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Zamfara governor dumps PDP for APC
Governor Bello Matawalle of Zamfara has officially defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC). Matawalle announced his defection to APC in Gusau on Tuesday at a special grand rally to receive him to the party, organised by the National Caretaker Committee of the APC led by Governor Mai-Mala Buni of Yobe. “As from today, I Bello Matawallen Maradun, governor of Zamfara, I am happy to announce my defection from the PDP to the APC. “As from today, I am a full APC member and leader of APC in Zamfara. “I am calling on all APC stakeholders in the state to join hands with me to build the party and move the state forward,” Matawalle said. Earlier, Buni had described Matawalle’s defection as a welcome development to the APC not only in Zamfara but in Nige...
Official: NDLEA not recruiting
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has alerted the public on the activities of scammers taking advantage of the employment screening exercise conducted by the agency. Mr Femi Babafemi, Director, Media and Advocacy of the agency in a statement on Tuesday in Abuja said that fraudster are demanding for payment from the shortlisted candidates. Newsmen reports that NDLEA had conducted screening for shortlisted candidates of narcotic officers and narcotic assistants. The agency had on May 12 and June 5, notified the public and job seekers to be wary of messages from persons claiming to be acting on behalf of NDLEA and demanding payments for employment. Babafemi said that the the NDLEA is investigating three telephone numbers and bank account details linked to members of the job sca...
JAMB chief accuses institutions of awarding fake certificates
The Registrar, Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, has accused some higher institutions of mobilising and awarding IJMB/JUPEB certificates to individuals who did not attend their institutions. Oloyede alleged that some of the certificates issued by the Interim Joint Matriculation Board (IJMB) and Joint Universities Preliminary Examinations Board (JUPEB) centres for Direct Entry into universities were fakes He made the allegation in Abuja on Tuesday, at the 2021 Batch ‘B’ pre-mobilisation workshop of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) on the theme ‘Sustainable Mobilisation Process: The Role Of Stakeholders’. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that IJMB and JUPEB are national educational programmes approved by the Federal Government. They are quali...
Gombe governor commends federal government’s agenda of creating 25 million jobs by 2025
Gov. Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State has commended the Federal Government’s agenda of generating 25 million jobs by the year 2025. He stated this in Gombe, on Monday, while launching a two-day technical meeting on the preparation of the Medium National Development Plan (MTND) for 2021 -2025, for the six states in the North East Zone. The Governor, who was represented by his Deputy, Manasseh Jatau, said: “It is worth noting that the Medium-Term National Development Plan aims to create 25 million jobs, lift 34 million people out of poverty. “I will like to also appreciate Federal Government for taking a new approach towards achieving a more inclusive and effective participation of states and Local governments at different stages. “Involving everyone in the ongoing process of developing and imple...
2021 UTME results: Candidates, parents decry low scores
File Photo Reactions have continued to follow the recently released results of the ongoing Unified Tertiary Matriculations Examination (UTME) conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB). Some candidates and parents who spoke in separate interviews with newsmen on Monday in Bwari, Abuja, expressed their displeasure. NAN recalls that the board on Friday, June 25, released the first batch of results of candidates who sat for the examination between Saturday, June 19, and Tuesday, June 22. While some candidates expressed satisfaction with their scores, others expressed disappointment on the results. Oluwakemi Moses, a candidate, who said that she wanted to study medicine, said she scored 167, a score she explained, was not only too low but also below her first attempt of t...
Petrol smuggling: Nigerian government using device to track trucks, smugglers
The Federal Government says it has facilitated the use of a tracking device to track every truck loading petroleum product from any of its depots as part of efforts to nip smuggling in the bud and arrest culprits. Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, said this at a forum organised by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) to gauge the achievements recorded in the oil and gas sector in the last two years. Sylva noted that a lot had been achieved in the industry but that the activities of smugglers had continued to overshadow the successes especially as it concerned fuel subsidy and the quantity of petroleum products consumed in the country. “This is one big question that we try to answer ourselves because when we look at the number of load-outs from our depots every day...
