Author: Olamide Obayemi

The National Assembly will work at removing all systemic barriers to women’s participation in governance in the country, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abass, has assured. Abass, gave this assurance in Abuja at the National Citizens’ Summit on Constitutional Reform and Campaign on Ending Violence against Women and Girls. The Speaker, who was represented by Deputy Speaker, Hon. Benjamin Kalu, said the constitutional reform would be tailored towards empowering women, ensuring their safety, and promoting their full participation in governance. He underscored the need for collaboration with women’s groups, faith leaders, and traditional institutions to…

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Chess in Slums Africa, and the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) have collaborated to host the first-ever Annual Chess in Prisons Championship. The event was held on Tuesday, 10 December, 2024, at the Maiduguri Maximum Security Custodial Centre, to coincide with International Human Rights Day. The competition saw both prisoners and officers vying for the prestigious title of “Chess Master,” showcasing their chess skills, with the programme emphasizing on building sportsmanship, mutual respect, and personal transformation. The programme also set out to empower through training as over 100 prisoners with officers undergoing…

A cross-section of regulatory agencies in the aviation industry visited the Gateway International Agro-Cargo Airport located along the Ilisan-Iperu axis of Ogun State on Tuesday, 10 December, 2024, commending the quality of facilities put in place as well as its level of completion and thereby certifying it for commercial operations. The agencies, which comprised the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), and Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), unanimously adjudged the airport as world-standard and a source of pride for Ogun State. According to the agencies, the critical infrastructure at the airport, which includes the Control Tower, Weather…

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on the morning of Wednesday, 11 December, 2024 held a meeting with the German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. Steinmier arrived in Abuja on Tuesday evening. In a statement on Monday,10 December, 2024, the German Embassy said Steinmeier will meet with President Tinubu and the President of the Commission of Economic Community of West African States, Dr. Alieu Touray. On the morning of Wednesday, 11 December, 2024, the President received the German leader at the Forecourt of the Villa before proceeding into a closed door meeting. Steinmeier was accompanied to the Presidential Villa by…

The Bayelsa State Government and the chairmen of the eight local government areas in the state have acceded to the demand of organised labour to pay the new N80,000 minimum wage to workers in the unified local government service. The state government, which had earlier approved the N80,000 minimum wage for workers in the state employ, also promised to add to the December salaries of its workers the differentials that will arise from the ongoing discussions on the template used in paying the new wage last month. Bayelsa State Acting Governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, disclosed this during a meeting with…

Teen comedians: Emmanuella and Success have parted ways with Mark Angel Comedy. This development, it was gathered, follows a recent controversy involving former crew member Denilson Igwe, who, during a viral podcast in August, accused Mark Angel of financial exploitation. However, Mark Angel, a popular comic star, stated during a TikTok live session on Tuesday, 10 December, 2024 that he is no longer managing the teens’ careers. “I no longer manage Emmanuella and Success. They are now being managed by a professional agency because I’m too busy to manage them. But I still work with them,” he said.

Popular Nigerian actress and media personality, Omotunde Adebowale, popularly known as Adaku or Lolo1, has disclosed why she preferred younger men. The actress who made this known while discussing her unique preferences for men during her latest interview on Oyinmomo TV, described her taste as “very weird”. “My tastes in men are very weird. I don’t like old people. I like younger people, men with long hair and earrings. Someone who is visually appealing. “Gone are those days when you will be looking for a God fearing man. Are you even God-fearing yourself? “I like good things. And I’ll find…

Famous American actor and musician, Jamie Foxx, has made public his battle with brain bleed that led to a stroke. Foxx made the disclosure while speaking about the cause of his hospital admission in 2023. In a new Netflix special, the 56-year-old actor explained that he experienced a bad headache and “blacked out for 20 days”. He said he was admitted at the Piedmont Hospital where he suffered a brain bleed that led to a stroke.

Residents of Katcha Local Government Area of Niger State are presently in a mourning mood after fatal road accident along Minna-Suleja Road in the state claimed the life of the council Chairman, Danlami Abdullahi Saku. It was gathered that Saku died in the accident that occurred about 7pm on Tuesday, 10 December, 2024 at Kwakwuti area of the road on his way to Abuja. The Chief Press Secretary, CPS, to the Governor, Bologi Ibrahim, confirmed the sad development, saying his principal, Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago, received the news with rude shock and described Saku’s death as heartbreaking. According to him, the…

Barely 48 hours after a previous crash killed 14 people in Kafin Hausa, Jigawa State, tragedy struck again as another fatal road accident claimed six lives. The latest sad incident occurred on the night of Tuesday, 10 December, 2024 along the Auyo-Adiyani road in Guri Local Government Area of the state. Witnesses revealed that the victims, all members of the same family from Adiyani, were returning from a condolence visit to relatives of those lost in the earlier accident. The community, still mourning the loss of 14 lives, was plunged into grief as the second crash unfolded. Eyewitnesses described the…

The Boko Haram terrorists invaded Niger’s Diffa district and slaughtered Nigerian 14 fishermen The victims had fled violence in northeast Nigeria but were ambushed while fishing on Sunday near Bosso, close to the Nigerian border. A leader of a vigilante group assisting Nigeria’s military, Babakura Kolo, confirmed the killings. “All 14 fishermen had their throats slit by the Boko Haram terrorists who operate in the Bosso area close to the border,” Kolo said.

