Global Naija Info

Seriake Dickson was declared winner of Bayelsa polls by INEC The Governorship Election Tribunal for Bayelsa sitting in Abuja on Tuesday upheld the election of Governor Seriake Dickson of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Mr Timipre Sylva and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) on January 30 challenged his return as governor by the Independent National Electoral Commission at the tribunal. INEC had declared Dickson as winner of the Dec. 5, 2015 and Jan. 9, 2016 re-run governorship election. In his judgment, the tribunal Chairman, Justice Kazeem Alogba, held that there were no evidence to prove widespread illegality during the election. Alogba, who led two other Justices, further held that Sylva and his party failed to prove their case with credible evidence. He also held that the allegations of various criminal and electoral offences which the petitioners stated affected the outcome of the election were not proved beyond reasonable doubt. “The petition was not backe...

The slain Fr Jacques Hamel An 84-year-old priest was killed and four other people taken hostage by two armed men who stormed his church in a suburb of Rouen in northern France. The two attackers, who said they were from the so-called Islamic State (IS), slit Fr Jacques Hamel’s throat during a morning Mass, officials say. Police surrounded the church and shot dead both hostage-takers. French media named one of them as Adel K. One of the hostages is in a critical condition in hospital. President Francois Hollande, visiting the scene, in Saint Etienne-du-Rouvray, said the attackers had committed a “cowardly assassination” and France would fight IS “by all means”. Pope Francis decried the “pain and horror of this absurd violence”. UK Prime Minister Theresa May branded the attack “sickening” and offered her condolences to the people of France. The suspect named as Adel K, aged 18, is reported to have been in custody and then placed under a control order, and had tried to enter Syri...

Dr Oluranti Adebule, Lagos State deputy governor Kazeem Ugbodaga The Lagos State Government has ordered all proprietors of private schools in the state irrespective of their accreditation status to register their educational institutions at the education district within their area of operation on or before the 31 July, 2016 or face being sanctioned. The government said the move was in line with its pursuit to ensure the delivery of high quality education to all pupils and students in the state. The Deputy Governor of the state, Dr. Oluranti Adebule who said this on Tuesday in Lagos, Southwest Nigeria said the current administration placed high premium on the important services being rendered by private and public educational institutions for the socio-economic development of the state and the nation at large. “Hence, there is the compelling need to redefine the criteria for the delivery of quality education in the State,” she said. Adebule declared that the exercise was strictly...

Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State The Enugu State Police Command has smashed a syndicate involved in the sale of under-aged children, according to an official. Its spokesperson, Mr Ebere Amaraizu, said in a statement in Enugu on Tuesday that some members of the syndicate were nabbed following a tip-off on alleged sale of an 18-month-old baby boy for the sum of N300,000. He said that the suspects included a teenager and mother of the child, who is from Isu Mbaneze in Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi, and two other women. “The mother of the child said she had decided to keep the baby born out of wedlock, but her friend convinced her to bring the child to Enugu and that somebody was going to take care of them. “On arriving in Enugu, she discovered that her friend was a commercial sex worker at Four Corner Junction, Enugu,” the spokesman said. Amaraizu said that investigations revealed that the third suspect, who eventually sold the baby, was a major player in the bus...

Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State on Tuesday in Abuja called for review of the new National Minimum Wage Law. Oshiomhole made the call at the International Trade Union Congress Africa (ITUC-Africa) Regional Conference on Advancing Decent Work in Global Supply Chain in Africa. “I think there is need to revisit some of the assumptions that informed the drafting of the Nigerian National Minimum Wage Law when it was enacted. I think it was at a time when big corporations dominated the economy. “This is particularly true in the organised private sector where I come from; they had about 4000 workers and some were even bigger than that. “So, the law simply looked at the informal sector characterised by people employing 20, 40, 50 less than 100 and the current minimum wage law allows for exemption enterprises that are employing less than 50. “But now, our businesses are contracting. With the aid of technology, those employing more than 50 are ...

President Buhari After holding a closed-door meeting with former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Monday, President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday held another closed-door meeting with governors elected under the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC, at the Presidential Villa Abuja. Our correspondent gathered that the APC governors started arriving for the meeting at noon. Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo was also in attendance at the meeting. Details of the meeting remain unknown as at the time of filing this report.

