Author: Maimuna Bashir Isa

THE Chairman of the Northern States Governors’ Forum and Governor of Gombe State, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, CON, has conveyed his heartfelt condolences to the Vice President of Nigeria, Sen. Kashim Shettima, on the demise of his mother-in-law, Hajiya Maryam Abubakar Albishir who passed away yesterday at the age of 69 after a protracted illness. Governor Inuwa Yahaya described the late Hajiya Maryam as an exemplary mother and a cornerstone of her family. He remarked, “We were deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Hajiya Maryam Abubakar Albishir. Her loss is felt not only by her family but Gombe State…

THE mother-in-law of the  National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje CON, Hajiya Asiya Muhammad Gauyama has passed away. According to a press statement by Ganduje’s Chief Press Secretary, Edwin Olofu, Hajiya Gauyama, the beloved mother of Professor Hafsatu Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, the wife of the National Chairman, died in the early hours of Monday. “The funeral prayer for Hajiya Asiya Muhammad Gauyama will hold today, at 2PM, at the residence of Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje CON, located on Miyangu Road, Kano state. The statement read in full: Press Statement It is with deep sorrow…

AS the death toll from the latest cholera outbreak hits 40, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control says the country does not have enough vaccines. According to the Director General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr Jide Idris, Nigeria has placed an order for more cholera vaccines from donor agencies, even though the date of delivery is still unknown. The NCDC boss stressed the need for the country to embrace the use of vaccines and other preventive measures to curb the spread of the acute diarrhoeal infection. Cholera is a food and water-borne disease caused by…

NIGERIA took part in a round table meeting with organizers of the Grammy Awards, Recording Academy, and four other countries to investigate modalities for a Global African Music upscale. According to a statement by the Special Adviser, Media to the Minister of Culture and Creative Economy, Nneka Ikem Anibeze, the meeting which took place on Tuesday at the Convention Centre in Kigali, Rwanda is aimed at elevating the vibrant music and culture of Africa unto the global stage. The steering committee  consisting of Ministers of Art, Culture and the Creative Economy of Kenya, Rwanda,  a delegation from South Africa representing…

THE Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Federal University, Gashua branch in Yobe State, has asked the Federal Government to address the lingering issues affecting universities to avoid another disruption of academic activities on campuses. The Chairman of the branch, Melemi Abatcha, and his members who addressed journalists at Damaturu the state capital on Thursday outlined funding for the revitalisation of Nigerian public universities, and the renegotiation of the 2009 agreement among the major issues. “Funding for revitalisation of Nigeria public universities i.e. improved infrastructure, conducive teaching/learning environments, students and staff accommodation, equipping of laboratories and libraries. Consequently, the Academic…

THE Director General of the National Agency for Food and Administration and Control, Prof Moji Adeyeye, has urged Nigerians to refrain from storing cooked food in the refrigerator for more than three days. Adeyeye warned that cooked food stored in the refrigerator for days is susceptible to contamination by disease-causing pathogens, key agents of foodborne diseases that can lead to death. Adeyeye made this known in a statement on Tuesday signed by the agency’s Resident Media Consultant, Sayo Akintola. Adeyeye, who said this in commemoration of the 2024 World Food Safety Day with the theme, ‘Food Safety: Prepare for the…

THE Federal Government has declared Monday and Tuesday as public holidays to mark this year’s Eid-Al- Adha celebration. The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Interior, Dr. Aishetu Gogo Ndayako, disclosed this in a statement on Friday. He said the Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the declaration on behalf of the Federal Government, and congratulated all Muslim Ummah both at home and in the Diaspora on this occasion. “He called on the Muslim Ummah to continue to imbibe the spirit of peace, kindness and sacrifice, as exemplified by Prophet Ibrahim (Peace be upon Him) and to also use…

SUSPECTED Boko Haram insurgents have abducted many of passengers along Maiduguri/Kano highway. Sources told this newspaper that the insurgents struck between Garin Kuturu and Mannanari village near Auno, which is along Damaturu highway at about 5:50:pm on Monday. They reportedly blocked the highway before forcefully taking away some passengers. The incident left hundreds of travelers and commuters stranded on both ends of the ever-busy road. They had to return to Benishek and Auno respectively. “There was an incident between Mannanari and Garin Kuturu where some Boko Haram fighters came out to block the upcoming vehicles and some passengers were abducted.”…

THE Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) has announced disconnection of power service to all debtors. AEDC in a statement signed by its Acting Managing Director, Victor Ojelabi, Friday Morning, said, ‘this is a notice to all customers with outstanding bills to settle their accounts immediately to avoid service disruption. “ “To this end, customers who are yet to settle their outstanding bills within the next 72 hours, by Monday, June 3, 2024, will face disconnection of their electricity supply.”, the statement read in part. See full statement below: Press Release   AEDC Announces Disconnection of Electricity Service to All Debtors…

THE Federal Government has approved the prohibition of money rituals and the glamorising of vices in Nigerian films. This newspaper reports that the Executive Director and CEO of the National Film and Video Censors Board, Shaibu Husseini disclosed this at a National Stakeholders Engagement on Smoke-Free Nollywood held in Enugu on Wednesday. The event was organised by the NFVCB and Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa. Movie producers, directors and actors drawn from different parts of the country, as well as leaders of various guilds and associations in the Nigerian film industry were present at the event. Husseini said that…

