Author: Khadijah Olowode

By Abimbola Ogunnaike A truck driver Samson Olusegun, and three other suspects, Jimoh Iyanu, Opeyemi Akinloye and Hazimi Abdulakeem, are currently cooling-off in Lagos Police detention for allegedly stealing goods worth N60 million. The quartets were paraded alongside others suspects who committed various offences at the police command headquarters in Ikeja on Friday, 4 August, 2023. Speaking at the parade of the suspects, the State Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, explained that Olusegun was assigned to convey a 40ft container with number ACLU-9651677, loaded with 1,040 bags of blended ‘powder milk’ worth about N60m from Apapa Tin Can Island…

By Abimbola Ogunnaike Two of the four rescued Nigerian stowaways have told a story of how they survived 14 days on a ship’s rudder by drinking their urine before being rescued off the coast of Brazil. According to Daily Mail, the two men told their remarkable, death-defying journey across 3,500 miles (5,600 kilometres) of open ocean from Lagos, Nigeria to Vitória, Brazil. The four stowaways were said to be fleeing the economic hardship and political instability in Nigeria and reportedly climbed into a space above the rudder of a cargo ship and hoped to reach Europe. However, after two weeks…

Operatives of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) today, 5 August, 2023 rescued four fatal accident victims at Adeniji Adele inward Oyebanji, Lagos Island. Lastma Oladunni Ademola ‘Zebra’ (Zone 1 Sura) who led the rescue team disclosed that the lone accident involved a Toyota Sienna (MUS 706 EQ). LASTMA Ademola disclosed further that preliminary investigation revealed that the driver was on a top speed and could no longer control the vehicle after noticing the brake failure. He confirmed that LASTMA officials rescued the four victims: two males and two females. According to Zebra Ademola, “Immediately after the accident happened,…

By Abimbola Ogunnaike A new church called Ogbanje Church of All Nations has been opened in Nnewi, Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State. Members of the congregation had their first worship service at the church, where they sang and danced to a compilation of songs eulogising the names of some popular river goddesses in Nnewi. This was corroborated by a video currently trending in social media, showing members of the church as they rejoiced and danced to the tune of songs composed in praise of goddesses of some popular rivers in Nnewi. While addressing the congregation at the…

A leading security printing company, Superflux Nigeria Limited, has described as barbaric and spurious, allegations that the company was contracted to print ballots papers by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and in the process favoured certain candidates in the just concluded 2023 general elections. It also frowned at being tagged as conduit for money laundering, siphoning COVID19 funds, saying such allegations are clearly the handiworks of mischief makers and traducers who were hell bent to tarnish the reputation of the company before it’s numerous customers and that of its former Director, who is presently the Secretary to the Ogun…

President Bola Tinubu has said that a comprehensive forensic audit of the Central Bank is underway, while a thorough overhaul of the Civil Service payroll is imminent. The President disclosed this during an audience with the President of the World Bank, Mr. Ajay Banga on Friday, 4 August, 2023, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. ”A comprehensive forensic audit is on-going at the Central Bank. We are going to do very serious structural review of the Civil Service payroll. I can’t believe in the numbers I’m seeing and I’ve had that experience before at the state level. ”The reforms are in…

A staff of the Delta State House of Assembly, Mr. John Adjeke Akpoghene, has been sentenced to two years imprisonment over N14.5 million salary fraud. Akpoghene was charged by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) before the Delta State High Court, Asaba. ICPC had, in a one-count charge before Justice Onome Marshal-Umukoro of the Delta State High Court Asaba, accused the convict of receiving double salary from the Delta State House of Assembly and Ughelli South Local Government Area. Counsel to ICPC, Mrs. S. Chibuzor, had told the court that the convict fraudulently received the total…

By Abimbola Ogunnaike Tragedy occurred in Malam-Madori Local Government Area in Jigawa State as armed robbers killed two sons of a police officer, just as they also injured his wife. The trigger happy gunmen also invaded the house of former Chairman of the state Consumer Protection Agency, Faroq Abdullahi and took away over N1 million It was gathered that the gunmen numbering about 20 on Wednesday, 2 August, 2023 invaded the area at about 2:00 am, entered houses and started robbing residents. “They entered the house of former Chairman of Jigawa State Consumer Protection Agency, Faroq Abdullahi and took away…

An official of the West Africa Examination Council (WAEC ) Mr Fasasi Sarafa, on Friday, 4 August, 2023 appeared before the Ogun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, sitting in Abeokuta, to present the certified true copy of Governor Dapo Abiodun’s WAEC certificate to the panel. The examination council was subpoenaed to tender Abiodun’s O’level certificate following allegation of certificate forgery levelled against the governor by one of the witnesses called by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the course of proceedings at the tribunal. All counsels to the respondents expressed no objection to the certificate tendered, but counsel to the…

By Abimbola Ogunnaike The Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption Commission (PCACC) has confirmed the arrest of one Bala Muhammad Inuwa, the alleged principal suspect and his son, Bala Junior in the ongoing investigation into the alleged fraudulent diversion of over N4.3billion belonging to the state government, thegazellenews.com reports. Recall that the commission last week announced that it had arrested eight suspects in connection with the alleged fraud when its chairman, Muhuyi Magaji led operatives on inspection of some confiscated properties including eight warehouses filled with several vehicles including heavy-duty trucks and Hilux, thousands of bags of fertiliser, soya beans, cement and…

