Governments
Kwara APC youths petition AGF over local council transition committees
Under the auspices of Concerned APC Youths in Kwara, a group has petitioned justice minister Abubakar Malami over the appointment of local government transition committees by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq. They condemned the recent constitution of the Transition Implementation Committee (TIC) for the 16 local government councils in the state. The youths described the TIC as illegal and unconstitutional, calling for the intervention of Mr Malami. The petition, signed by 36 youths drawn from the 16 local government areas, declared that Mr AbdulRazaq acted illegally in the constitution of the TIC. According to the petition, there are judgments of the Supreme Court against the appointment of TIC in local governments. The petition stated, “We are requesting that you use your very good office ...
Ondo governor: Why Amotekun will transform into state police
Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State on Saturday said that the State Security Network codenamed Amotekun Corps would eventually transform into a State Police overtime. Akeredolu, who insisted that every federating unit in the country should have its own police for effective security, noted that there was no serious attempt to redesign the nation’s security architecture to respond to the demands of a nascent country at the time of independence. Speaking at the 2021 Democracy Day lecture held in Akure, the state capital, the governor also said that he does not believe in secession. At the event held at the International Event Centre (DOME), Akeredolu said the local government could not be absolutely autonomous and that the Federal Government should have no control, whatsoever, over h...
President Buhari inaugurates police equipment in Lagos
President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday inaugurated security equipment for the police and other security agencies in Lagos State. Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos officially handed over the patrol vehicles and various security equipment to the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba. The security equipment include 150 double cabin vehicles, 30 saloon patrol vehicles, 1000 ballistic vests, 1000 ballistic helmets, 1000 handheld police radios/walkie talkies and 100 security patrol bikes. Others are two Armored Personnel Carriers (APCs), four high capacity troop carriers, two anti-riot water cannon vehicles, office/command furniture and other ancillary support resources. Speaking at the handing over ceremony, Sanwo-Olu said that the state, local governments and corporate organisations contr...
US to give 500 million Pfizer coronavirus vaccines to poorer countries
The US is to distribute half a billion shots of the Pfizer vaccine to nearly 100 poorer countries. Some 200 million doses will be given out this year and 300 million in 2022. It comes as US President Joe Biden said before leaving for the G7 summit in Cornwall that he would be announcing a vaccine strategy for the world. The US would pay for the doses at a “not-for-profit” price, according to the New York Times, which said the plan could be officially announced on Thursday. The shots will go to 92 lower-income countries and the African Union, sources told the Reuters news agency. Pfizer and the White House have so far not officially commented. America is well advanced in its vaccine rollout but campaigners have called for richer countries to do more to help protect developing nations. It’s ...
Foodstuff, cattle dealers threaten to stop supply to Southern Nigeria
The Amalgamated Union of Foodstuff and Cattle Dealers of Nigeria (AFUCDN) has again threatened to stop food supply to the South and other parts of the country. The union said it would carry out this threat within three weeks if governments at all levels failed to meet its demands within three weeks. National President of the AFUCDN, Muhammed Tahir, who spoke with journalists at the end of an emergency meeting of the union in Abuja on Tuesday evening, lamented that since the Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, intervened in the last three months, which led to the suspension of their six-day industrial action, nothing had been done on the union’s agitation. The union had in March 2021 gone on strike and stopped supply of foodstuffs to the South following allegations of killings of its members...
Ogun council polls: APC members reject imposition of candidates, demand governor’s intervention
File Photo Some aggrieved members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ogun State have appealed to the State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, to immediately save the party from imminent crisis. The party faithful, who expressed concern over the gale of imposition of candidates within the APC ahead of the July 24 local government elections in the state, said Governor Abiodun, as the overall leader of the party, must rise to the occasion and rescue it from the grip of self-serving individuals masquerading as leaders. This was contained in a statement issued on Sunday, which was signed on behalf of the concerned APC members by an Ikenne Local Government based politician, Hon. Sonuga Ramoni, a leader and youth activist from Ikenne Local Govt area of the State. Sonuga alleged that the...
