Author: Eileen Peters

THE Court of Appeal Abuja has nullified the judgment of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from releasing the voters’ register to the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission for the conduct of the state local government polls which has now been conducted. Delivering judgement, the special panel led by Justice Onyekachi Otisi, held that the lower court lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the matter as Section 28 of the Electoral Act does not cover elections conducted by states, only federal elections, governorship and area council elections in the Federal Capital Territory. The…

FOLLOWING his recent invitation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the former governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, says he is not afraid of being investigated by the anti-graft agency. He said that he is equally not afraid of what he called media trial which he claims is politically motivated by those who were against his support for the current governor of Delta State State, Sheriff Oborevwori. Okowa spoke when leaders of Delta North led by deputy Governor Monday Onyeme visited him at his residence in Asaba, the Delta State capital. The former governor stated that he has…

THE Defence Headquarters has dismissed as laughable allegations made by the Chief Executive Officer of Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, Government Ekpemupolo, also known as Tompolo, that Nigerian Navy personnel were aiding oil theft. Tompolo had specifically accused the Navy of frustrating the war against crude oil theft in the Niger Delta. Speaking on Monday night while receiving the national leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association, led by its National President, Mazi Afam Osigwe (SAN), in Delta State, Tompolo lamented that the Navy was working at cross purposes with other state actors and private security outfits tasked with surveillance over…

A FINNISH court has sent separatist agitator, Simon Ekpa, to prison for spreading terrorist propaganda on social media. A district court of Päijät-Häme remanded him after the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) arrested him alongside four other men over alleged terrorist offences. The self-declared Prime Minister of the Biafra Republic Government In-Exile was said to have committed the crime in 2021 in Lahti municipality. Also, according to a local report, the Central Criminal Police in Finland confirmed the arrest in a statement on its website on Thursday. The police said the main suspect was arrested “on suspicion of public incitement…

A SENIOR officer of the Nigeria Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and his orderly have been abducted by gunmen near the agency’s head office along the Isah-Ogwashi-Uku Road in Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State. The incident reportedly occurred around 8:00 pm on Friday as the officer was heading home after work. Eyewitnesses stated that the assailants ambushed their victims, forcing them into an unmarked vehicle before fleeing the scene. Speaking on the incident, a source close to the agency said, “It seems like the kidnappers had prior knowledge of the officer’s movements. The ambush was well-coordinated, suggesting…

THE Rivers State Command of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC) said it has uncovered a new method adopted by crude oil thieves to transport illegally refined petroleum products to neighbouring states. NSCDC Commandant in Rivers State, Joachim Okafor while addressing journalists at the Command Head Office in Port Harcourt, revealed that oil thieves now convey illegal petroleum products with Sport Utility Vehicles, SUVs to beat the vigilant eyes of men of the Corps. He said men of the Command’s Anti-Vandal Unit on patrol intercepted three SUVs laden with unquantified adulterated gasoline oil, AGO popularly known as diesel…

FORMER Delta State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, says he knows the people behind his probe by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), saying he is not afraid of the agency’s investigation. Okowa stated this during a solidarity visit by the Delta State Traditional Rulers Council, led by Maj.-Gen. Felix Mujakperuo (retd.), the Orodje of Okpe, to his residence in Asaba on Thursday. The EFCC is probing Okowa, who was a two-term governor, over an alleged diversion of the sum of N1.3 trillion. The ex-governor and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) vice presidential candidate during the 2023 general elections, described the…

A FORMER member of the House of Representatives, Hon Chidi Nwogu has commended the resolute efforts of Prof Bond ANYAEHIE, Provost of College of Medicine, University of Nigeria,Nsukka,in working assiduously towards facilitating the accreditation of the Federal University of Technology Owerri Medical School by the Medical & Dental Council of Nigeria(MDCN). The achievement came to fruition through the unwavering belief in the capacity of Prof Bond Anyaehie by the governor of Imo state, His Excellency Senator Hope Uzodinma,who insisted on inviting and incorporating Prof Anyaehie into the facilitation team as Team Head. The MDCN delegation led by its Registrar, Dr…

THE Special Court of Appeal Panel set up to adjudicate on the political cases in Rivers State, has reserved judgment in the consolidated appeals contesting the judgment of Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja. The three-member panel of justices led by Justice Onyekachi Otisi announced that judgment in the appeals would be reserved after counsel to parties in the appeals adopted their briefs and final processes for and against the appeals. In one of the appeals bordering on the Rivers local government election, Justice Lifu in the judgment, barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from…

GOVERNOR Monday Okpebholo of Edo State has narrated how he discovered a dead bat on his bed before being declared the winner of the September 21 governorship election. Speaking during a post-swearing-in thanksgiving service held on Wednesday night at the Dr Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City, Okpebholo said God led the battle for him. He said while his opponents were deploying different strategies, he depended on God who showed him the way. “I want to thank God. In this last election, while I was praising God, they (traducers) were busy operating from Arise. They were busy operating from Facebook.…

