Global Naija Info

Newly elected Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, Republican of Wisconsin, takes the oath at the US Capitol on October 29, 2015. Republican Rep. Paul Ryan was on Tuesday sworn-in as Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives after winning his re-election when the lawmakers convened for the 115th session of the Congress. The Correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) who monitored the election on network, reports that only one Republican member defected and voted for Rep. Daniel Webster. The Speaker, who was first elected on Oct. 29, 2015, was re-elected by the House Republican caucus in November 2016 to serve a second term as Speaker of the House. On the Democratic side, Nancy Pelosi was re-elected Minority Leader with only four of her colleagues voting for someone else for the top the Democratic position Ryan, in his address after the election, acknowledged the “intense” times from the past year in his initial remarks to the chamber immediately following his re-election vot

Soldiers Civil War Officers who voluntarily retired or were discharged from service under the 1976 – 1979 military administration want their 38 years pension arrears paid. The group made the demand in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, retired Sergeant Kasali Busari in Ibadan on Tuesday. The Group of Able Voluntary Retired or Discharged 3 Years and Above Military Service decried the non payment of their military pension benefit from 1978 till date. They referred to the Federal Military Government circular No 4/1977, dated March 30, 1977, which qualified them as payable pensioners. “The First Republic of Nigeria 1963 (intake) officers and other ranks with the service of 10 years and less than 15 years are eligible to be paid. “They deserved to be paid pension at the rate of 30 percent of terminal salary or 40 percent in the case of armed forces personnel”, the group quoted . The group said that their representations to several governments over the years had not yiel

Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Saliu Adetunji The apex body of traders in Ibadanland known as Ibadan Joint Traders Association, IJTA, on Tuesday refuted the removal of the Iyaloja of Ibadanland, Chief Mrs. Labake Lawal. The traders at a press conference held at the Association House, Labowo market, described the removal as a lie and a calculated effort by some disgruntled elements in the association to cause confusion, rift and enemity among the traders. Over 200 market leaders attended the press briefing. They include the Otun Iyalode of Ibadanland, Chief Mrs Lawal Coker; Babaloja, Adegoke Adelabu Market, Chief Micheal Akinropo; Osi Iyaloja, Ogunpa market, Iyalode/Iyaloja, Felele, Chief Mrs. Iyabode Coker and Iyaloja Cooperative Corner, Gbagi Market, Chief Mrs. Abike Faseru. It would be recalled that last week, a faction of the Ibadan Joint Traders Association led by Alhaji Dauda Oladepo announced the removal of Alhaja Labake Lawal as the Iyaloja of Ibadanland over alleged gross mis

Swansea score one of their goals against Palace Newly appointed Swansea boss Paul Clement watched his new side gain a dramatic win against Crystal Palace to move off the bottom of the Premier League table. Clement was appointed earlier on Tuesday, although first-team coach Alan Curtis had picked the team for the game at Selhurst Park. Alfie Mawson headed Swansea ahead from Gylfi Sigurdsson’s free-kick, before Wilfried Zaha volleyed an equaliser. But substitute Angel Rangel collected Leroy Fer’s pass to net a late winner. The result means Palace have only picked up one point in the three games since Sam Allardyce replaced Alan Pardew as manager in December.

Olivier Giroud Arsenal came back from three goals down to draw at Bournemouth. The visitors were heading for a shock defeat when Olivier Giroud scored on 90th minutes to give Arsenal a point from the game. The gunners were 3-0 down after 58 minutes but fought to equalise and snatched a vital point at Bournemouth. The home side took the lead after 16 minutes through Charlie Daniels and on the 21’st minute, Bournemouth took a 2-0 shock lead, thanks to a penalty, which was converted by Callum Wilson. Bournemouth added to Arsenal’s misery when it scored the third goal on 58th minutes through Ryan Fraser to make it 3-0. Alexis Sanchez scored for Arsenal in the 70th minutes of the game while the gunners quickly added a second through Lucas Perez on 75th minutes of the game. Olivier Giroud rescued a point for Arsenal when he scored the equalizer in injury time to tie the game. -Kazeem Ugbodaga