IMF, World Bank urge G7 to release surplus vaccines
The heads of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank on Thursday urged the Group of Seven advanced economies to release any excess COVID-19 vaccines to developing countries as soon as possible, and called on manufacturers to ramp up production. In a joint statement to the G7, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and World Bank President David Malpass also called on governments, pharmaceutical companies and groups involved in vaccine procurement to boost transparency about contracting, financing and deliveries. “Distributing vaccines more widely is both an urgent economic necessity and a moral imperative,” they said. “The coronavirus pandemic will not end until everyone has access to vaccines, including people in developing countries.” Malpass and Georgieva will meet in person ...
Constitution Review: Sultan canvasses unrestricted usage of hijab
Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III, the Sultan of Sokoto, has advocated the use of Hijab by Muslim women, without restrictions and in total observance of the freedom of religion in the country. The Sultan, who is also the President-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), stated this in Birnin Kebbi, on Tuesday, at the North West Zonal Public Hearing on the Constitution Review organised by the House of Representatives for Stakeholders from Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara. Abubakar wondered why the wearing of the Hijab would be a problem for others who were not using it, stressing that the other religions could also be encouraged to adopt what their religions ordered them to do. “The most important issue is the issue of religion. Almighty God created us to worship Him and you m...
APC group: Six years of President Buhari better than PDP’s 16 years
The group operating under the auspices of All Progressives Congress (APC) Legacy Awareness & Campaign, made this remark on Friday in Abuja while reeling out some of the achievements of the APC-led government led by President Buhari. Addressing journalists, group’s national coordinator, Barr. Ismail Ahmed, said the group has commenced a national campaign to promote some of the initiatives of APC-led government. Ahmed said: “As committed members of the APC, we are convinced that since May 29, 2015, when the government of President Muhammadu Buhari was inaugurated, landmark initiatives have been; and are being implemented. “In comparative terms, President Buhari’s government has recorded more achievements within six years than all the previous governments under the PDP between 1999 and 20...
CISLAC raises concerns over Nigeria’s debt profile, coronavirus accountability
The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), has expressed concerns over $2.18 billion foreign loan request to the Nigerian Senate to fund the 2021 Appropriations Act, by President Muhammadu Buhari. It has therefore urged the National Assembly to insist on an analysis of debt repayment strategy to be in place as its key priority to approvals. In a statement by Executive Director, CISLAC and Head of Transparency International – Nigeria, Auwal Ibrahim Musa Rafsanjani, he said national public finance management regime is meant to save the nation’s economic system from collapse: rescuing jobs, supporting livelihoods and bailing out many businesses on the brink. He warned the government to avoid the catastrophe that the international finance institutions forced on Greece: destroying ...
NNPC selects 26 firms to lift Nigeria’s crude oil
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has picked 26 foreign and local companies as well as 12 countries to lift the country’s crude oil for the next two years. The crude term contracts, expected to run from 2021 through 2023, would see the firms and the selected nations, which would operate on a Government-to-Government (G2G) basis to purchase the commodity from the national oil company. The deal is coming less than a week after the corporation chose 16 oil and gas consortia for its new crude-for-fuel swap contracts for one year starting in August. The contracts, known as Direct Sale, Direct Purchase (DSDP) are high-stakes agreements used to supply nearly all of Nigeria’s petrol needs as well as cover some of its diesel and jet fuel consumption. However, in the fresh crude oil...
Guatemalan president says graft fighter biased, ahead of Harris visit
Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei criticized the country’s best-known graft prosecutor for what he said was a left-wing politicization of the fight against corruption, a view at odds with strong U.S. backing for his work. Speaking in an interview with Reuters late on Tuesday, Giammattei nonetheless expressed hope that a visit to Guatemala next week by U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will produce shared strategies to create prosperity in rural areas prone to emigration. Harris, a Democrat, is in charge of Washington efforts to tackle the causes of mass migration from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, collectively dubbed the Northern Triangle, including a focus on corruption and poor governance that she says limit opportunities. There is a $4 billion U.S. aid package to the reg...