Author: Abimbola Ogunnaike

The performance of the NDDC in driving the development process in the Niger Delta region must have encouraged the National Assembly to approve the N1.911 trillion 2024 budget of the Commission promptly. The Appropriation Bill was passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives after due diligence. The current NDDC’s leadership approach to development and collaboration is yielding bountiful results, as seen from the recent commissioning of five flagship projects in May this year. Between May 18 and May 28, 2024, the NDDC commissioned the 9km Obehie-Oke-Ikpe road in Ukwa West LGA, Abia State; the 27.5 kilometre Ogbia -Nembe…

– Stanley Nwabali has been excused from the team to attend to family matters in the aftermath of his father’s demise. – Ademola Lookman has been excused from today’s training session after suffering a knock in Thursday’s game against Benin Republic. – Ola Aina has returned to England on the request of his club, Nottingham Forest. The premier league side pleaded with Coach Austin Eguavoen to release the defender early for their big game vs Arsenal, since Nigeria’s AFCON ticket has been secured.

The Black Stars of Ghana on Friday night, 15 November, 2024, crashed out of the 2025 edition of the Africa Nations Cup. After playing 1-1 draw wifh Angola, Ghana remain bottom of the table with three points in five games. Angola are group leaders with 13 points while Sudan are second with 7 points and Niger third with 4 points. If the Black Stars win their last match, a total of six ponts wont be enough for them to go through. It is the first time in 20 years that the Ghanians will be missing the continental football fiesta.

The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), has disclosed that it has rescued 13 Nigerian girls who were trafficked to Ghana It said the operation brought the total of people repatriated back into the country within five months to 163. The agency, in a statement by its Director of Media, Public Relations and Protocols, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, gave a breakdown of the rescued ladies. “Among the 163 included the 13 girls that were rescued and brought back to Nigeria over the weekend,” the statement said. According to NiDCOM, the rescue operation was orchestrated by combined and coordinated efforts of the Ghanaian Anti-Human…

A former councilor in Abeokuta North Local Government Area of Ogun State, Mutiu Akinbami, has been killed by suspected cultists, reports TheGazelleNews.com He was murdered on Friday, 15 November, 2024. Akinbami, popularly known as Egor, was reportedly attacked at the Brewery area of Abeokuta around 6:00 p.m. and shot in the head while riding a motorcycle. The Ogun State Police Command Public Relations Officer, Omolola Odutola, confirmed the sad incident through a statement issued to newsmen on Saturday, 16 November, 2024. “The Divisional Police Office of Lafenwa received a report at about 6:40 p.m. that Mutiu Akinbami, a resident of Olomore…

Six years after her abduction by Boko Haram insurgents in Borno State, a 42-year-old nurse, Alice Loksha, has regained her freedom. Speaking with newsmen in Maiduguri, the state capital, on Friday, 15 November, 2024 the Theatre Commander of the Joint Task Force, Operation Hadin Kai, North-East, Major General Wahdi Shuaibu, explained that Boko Haram captured Loksha in 2018, while she was working at a UNICEF office in Kala Balge. Represented by his deputy, Maj. Gen. Kenneth Chigbu, the commander also announced the escape of another abducted woman, Fayina Ali, captured by Boko Haram insurgents in 2020 while travelling from Kaduna…

Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, have stormed some parts of Akure, the Ondo State capital, to prevent vote buying in the ongoing governorship election in the state. Some of the operatives were spotted at the Sacred Heart Primary School, Cathedral, Akure. Thegazellenews.com recalls that the election is taking place across 3,933 polling units in the 18 LGAs of Ondo State. Prior to the election, there were reports that some political parties were planning to influence voters’choices with cash. The election started at about 8:30 am in several polling units while some places experienced delays due to…

The Ondo State Governorship Election commenced at 8:30 am on Saturday, 16 November, 2024 in Akoko North-East and Akoko North-West LGAs of the state with large turnout of voters. Officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) were seen at some of the polling units visited by NAN, attending to the electorate. At Iyometa Ward 1, Unit 1; Iyometa Ward 2, Unit 007 and Ikado Ward 2, Unit 5 in Ikare-Akoko and also at Ugbe Akoko, Ward 3, Unit 2, election commenced at 8:30 a Speaking with the NAN, Vincent Ugboma, the Presiding Officer (PO) at Ikado Ward 1, Unit 001,…

The Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP) has called for a balanced regulatory framework for digital content produced by Nigerian creatives.Deputy General Secretary of the Guild, Olumide Iyanda made the call on Thursday, 16 November, 2024 while delivering a goodwill message at the opening ceremony of the 4th Peace Anyiam-Osigwe Nigeria Digital Content Regulation Conference (NDCRC) organised by the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) in Lagos.The theme of the two-day conference is “Film and Video Regulation in the Digital Age, Balancing Creativity and Responsibility.”Iyanda conveyed GOCOP’s commendation to the Minister of Art, Culture and the Creative Economy, Hannatu…

Accugas Limited, a subsidiary of Savannah Energy, wishes to strongly deny the misinformation concerning its alleged involvement in the current power outage in Akwa Ibom State. The power cut in Akwa Ibom State is entirely due to the reported fault in the 132-KV Aba-Itu transmission line, which, unfortunately, is preventing power being transmitted from the National Grid into the State. It is imperative that the restoration of the Aba-Itu line is completed as soon as possible. Ibom Power Company (“IPC”) is one of 23 thermal power generation companies which channel power to the National Grid, which in turn disseminates all…