Ford Ford has said it will cancel a $1.6bn (£1.3bn) plant it planned to build in Mexico and instead extend operations at its factory in Michigan. The US car giant will spend $700m on expanding the plant at Flat Rock. Ford said it needed to re-organise to use existing facilities more efficiently amid falling sales of its smaller cars. The President-elect has criticised both Ford and its rival General Motors over production of models in Mexico. Earlier, Donald Trump tweeted his disapproval of GM’s production of the Chevy Cruze in Mexico. Electric cars Ford’s chief executive, Mark Fields, said the decision to cancel was in part related to the need to “fully utilize capacity at existing facilities” as sales of small and medium sized cars, such as the Focus and Fusion, fall – but he also said the decision was a vote of confidence in the business environment Donald Trump was creating. However, Ford is not abandoning production completely in Mexico, but is switching production of its

Ivory Coast football team after winning the last AFCON Defending champions Ivory Coast have been given extra financial support for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations finals. The Ivorian government has approved a near €6 million euros (£5.1m) budget for the team’s campaign in Gabon. It is an increase of €600,000 euros (£507,000) from the last finals in Equatorial Guinea two years ago. Ivory Coast kick off their tournament against Togo on 16 January, before facing DR Congo and Morocco in the group stage. The two-time champions opened a training camp in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Monday where they will face Sweden in a friendly on 8 January and will complete their warm-up with a game against Uganda, another Nations Cup-bound side, three days later. The Confederation of African Football has revealed the winners of this year’s Nations Cup will collect $4m (£3.26m) in prize money, which is a 64% increase from a previous $1.5m (£1.2m). Kicking off on 14 January, the tournament en

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Zimbabwe fans Zimbabwe’s preparations ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon have been thrown into chaos by a row over accommodation and financial issues. BBC Sport has learned the team refused to stay at the Zifa Village training facility, saying it is sub-standard, and have been booked at a Harare hotel by Footballers Union of Zimbabwe. The team were also unable to use the national sports stadium for training because a $60 fee had not been paid. They had to use a high school instead. It is unclear why the fee was not paid, given a mobile network provider announced a $250,000 sponsorship for the Warriors two weeks ago to cover all of the team’s needs for their Nations Cup campaign. Zimbabwe’s first match of the 14 January to 5 February tournament is against Algeria on 15 January. They will also face Tunisia and Senegal in Group B.

Ndidi Leicester City are set to sign Genk midfielder Wilfred Ndidi for a reported £15m, subject to a work permit. The 20-year-old Nigeria international will sign a five-and-a-half-year deal when he completes the move. A statement on Leicester’s website confirmed the Premier League champions have agreed personal terms and that Ndidi has had a medical. They added: “Ndidi is expected to complete the formalities of his move to Leicester City later this week.” Ndidi was signed by Genk during former manager Alex McLeish’s time in charge of the Belgian club and is a defensive midfielder. He has helped Genk finish top of their Europa League group this season to secure their place in the knockout stages of the competition.

Hameed Ali, Customs Comptroller-General The Comptroller-General of Customs, Col. Hameed Ali (Rtd) has approved the redeployment of eight Assistant Comptrollers-General and 238 Deputy Comptrollers of Customs. The redeployment of Deputy Comptrollers of Customs affected the Service Public Relations Officer, DC Wale Adeniyi, who is now posted to Apapa Customs Area Command, Lagos. The Assistant Comptrollers-General affected are: ACG Charles Edike from Zone A to Human Resource Development (HRD); ACG Ahmed Mohammed from HRD to Zone B(Abuja, North central and North West Nigeria); ACG Aminu Dangaladima from Zone B to Enforcement and ACG Francis Dosumu from Enforcement to Zone D (North east Nigeria). Others are; ACG Augustine Chidi from Zone D to Excise, Free Trade Zone and Industrial Incentives (Ex, FTZ, & I I); ACG Monday Abueh from Ex, FTZ, & I I to Zone A(Lagos and South West); ACG Umar Sanusi from HQ to Zone C(South South and South east) and ACG Abdulkadir Azerema from Zone C t

