March
Bauchi traffic agency to enforce ban on commercial motorcyclists – chairman
The Bauchi State Road Traffic Agency (BAROTA), on Tuesday, reiterated that activities of commercial motorcycle riders, popularly known as ‘Okada’ or ‘Achaba’, remained banned in the state. Mr Tijjani Gamawa, Chairman of the agency, who made this known at a news conference in Bauchi, stated that the agency would ensure the enforcement of the ban. Newsmen recall that the Bauchi state government, in March 2020, banned the activities of commercial motorcyclists as one of the measures to mitigate the spread of coronavirus in the state. Gamawa also explained that anybody conveying three or more people on his motorcycle and riding recklessly would be regarded as a commercial rider, and would be arrested and his motorcycle seized. Similarly, the chairman warned that any tricycle rider (Keke Napep)...
AKA: I’m not a suspect in my fiancée’s murder investigation
Superstar South African rapper, Kiernan Forbes, has stated that he is not a suspect in the ongoing investigation into the death of his fiancée, Nellie Tembe, by the South African Police. Fondly referred to as Anele, it was reported that the rapper’s fiancée fell from one of the upper floors of the hotel to the intersection of Loop and Bloom streets in the Cape Town central business districts. AKA and Anele had gotten engaged in February this year. In March, he paid ‘lobola’ to her family, describing her as ‘the love of his life’ when he announced their engagement on social media. The rap artiste revealed that some people whom he and his late fiancée trusted with their deepest troubles now use them as weapons against him. He said, “It is a sad day when I find myself having to speak to the n...
NGX records N419 billion growth in April
The market capitalisation of the Nigerian Stock (NGX) recorded a growth of N419 billion in April due to impressive first quarter results declared by some companies. Specifically, the market capitalisation which closed trading in March at N20.428tn rose by N419bn to close at N20.847tn in April. Similarly, the All-Share Index inched higher by 789.29 points to close at 39,834.42 in contrast with 39,045.13 recorded in March. Royal Exchange Assurance emerged the best performing stock for April in percentage terms, growing by 89.29 per cent to close at 58k per share against 28k recorded in March. Linkage trailed with 41.87 per cent to close at 85k in contrast with 60k posted in the comparative month. Speaking on the performance of the stock market, Mr Ambrose Omordion, the Chief Operating Office...
Two persons abducted in Ogun community
Two persons have been abducted in Omu, a community near Ofada town in Obafemi/Owode Local Government Area of the state. The spokesperson for the Ogun State Police Command, Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed the incident on Sunday. He explained that the abducted persons – a man and a woman – were on a visit to a farm in the area on Saturday when the incident occurred. Oyeyemi noted that following the incident, the command has launched a manhunt to track the perpetrators and rescue the victims from their abductors. He, however, stressed that no ransom has so far been demanded by the abductors to release their victims. The abduction occurred three days after the police arrested some suspects in connection with the abduction of a community leader, Tajudeen Omotayo, and two students of the Olabisi Ona...
Washington denies Iran state media report saying prisoner swap agreed
The United States on Sunday denied a report by Iran’s state television that the arch-foes had reached a prisoner swap deal in exchange for the release of $7 billion frozen Iranian oil funds under U.S. sanctions in other countries. Iranian state television said on Sunday that Tehran would free four Americans accused of spying in exchange for four Iranians held in the United States and the release of $7 billion in frozen Iranian funds. The U.S. government denied that an exchange was in the works. The state TV, quoting an unnamed Iranian official, also said British-Iranian national Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe would be released once Britain had paid off a debt on military equipment owed to Tehran. A British Foreign Office official played down that report. Iran and world powers are holding talks ...
Tanzanian student dies of coronavirus in India
A Tanzanian PhD student, Ngowi Emanuel Harrison, died in India on April 26 of Covid-19 complications. A report by The Indian Express confirms that Harrison, 34, had joined the Ph.D. course for Business Economics at the Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara, on March 27, and tested positive for Covid-19 on April 21. According to Indian officials, Harrison died after experiencing a sudden drop in oxygen levels. Director of the Office of International Affairs at MSU, Prof. Dhanesh Patel, explained that about 40 foreign national students were tested for Covid-19 recently, with three of the results proving positive — one from Gambia and two from Tanzania. “The student [Harrison] had arrived in India on March 27. He complained of some symptoms on April 21 but his Rapid Antigen Test came back n...
