A LIEUTENANT Colonel, Abubakar-Surajo Imam, has emerged as the first Officer to be conferred with a professor from among the serving personnel of the Nigerian Army. Imam, who was conferred with the title of a Professor by the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), is now a Professor of Mechatronics Engineering. The Registrar of the Academy, Brigadier General A.M Tukur, who disclosed this in a statement, said the promotion of Lieutenant Colonel Imam who is also the Head of the Department of Mechatronics Engineering, was ratified during the NDA Council Meeting in September and took effect from October 1, 2022. The statement…
Author: Abdullahi Maitama Sani
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STATE governors as well as former ministers and other officials, who served in the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari, and the political associates of President Bola Tinubu have launched an intense lobbying for appointment as Nigerian ambassadors to foreign countries. This newspaper gathered that chieftains of the ruling All Progressives Congress, National Assembly members and retired military officers were among those jostling for ambassadorial nominations. Nigeria has a total of 109 missions, 76 embassies, 22 high commissions and 11 consulates abroad. The desperate lobby for ambassadorial appointments commenced after the Federal Government recalled all the envoys from their posts…
PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu will, on Saturday, depart Abuja for Berlin, Germany, to attend the G20 Compact with Africa Conference on November 20, 2023, hosted by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. “The G20 CwA Conference will be taking place alongside the Fourth G20 Investment Summit, co-hosted by the German government and German business associations,” a statement signed by Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, read Friday. The statement is titled ‘President Tinubu attends G20 ‘Compact with Africa’ conference in Berlin as energy, trade, and investment top agenda.’ During the conference, Tinubu will join other Heads of State and Governments…
THE Court of Appeal in Abuja has nullified the election of Governor Abba Yusuf of Kano State in the March 18 governorship election. A three-member panel of justices led by Justice Moore A. Adumein upheld the appeal of Nasir Yusuf Gawuna of the All Progressives Congress (APC). The panel held that Yusuf of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) was not a registered member of the party and, therefore, not qualified to contest the election. The panel held that every political party shall maintain the register of its members as provided in Section 77 of the Electoral Act, 2022. The…
THE Appeal Court, Abuja Division, on Friday, affirmed the victory of Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State in the March 18 governorship election. The appeal was filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Sadique Abubakar, following the tribunal judgment upholding Mohammed’s victory. The panel of three justices were unanimous, awarding no cost as the court ruled that each party to the matter should bear their costs. The presiding justice read the judgment in the order of the appellant’s plea before the appeal court. On plea number one, the appellant pleaded that the election be nullified because the forms…
THE High Court sitting in the Federal Capital Territory has ordered that the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, be remanded in the Kuje Correctional Centre pending the determination of his bail request. Emefiele is standing trial on an alleged procurement fraud. The trial which had been stalled on three occasions finally held on Friday. The Federal Government had initially preferred 20 charge on procurement fraud to the tune of N6.5 billion against the former CBN governor. But the FG reduced the charges to six to the tune of over N1bn which he was arraigned on…
THE Police Service Commission and the Nigeria Police Force are contemplating the extension of the police retirement age to either 65 years or 40 years in the service. The move, it was gathered, followed the retirement of several competent police officers which had affected the effectiveness of the force. The recommendations were among the several others presented by the Chairman of the Police Service Commission, Solomon Arase, to the Inspector-General of Police, Kehinde Egbetokun, as part of plans to reform and professionalise the police force as contained in the Nigeria Police Force Scheme of Service. Among other policies being considered…
PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu has returned to Abuja from his one-week engagements in Saudi Arabia and Guinea Bissau. This newspaper gathered that the Boeing 737 jet conveying Tinubu and his entourage arrived at the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, minutes past 8pm (local time). Tinubu departed Abuja for Riyadh, the Saudi capital, on Thursday, November 9, 2023, to attend the Saudi-Africa summit, which was held the next day. While there, the President assured potential investors that their investments are safe in Nigeria. He premised this on recent “bold economic reforms” by his administration to remove wasteful subsidies…
THE House of Representatives is furious over the absence of the service chiefs and the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, at an interactive session scheduled to hold on Thursday during plenary. The security heads instead sent representatives. The House had last week scheduled a sectoral debate with the security chiefs as it plans to do with other sectors of the country. Following a constitutional point of order by the Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, the House rejected the representation of the security heads and instead postponed the session. The engagement has been rescheduled to Tuesday next week as the House…
FORMER Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, will today be put on trial by the Federal Government on alleged economic sabotage-related offences, News Point Nigeria gathered. Emefiele, whose trial was aborted days ago, will be arraigned at a High Court in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. A notice for his trial before Justice Hamza Muazu, sighted by this newspaper, indicates that the ex-CBN Governor will be docked along with one Ramalan Yaro. A registrar with the court, who wished to remain anonymous, confirmed that Emefiele would be brought before the court this morning for his plea…
