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Major News Headlines In The Newspapers Today: INEC expresses concern over continued attacks on its facilities

Published

1 year ago

December 20, 2022

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1. The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, on Monday expressed concern that persistent attacks on its facilities were threatening the successful conduct of the 2023 elections. The commission also lamented that its past efforts to curb vote-buying failed, adding that the vice could mar the successful conduct of the elections.

2. A Federal High Court in Abuja has convicted a former Special Adviser to the President on Public Affairs, Dr Doyin Okupe over the diversion of arms funds from the office of the National Security Adviser. Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu on Monday held that the prosecution made out a case of money laundering against Okupe and awarded the total sum of N13 million in fines against him.

3. The All Progressives Congress presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, on Monday, met with the leaders of the Nigerian Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress, among others, where he promised to end unemployment if elected in 2023. At the event, the organised labour presented the APC candidate with their demands, which included a total war on corruption.

READ Red line rail: Lagos inaugurates Oyingbo Flyover

4. Policemen attached to the Sagamu Road Police Division, Lagos State Police Command, have allegedly shot dead a motorcyclist, Stephen Alabi, aka Doctor, at Sabo Market, in the Ikorodu area of the State. Alabi and his colleagues were said to be at a park close to the Sabo Market when the policemen arrived to impound motorcycles from riders operating against the ban on motorcycle operations in some parts of the State.

5. Military raids involving Air Force officers have claimed the lives of no fewer than 40 bandits in Malele village, in the Dansadau Local Government Area of Zamfara State. It was gathered that the Air Force, during a series of airstrikes undertaken by the air component of Operation Hadarin Daji, neutralised the terrorists at their hideouts in the village.

6. Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, yesterday, gave strong assurances that the lingering crisis bedevilling the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at its national level will soon be over. He stated this while addressing Benue State PDP stakeholders during a meeting at the Government House, Makurdi.

READ Hoodlums burn down another INEC office

7. Petroleum products marketers on the platform of the Natural Oil and Gas Suppliers Association of Nigeria (NOGASA) have distanced themselves from the traumatising petroleum products scarcity and high cost, saying the ugly development stems from market forces and logistics challenges beyond their control. The National President of the Association, Mr Benneth Korie stated this yesterday.

8. The Labour Party (LP) governorship candidate for Abia State, Alex Otti has cleared the air on the controversy over the money the party’s presidential candidate; Peter Obi said he left as Governor of Anambra State, declaring that Obi was right in his claim. Otti, who was the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Diamond Bank then, said he supervised the transaction and knew of the investment made for the State.

9. Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen, has accused all political parties in Nigeria of shutting women out of the 2023 general election. She said despite years of sensitising women and urging them to contest for elective positions, leadership of all the political parties hijacked the party structures and shut women out.

READ Shameful: DSS re-arrests Emefiele after serious tussle with prison officials

10. The Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting at Okoita, in Ibiono Ibom Local Government Area of the State, has sentenced a man, Kingsley Eyo, to 10-year imprisonment for abducting a six-year-old boy, Godnews Essien. Eyo, 34, who hailed from Ikot Otoinyie village in the Uruan Local Government Area, was convicted on Monday by Justice Okon Okon, having been found guilty by the court.

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Good morning! Here Are Some Major News Headlines In The Newspapers Today: Man arrested for forcefully marrying off underage daughters in Anambra

Published

59 mins ago

May 3, 2024

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1. Anambra State Government has arrested one Uzochukwu Okoli for giving out his underage daughter’s hand in marriage. Okoli was apprehended after his daughter reported to the state Ministry of Women and Social Welfare about the ill-treatment being meted out to her by her father and the man he forced her to marry.

2. The Army has taken a significant step to prevent the killing of its troops through ambush by terrorists and bandits. On Thursday, Chief of Army Staff, COAS Lt-Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, hinted at the plan to take delivery of Mine-resistant Ambush-Protected, MRAP, vehicles in the next few weeks. This is to ensure safety of its personnel in the battle against terrorists and economic saboteurs.

3. Lagos State contributes N41 trillion (20 per cent) to the country’s Gross Domestic Product, GDP, Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Ope George, has said. According to him, despite many challenges, such as COVID-19 and EndSARS protest, the state has devised strategies to keep its economy afloat and boost investor confidence.

READ Naira appreciates to N1,280/$ at parallel market

4. The suspected mastermind of the March 28, 2022, Kaduna-Abuja train attack, Ibrahim Abdullahi (aka Mande), and his accomplice, Auwal Ayuba, were on Thursday paraded by the Police. Also paraded were others believed to be terrorising motorists and passengers plying the Kaduna-Abuja Highway and residents within the axis.

5. Former Katsina State governor, Ibrahim Shema has defected to the All Progressives Congress, APC. Alhaji Shema was governor in the Northwest State between 2007 and 2015, under the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

6. Suspected bandits have attacked Maraban Agyaro where they abducted the village heads of Kakangi and Kisaya villages, and killed eight villagers in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State. The attackers invaded the area around 8 am on Thursday, during which they also abducted four farmers who were on their respective farms.