Nigerian government says no immediate plan to ban cylinder imports
The Federal Government says it had no immediate plan to ban the importation of gas cylinders as part of its LPG expansion and implementation plan. Mr Dayo Adesina, Senior Special Assistant on Domestic Gas in the office of the Vice-President, made the disclosure in an interview with newsmen on Sunday in Abuja. He said that the government was working on first building local capacities before contemplating a ban. According to Adesina, who is also the Programme Manager of the National LPG Expansion and Implementation, Nigeria still has a lot of cylinder deficits to fill in meeting the LPG expansion plan. He explained that the plan was to get LPG to the remotest of villages and discourage use of firewood and other fuels that are inimical to the environment. Adesina said that of the nation’s ove...
Chris Alao-Akala, Sunday Dare applaud Senator Ajimobi’s legacies
Former Gov. Christopher Adebayo Alao-Akala of Oyo State and Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Mr Sunday Akin Dare, have applauded the late former Governor of the state, Sen. Abiola Ajimobi’s legacies. The duo, in their separate statements made available to newsmen on Friday, described the late former governor as a focused and committed statesman. Newsmen report that Ajimobi died on June 25, 2020, following reported complications arising from COVID-19 infection. Ajimobi, who died at the age of 70, was the first civilian governor to rule the state for two consecutive terms. NAN also reports that the late Ajimobi was, until his death, the Aare of Ibadanland and Deputy National Chairman (South) of APC. Alao-Akala, in a statement signed by his Media Aide, Tolu Mustapha, said that he now...
Oyo APC: We’re proud of Senator Ajimobi, even in death
The All Progressives Congress (APC), Oyo State Chapter, says it is very proud of the good governance and rare virtues in the late former Governor, Abiola Ajimobi, even in death. Chief Akin Oke, the state Caretaker Chairman, said in a statement by his Special Assistant, Olawale Sadare, on Thursday in Ibadan. Newsmen recall that the late Ajimobi, died on June 25, 2020, following reported complications arising from the COVID-19 infection. Ajimobi, who died at the age of 70, was the first civilian governor to govern Oyo State for an unprecedented two terms. He was until his death, the Aare of Ibadanland and the Deputy National Chairman (South) of the APC. Oke said that the memory and legacy of Ajimobi would remain indelible in the hearts of the people who valued quality leadership, good govern...
Oyo governor urges council chiefs to strengthen intelligence gathering in their areas
Gov. Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has urged local government chairmen in the state to upscale intelligence gathering in their respective council areas. A statement issued on Wednesday in Ibadan by Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr Taiwo Adisa, quoted Makinde as stating this while closing a two-day retreat for local government chairmen, vice-chairmen and heads of local government administrations (HLAs), on Tuesday evening. Newsmen report that the retreat was held at Ilaji Hotel and Sports Complex, Akanran, Ibadan. The governor said that the local government chairmen needed step up their game on the issue of security and take responsibility for the security of their areas. Although he stated that security was the responsibility of everyone in the society, the governor, however, said tha...
U.S. blocks websites linked to Iranian disinformation
The U.S. Justice Department on Tuesday blocked some three dozen websites, many of them associated with Iranian disinformation activities, a U.S. government source said, adding an official announcement was expected. The source in Washington spoke after notices appeared earlier on Tuesday on a number of Iran-affiliated websites saying they had been seized by the United States government as part of law enforcement action. Iranian news agencies said that the U.S. government had seized several Iranian media websites and sites belonging to groups affiliated with Iran such as Yemen’s Houthi movement. Some sites later started to display as normal. The website of the Arabic-language Masirah TV, which is run by the Houthis, read: “The domain almasirah.net has been seized by the United States Governm...
Bauchi residents lament erratic power supply
Some residents of Bauchi metropolis have expressed concerned over the erratic power supply in the area. Some of the residents who spoke with newsmen in seperate interviews, said the situation had made life unbearable for them. Newsmen report that Gwallameji area of Bauchi and other parts of the metropolis are leaving in darkness in the past months following vandalisation of electrical facilities in the affected communitie. They urged the Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JEDCO) to address the problem and adopt proactive to protect its facilities against acts of vandalisim. Mr Paul Ugochukwu, a resident of Rafin Zurfi area of the metropolis, said they had been experiencing erratic power supply for the past three months sequel to the alleged destruction of the power transformer in the ar...