Olayinka Oladunjoye, Lagos State Commissioner for Education The Lagos State Teachers’ Establishment and Pension Office (TEPO) on Tuesday said that an average of 10 teachers die each month in the post-primary teaching service of the state. The Permanent Secretary of TEPO, Mrs Sewanu Ayodele-Amosu, made the disclosure at a Sensitisation Seminar and Capacity Building on Healthy Living for Post-Primary Teaching Staff of the state. She said that apart from sudden collapse resulting in either temporary or permanent confinement in bed, the disturbing rate of deaths among teachers in the state called for concern. According to her, in spite of the prevailing economic situation in the country, there is, arguably, scantiness of knowledge on healthy living. “This is another contributory factor for this worrisome adverse health condition of the teachers. “This health seminar will be held quarterly to educate teachers on the importance of healthy living and to provide support for those that h...

Dr Okezie Ikpeazu, Governor of Abia State, Justice Morenike Ogunwumiju of the Court of Appeal has ordered that the status quo be maintained in the Abia State governorship tussle pending the determination of appeal filed by Governor Okezie Ikpeazu against the judgment of the Federal High Court removing him from office. Justice Ogunwumiju, leading a panel of five justices of the appelate court ruled that “both parties should remain as they were to allow the court expeditious hearing of various complaints brought before this court,” implying that the judgment of the Federal High Court removing Okezie from office subsists. The Judge fixed the hearing of the appeal for 9 August. Dr Alex Otti, the candidate of All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA in 2015 gubernatorial election on Tuesday applied to join the appeal filed by Governor Ikpeazu against the court order removing him from office. Justice Ogunwumiju had earlier informed the court that there were eight appeals against the judgm...

Michelle Obama US first lady, Michelle Obama has denounced Republican Donald Trump and passionately backed Hillary Clinton at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia. “The hateful language… from public figures on TV does not represent the true spirit of this country,” she said, to loud cheers and applause. “Don’t stoop to their level. Our motto is, when they go low, we go high.” Earlier, Vermont Senator, Bernie Sanders urged Democrats to back Mrs Clinton. She will accept the party’s presidential nomination on Thursday, when a roll call of how states’ delegates are voting is to be read out. “While Donald Trump is busy insulting one group after another, Hillary Clinton understands that our diversity is one of our greatest strengths,” Mr Sanders said. Some supporters of the senator, who had been Mrs Clinton’s rival in the Democratic primary, booed at mention of Mrs Clinton’s name; others wore duct tape with the word “silenced” over their mouths. Mrs Obama’s speech was ...

President Muhammadu Buhari President Muhammadu Buhari has inaugurated the Abuja-Kaduna rail line, with a pledge to link all states of the federation with the rail system to boost socio-economic development and regional integration. Buhari, who made the pledge at the inaugural ceremony at Idu, Abuja on Tuesday, said the Federal Government would strictly pursue the implementation of 25-year Strategic Master Plan for the Nigerian Railway. The President also pledged that all major commercial and production centres would be linked with the rail system to ensure rapid economic development nationwide. He expressed optimism that the Abuja-Kaduna rail line would ensure affordable and safe movement of passengers and cargo between Abuja and Kaduna. “I wish to assure Nigerians that most state capitals and major commercial and production centres will be linked with railway system as a way of bringing about rapid socio-economic development and improving the quality of life of the Nigerian and...

Lagos Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode Lagos Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode[/caption]Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode on Tuesday said that plans are underway to replicate the prestigious ‘Dubai Marina’ in Badagry and Epe areas of the state. The Dubai Marina is a tourist resort in Dubai, the United Arab Emirate, UAE. Ambode spoke with journalists on Tuesday after touring ongoing projects in Epe area of Lagos, Southwest Nigeria. According to him, the government had decided to develop its tourists sites that could compete with the best in the world to boost its economic prosperity. “The Marina road in Epe will be dualised with about five metres of walkway in order to make it pedestrian friendly. The intention is to build a modern Marina that can compete with others worldwide. We have already incorporated some of the world Marina design into the project. “There might be some hotel and malls that will encourage 24-hour commercial activities. It will be mega terminal for water transportat...

Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State The Sokoto State Government says it has commenced the payment of the backlog of pension arrears of about N1.3 billion to its pensioners. The Auditor-General of the state, Alhaji Sambo Nawawi, made this known when he addressed newsmen shortly after inspecting an ongoing verification in Sokoto on Tuesday. Nawawi said that no fewer than 588 people would benefit from the gesture which covered September 2015 to April 2016. “The payment is for the arrears of contract, death, gratuities, and pensions. “After completing the current exercise, we have no any pending submissions of that kind with Gov. Aminu Tambuwal. “We really have to commend the governor for his magnanimity to both the serving, retired and deceased workers. “This gesture is legendary and it encourages dedication, honesty and commitment.”