ENGINEER Simbi Kesiye Wabote, immediate past Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has debunked newsreports of his arrest by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). A false news report on Wednesday claimed that Wabote was arrested over NCDMB’s investments in a modular refinery conceptualized by Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited for Brass Island in Bayelsa State. In a telephone conversation with select journalists on Wednesday, Wabote denied that he was ever arrestedby EFCC, insisting that he made a routine visit to the agency, just like they would invite any other person. He stated…

THE newly sworn-in Governor of Edo State, Sunday Okpebholo has announced the dissolution of executives of all boards in Edo State. A statement by his Chief Press Secretary on Wednesday said the governor has also sacked all political appointees, adding that permanent secretaries appointed from outside the state’s public service have equally been relieved of their appointments. “It is hereby announced for the information of the General Public that the Governor of Edo State, His Excellency, Senator Monday Okpebholo has approved the dissolution of Executives of all Boards, Agencies and Parastatals in Edo State Public Service with immediate effect. “In…

Reaffirm Commitment To Democracy, Press Freedom ARISING from the three-day All Nigeria Editors Conference (ANEC) in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State Capital, the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) has called on the federal government to urgently mitigate the negative impact of fuel subsidy removal and the exchange rate volatility on the economy. Noting the economic constraints and rising operational costs, the Guild also urged the federal government to consider subsidies or tax relief to help media houses cope with the current challenges. In a communique signed by the NGE President, Eze Anaba and the General Secretary, Dr Iyobosa Uwugiaren, the professional…

MONDAY Okpebholo has been inaugurated as the governor of Edo, marking an end to the eight-year stint of Godwin Obaseki at the helm of affairs in the South-South state. News Point Nigeria reports that the ceremony took place on Tuesday at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City, the state capital, two months after the All Progressives Congress (APC) clinched the ticket to the Dennis Osadebay House. Okpebholo took his oath of office alongside his running mate Dennis Idahosa. The ceremony was attended by some dignitaries including the Minister of Aviation Festus Keyamo, a former governor of the Edo Adams…

GOVERNOR Godwin Obaseki of Edo state on Friday dissolved the state executive council ahead of Monday Okpebholo’s inauguration as the new governor of the state. Obaseki, who was sworn in on November 12, 2016, is due to hand over to Okpebholo on Tuesday, 12 November. Okpebholo, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) had defeated the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s candidate, Asue Ighodalo, in the September 21, 2024, governorship election. Obaseki dissolved the cabinet shortly after a valedictory at the Government House in Benin, the Edo State capital. Speaking, the governor commended members of the council for helping him in…

THE flight data recorder (FDR) and the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) from the the Sikorsky SK76 helicopter which crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Bonny Finima, Rivers State, have been recovered. The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) disclosed this in a statement on Friday by Director of Public Affairs and Family Assistance, Bimbo Oladeji. On October 24, the ill-fated aircraft, operated by East Wind Aviation and hired by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, nosedived in Port Harcourt, the state capital. Two weeks after the tragic incident, NSIB spokesperson, said the black box was retrieved early…

MEDIA owners, editors, and other stakeholders have called on President Bola Tinubu to save the nation’s media industry amid the ongoing economic hardship in the country. This came as President Tinubu urged media managers to focus on factual reporting and uphold professional integrity. The stakeholders spoke at the All Nigerian Editors Conference (ANEC) in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, with the theme: “Economic Growth and Development Strategies in a Resource-Rich Country.” The President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), Mr. Eze, highlighted that the unavailability of resource materials is one of the biggest threats to the media industry. He said: “We…

IN pursuant as well as his persistent and spirited effort towards the actualization of the ‘Project Development Agency Bill’ sponsored by the calm but calculating  Distinguished Senator Patrick Ndubueze(FNSE) representing Imo North Senatorial district of Nigeria,the Senate Committee on Science and Technology under the Chairmanship of Senator Abbas, today, (Monday 4th November 2024)held a well attended and successful “Public and Stakeholders Interactive Session” towards the eventual passage of the Bill by the Nigerian Senate. It is interesting to note that the ceremony attracted a cross section of all key stakeholders in the science and technology industry, whose interest have been…

THE Edo State Government says the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)’s invitation of its Accountant General, Julius Anelu, and four others is a plot to destabilize the state. Nigeria’s anti-corruption agency invited Anelu and four officials of the Edo State Treasury Office to its Benin City officer in a letter titled “Loans and Agricultural Interventions Granted to Edo State Government from Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) from 2018 to date”. However, the Edo State Commission for Communication and Orientation Chris Nehikhare said the agricultural facility “has since been repaid…

THE Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) and the House of Representatives Committee on Aviation and Aerospace Technology, have reaffirmed government’s commitment to a transparent and thorough inquiry into the accident involving the Sikorsky SK76 helicopter (5N BQG) to improve transport safety in Nigeria. The chopper carrying oil workers crashed last Thursday after leaving Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Officials said five bodies of the eight passengers and crew members have been recovered so far. In an update statement by the Director, Public Affairs and Family Assistance, Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau, Bimbo Oladeji, the Director, Public Affairs and Family Assistance, Nigerian Safety…