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South Sudan to dispose of 60,000 expired coronavirus vaccines
South Sudan is looking to dispose of 60 000 expired doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, as rollout of the drugs is hampered by scepticism among the population, a health ministry official said Monday. The doses in question were donated by African telecommunications company MTN and the African Union late last month. “When it reached here we later discovered that the (remaining) lifespan of this vaccine is just … 14 days,” Richard Lako, Covid-19 incident manager at the health ministry, told AFP. He said that the drugs had since expired and were “already locked somewhere to be dealt with as soon as possible.” Lako said the health ministry and drug authority were working on plans to dispose of the vaccines. “The ministry is now engaging the African Union and the team with regards to that e...
PDP wins all seats in Rivers council election
File Photo In line with expectation and trends in other parts of the country, the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Rivers has been declared the winner of all the chairpersons and councillorship seats contested for in the State local government election held on Saturday. The announcement that the PDP won all the seats contested for in the 23 Local Government Areas of Rivers was made by the State Independent Electoral Commission, RSIEC, in Port Harcourt on Sunday. However, one of the parties that participated in the election, the Social Democratic Party, SDP has described the poll as a ‘sham’ while calling for the resignation of Chairman of RSIEC, Justice George Omereji [rtd]. The party also called for cancellation of all the results of the election. The SDP councillorship candidate ...
Ex-minister: It’s time to convoke sovereign national conference
Former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately convoke a Sovereign National Conference to address the numerous problems facing the nation. Ezekwesili lamented that the nation at this crucial period of crippling political and social dangers needed a conference to address the thorny issues. She said this had become inevitable in view of happenings in the country. Ezekwesili said the problem now was whether the Nigerian government led by Buhari would be willing to hold such an important conference. In her words: “Nigeria, at this time, the crippling political, economic and social dangers make the convocation of a Sovereign National Conversation inevitable. “The question is whether President Muhammadu Buhari’s Nigerian government realizes ...
NAF chief: Terrorists’ll be brought to their knees
The Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Oladayo Amao, has said the Nigerian military will win the war on insecurity in the North-East and other parts of the country. Amao said this when he received the Chairman, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Hon Abike Dabiri-Erewa, at the Nigerian Airforce Headquarters in Abuja. This was disclosed in a statement issued on Friday by Gabriel Odu for NIDCOM Media, Public Relations and Protocol Unit. According to the statement, “Air Marshal Oladayo Amao believes that with the professional competence of the air servicemen and women, and well-boosted morale, the terrorists and their kind will be brought to their knees. “CAS said the NAF is willing to collaborate with Nigerian Professionals in diaspora in relevant fields as it is imperative to tap into the enormo...
Ramadan: House deputy governor urges muslims to pray for Nigeria
The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ahmed Idris Wase, has urged Muslim Ummah to use the Holy Month to pray for the peace, security and development of Nigeria. In a congratulatory message to mark the commencement of this year’s Ramadan, the Deputy Speaker implored Muslims to follow and apply the teachings of Prophet Muhammad in their relationship with both Muslims and non-Muslims neighbours. He said: “We should remember to cater for the less-privileged in our midst, stay humble and abstain from all bad deeds. As Ramadan begins, I wish to felicitate with all Muslims for witnessing yet another season of spiritual significance. I enjoin you to use the sacred holy month of Ramadan to pray for our dear nation against the current spate of killings, kidnappings, banditry and o...
MC Galaxy dumps music for food business
Former singer, Innocent Udeme Udofot, more popularly known as MC Galaxy is living his dreams. After years of churning out hit singles the ‘Sekem’ dance originator seems to have dumped music for good, having not released any song for a while now. Instead he has concentrated on fulfilling his dream of owning an indigenous eatery with specialty in local cuisines. In 2019, the Uyo born artist gave his fans a sneak peek of what he has been up to since he disappeared from the music scene. Located in the highbrow area of Lekki Phase One, the restaurant has since welcomed some of his celebrity friends who support his new hustle. Not resting on his oars with his restaurant business, newsmen reliably gathered that he also has his eyes in the real estate business too which he is planning to launch af...