Obasa and Ambode The Lagos State House of Assembly on Tuesday passed the State’s 2017 Budget proposal of N812. 998 billion presented by the State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode into law. The Chairman, Committee on Budget and Economic Planning, Rotimi Olowo presented the report of the Committtee to the House. The Speaker, Mudashiru Obasa while passing the budget thanked all Members of the Budget Committee for their effort and commended other Members for their cooperation. The Budget which was tagged “The Golden Jubilee Budget” put the Recurrent Expenditure at N300. 534 billion and Capital Expenditure at N512.463 billion. The Governor, had during the presentation of 2017 Appropriation Bill highlighted strategies that were critical vehicles in driving this budget aimed at consolidating his administration modest achievement so far and to further propel the State to an enviable height. The 2017 budget aimed to enhance revenue growth through automation and efficient revenue administra

Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola , SAN (2nd right), Coordinating Director of Highways in the Ministry, Engr. Bala Dan Shehu (2nd left), Chief Engineers of Reynolds Construction Company Limited (RCC), Mr. Igor Zavodtchik (left) and Mr Nabeel Esawi (right) during the inspection of the construction work on Loko–Oweto Bridge over River Benue in Nasarawa/Benue States The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola has said that the Federal Government is planning to overhaul about 50 bridges across the nation. Fashola said this while inspecting the Rehabilitation of Lagos Ring Road Bridge Abutment and Approach to the Third Mainland Bridge project on Tuesday in Lagos. He told newsmen that some columns and beams of the Third Mainland bridge were threatened because of human activities, sand filling and ecological factors which resulted in erosion. “The work we have come to inspect was awarded some years back when there was an indication of some mis-

Zambia’s president Edgar Lungu Zambian energy regulator says retail fuel prices will fall from midnight on Tuesday due to subdued oil prices and a stronger kwacha currency. The authority said in Lusaka that price of petrol would be reduced to 12.50 kwacha from 13.70 kwacha and diesel would drop to 10.72 kwacha per litre from 11.40 kwacha per litre. In October last year, Zambia hiked the retail price of petrol by nearly 39 per cent, while the price of diesel increased by 33 per cent.

A section of Sterling Bank, Oke Ilewo branch, located at the OPIC Roundabout, Abeokuta, was on Tuesday gutted by a mid-day fire. A staff of the bank, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that the fire incident occurred at around 12 noon due to electrical fault. He said attempts by security personnel to use fire extinguishers to put out the fire failed, and the management had to call the state fire service. The men of the Ogun State Fire and Safety Service put out the fire and prevented it from spreading to other parts of the bank. Mr Adebambo Adesanya, the Deputy Director, Ogun Fire and Safety Service, said that the fire service received a call from the bank and responded immediately. “We received a call from the bank that there was a fire incident and within a few minutes, we arrived the scene to control the situation. By the grace of God, everything is now under control. “The fire occurred as a result of power surge, presently I can’t confirm the extent of the damage b

Kolade David Alabi Former Chairman, Conference of Executive Secretaries of Local Government and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) in Lagos State, otherwise known as Conference 57, Mr Kolade Alabi on Monday lauded the giant strides of the State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, saying that the State has been positively transformed within a short time. Alabi, in a statement said in the last 19 months, Ambode had initiated programmes and policies that had positively impacted on residents, adding that with the resounding achievements of the governor in office, Lagos is clearly set for a top slot in global map. Alabi, who was the former Executive Secretary of Bariga LCDA, said since Ambode assumed office, neither a week nor a month had gone without the State recording an excellent achievement, saying that the Governor had indeed changed the face of Lagos by adding beauty and glamour. He said: “Governor Ambode is a quiet and smooth operator with an eye for quality and standard, mov

NAN MD, Mr. Bayo Onanuga The Omu-Aran community in Kwara, has bestowed awards on 24 people in the area who had supported the socio-economic development of the community in 2016. The award ceremony was organised by the Omu-Aran Youth Forum as part of activities to mark the 2nd edition of Olomu Youth Festival. Each of the recipients received a plaque at a dinner organised by the forum held at the City Complex in Omu-Aran on Monday night. Earlier, the Olomu of Omu-Aran, Oba Charles Ibitoye, had inaugurated the Bareke roundabout in the town, which was renovated by the forum at the cost of N2.5 million. Other activities included street naming and launch of the forum’s website. The forum’s President, Pastor Doyin Lawal, said the awardees were selected for their outstanding contributions to community service, youth employment and human capital development. Lawal said the aim was to spur others to champion the development of the community especially in promoting interaction and reduci