The ongoing local government polls in Ogun State got off to a good start on Saturday. This newspaper can exclusively report. Election into chairmanship and councillorship positions are currently ongoing in the 20 local government councils of the state, with the major political parties, including the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP) and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) saying that they will have a good showing. In the polling units surveyed in major cities such as Abeokuta, the state capital; Ijebu Ode, Sagamu, Ota and Ilaro, election materials arrived on schedule even as…

Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu has inaugurated a 3.1km runway at the Wilberforce Chuba Okadigbo International Airport, Onueke, Ebonyi State. She performed the ceremony during her visit to the state where she attended the 2024 Ebonyi Women’s Day celebration. She was joined at the inauguration ceremony by Wife of the Vice President, Hajia Nana Shettima; the state Governor, Francis Nwifuru; and former Senate President, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim; among others. While applauding the state Governor for seeing the project through, the First Lady said commercial activities at the airport will usher in more socio-economic development for the state. The…

By Muhammad Hamisu As Nigeria awaits the Supreme Court’s verdict on the landmark case of SC 1/2008, the nation holds its breath. At stake is the future of lottery regulation and revenue collection, with far-reaching implications for national development. The case pits the Attorney General of Lagos State and 21 other states against the Federal Government, sparking intense debate. Proponents of state autonomy argue that lottery regulation should rest with individual states, while federal authorities insist on their constitutional mandate. The case is a contentious issue that has been argued and awaits judgment from the Supreme Court. At its core,…

Former Ondo State First Lady, Betty Akeredolu, has come under fire for calling Nigeria “a zoo country that is beyond redemption”. Mrs. Akeredolu, whose husband, Rotimi Akeredolu died in office on December 27, 2023, got herself into trouble while making comparisons between Nigeria’s presidential election and that of the United States via her X account. Posting on the social media platform, Mrs Akeredolu, a PhD holder, wrote: “Just thinking. 2023 Nigerian Presidential Election Total Votes Cast: 25 million Counting Duration: 5 days. “2024 U.S Presidential Election Total Votes Cast: 155 million Counting Duration: Approximately 10 hours “Moral: When dishonesty is…

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has removed Olusola Ebiseni as the Labour Party (LP) candidate for the November 16 governorship election in Ondo State. In a unanimous judgment prepared by Justice Hamma Barka but read by Justice Adebukola Banjoko, the appellate court held that LP’s appeal against Ebiseni is allowed. Similarly, Justice Abba Mohammed ruled that the appeal marked CA/ABJ/CV/1172/2024 brought by the LP against Ebiseni and two others had merit. A Federal High Court in Abuja presided by Justice Emeka Nwite had ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to accept and recognize Ebiseni and Ezekiel Awude as…

Former Commonwealth Secretary-General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, has warned that it would be difficult for anybody to fix Nigeria with the present constitution. Anyaoku stated this during the launch of the book: “The Noble Academic and Patriot: A Biography of Emeritus Professor Akinjide Osuntokun,” held in Lagos State. According to the elder statesman Nigeria as a pluralistic country needs to address its diversity with true federal constitutions. Anyaoku said as long as the status quo remains, not even angels can tackle the country’s problem under the present system. “To those who think that the trouble with Nigeria today is the political…

 Nazarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule has commended the tax reforms embarked upon by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu but insisted that Northern governors are only against the removal of Value Added Tax (VAT) from the federation allocation. Sule stated this on Thursday, 14 November, 2024 while formally launching an innovative tax digital codes initiated by the Nasarawa State Board of Internal Revenue Services (NSBIRS), at the Government House, Lafia, the state capital. Sule stated this while formally launching an innovative tax digital codes initiated by the Nasarawa State Board of Internal Revenue Services (NSBIRS), at the Government House, Lafia, the state…

Ahead of the Saturday’s governorship election in Ondo State, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has distributed sensitive materials to all 18 local government areas of The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Oluwatoyin Babalola, monitored the exercise held at the facility of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Akure, on Thursday, 14 November, 2024. Babalola explained that the early distribution of sensitive materials to the LGAs had shown the readiness of the electoral body in ensuring a free and fair exercise in the state. “You can see that the distribution exercise is going on very smoothly. The farthest…

Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori on Thursday, 14 November, 2024 presented a N936 billion 2025 budget proposal to the State House of Assembly for consideration. Oborevwori arrived the Assembly complex at about 10:00 am amidst cheers from Assembly staff. The Assembly staff ,who were excited to see Oborevwori, sang and danced to welcome him to the complex. Presenting the appropriation bill christened ‘Budget of Fiscal Consolidation’ to the Assembly, Oborevwori laid emphasis on human capital development and infrastructure. Road infrastructure got the highest allocation of N230 billion while education was allocated N67.42 billion. Other sectoral allocations include health, N30.55 billion,…

Atalanta FC of Italy mercurial winger, Ademola Lookman, has been nominated for the 2024 Globe Soccer Awards, thegazellenews.com reports. The organisers of the award announced the name of the nominees on X on Thursday, 14 November, 2024 Lookman is nominated along top stars like Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland. The 27-year-old finished 14th in the 2024 Ballon d’or ranking and is also in the running for the CAF Men’s Player of the Year. The former Leicester City striker has been in fantastic form this year for both club and country. Lookman scored three goals in seven…