7. A yet to be identified police officer has gunned down a Lagos resident who prevented him from jumping queue to buy fuel at a Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, filling station at Obalende, in the Ikoyi area of Lagos State. Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed that the officer who shot the victim has been identified.

READ Hoodlums burn down another INEC office

8. Vice President Kashim Shettima on Thursday said President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms of the past one year “saved the life of the nation”. He described them as necessary given the poor state of Nigeria when he assumed office on May 29, 2023.

9. The Federal High Court in Warri, Delta State, on Thursday, commenced sitting on a N100bn lawsuit filed by indigenes of Okuama community in Ughelli North Local Government Area against the Nigeria Army, challenging the military invasion and destruction of the community.

10. Governors on Thursday sounded a note of caution to workers against unduly high expectations from the minimum wage negotiations. States will pay only implementable and sustainable wages, they said, but expressed commitment to improved salaries for workers.

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Labour gives FG May 31 deadline for new minimum wage

Published

17 hours ago

May 2, 2024

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The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) have given the federal government a deadline of May 31 to come up with a new national minimum wage for workers.

The ultimatum was given despite the decision of the federal government to increase the salaries of civil servants by 35 percent.

The Federal Government also approved an increase in pension of between 20 percent and 28 percent for pensioners on the defined benefits scheme, with respect to the six consolidated salary structures.

The implementation of the new salary structure was backdated to January 1, 2024.

Labour has since said it wants the sum of ₦615,000 as the new minimum wage.

Speaking during the Workers Day Celebration in Abuja, Joe Ajaero, president of NLC, said they might not guarantee the industrial harmony of the country if the new minimum wage is not implemented.

“The NLC and the TUC have made it clear and emphatically that should the minimum wage negotiation continue and linger till the end of May, we can no longer guarantee industrial harmony in this country,” Ajaero said.

Also speaking, Festus Osifo, TUC president, said the N30,000 current minimum wage is insufficient for Nigerian workers due to the current economic realities.

READ ‘Enemies’ seeking loopholes, Kanu tells followers to be cautious

Osifo implored the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and power distribution companies to immediately reverse the current increase in electricity tariff for Band A customers.

“The NLC and TUC hereby advise NERC and power sector operators to reverse the last increase in electricity tariff within the next one week,” the TUC president said.

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Claims of inciting Igbos against FG baseless, Obi replies Umahi

Published

20 hours ago

May 2, 2024

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The presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has responded to the allegation that he is inciting people of the south-east against the federal government.

The former governor of Anambra said the allegation is a “baseless distraction” designed to tarnish his character.

He averred that his “focus is on fostering constructive dialogue and inclusivity, rather than engaging in divisive politics”.

Obi said he would not reduce himself to the level of those who wallow in ethnic politics.

“Regarding allegations of incitement against the government, I firmly reject these unfounded accusations aimed at tarnishing my character,” Obi wrote on X.

“My focus is on fostering constructive dialogue and inclusivity, rather than engaging in divisive politics.

“Claims of incitement are baseless distractions. I have always advocated for unity and advancement, refusing to partake in reactionary divisive politics.

“Worse still, I have never and can never descend so low as to base my political aspirations on any sectional or ethnic interest.”

READ Father from hell defiles two-year-old daughter, sexually harasses maid in Lagos

THE INCITEMENT ALLEGATION

David Umahi, minister of works, on Wednesday accused Obi of inciting people of the south-east against the federal government over the Lagos-Calabar coastal road project.

Speaking during a stakeholders’ meeting in Lagos, Umahi said Obi implemented the demolition of structures for road infrastructure while he was governor of Anambra.

The minister condemned Obi for criticising the federal government over the project, adding that affected property owners are already being compensated.

Obi has repeatedly criticised the federal government for the construction, describing the project as a misplaced priority.

The former Anambra governor said the “insensitive” demolition of structures for the project was “heart-wrenching”.

Recently, the federal government commenced the construction of the 700-kilometre Lagos-Calabar coastal road, which is expected to run through the shoreline of beach resorts in Lagos, while traversing eight other states.

The project has elicited controversy over funding, and the businesses that would be affected during construction.

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RESPONSE ON DEMOLITIONS AS ANAMBRA GOVERNOR

Responding to Umahi on demolition of structures, Obi said while he was governor, he clearly stated that all structures obstructing existing roads and lacking approval would be removed.

The former Anambra governor challenged anyone to show evidence on whether the “demolished structures on existing roads or ongoing businesses were not encroaching on the road and built without government approval”.

He added that it amounts to false equivalence to compare his actions as governor with the current Lagos-Calabar coastal road project.

Obi said he “never proposed creating a new road that would disrupt existing structures”.

“My actions were strategic, aiming to prioritise the repair and maintenance of existing infrastructure over projects that risked disruption and destruction,” Obi added.

“This approach aimed to safeguard the livelihoods of Nigerians and ensure the efficient use of resources.”