Aisha Buhari Aisha Buhari The wife of the President, Mrs Aisha Buhari, has donated foodstuffs to Paraxis Catholic e-School for the feeding of 300 internally displaced children on scholarship in the school. Mr Ben Onwundinjo, the Proprietor and Chief Executive of the school, made this known in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday. The statement said the wife of the president was represented by the Former Deputy Governor of Plateau State, Mrs Pauline Tallen. It said the first lady had pledged to partner with the school to ensure that the 300 children were given the best educationally. Aisha who said the scholarship scheme initiated by the school was worthy of emulation had called for support from stakeholders to sustain programme. In his remark, Owundijo commended the first lady for the gesture and assured that the items would be used for the benefit of the children. He said the school had been renamed, Aisha Buhari Special School for IDPs and vulnerable children as a pet project and

gold Gold fell on Tuesday as the dollar’s buoyant start to the new year kept the pressure on prices after the metal posted its biggest quarterly reduction in more than three years. The themes of late 2016 appeared to be persisting in the wider markets in the new year, with equities bouncing while the dollar posted its biggest rise in three weeks. Spot gold was down 0.4 per cent at 1,147.51 dollars an ounce. US. gold futures for February delivery were down 3.70 dollars an ounce at 1,148.00 dollars. Gold fell sharply in the wake of Donald Trump’s victory in November’s U.S. presidential election, sliding by more than 12 per cent in the fourth quarter. Trump’s victory boosted the dollar and sparked a sharp rally in bond yields, lifting the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding gold and blunting investors’ appetite for the metal. “The market has carried the theme of higher dollar, yield and stocks into 2017 — a formidable challenge to gold,” said Saxo Bank’s head of research,

Sir Ivan Rogers The UK’s top ambassador to EU in Brussels, Sir Ivan Rogers, has resigned. Sir Ivan, who was appointed to the role of permanent representative by David Cameron in 2013, had been expected to play a key role in Brexit talks expected to start within months. The Foreign Office said it would not give reasons for his departure at the moment. Last month the BBC revealed he had privately told ministers a UK-EU trade deal might take 10 years to finalise. He told them this was also the view of the other 27 member states. BBC Brussels correspondent Kevin Connolly said it appeared there had been “some failure of synchronicity” between Sir Ivan and the UK government. Sir Ivan was due to leave his post in November but is stepping down early, the Financial Times reported. Labour MP Hilary Benn, who chairs the Brexit select committee, said Sir Ivan’s resignation had come at a “crucial” time and urged the government to “get its skates on” in finding a replacement. “It couldn’t

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Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg A bill allowing Israeli courts to force social media companies to remove content defined as incitement passed its first reading in parliament on Tuesday morning. The “Facebook bill” sponsored by ministers Gilad Erdan and Ayelet Shaked would allow Israeli courts to immediately order content taken down if it is deemed to pose a public, personal or state security risk and constitutes a criminal offense. Facebook adheres to its own removal policy when it comes to online content and freedom of speech issues, which has earned it criticism from Israeli politicians and officials who have called for the company to remove offending posts by Palestinians. Facebook officials met with Erdan and Shaked in September to address their concerns over material on the website deemed to incite terrorism, and Facebook was one of four companies that last month announced a shared initiative to more actively curb such content. Palestinian journalists and social media acti

Sterling Bank at Oke-Ilewo in Abeokuta, Ogun state on fire. There was a fire outbreak at a Sterling Bank branch in Oke-Ilewo area of Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital. Premium Times reports that the cause of the fire was yet to be known as at the time of this report, but sources at the bank said the fire emanated from one of the inner offices. According to reports, panic and confusion was caused by the incident as customers who were carrying out their transactions as customers inside the bank rushed out through the emergency exit. Fire service officials have since cordoned the area, as frantic efforts were ongoing to put off the fire, as passerby watch helplessly at the scene.