Adamawa House of Assembly Adamawa House of Assembly on Tuesday passed a bill to reduce the tenure of local government councils in the state from two and a half years to two years. The bill was passed following the consideration and adoption of a report on the amendment of the Adamawa State Local Government System, Establishment and Administration Law No. 4 of 2000. The report was presented by the House Committee Chairman on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Alhaji Muhammadu Hayatu (APC-Uba/Gaya), who said the bill was in order as most states were operating two-year tenure The bill was sponsored by Alhaji Suleiman Alkali (APC-Yola North). In her contribution before the passage of the bill, Mrs Sodom Daniel (APC-Numan) urged the house to review the deduction of councils’ monthly allocation to enable them to perform within two years. The Speaker of the house, Alhaji Kabiru Mijinyawa, who presided over the plenary, directed the Clerk of the house to send a clean copy of the...

Militants The Police in Lagos State on Tuesday said it foiled an attempt by unknown gunmen to attack Igando Community in the state. Spokesperson of the Command, Mrs Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent of Police, confirmed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). “Some group of people invaded the Igando area in the early hours of today (Tuesday). Our operatives positioned in strategic places in the community were alerted and they swiftly moved in and foiled the attack. Right now, normalcy has returned to the community,” Badmos said. Two suspected militants who attempted to attack the same community on July 3 were arrested, while three guns and ammunition were recovered from them. The community also alerted the police of the attempted attack by suspected militants, who came in a boat through the waterways.

Tokunbo-Ajasin The Ilaje National Development Initiative (INDI) has described the nomination of Mr. Tokunbo Ajasin as the Ondo State representative on the board of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC as a great decision that will bring about egalitarian representation that the Buhari’s government stands for. The group, in a statement by its president, Engr. Thomas Mogbomerun, said Ajasin’s nomination would bring back egalitarianism in the discharge of duties of the board. “We know the Ajasin’s antecedent in Nigeria’s politics as incorruptible and development-focused. We are happy his nomination will bring back the long-departed egalitarian philosophy of governance,” he said. The group appealed to those opposing Ajasin’s nomination to jettison their primordial sentiments and support President Buhari’s desire to appoint credible people who would ensure good governance to everyone without discrimination. “Indigene” was used only once in the 1999 Constitution in Section 147(...

A 28-year-old man, John Mudiaga, was on Tuesday arraigned at an Asaba Magistrates’ court for alleged burglary. The Prosecuting Police Officer, Sgt. Joseph Nwogu told the court that the accused committed the offence on May 27 along Ibusa Road, Asaba in Delta. Nwogu alleged that the accused broke into the apartment of Victor Noah, the complainant, and stole his Sumec generator and a Nokia cell phone. He said that the offence contravened Sections 516 and 411 (1) of the Criminal Code Law Cap C21 Vol 1, Laws of Delta State of Nigeria 2006. The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge. The Magistrate, Mrs. Okonkwo Akanume, granted the accused bail in the sum of N100, 000 with a surety in like sum. Akanume held that the surety, who must be resident in Asaba, should provide evidence of employment before the court’s registrar. She adjourned the case to Aug. 18 for hearing.

Some residents of Lagos metropolis have condemned the abandoning of vehicles around police stations by the public, saying that stations should not be turned into dumping grounds for seized and accident vehicles. They told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday that such vehicles usually caused traffic obstructions where and posed the danger of being used by terrorists to plant explosives. They added that abandoned vehicles around the police stations were often turned into a refuse dump by passers-by. The residents said there were about 25 vehicles, including trucks that had occupied half of the three-lane road at Oke-Odo Police Station, close to Ile-Epo Market, along the Lagos/Abeokuta Expressway. According to them, traders have started using the vehicles as warehouses where they kept their wares at night and remove them for sale in the morning. The residents urged the police authorities to remove such unclaimed vehicles from the roads and expressed sadness over traffic bottl...

Rev. Samuel Ikpea, Secretary, Nigeria Football Supporters Club (NFSC) Rev. Samuel Ikpea, the Secretary, Nigeria Football Supporters Club (NFSC), on Tuesday urged Nigerians to insist that the incumbent executive of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) be sacked over what he called “non-performance”. “If Nigerians do not insist on his resignation now, missing out of 2018 World Cup is imminent,” Ikpea said in Lagos. His call is coming on the heels of the two-day visit by the FIFA President, Gianni Infantino and Secretary-General, Fatma Samoura to Nigeria on July 24. The visit has among others, attracted about 1.2 million dollars in development fee to NFF from FIFA as against the 300,000 dollars given by the previous administrations. “The Pinnick-led NFF executive has failed Nigerians. For Nigeria to drop from 60th to 70th position in the world football ranking is a shame. “Any reasonable leader will resign because of the development,” the secretary said. According to Ikpea, the situ...

Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, INEC Chairman The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has again postponed the legislative re-run elections in Rivers State. No new date has been fixed by the commission yet. The elections earlier scheduled for Saturday, July 30, according to the Secretary to INEC, Mrs. Augusta Ogakwu, had to be postponed again due to reports of violence, maiming and fatalities which caused the initial postponement of the polls in March. “As a responsible organisation and conscious of the violence, maiming and fatalities which accompanied the previous election in March as well as developments in the state since then, the commission cannot ignore such credible reports. “In the circumstances, therefore, it is compelled to further postpone the rerun legislative elections in Rivers State as one of the principal conditions earlier stipulated for the return of the state for the conclusion of the election has, regrettably, not been met.” The INEC scribe pointed out tha...

LASU students with top officers of the Lagos State Citizens Mediation Centre, CMC, during the students’ visit to the centre on Monday The Lagos State Citizens Mediation Centre, CMC, has recovered N218.7 million on behalf of its clients in the first half of 2016. Director, CMC, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Odusanya disclosed this on Monday when Law students from the Lagos State University, LASU visited the centre at the Tollgate, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria. Odusanya said the CMC had continued to explore the option of mediation to resolve civil cases in Lagos rather than allow the people to slug it out in court. The CMC director, who was represented by the Assistant Director, Ololade Williams stated that the centre recovered the N218.7 million on behalf of its clients from companies and other parties through mediation. She said the current administration of Akinwunmi Ambode placed more emphasis on mediation as an integral part of Alternative Dispute Resolution, ADR, and challenged the law student...

An 18-year-old unemployed man, Ahmed Babalola,was on Tuesday arraigned at an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court in Lagos, for alleged criminal possession of charms. Babalola, who resides at No. 3, Ayo Makinde St., Abeokuta, Ogun, is being tried for breach of peace and possession of criminal charms. The prosecutor, Insp. George Nwosu told the court that the accused committed the offences on July 19 at Opeki road, Ipaja, Lagos. He alleged that the A team of an anti-robbery squad on patrol arrested the accused around 2:00am while wandering in a suspicious manner. The prosecutor told the court that the team allegedly found in the accused’s possession, charms and other dangerous weapons. “Also found in his possession were a spanner, iron rod, hammer, hand glove and a plier,” he said. The prosecutor said: “When questioned about what his mission was at that odd hour and why he tied those charms around his body, he could not give a satisfactory answer.” Nwosu said the offence contravened Sections...

The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has donated N10 million to the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) to boost the production of NIPRISAN. NIPRISAN is a drug used for the management of sickle cell anaemia. Mr Ahmed Yakasai, President of the association, made the donation when the society visited the NIPRD Director-General, Prof. Karyinus Gamaniel, on Tuesday in Abuja. Yakasai noted that the institute had not been producing much of the drugs, thus the concern of the society to help the public with regard to efficient healthcare services. According to him, the seed money will be used to revive the institute. The PSN president urged the institute to from next week resume mass production of the drugs and flood the market. Yakasai, who described the institute as a centre of excellence, assured of NIPRISAN’s commitment to collaborate with both national and international bodies to boost its research and production capacity, among others. “The...

A 20-year-old man, Muyideen Olarenwaju, who was caught with hard drug at a bus stop in Lagos by the NDLEA, is to cool his heels in prison till Sept. 8 pending judgment, a court has ruled. The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency had charged Olarenwaju before a Federal High Court, Lagos, for drug trafficking. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the accused, who was not represented by a lawyer, pleaded guilty to the charge. Following his guilty plea, the prosecutor, Mr Jeremiah, asked the court to remand the accused in custody, while he sought a date for a review of facts. Consequently, the vacation judge, Justice Babs Kuewumi, ordered the accused to be remanded in prison custody and fixed Sept. 8 for review of facts and sentence. Earlier, the prosecutor told the court that the accused was arrested on June 10 at Odo-Eran Market along Cele Bus Stop axis of the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway in Lagos. According to him, about 1.9kg of hemp (Cannabis Sativa) was recovered from the a...

Ondo State Commissioner for Education, Mr Jide Adejuyigbe Ondo State Commissioner for Education, Mr Jide Adejuyigbe, said the state government spent about N160 million on internal examinations for 2015/2016 academic year. Adejutigbe made this known on Tuesday during the monitoring of this year’s SS2 promotion examination into SS3 in some schools in Akure metropolis. The commissioner said that the objective was to ensure that quality returned to education in the state. He recalled that the examination came into being because of the mass failure recorded in the external examinations, particularly the West African Examination Council (WAEC). “This government decided that there would be a common joint exam so that only those who pass could sit for WAEC, the emphasis is to ensure quality in our students,” he said. Adejuyigbe said that the examinations had really brought out the best quality in the students. “When we came on board, out of the 36 states, we were in number 33 but as a...