By Abimbola Ogunnaike The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has handed down warning to Nigeria and other African countries to be ready to witness higher food prices, following recent developments that have temporarily halted Ukraine’s food exports to African countries. USAID’s Deputy Administrator for Policy and Programming, Isobel Coleman, handed down the warning on Thursday, 3 August, 2023 at a virtual press conference. According to her, Russia’s decision to withdraw from the Black Sea Grain Initiative had already begun to trigger higher food prices around the world. Through the initiative, she said, Ukraine was able to export 33 million metric…

The Director General, National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Prof. Fatima Waziri -Azi has called for input of all in the fight against human trafficking. Speaking in Abuja at the Launch of the Compendium of State Task Forces on Human Trafficking, Waziri-Azu said: “We must all remember that to control human trafficking, we must equally recognize the fact that it is a battle that no one entity can tackle alone and collaboration serves as the backbone of a successful fight against this crime for several reasons.” She explained that human trafficking is a highly organized and intricate…

More than 73,000 people in Kebbi and Sokoto States gained access to improved water supply following the construction of 19 new solar-powered boreholes and the rehabilitation of 27 non-functional hand pump boreholes, courtesy of support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) A statement on Friday, 4 August, 2023, read that: “The United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) support improved access to water, sanitation, and hygiene in health centres, schools, and underserved communities. “The two-year Integrated Water Sanitation and Hygiene Services (i-WASH) activity worked with state ministries, local government WASH units, rural water supply and sanitation agencies,…

By Abimbola Oguunaike The Federation of International Football Association confirmed on Friday, 4 August, 2023 that it is investigating an allegation of misconduct in relation to the Zambian women’s national team in the ongoing Australia and New Zealand 2023 World Cup. Coach Bruce Mwape was accused of rubbing his hands over the chest of one of his players, The Guardian reported Thursday, 3 August, 2023. The allegation came two days before the team’s final group game against Costa Rica. “FIFA takes any allegation of misconduct extremely seriously and has a clear process in place for anyone in football who wants…

The Rotary club of Abuja Wuse Central is planning to expend N18.4 million on intervention projects in the federal capital city, Abuja. Apart from infrastructure to be built the humanitarian club also planned to embark on tree planting and vaccination of residents of the city for the 2023/24 year. Speaking during his investiture and flag off of the clubs humanitarian projects for 2023-2024 year, the President of Rotary club Wuse Central, Dr. Albert Alkali said the club said would be focusing on disease prevention by providing hepatitis B screening and vaccination, malaria treatments and tree planting within the Federal Capital…

By Abimbola Ogunnaike President Bola Tinubu on Friday, 4 August, 2023 sent a letter to the Nigerian Senate, seeking approval for military action and other sanctions against the military officers who have seized power in the Niger Republic. President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, read the letter on the floor of the Upper Chamber on Friday. The letter read, “Political situation in Niger. “Following the unfortunate political situation in the Niger Republic culminating in the overthrow of its President, ECOWAS under my leadership condemned the coup in its entirety and resolved to seek the return of the democratically elected govt.…

By Oluwakayode Abe The profession of Estate Management and Valuation faces significant challenges due to the prevalence of unqualified individuals operating as quacks on a daily basis. The lack of awareness about the role and importance of an Estate Surveyor, along with the advantages of dealing with them, has had detrimental effects on various stakeholders in the Real Estate sector. An Estate Surveyor is a qualified professional who has undergone formal education in “Estate Management” from an accredited institution. They have obtained certification from reputable organizations like the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) and been elected by…

The President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has withdrawn the name of Maryam Shetty as a ministerial nominee. Shetty was on the list of the second batch of ministerial nominees submitted by the President to the Senate representing Kano State on the list. Shetty was replaced by Mairiga Mahmud and no reason was given for the withdrawal of the name of the Kano born politician. In the same vein, the President has also added the name of Festus Keyamo, SAN, to the ministerial list. Keyamo was a minister in the immediate past regime while also serving as official spokesperson of the…

Following the unveiling of the revised Public Service Rules (PSR), by the Head of the Civil Service Folashade Yemi-Esan, more than 500 Directors across the Ministries, Departments and Agencies may be forced to proceed on compulsory retirement. Recall that at the public service lecture held at the Presidential villa in Abuja in commemoration of the civil service week, the Head of Civil Service the Federation, Folashade Yemi-Esan said the Implementation of the revised Public Service rules had commenced. According to a circular dated July 27 2023, Yemi-Esan, called on Permanent Secretaries, Accountant-General of the Federation, Auditor-General for the Federation, and…

Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, on Thursday, 3 August, 2023 pleaded with his colleagues who expressed dissatisfaction with the list of commissioner-nominees sent recently by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu for screening and confirmation. The lawmakers had lamented the exclusion of some parts of the State in the nomination. While some urged the House to take another look at the list, others urged that the nominees’ local government areas should be attached to the list. The House also set up a committee chaired by the Chief Whip, Hon. Fatai Mojeed, to screen the nominees and…