Babatunde Adejare, Commissioner for the Environment The government of Lagos State has begun the evacuation of all refuse generated across the State during the Christmas and New Year festive seasons. Commissioner for the Environment, Dr. Samuel Adejare stated this on Tuesday in Ikeja, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria during a media interview. Adejare explained that so much waste was generated during the Christmas and New Year celebrations, adding that the Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) had been mobilized to cart away the backlog of refuse. He said that Lagosians, in their characteristic manners celebrated the yuletide and the New Year in their homes, offices, clubs and all nooks and crannies across the State, thereby generating unprecedented waste for LAWMA to deal with. “The Lagos State Government took the lead with the Lagos Street Party and the One Lagos Fiesta to galvanize Lagosians for the festive celebrations, while people all over the State marked the season in thei

Babachir David Lawal, Secretary to the Government of the Federation of Nigeria President Muhammadu Buhari has removed the Secretary to the Government of the Federation Babachir David Lawal as chairman of the presidential committee on the reconstitution of federal government boards of parastatals, agencies and commissions. According to a report on Daily Trust, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has been appointed to chair the presidential committee. It was also gathered that the chairman of NDLEA Muhammad Mustapha Abdallah has been appointed to head the secretariat of the committee. “The SGF is no longer in charge of that responsibility, for obvious reasons,” a source said. Recall that the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, recently queried the SGF over alleged fraud at the Presidential Initiative on North East (PINE). The Senate ad-hoc committee on mounting crisis of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the Northeast had accused the SG

Mr. Muminu Badmus, the Managing Director of Lagos Water Corporation (LWC), on Tuesday, identified power and gas as major challenges the corporation faced in water production and distribution in 2016. Badmus told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the incessant interruption in water supply in the state, especially the metropolis in 2016, was due to the challenges. “The power supply was erratic and the constant blowing of gas pipes in the Niger Delta made procurement of gas to the Independent Power Plants (IPP) attached to the major water works stations difficult. “The Corporation had to procure diesel generators to power the water works to make water supply possible in the metropolis. “The cost of diesel with the economic recession that is affecting the exchange rate is escalating by the day,’’ he said. Badmus said that in spite of the challenges, the corporation was able to ensure that potable water reached all its customers in the state. He said that the corporation

OPEC Oil prices hit 18-month highs on Tuesday, the first trading day of 2017, buoyed by hopes that a deal between OPEC and non-OPEC members to cut production, which kicked in on Sunday, will drain a global supply glut. Benchmark Brent sweet crude LCOc1 jumped more than two per cent to a high of 58.37 dollars, up 1.55 dollars a barrel and its highest since July 2015. U.S. light crude oil CLc1 hit an 18-month high of 55.24 dollars up 1.52 dollars a barrel, also its highest since July 2015. Oil futures markets were closed on Monday for New Year public holidays. Jan. 1 marked the official start of a deal agreed by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other exporters such as Russia to reduce output by almost 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd). “First signals suggest the OPEC and non-OPEC production cuts are raising hopes that the global oil oversupply will diminish,” said Hans van Cleef, senior energy economist at ABN AMRO Bank N.V. in Amsterdam, Ric Spooner, chi

The National Chairman of United Progressive Party (UPP), Chief Chikwas Okorie, says early passage of the 2017 budget of N7.2 trillion by the national assembly will end the economic recession in Nigeria. Okorie made the assertion when he visited, Chief Ralph Uwazuruike, the leader of Movement for the Actualization of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), in Owerri on Tuesday. He said if the budget could be passed early and funds appropriated to various ministries, departments, and agency, the economic challenges being faced by Nigerians in recent months could end. Okorie said he was optimistic the economy had the chance of survival in 2017, adding: “the progress being recorded in food production like rice should be sustained”. “In the recent time, we have seen the synergy between Kebbi and Lagos state in rice production, the government should sustain its policy of diversification and equally support industrialization,” he said. He urged state governments to create an enabling enviro

