end in March. Aduku, an architect by profession, is to serve for another three years. He hails from Kogi State and holds the traditional title of Amana Ogohi 1, Ata Igala of the Igala kingdom. The current Secretary-General of the ACF, Murtala Aliyu retains his position. He’s the Matallawen of Gombe. The Secretary of the ACF Leadership…