Category Nigeria News

A file photo of Taraba State Governor, Darius Ishaku.

Taraba State Governor, Darius Ishaku, on Monday constituted a commission of inquiry into the crisis between the Tiv and their neighbouring communities in the state.

He named Justice Kumai Bayang (rtd) as the chairman of the commission and Hamidu Audu as the secretary.

Its members are Justice Emmanuel Garba, Justice Ambrose Mammadi (rtd), Danjuma Rindam, Professor Rotgak Gofwen, and Professor Istifanus Zabadi.

The commission’s counsel, according to the governor, will be headed by Emeka Okoro.

He says the commission is to examine the remote and immediate causes of the crisis between the Tivs and people living in communities of Wukari, Takum, Donga, Ibi, Ussa, Gassol, and Bali Local Government Areas, among others from 1991 to date.

Also listed as part of its terms of reference is to identify the communities affected and the impact of damage caused, including lives and property lost.

A map of Taraba, a state in Nigeria’s North-East region.

Governor Ishaku also directed the commission to identify individuals or groups that might have instigated the crises and recommend appropriate sanctions where necessary.

He said the commission has three months to submit its report and asked it to assess the efficacy of the existing security arrangements in communities within the state and advise on improvement.

Another term of reference, according to the governor, is to examine and identify cases of banditry, kidnapping, and other vices related to or arising from within the border communities and their relationship with the crisis if any.

The commission is directed to also identify basic issues and causes of prolonged and perennial crisis between the warring communities and advise on the strategies for securing a lasting peace.

It is also to examine the roles state and local governments and other institutions and extant instruments or policy played to abate or facilitate the crises and recommend appropriate measures to be taken by the state government to forestall a future occurrence of the disturbances.

The commission is to examine other issues that may secure a lasting peace between the Tiv communities and their neighbours and recommend ways of effective reconciliation.

Unmi El-Rufai, the wife of Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, the Chairperson of Federation of Women Lawyers in Kaduna state and other human rights activists have demanded justice for a teenager allegedly tortured by her boss.

They are all demanding for justice to be served against the suspect, describing her action as ungodly and inhuman.

The 14-year-old maid was said to have been battered with a knife by a middle-aged woman who subjected her to other dehumanized conditions for more than one year.

The woman who was arrested and detained by the police over the weekend was however arraigned on Monday before a Magistrate Court in the state capital.

READ ALSO: Lagos Records Highest Single-Day COVID-19 Death Toll

According to the police authorities, the suspect has been identified as Yemi Awolola, a staff of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

She is being prosecuted on a three-count charge of child labour, violence against children as well as sexual violence.

Although the suspect pleaded guilty to the charges against her, the case has been adjourned to August 27 for the continuation of her trial.

Meanwhile, the court ordered that she be remanded in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS) until the next adjourned sitting.

In this photo taken on April 15, 2020, Jigawa State Governor and Chairman of the Committee on Presidential Fertiliser Initiative, Badaru Abubakar, announces the Federal Government’s plan to reduce the price of fertiliser at the Government House in Dutse.

The Committee on Presidential Fertiliser Initiative (PFI) has arrested three suspects who specialise in adulteration of fertiliser and selling such to farmers in the north-west region of the country.

Jigawa State Governor, Badaru Abubakar, who is also the Chairman of the Presidential Committee disclosed this on Monday.

He made the disclosure during an inspection visit to some fertiliser blending plants in Kano State.

Governor Abubakar said the suspects who have since been detained in police custody were arrested in Kano, Kaduna, and Zamfara States.

He explained that they were nabbed for selling adulterated fertiliser and packaging them just like that of the Presidential Fertiliser Initiative.

A map of Kano State in north-west Nigeria.

The PFI chairman decried that the action of the suspects was capable of tarnishing the hard-earned reputation of the Federal Government of providing the Nigerian farmers with qualitative fertiliser.

He, however, stated that his committee would make sure that the quality of fertiliser under PFI watch was not compromised and, in an event, where such happens, the culprits would be arrested and made to face the full wrath of the law.

Governor Abubakar also faulted the rumours that PFI fertiliser was sold beyond N5,000 per bag – the approved price by the Federal Government.

He, therefore, appealed to farmers in the country to make use of the whistle-blowing number printed on the fertiliser bag and report persons involved in such acts for prosecution.

During the visit to Kano, the PFI chairman inspected the Alu Fertiliser plant in Birninkudu, Kasco Fertiliser blending plant at Bompai, and Nagari Fertiliser blending plant in Madobi town.