Niger Delta militants Igando area of Lagos State, Southwest Nigeria was turned into a battle ground early today as Niger Delta militants engaged the police and soldiers in gun battle. The militants early today invaded Ewedogbo community in Igando area, terrorizing residents. As at 1 p.m, sporadic shootings could be heard in the community, a resident, who craved anonymity told our correspondent. The streets were deserted, while many remained indoor as the police and soldiers moved in to flush out militants from the area. A Rapid Response Squad, RRS, source told our correspondent that the police used an Armoured Personnel Carrier, APC, as they approached the retreating militants who engaged them in a shoot-out. Sources said the militants also engaged the police and soldiers in gun battle around Imose and Totowu waterside. A policeman attached to the Igando Police Station was shot dead by stray bullets from the militants, an unconfirmed source said. Police Public Relations Office...

Peter Mutharika, Malawi President Malawian President Peter Mutharika ordered the arrest Tuesday of a man paid to have sex with more than 100 adolescent girls as part of a traditional ritual marking their passage to womanhood. The order was issued after the man from the southern district of Nsanje gave a media interview confessing to have slept with the girls for a fee of between four and seven dollars paid by each of their families. Eric Aniva, “hyena man” “I order police to immediately arrest Mr Eric Aniva, investigate him and take him to court forthwith for defilement cases,” Mutharika said in a statement. This little-known local practice is performed in southern Malawi by men known as “hyenas” at the behest of a girl’s parents after her first menstruation. The ritual is believed to train girls to become good wives and to protect them from disease, or misfortune could fall on their families or their village. But it is blamed for spreading AIDS. In a BBC interview broadcas...

For allegedly conspiring to steal three cell phones valued at N91,500.00, four friends were on Tuesday brought before an Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos. The accused were: Sodiq Okewale (25), and Ishola Ayomide (24), both printers; Azeez Moshood (22), a vulcaniser and Muhammed Qudus (23), a mechanic. They lived at Ijesha area of Surulere, a suburb of Lagos and are being tried for conspiracy and stealing. The Prosecutor, Sgt. Donjor Perezi told the court that the offences were committed on June 17 at the Pako Aguda area of Surulere, Lagos. Perezi said that the complainant, Ndubuisi Ogbonanya, was coming from the shop when the accused attacked him with a gun. “The accused robbed the man of his three phones valued at N91,500 at gunpoint and they were about to run away when a police patrol team got to the scene,” he said. The offences contravened Sections 285 and 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011. The accused, however, pleaded not guilty to the two-count charge pr...

Lt. Col. Adekunle Fajuyi Ademola Adegbamigbe It will be exactly 50 years on Friday, 29 July 2016 when Lt.Col. Adekunle Fajuyi, first military governor of Western Region, was assassinated in a counter coup, led mainly by northern officers. As part of the activities lined up for the anniversary, there will be a lecture and discussion session at the International Conference Centre of the University of Ibadan the same day. The lecture, entitled “Fajuyi and the Politics of Remembrance” will be delivered by Professor Niyi Osundare who teaches at the University of New Orleans, USA. Osundare is from Ekiti, the land of rolling hills and lush vegetation that also produced the late Fajuyi. That the two are of the same stock, readers should look forward to an interesting lecture on loyalty and integrity. Those to be on the discussion segments are: Pastor Tunde Bakare of the Latter Rain Church, Fola Adeola and Professor Wale Adebanwi. The session will be chaired by General Olufemi Olutoye. Also...

A socio-political organisation, The Kwara Reform Movement, on Tuesday, advised the National Assembly to be patriotic and support President Muhammadu Buhari’s war against corruption. The group in a statement issued in Ilorin and signed by its Chairman, Dr Amuda Aluko, expressed its conviction to the genuineness of Buhari’s commitment to end corruption in the country. The chairman said the legislators and all those in leadership positions, should key into the crusade against corruption, so as to create a brighter “tomorrow for all our children, grand-children and great-grandchildren”. Aluko also called on the members of the judiciary, and other Nigerians within and outside the country, to also join anti-corruption crusade. He described the failure of 27 state governments to pay workers’ salaries as an illustration of “the wanton looting of public treasuries by past administrations. “This is as a result of lack of visionary and selfless leaders and should, therefore, serve as a momen...