The gavel of justice A 47-year-old historian, Nicholas Ajayi, who allegedly defrauded his girlfriend of a car and landed property valued at N1.3 million, was on Tuesday brought before an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court. Ajayi, a resident of Idimu area of Lagos, is facing trial on charges of fraud and stealing. After his plea of not guilty to the charges, Magistrate A.O. Gbajumo, admitted him to a bail of N500, 000 with two sureties in like sum. The prosecutor, Sgt. Michael Unah, said that the accused committed the offences sometime in 2014 on Prince Gbadebo Street in Igando area of Lagos. Unah said that the accused fraudulently obtained N800, 000 and N500, 000 for a plot of land and car respectively from Miss Ijeoma Nwata, his girlfriend. “The accused approached the complainant, and persuaded her to buy a plot of land from his one acre of land in Ajah, Lagos. “He collected N500, 000 from her, but refused to show her the land, nor refund her money. “The complainant later discovered t

federal-high-court A 29-year-old man, Lukmon Ajinike, who allegedly hypnotized a woman and collected her money and Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card, was on Tuesday hauled up before an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court. The accused was arraigned before Magistrate A.A. Adesanya on charges of attempt to commit felony, conspiracy and stealing. Ajinike, an unemployed and a resident of Isheri-Idimu area of Lagos State, however, pleaded not guilty and was admitted to a bail of N200,000 with two sureties in like sum. The prosecutor, Insp. George Nwosu said the accused with a man still at large committed the offences on Dec. 28 at 221 Road, Gowon Estate, Egbeda, a Lagos suburb. He said the accused and his accomplice conspired to hypnotize a woman, Conteh Martie, and in the process, collected her phone, N2,000 and ATM card. Nwosu said the accused accosted the complainant as she was leaving the ATM point at Idimu, Lagos, and forcefully collected her belongings. “The accused followed the compla

The Kwara Government has released N450 million for the provision of solar power in all state-owned General Hospitals across the three senatorial districts. The state Commissioner for Health, Alhaji Atolagbe Alege disclosed this in llorin on Tuesday during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). The Commissioner said this was part of the effort to enhance health care service delivery in the state and also to ensure an uninterrupted power supply. Alege explained that the solar power project would pave way for efficiency and productivity in all the hospitals. He added that the new project will afford the medical personnel the opportunity to provide patients with an effective intensive care service. Similarly, the commissioner disclosed that Gov. AbdulFatah Ahmed had approved the release of N250 million for the successful take-off of Health Insurance Scheme in the llorin Emirate He said the interested beneficiaries must register with N500 to access treatment. He enjoine

Nigeria Customs Service The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has kicked off the implementation of the policy banning importation of vehicles through the land borders with many vehicles trapped at the borders. The Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Seme Chapter, however, disclosed said that so many vehicles were trapped at the border posts. The Public Relations Officer of the NCS, Seme Command, Mr Selechang Taupyen, said in Badagry that the service had to comply with government’s fiscal policy. Taupyen told NAN that officials of the command had been placed at strategic places to curb any form of smuggling of cars. The Federal Government had on Dec. 5 placed a ban on importation of used and new vehicles through land borders with effect from Jan. 1, 2017. “The Federal Government has directed that importation of cars through the land borders should be banned and we are the agency that would enforce it so we have started with that. “The border is close to the poi

Second-hand cars The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has kicked off the implementation of the policy banning importation of vehicles through the land borders with many vehicles trapped at the borders. The Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Seme Chapter, however, disclosed said that so many vehicles were trapped at the border posts. The Public Relations Officer of the NCS, Seme Command, Mr Selechang Taupyen, disclosed in Badagry that the service had to comply with government’s fiscal policy. Taupyen said that officials of the command had been placed at strategic places to curb any form of smuggling of cars. The Federal Government had on Dec. 5 placed a ban on importation of used and new vehicles through land borders with effect from Jan. 1, 2017. “The Federal Government has directed that importation of cars through the land borders should be banned and we are the agency that would enforce it so we have started with that. “The border is close to the point of i

Ike Ekweremadu, Deputy Senate President Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, has warned against military action in the Gambia following that country’s presidential election, saying such action could threaten the security of the entire sub-region. The warning is in a statement issued by the Senate deputy president’s Special Adviser on Media, Mr Uche Anichukwu on Tuesday in Abuja. Ekweremadu said such action could plunge the country into bloodletting and threaten the peace of the sub-region. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Gambian President, Yahya Jammeh lost to Mr Adama Barrow in the Dec. 1, 2016 presidential election but insisted that he would not handover power on Jan. 18. Nigeria’s deputy president of the Senate then urged the ECOWAS Heads of State and Government, as well as the international community to explore dialogue and to allow Gambian laws to prevail as a sovereign nation. Ekweremadu, who is a former Speaker of the Parliament of the Econo

