Federal Government
Northern governors hail release of abducted Kankara schoolboys
The Northern Governors Forum has welcomed with excitement the release of the abducted students of Government Science School Kankara, Katsina State. Chairman of the Forum and Governor of Plateau State, Simon Bako Lalong while reacting to the development, commended President Muhammadu Buhari, Governor Aminu Masari, security agencies, community leaders and all stakeholders who contributed in making sure the school boys were released unharmed. He said the release of the students will comfort and assuage the parents and the entire country which has been agonized since the children were kidnapped. Lalong said with the release of the students, further measures must be put in place to ensure that this ugly incident does not occur again while thorough investigation should also carried out to ensure...
FRSC: No NIN, no driver’s licence
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has given notice that it will start enforcing the National Identification Number (NIN) directive on driver’s licence processing nationwide, with effect from Dec. 21. Mr Bisi Kazeem, Assistant Corps Marshal (ACM), Corps Public Education Officer, announced this in a statement on Wednesday, in Abuja. Kazeem said that the enforcement became necessary following the Federal Government’s directives on harmonisation of citizens’ data by relevant agencies. In compliance with the directive, Kazeem said the FRSC had earlier put members of the public on notice, urging them, particularly those going for their driver’s license processing, to adhere to the directives. “As a follow up to that, FRSC management has resolved that effective Dec. 21, 2020, all applicants fo...
Nigerian government says 300,000 mass housing scheme strictly for low income earners
The Federal Government says its Social Housing Programme, one of the components of the National Economic Sustainability Plan (NESP), is targeted at low income earners. Imeh Okon, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Infrastructure, who made this clarification on Tuesday in Abuja, said the scheme was not meant for politicians or highly placed persons. The 300,000 social housing programme is a component of the NESP designed by the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo-led committee constituted by President Muhammadu Buhari to cushion the effects of COVID-19 on Nigerians. She explained that one of the objectives of the administration was to provide houses for citizens across the country. Okon said that the houses would be durable and of high quality not minding the low prices. “It is a social ...
VC: I don’t know if Muhammadu Sanusi is still UNIBEN’s chancellor
Ten months after Mallam Muhammadu Sanusi II was deposed as Emir of Kano, the Vice Chancellor of University of Benin (UNIBEN), Prof. Lillian Salami, has asked the Federal Ministry of Education to clear the air on the status of the former monarch as the Chancellor of the institution. Sanusi was appointed Chancellor of the institution in 2015 by the administration of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan. He was however deposed as Emir by the Governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Ganduje, in March 2020, over alleged “insubordination”. He performed his last official duty as Chancellor of the University during the Convocation/Founders Day Ceremonies of the University in November 2019. Responding to inquiry by journalists over non-inclusion of Sanusi in the University’s 50th anniversary and the VC’s one ye...
Air passengers decry upsurge in fares, seek urgent attention to roads, railway
Nigerians, who travel by air, have decried the “sudden” upsurge in air fares and urged the Federal Government to intervene to avoid poor patronage that could dwindle the fortunes of the aviation industry. Newsmen report that the air fares shot up by about 100 per cent in the last one week, with some airline operators even raising their fares by as much as 120 per cent or more. At Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, the fare from Abuja to Lagos, which was N35,300 (Economy Class), rose to between N70,000 and N75,000. Newsmen found that Business Class travellers were charged between N100,000 and N120,000, depending on the airline. Our correspondents, who visited other airports across the country, found that the rise in airfares was the same, a situation that forced some passengers to...
AfDB chief urges Nigerian government to deepen investment in youth
The President, African Development Bank (AFDB), Dr Akinwumi Adesina, has appealed to the Federal Government to deepen investment in youth, to enable them put their entrepreneurial ingenuity to good use. Adesina, who spoke virtually at the 2020 Nigerian Prize for Leadership at the weekend in Abuja, noted that Nigerian youth are plagued by plethora of challenges like unemployment, limited technical and vocational skills, limited inclusion in the socio-political space and lack of finances to develop their businesses. “No nation is perfect. But those who learn from history become greater. Events repeat itself twice when people do not learn. As a nation, Nigeria should do everything possible to invest and reinvest itself by focusing on the youth. “Today, we have 206 million people, 70 per cent ...