NNPC to partner Borno government to establish gas power plant
The Group Managing Director, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Alhaji Mele Kyari has said that the corporation will partner with Borno State Government to establish a Gas Power Plant following the vandalization of the national grid by insurgents which put the state almost three months into total blackout. Kyari who led a powerful delegation on a courtesy call on Governor Babagana Umara Zulum on Friday said, the Federal Government will not fold its arms and neglect the state which is been ravaged by insurgents, especially cut off from the national grid, as power is a source of income to the teaming people of the state. “We are here with my colleagues, the Head of Gas and Power Business, Engineer Yusuf Usman, Representatives of Greensville Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), which is a...
Sheikh Khalid: Politicians, religious leaders behind Nigeria’s insecurity
Renowned Islamic scholar, Sheikh Muhammad Nuru Khalid, on Thursday, alleged that some influential people, including religious leaders and politicians, were the real sponsors of insecurity in some parts of the country. He stated this in Abuja during the public presentation of a book titled, ‘The Infinite Light, The Pride of Humanity,’ authored by Sheikh Fathullah Gulen a spiritual leader of Hizmet. Khalid claimed that bandits, who were predominantly youths of northern extraction, had been terrorising innocent citizens because they were getting engaged by some prominent politicians and religious leaders working towards the Balkanisation of the nation. So, he urged the government to address the issues of education and unemployment as a solution to the security challenge. The Muslim scholar sa...
Missing Nigerian student found dead in UK pond
A Nigerian student at Oxford Brookes University, Richard Okorogheye, has been found dead after two weeks of searching. According to his mum, Evidence Joel, the 19-year-old left home on March 22 and was reported missing two days after. Mrs Joel had repeatedly pleaded for information on her son’s whereabouts. “All he said to me was ‘mummy, I’m going to see my friend’. I trusted him, I had no doubt or no reason to ask him further questions. “It’s my baby, it’s my treasure. He’s my oxygen, he’s my crown. He’s everything to me, he’s the reason I live, the reason I exist. Right now I’m empty, there is nothing to look forward to. He’s taken my breath away from me,” she told Sky News. But on Wednesday, the Metropolitan police, in a statement, confirmed that a corpse found in a pond Monday has been...
Easter: Abuja airport records high traffic
The Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on Friday witnessed increased traffic due to huge number of passengers travelling to different parts of the country to celebrate Easter. According to NAN reports, flights from Abuja to other routes were fully booked before Thursday. Also, booking and check-in counters of many airlines were crowded with travelers rushing to board their flights. Many of the airline officials who spoke with NAN in separate interviews said there was upsurge in traffic, but ticket fare still remained same. The Max Air Station Manager, Kehinde Ogunyale, said that more people had chosen to fly home for the Easter celebration than the previous years. Ogunyele further said that Max Air also possibly experienced unique increase in passengers due to reduction in flight...
Easter: NSCDC deploys 1,850 personnel in Ondo
THISDAY Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, Ondo State Command has deployed no fewer than 1,850 personnel ahead of the Easter celebration in the state. The move was to ensure that there is adequate security, before, during and after the celebration in the state. According to the Corps Public Relations Officer, DSC Olufemi Omole, in a statement issued on Thursday “the situation of the country calls for collective efforts to ensure the protection of lives and properties.” He added that the State Commandant of NSCDC in the state, Eweka Edenabu urged the operatives who will provide security in various parts of the state to exercise caution in the discharge of their duties and exhibit a high level of professionalism in their dealings with the civil populace. The Commandant also dis...
ECWA: Terrorists tactically taking over Northern Nigeria
The Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) has raised the alarm, saying terrorist groups are tactically expanding their activities and making incursions into other parts of the North. Addressing a press conference in Jos on Wednesday on the insecurity ravaging the country, ECWA President, Dr. Stephen Panya, said “Boko Haram and ISWAP have destroyed tens of thousands of lives and displaced hundreds of thousands of Nigerians and many Christians and Christian communities have been deliberately targeted and destroyed. “It is clear that these terrorist groups are gradually but tactically expanding their activities and making incursions into other parts of the north and even beyond, and the apparent lack of unity in the fight against these terrorist groups, and the inability of government to deal...