He was satisfied with the quality and quantity of fertiliser produced daily at the various plants visited.

Governor Abubakar believes the quantity of fertilizer produced daily is more than enough for farmers in the three states of Kano, Jigawa, and Katsina under the jurisdiction of the plants.

File photo showing a COVID-19 death patient.

Lagos State has recorded its highest single-day COVID-19 death toll, and this is according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).

In its COVID-19 Situation Report for July 12 released on Sunday night, the agency said 12 deaths were recorded in the nation’s commercial capital.

NCDC noted that 16 deaths were recorded in the last 24 hours in four states comprising Lagos – 12, Enugu – 1, Gombe – 1 with the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) reporting 4 deaths.

It said that the new deaths had increased the numbers of COVID-19 related mortality in Lagos to 172.

Meanwhile, Lagos still remains the epicentre of the virus with 152 confirmed cases of out the 571 new cases registered in 20 states of the country.

The other 19 states include Ebonyi – 108, Edo – 53, Ondo – 46, Oyo – 20, Kwara – 19, Plateau – 17, Niger – 10, Ogun – 7, Kano – 6, Cross River – 4 and Bauchi – 2.

While Bayelsa, Ekiti, Katsina and Osun each recorded 14 new cases, other states like Akwa-Ibom, Kaduna and Rivers each had 10 cases with the FCT registering 38 cases.

READ ALSO: Buhari Approves Reconstitution Of NLNG, BGT Boards

The health agency noted that with the 152 new cases in Lagos, the total number of confirmed cases in the state stand at 12, 427.

On the positive note, 344 persons were discharged after testing negative for the coronavirus disease in 14 states.

In Lagos, 111 persons were discharged thus bringing the total number to 1,897.

Other states with discharged cases include Enugu – 59, Edo – 45, Ogun – 31, FCT – 26, Oyo – 16, Ondo – 14; Ebonyi and Kwara each having 11 cases, Bauchi – 7, Kaduna – 5, Kebbi – 4 with Plateau and Rivers each having 2 cases.

(File Photo) The Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika gives a press conference during a Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 briefing.

The Federal Government has asked air travellers to report at the airport at least 90 minutes before their departure time.

The Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, made this call on Monday via Twitter.

Sirika also appealed to air travellers to endeavour to check-in online.

“My colleagues and I have reviewed passenger facilitation at our airports, consequently I am happy to announce that, henceforth travellers are to arrive one hour and a half before their departure time for domestic flights,” the tweet read.

This development comes a month after the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) advised passengers to get to the airport at least three hours before departure due to safety checks.

Airport operations were suspended in March to contain the spread of COVID-19 across the country.

READ ALSO: FG Releases Guidelines For Safe Reopening Of Schools After COVID-19 Pandemic Closures

On July 1, Sirika announced that the Abuja and Lagos airports will resume on July 8, while Kano, Port Harcourt, Owerri and Maiduguri airports will reopen on July 11.

Other airports are expected to reopen on Wednesday 15 July while the resumption date for international flights will be announced later.

My colleagues & I have reviewed passenger facilitation at our airports, consequently I am happy to announce that, henceforth travelers are to arrive one hour and a half before their departure time for domestic flights. Travelers are advised to check in online, please 🙏🏽🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🙏🏽

File photo of President Muhammadu Buhari at his office in the Presidential Villa in Abuja on March 26, 2020. Source: Twitter- @NGRPresident

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the reconstitution of Federal Government’s representatives on the boards of the Nigeria (Liquefied Natural Gas) and the Bonny Gas Transport Limited (BGT).

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, announced this in a statement on Monday.

He explained that the reconstitution of the boards became imperative since the present boards members were inaugurated in 2005.

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According to the minister, there is a need for the injection of fresh ideas into the leadership of the companies.

File photo: Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva defends his ministry’s budget before the Joint Committee of the National Assembly in Abuja on October 17, 2019.

He revealed that the new NLNG board has Edmund Daukoru as Chairman, while the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mele Kyari, and three others are members.

The other members include: Rabiu Sulaiman, Ikem Obih, and Bitrus Nabasu who is the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.

Sylva added that Daukoru was also named the President of the new BGT board, while Kyari, Nabasu, and Doyin Akinyanju are members

He thanked the outgoing members of the boards of the NLNG and the BGT for their services and successes recorded during their time and wished them good health and more victories in their future endeavours.

While congratulating the new board members for their appointment, the minister reminded them that they were chosen based on their integrity and sterling track records.

He, therefore, asked them to bring their experiences to bear in the running of the boards.

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