OVER 500 staff members of Dana Air have blocked the entrance of the aviation company in the Oshodi area of Lagos State in protest against their sacking as well as the refusal of the airlines to pay their April salary. Dana aircraft was involved in a runway skidding incident last month, a development that prompted the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority to withdraw its operation licence. NCAA said it had initiated an in-house compliance assessment of the occurrence taking into account Dana’s track records in related occurrences. The regulator added that it would ensure a safety audit that will entail a…

THE Minister of Women Affairs Uju Kennedy-Ohanaeze says the girls involved in the proposed orphan mass marriage in Niger State will be empowered. While the Speaker of the Niger State House of Assembly Abdulmalik Sarkindaji had proposed (but later discontinued it) a mass wedding for the 100 orphans in his constituency, the minister took him to court over the matter. “Those that have finished secondary school, they could enter an open university while they’re doing their businesses or we would get a job for them while they’re doing their business when they’re going to school,” she said on Friday’s edition…

EMIRATES Airlines says it will resume services to Nigeria from October 1, 2024, operating a daily service between Lagos and Dubai. In a statement made available to News Point Nigeria on Thursday, the airline, with its hub in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), said flight services will be operated using a Boeing 777-300ER. Emirates’ Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer, Adnan Kazim, said, “We are excited to resume our services to Nigeria. The Lagos-Dubai service has traditionally been popular with customers in Nigeria and we hope to reconnect leisure and business travellers to Dubai and onwards to our network of…

MINISTER of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, says Emirates Airlines has indicated a definite date to resume flight operations to Nigerian airports. The minister, in a Wednesday post on X (formerly Twitter), said he met with the Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Nigeria, Salem Saeed Al-Shamsi, in Abuja on Tuesday. Keyamo said the envoy handed him a correspondence from the UAE-based airline assuring him that a date has been given for the resumption of flights to Nigeria. “Yesterday (On Tuesday), I paid a working visit to the Ambassador of the UAE to Nigeria, His Excellency, Salem…

THE National Assembly and the 36 state assemblies of the federation as well as their agencies will spend about N724bn this year, an analysis of their 2024 budgets by this newspaper has shown. Further findings also showed that the salaries and allowances for federal and state lawmakers would cost the country about N50bn this year. This means that the federal and state governments earmarked N673.94bn for the national and state assemblies as well as their related agencies in the 2024 budget. The salaries and allowances are based on data collated from a document obtained from the website of the Revenue…

THE Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has ordered a department within the Transmission Company of Nigeria, the System Operator (SO), to cap power supply to cross-border customers in the Benin Republic, Niger, and Togo to six per cent. NERC’s order, published on Friday, May 3rd was dated April 29, 2024, and effective from May 1, 2024, was jointly signed by the commission’s Chairman, Sanusi Garba, and Vice Chairman, Musiliu Oseni. The directive, outlined in a document titled ‘Interim Order on Transmission System Dispatch Operations, Cross-border Supply, and Related Matters,’ will be in effect for six months, subject to review. Nigeria…

THE Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, has identified the huge purchases of food items by the government as palliatives for distribution to vulnerable citizens as a contributor to the galloping food inflation in the country. He disclosed this in his contributions during the March Monetary Policy Committee meeting, which was published on the CBN website on Monday. At the meeting, the MPC raised the benchmark interest rate to 24.75 percent from 22.75 percent, which it said was aimed at tackling inflation. But according to to the Consumer Price Index report released by the Nigerian Bureau of…

THE Duke of Dutchess, Prince Harry, and his wife, the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, will visit Nigeria in May. In a statement on Monday, the Defence Headquarters’ Director of Defence Information, Brigadier General Tukur Gusau, said during their stay in the country, they will be meeting with service members and hosting an array of cultural activities. Prince Harry founded the Invictus Games, an international multi-sporting event that offers a recovery pathway for international wounded, injured, and sick service men and women. It also gives soldiers awareness and recognition in society to support their path to rehabilitation. The Invictus Games…

A FEDERAL High Court sitting in Apo, Abuja has ordered the arrest of the former Director General of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies Ladi Hamalai for her failure to appear in the corruption case preferred against her by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC). Trial judge, Justice Christopher Oba, issued the bench warrant on Monday, 22nd of April, 2024 for the arrest of the Professor following her repeated failure to show up in the court. The ICPC Counsel, Michael Adesola, had informed the court that this is the fourth consecutive time that the…

THE Federal Government says the recent price increases in MultiChoice cable subscriptions will reviewed by relevant stakeholders to ensure subscribers in Nigeria get value for their money. The Acting Chairman, Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), Adamu Abdullahi, spoke exclusively to Channels Television on its Dateline Abuja programme on Thursday monitored by News Point Nigeria. During the interview, he provided an update on the summons issued to the owner of a Chinese store in Abuja accused of discriminatory and sharp practices. He also commented on the adherence to the order given to the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, stating that…