Media Search for Accountability, an NGO, has adjudged Katsina State as the ‘Most Visible State in the Media’, amongst the 36 states of the federation in 2016. A report by the organization made available to newsmen in Kano on Tuesday indicated that the findings did not include government sponsored materials, like advertisements and supplements. The report signed by Mr. Jackson Walter, Media Manager of the organization, said it focused on development stories generated from all the states. “Before reaching this conclusion, we did our very best to see that all the stories that were used as research variables, were the ones that emanated from the reporters working in the states. “It is based on what was reported that we used in our research. “To avoid misleading conclusions, the research did not consider news materials or information sponsored in newspapers, radio and television stations and on social media platforms. ”We considered those items as tailored”. It added that preferences

Idris Garba The Jigawa State House of Assembly Speaker, Idris Garba was on Tuesday impeached by members of the House. Members of the House elected Isa Idris of Gwaram Constituency as the new Speaker. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Deputy Speaker, Ahmed Garba, presided over the sitting attended by 23 members. The Clerk of the house, Hussaini Ali, earlier announced that he received an impeachment notice signed by 25 of the 30 assembly members, and which he read on the floor of the house. Mr. Ali disclosed that members of the assembly impeached the speaker due to alleged high handedness and abuse of power. The Deputy Speaker read the impeachment notice on the floor of the house, and confirmed the number of members that signed the notice. Mr. Garba said that 25 of the 30-member assembly that endorsed the impeachment notice showed that it met the constitutional requirement of two third to impeach any of its principal officers. “With this development, I hereby dec

malnourished children Mr Ubah Nnaemeka, the Project Officer, Civil Society Scaling-up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN), on Tuesday said malnutrition accounts for the death of 2,300 Nigerian children daily. Nnaemeka made this known on Tuesday in Ilorin at a two-day Advocacy Skills and Strategic training organised for members of the organisation in Kwara. Quoting the National Demographic and Health Survey of 2013, he also said that only 17 per cent of mothers in Nigeria breastfeed their children. He listed three indicators of malnutrition as over-nutrition, under-nutrition and micronutrient deficiency. According to him, if nothing positive is done to stem the rate; there is possibility that malnutrition may claim more lives of children. He said that globally, out of a population of seven billion, no fewer than two billion were suffering from micro-nutrient malnutrition. “Out of the five billion adult worldwide, nearly two billion are overweight or obese with one in every 12 person

President Muhammadu Buhari Stakeholders in Akun Development Area of Nasarawa State, on Tuesday, passed a vote of confidence on President Muhammadu Buhari, for the positive intervention made to boost infrastructure in the country. The stakeholders, who met in Ogba, Nassarawa Eggon Local Government, said Nigerians needed to be more patient with the Federal Government in order to realize the positive change they desire. The News Agency of Nigeria [NAN] reports that the stakeholders were in Ogba to felicitate with the Overseer of Akun Development Area, Mr. Moses Malle over the New Year. They agreed that Buhari and Gov. Tanko Al-Makura were doing well in the areas of infrastructure development, security, fight against corruption, peace promotion among others. In a remark, Malle assured that the local and state governments would continue to execute key projects that have direct bearing on the lives of the people. “Irrespective of our background and despite the recession, we have seen

President Muhammadu Buhari Some experts in the oil and gas sector on Tuesday urged the Federal Government to pursue economic policies with human face in 2017. They gave the advice in Lagos. They said that companies in nearly all sectors of the economy downsized in 2016 due to recession and corruption. Mr Oluwaseyi Gambo, the immediate past National Public Relations Officer of PENGASSAN, said that Nigerians expected a more dynamic economic team. “We expect more purposeful economic policies and a more sensitive budget that will at least bring a smile to the faces of the populace as promised by this administration. “I also expect government to make policies that will force Nigerians to look inward, buy and patronise made-in-Nigeria products, including made-in-Nigeria cars. “More emphasis should be put on power generation so that our industries can be revived and have capacity to employ millions of Nigerian job seekers. “If the budget can lay the foundation for these things, reces