Police arraign kidnap kingpin, seven others for terrorism in Calabar
A Federal High Court sitting in Calabar has remanded 8 persons for kidnapping, terrorism and possession of illegal firearms at the Afokang Correctional Service centre. Five were arraigned by the Nigeria Police Force for kidnapping, terrorism and possession of illegal fire arms on a three count charge in Charge numbers FHC / CA / 94c / 2020 and three others on a two count charge of charges number: FHC /CA/95c / 2020 for three others. The Presiding Judge, Justice S.M Shaibu ordered that the 8 defendants be remanded at Calabar Correctional facility on a three count charge and two count charge respectively levelled against them by the police . He ordered that the 8 of them be remanded till 25 of February 2021 at the centre pending their trial at the Federal High Court 1 ,Calabar . Recall that ...
Minister: Industry, trade, investment key to economic diversification
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo, says the sector is crucial in the drive toward diversification of the nation’s economy, away from being oil dominated. Adebayo spoke in Abuja at the Physical/Virtual 12th National Council on Industry, Trade and Investment meeting, with the theme “Revitalisation of the Industry, Trade and Investment Sector in Nigeria in the Post-COVID-19 pandemic era”. He explained the pivotal role of the ministry as a key actor in the economy with the mandate to stimulate domestic investment and attract foreign direct investment into all sectors. The minister said it was committed in facilitating trade in goods and services and maximising benefits of international trade through functional bilateral and multilateral trade relations. Acc...
House of Reps summons auditor-general over $36.1 million World Bank loan
The House of Representatives has summoned the acting Auditor General of the Federation, Mr Aghughu Adolphus, over a $36.1m facility under the Fiscal Governance and Institutions Project of the World Bank, to the office. The House Committee on Public Accounts issued the summons at its public hearing in Abuja on Tuesday. Adolphus, who had earlier been invited by the committee, had failed to show up on Tuesday. His representatives led by a Deputy Director, Mr Babalola Olanrewaju, could not explain to the lawmakers the rationale behind taking the loan. Chairman of the committee, Mr Wole Oke, said, “We want to know what the loan was meant for before going to sign for it. What was your procurement plan before arriving at that figure? Or is it a reward? We need to know the programme plan, how you ...
Nigerian government commences N30,000 grants to Uber drivers, Keke NAPEP riders
The federal government has commenced the disbursement of N30,000 grants for transporters as a measure to support those affected by COVID-19 pandemic under its economic sustainability plan (ESP). This was disclosed in a statement signed by Laolu Akande, senior special assistant to the vice president on media and publicity, on Sunday. The funds are being disbursed under the federal government’s micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) survival fund scheme for artisans and transporters. The transport support track opened on November 30, 2020, after the artisans’ support track launched on October 1, 2020. According to the statement, the artisans track is under federal government’s survival fund, while the transport track is a different scheme also under the same fund. Those to benefit from th...
Maritime workers to begin warning strike Monday
File Photo The Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) is to embark on a three-day warning strike from Dec. 7, to protest the deplorable state of access roads to seaports in Lagos State. In a communique it issued on Saturday in Lagos, MWUN said that the situation was no longer tolerable. The communique was signed by the President-General of the union, Mr Adewale Adeyanju, and the Secretary General, Mr Felix Akingboye. It was issued after MWUN’s National Executive Council (NEC) meeting in Lagos. According to the communique, the union had at various occasions drawn the attention of the relevant authorities to the bad roads. It said that the poor state of the access roads had made articulated vehicles to block them, putting other road users through pains of losing man-hours and facing risks ...
Ayo Fayose: President Buhari must account for $1 billion taken from excess crude account
Former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose has queried President Muhammadu Buhari to account for the $1 billion withdrawn from the Excess Crude Account (ECA) to battle insecurity in the country. However, newsmen found that the call may be superfluous as government rendered an account on 22 July. Oblivious of this, Fayose, in series of tweets appeared to suggest that the money had been wasted, because of the rising killings and kidnappings being witnessed on daily basis. “Nigerians should recall that I took a stand openly against withdrawal of the $1bn,” he said. According to Fayose, 30 months after the $1bn was released, Nigerians, including soldiers and FG officials were complaining of no arms and ammunition to combat insecurity in the country. “When in December 2017, FG took $1bn fro...