Cross River agency chief calls for legislation to back labour migration
The director-general, Cross River Migration Control Agency, Prince Michael Nku Abuo, has called for enactment of a legislation to back labour migration in order to engender national development. Abuo made the call at the Cross River State Migration Summit held in Calabar, the state capital on Saturday. The DG, who also represented the state governor, Prof. Ben Ayade, at the summit, pointed out that several solutions by both federal and state governments have been given to address the issue of unemployment in order to curb the challenge, but the way forward is to tackle the menace was through labour migration. According to him, Cross River Migration Control Agency was exploring and advancing for opportunities for citizens of the State who are at home and in the Diaspora under a work study p...
PTAD: Implementation of pension adjustment in progress
Dr Chioma Ejikeme, Executive Secretary of Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD), says implementation of the pension adjustment is in progress. Ejikeme in a statement on Thursday in Abuja through Mr Gbenga Ajayi, PTAD’s Head of Corporate Communications, noted that the implementation was most likely to commence at the end of April, going by the submissions that had been made by all stakeholders. “Ejikeme held a meeting with the National Executives of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) led by Dr Abel Afolayan on March 16, where the issue of the implementation of the pension adjustment was openly discussed. “The union gave their understanding at the meeting, the executive secretary told the union that the implementation is most likely to commence at the end of April, going by ...
Red Cross condemns ‘horrific’ sexual violence in Ethiopia’s Tigray
The Red Cross voiced alarm Thursday over “horrific” accounts of sexual violence in Ethiopia’s conflict-hit Tigray region, amid fears that rape was being used as a weapon of war. Robert Mardini, director-general of the Geneva-based International Committee of the Red Cross, said the organisation’s staff in hospitals and clinics in the region were hearing first-hand of extreme sexual violence. “Those reports are extremely horrific, very shocking,” he told AFP in an interview, adding that this was a “matter of grave concern”. “I haven’t heard such terrible accounts for more than two decades in the humanitarian sector,” said Mardini, who among other things closely followed the civil wars in Syria and Yemen when he headed ICRC’s Near and Middle East division from 2012 to 2018. “Many of my humani...
President Buhari approves appointment of 18 appeal court judges
President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of 18 Justices of the Court of Appeal. Newsmen reported that the 18 candidates were recommended to Mr Buhari by the National Judicial Council (NJC) for appointment in March. NJC’s Director of Information, Soji Oye, had in a statement on March 19, said the council’s interview committee made the decision recommending the candidates for appointment at its 94th meeting which held on March 17 and 18, under the chairmanship of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Tanko Muhammad. The president approved the recommendations in a memo by his Chief of Staff, Ibrahim Gambari, and addressed to the CJN. A copy of the memo titled, ‘Re: Appointment of eighteen (18) Justices of the Court of Appeal of Nigeria’ was circulated online on Thursday. Our corr...
Lagos: Police arrest protesting Uber, Bolt drivers
The police in Lagos have arrested some members of the Professional E-hailing Drivers and Private Owners Association (PEDPA), the umbrella body of e-hailing ride companies including Uber and Bolt, who had embarked on an industrial action over the services rendered by the platforms. Five drivers, including the president of PEDPA, Idris Shonuga, were arrested on Tuesday. Speaking on the arrest, Kolawole Aina, the Regional Vice President PEDPA, South-west, said the drivers were picked up by the police at the National Stadium in Surulere while they were gathering for a peaceful march to Alausa. Newsmen reported that Bolt and Uber drivers commenced strike on Monday to express their displeasure over the “unfavourable pricing” of the companies and its impact on their business. Shonuga, who listed ...
George Floyd murder: Minneapolis police to face US federal probe
A US federal investigation has been launched into policing practices in the city of Minneapolis, a day after one of its former officers was convicted of the murder of George Floyd. The justice department will look at whether there has been a pattern “of unconstitutional or unlawful policing”, Attorney General Merrick Garland said. It follows national outrage over the killing of Floyd by Derek Chauvin. The former officer was convicted of all charges against him on Tuesday. Chauvin was filmed kneeling on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes during an arrest in May 2020. Floyd, an unarmed African American, was pronounced dead an hour later. His death sparked protests across the US and worldwide, and calls for police reform. Tuesday’s verdict has been widely welcomed in a country where poli...
