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…
Author: Bala Muhammad
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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…
THE presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, on Wednesday expressed bewilderment, following US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s call to the President-elect, Bola Tinubu. In the call, Blinken is said to have emphasised his continued commitment to further strengthening the US-Nigeria relationship with the incoming administration. However, Atiku, who emerged as the runner-up in the February 25 presidential election, described Tinubu’s recognition by the American government official as a contradiction of the US’ assessment of the vote held three months ago. “I am in disbelief that @SecBlinken called Tinubu, a contradiction to the publicly stated position…
THE President-elect, Bola Tinubu, is opposing the application by the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, for a live broadcast of the proceedings of the election petition. In response to the application on Wednesday, Tinubu and the Vice President-elect, Kashim Shettima, through the team of their lawyers led by Wole Olanipekun said the application is an abuse of court process. They asked the presidential election petition court to dismiss the application, arguing that the relief demanded by the applicants is not such that the court could grant it. Besides describing the application as frivolous, they said…
THE National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) will charge intending pilgrims an additional $300 (N139,350), barring any last minute change. This is coming despite the outcry over despite the N3 million hajj fare fixed by the commission for 2023 hajj. The Saudi Arabian authorities have allocated 95,000 slots to Nigeria for 2023 hajj. A total of 75,000 pilgrims will go through the states, while the remaining 20,000 will go through private tour operators. Credible sources inside the commission said the $250 increment was part of the agreement reached between the hajj commission and the four Nigerian airlines that signed the…
IN what appeared a pledge to embark on wage increase in the middle of the year, President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu has vowed to give more than a minimum wage to Nigerian workers, promising to give them a “living wage”. “In the Nigeria I shall have the honour and privilege to lead from May 29, workers will have more than a minimum wage. You will have a living wage to have a decent life and provide for your families,” Tinubu stated. The President-elect made the pledge in a statement issued Monday in Abuja on the occasion of this year’s Workers’ Day…
THE Commandant General (CG) of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Ahmed Abubakar Audi, has summoned the Adamawa State Commandant of the Corps, Muhammad Bello, to the Corps’ National Headquarters to explain the role he played in the just concluded election in the state. A statement by the Corps spokesman, Commandant Olusola Odumosu, on Wednesday, said this is in connection to the controversy surrounding the just concluded Adamawa State governorship supplementary election where the Corps was alleged of complicity along with other security agencies. The Corps’ helmsman directed the State Commandant to immediately hand over affairs of the…
THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has declared the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Ikra Aliyu Bilbis winner of Zamfara Central Senatorial District in the last Saturday, Supplementary election. He polled 102, 866 votes to defeat his closest opponent Senator Kabiru Garba Marafa of the All Progressives, APC, who scored 91, 216 votes in the election. Professor Kabiru Abdullahi of the Federal University, Gusau while announcing the results, said Ikra Bilbis Aliyu having scored the highest numbers of votes and satisfied the requirement of the law and returned elected. Ikra Bilbis Aliyu a former minister of Information and…
SUSPECTED Boko Haram terrorists have killed 10 people in Buni Gari town in Gujba Local Government area of Yobe State. The incident happened on Thursday evening when one Abba Sheti Gawi, 40, was reportedly kidnapped and killed by the terrorists after he went to Gangatilo area to cut wood. Sources said friends and relatives of the victim searched for him in the area but they were ambushed and killed by the insurgents. “For now, including the first victim, over 10 people have lost their lives. We have seen the military and other security personnel are going to the area for…
GOVERNOR of Sokoto State and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for the Sokoto South Senatorial Elections, Rt. Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, CFR has sent a strongly worded petition to the Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over the listing of polling units where elections had been concluded and results declared for the April 15, 2023 supplementary elections. In a petition to INEC written on his behalf by his lawyer, Mr. S.I. Ameh SAN, Governor Tambuwal stated as follows: (1) Consequent upon the Commission’s publication of the areas slated for the April 15th 2023 rerun across the country, our Client’s attention was…
POLICE in Nasarawa State have arrested one inmate that escaped during last year’s attack on the Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja. Police Public Relations Officer, Ramhan Nansel, disclose this in a statement on Sunday, identifying the escapee inmate as 24-year-old Salisu Buhari, a native of Nasarawa State. Also arrested alongside Buhari during a sting operation in Nasarawa Local Government Area of the state is 27-year-old Zubairu Ali. Both suspects were nabbed last Thursday for motorcycle theft, a police spokesman stated. “Preliminary investigation revealed that the suspects are responsible for most motorcycle snatching and theft in Nasarawa LGA and its environs.…
TROOPS of the Nigerian Army have neutralized a total of forty-eight terrorists in various operations across the nation. The director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Musa Danmadami who disclosed this to journalists at the Defence Headquarters in Abuja today, said at least nine hundred and seventy-four (974) terrorists and their families have also surrendered to troops within the last two weeks. The troops also recovered N2.3million in the North-East Zone, the military spokesman revealed. Danmadami said troops in the past 2 weeks, both kinetic and non-kinetic operations were conducted in the various theatres of operations, with significant outcomes recorded.…
THE 14th Emir of Kano, Khalifa Muhammadu Sanusi II, has said Nigeria has never been this divided since the Civil War of 1967 to 1970. He said the country, because of the elections, was now “dangerously divided along ethnic and religious lines”, adding that it had put the integrity of public institutions in question. “The people now have suspicions about policies, policing, judiciary and the election umpire,” he said. The Khalifa, who is also the leader of the Tijjaniyya Order in Nigeria, made the remark on Tuesday at the third Nigerian Leadership Colloquium in honour of the senior pastor of…
North Central Deserves Slot, Deputy Speaker Is My Beloved Son – Osoba THE plot by the main opposition, Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) to mobilize their numbers and other minority parties for relevance ahead of the inuaguration of the 10th National Assembly, especially in the House of Representatives, appears to have suffered a major setback. Two leading figures in the nation’s main opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike and former governor of Delta State, James Ibori yesterday, threw their weights behind the deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, Ahmed Idris Wase. As both PDP stalwarts…
THE Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) says a litre of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) commonly known as petrol should sell for between N360 and N400 after the subsidy regime. PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo made this known to newsmen on the sidelines of the association’s National Executive Council meeting which was held in Abuja on Tuesday. Asked what the price per litre of petrol should be after the removal of subsidy, Osifo said, “Today, the sole importer of PMS into Nigeria is the NNPC. The NNPC is using an exchange rate of the CBN which gives…
A FEDERAL High Court sitting in Lagos has fixed April 20, 2023 to rule on an application filed by Kogi State seeking to vacate an interim order of the court freezing 14 properties linked to the state governor. Justice Nicholas Oweibo fixed the date on Tuesday after taking submissions from the Kogi State Government’s counsel, Abdulwahab Mohammed, SAN, and the counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN. On February 22, the court had granted the interim forfeiture order following an ex parte motion to confiscate 14 properties and firms in Lagos, Abuja, and the…