In the early hours of Wednesday, 11 December, 2024There fire engulfed the ever-busy and popular Alaba Rago (Ram) Market in the Ojo area of Lagos State. It was gathered that the fire, which started at about 12 midnight, destroyed items worth millions of naira. The immediate or remote cause of the fire could not be established as at the time of filing this report, Meanwhile, operatives of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, the Lagos State Emergency Management Authority (LASEMA), and other responders were on the ground battling to put out the raging fire. The Permanent Secretary of LASEMA,…

Twenty four hours after it depreciated, the Naira finds its way back to appreciation against the dollar at the official foreign exchange market. The Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) exchange rate data for Tuesday,10 December, 2024 showed that the Naira strengthened to N1,525 per dollar from N1,538.50 traded on Monday, 10 December, 2024 This represents an N13.5 gain against the dollar compared to the N1538.50 exchanged the previous day. Meanwhile, the black Naira failed to appreciate as it closed at N1665 per dollar on Tuesday, 10 December, 2024 from N1630 traded on Monday, 9 December, 2024.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has disclosed that Nigeria’s petroleum products import from Malta increased to N766.81 billion in the third quarter of 2024 despite the coming on board of Dangote Refinery.The made this disclosure in its trade data for Q3 2024 released last week. According to the data, that imports from Malta ranked among the top five in Q3, with motor spirit ordinary, gas oil, durum wheat, cane sugar meant for sugar refineries, and used vehicles with diesel or semidiesel engines of cylinder capacity as the most traded commodities. The report read, “Analysis by trading partners reveals that…

Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, has charged chief executive officers of Nigerian banks to seek bold solutions in addressing the challenges facing the banking sector. According to a statement by the apex bank on Wednesday, 11 December, 2024 through its official X account, Cardoso made this call during a Bankers’ Committee Annual Retreat with the theme, ‘Contract And Commitment To National Development And Economic Growth’. Cardoso equally urged stakeholders in the sector to build a more inclusive economy. “Today, we gather to explore bold solutions for a brighter Nigeria. Together, let’s foster innovation, close skill gaps,…

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has described as fake and figment of imagination a circular that it authorised the sales of foreign exchange to Bureau De Change operators in the country. The circular dated Tuesday, 10 December,2024 had claimed that the apex bank sold $20,000 to each legible BDC operator at N1,300 per dollar rate. “Following the ongoing reforms in the foreign exchange market, aimed at achieving an appropriate market-determined exchange rate for the Naira, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has observed the continued price distortions at the retail end of the market, which is feeding into the…

The Zamfara State office of the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, has raised the alarm over the high rate of human rights violations in the state. The State Coordinator of the NHRC, Abdullahi Abubakar, who made this disclosure, pointed out that records indicated that over 120 cases of human rights violations were recorded in 2024. According to his, the cases include abuse, neglect and the infringement of fundamental freedoms. The NHRC commemorated the 2024 World Human Rights Day with a rally to create awareness on the importance of protecting human rights in the state.

The Nigerian Senate has declared the Edo Central Senatorial District seat vacant, following the election of Senator Monday Okpebholo as Governor of Edo State. The seat was declared vacant via a letter written by the Minority Leader, Senator Abba Moro, which was read at plenary on Wednesday, 11 December, 2024 by the Senate President Godswill Obot Akpabio. The declaration followed Okpebholo’s visit to the Senate to take a final bow, having assumed office as Governor in Edo State. Moro, in the letter addressed to the Senate President, called for the declaration of the seat vacant, as Okpebholo is going to…

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has disclosed that uncovered at least 34 illegal refineries and 17 pipeline connections across the Niger Delta region in one week. In a video documentary posted on its official YouTube channel on Tuesday,11 December, 2024, NNPCL said that the illegal activities were busted under its ‘War On Crude Oil Theft’ operations between November 30 and December 6, in line with its commitment to end crude oil theft in Nigeria. The company added that the feat was achieved by the joint efforts of NNPCL command and control centres, Shell Petroleum Development Company, Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited,…

A cargo aircraft belonging to Allied Air has crash-landed at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, NAIA, Abuja, on Wednesday, 11 December, 2024 The incident was as a result of the failure of one of the aircraft’s landing gears. A Lake Chad Basin counterterrorism and insurgency expert, Zagazola Makama, who made this disclosure a post on his X handle on Wednesday,11 December, 2024 stated that the cargo aircraft was carrying six crew members. Makama, who explained that no casualties were recorded as the crew members were promptly evacuated, added that the crews are currently undergoing medical assessments at the 063 Nigerian Air Force (NAF)…