THE Labour Party has described the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar’s merger proposal as a good proposal that should be considered. But the New Nigeria People’s Party said it could only accept the proposal if Atiku would support a former governor of Kano State, Rabiu Kwankwaso, to wrest power from the ruling All Progressives Congress in 2027. The major opposition parties were reacting to the call by Atiku, on Tuesday, that opposition parties should enter a merger to dislodge the APC from power. This newspaper reports that Atiku made the merger proposition while hosting the…
THE Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia clarified media reports about the deportation of 264 Nigerians upon entry into the Kingdom, stating that it was not targeting Nigerians. On Monday, The Saudi Arabian government cancelled the visa of all the 264 passengers airlifted by Nigeria’s major carrier, Air Peace, on arrival at the country from Kano, insisting that they be returned to Nigeria. However, in a statement released on Wednesday, the Saudi Embassy said, “The passengers who were denied entry, and subsequently deported to their initial destinations, didn’t fulfil the entry conditions and requirements in accordance with the applicable rules and…
THE National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, on Wednesday, said investigation has commenced into an assault on the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero. The NSA also said some suspects have been arrested in connection to the incident in Owerri, the Imo State capital, on November 1, 2023. Labour embarked on nationwide strike on Tuesday to seek justice over an assault on Ajaero who was attacked when he was about to lead a protest against alleged anti-labour practices by the Governor Hope Uzodimma-led administration. In the wake of the incident and days to the November 11, 2023…
FORMER governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Khalifa Muhammadu Sanusi II, has said the apex bank’s lending to the federal government under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari through Ways and Means triggered inflationary pressure in Nigeria and weakened the value of the Naira. The CBN’s loan to the federal government hit N22.7 trillion, an amount the CBN said had been securitised not to dampen its balance sheet. Ways and Means is a way in which the federal government raises funds by borrowing from the CBN. The 14th Emir of Kano and leader of the Tijjaniyya Order in…
The Senate on Tuesday threatened the complete privatisation of the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) if the agency continues operating at a loss. Chairman of the Joint Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa, issued the warning during the continuation of the 2024-2026 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) public hearing in Abuja, the nation’s capital. Quizzing the Post-Master General of the Federation (PMG), Omotola Odeyemi, the Chairman berated the lack of functionality of NIPOST offices across the country and the abysmal revenue generation, particularly from stamp duties. The committee therefore directed the PMG to provide the names of all staff of the organisation,…
WORKERS in several states have joined the strike action by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) which kicked off today, shutting down activities at several government-owned facilities. The Edo State chapter of the NLC downed tools at government offices in compliance with the nationwide industrial action declared by the national body. At the Civil Service Secretariat in Benin City, the Edo State capital, union leaders, including the state NLC chairman, Mr Odion Olaye, locked out civil servants who had come to work. The same scenario played out at the State High Court and…
THE Minister of Labour, Employment and Productivity, Simon Lalong, has convened a meeting with labour leaders as the nationwide strike begins. Our correspondent learnt that leaders of the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress are expected at the meeting holding on Tuesday (today). A source familiar with the matter disclosed this to our correspondent on Monday night. “The minister has convened a meeting with the Labour leaders for Tuesday,” the source simply said. The labour unions had, on Monday, ordered their affiliates to withdraw their services nationwide from midnight on November 14, 2023. TUC President, Festus Osifo, disclosed this…
THE Federal Government has called on the Nigeria Labour Congress (TUC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) to shelve their planned nationwide strike. Both unions had earlier in the day called on workers across the country to down tools at midnight as their standoff with the Imo State government takes a national undertone. But in a statement late Monday, Kamarudeen Ogundele, the Special Assistant Communication & Publicity to the AGF & Minister of Justice Lateef Fagbemi, reminded the unions about a court order barring them from going on strike. “We wish to remind the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress…
THE Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated that it is investigating the cancellation of visas of all the 264 passengers, who were airlifted to Jeddah from Lagos and Kano on Sunday, by the Saudi Arabian Authorities. News Point Nigeria reported that there was panic and shock when the Saudi Arabian Authorities cancelled the visa of all the 264 passengers airlifted to Jeddah from Lagos and Kano on Sunday. The authorities insisted that the airline should return the passengers back to Nigeria. The flight took off from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos via the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano…
THE House of Representatives on Monday issued the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) a 48-hour ultimatum to give an explanation on missing funds of up to N3 billion. The Chairman of the Committee on Finance, James Faleke, gave the ruling during the continued hearing on the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) when the agency was unable to explain how the funds were utilised. Similarly, the committee directed the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission to explain within 72 hours why a company was licensed to provide metres. The company is said to have received N39 billion from the Ministry…