The Nigerian Senate has suspended sitting for one week. Senate President Ahmad Lawan, announced on Wednesday morning that the week will be dedicated to zonal public hearing on the Review of the 1999 Constitution.
The Senate President also disclosed that the exercise will hold in 12 centres across the country on 26 and 27th May 27.
Details later
Ahmed Isah, the host of a magazine radio programme, Brekete Family, has apologised for assaulting his studio guest.
In a BBC documentary, the radio presenter was seen slapping a lady, who was accused of setting her brother’s daughter on fire over an allegation that the girl is a witch.
The viral clip was met with public backlash including condemnation by the National Human Rights Commission and The National Broadcasting Commission
Reacting to the public backlash during his radio program on Wednesday, Isah said he was overtaken by his emotions and the incident happened three months ago.
“I call as somebody that is ashamed of himsel” he said
“After three months…when they saw that police did not arrest the aunty…they came to me. They brought her in the evening after I have treated 200 cases.
When they brought her, she was not remorseful. That was why I slapped her and I am very sorry for what I did. People wanted to beat her but I stopped them,” he said.
He also accused BBC and its reporter, Peter, of editing the video to suit the aim of his detractors.
He alleged that the BBC removed the part where people almost lynched the accused lady but for his intervention. According to him, the BBC documentary was sponsored against him by some persons, including government officials.
“The video people saw was edited by the BBC.” He insisted.
“Me as a father, I am not proud of what I did. As a human being, I have special attachment to children. I made mistake when I slapped her, I immediately regretted what I did.
He added: “I am not competing against anybody, even though I know that sometimes I really overdo things. I begged Journalists to delete the video where I slapped her.”
Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo has signed two Executive Bills on security and land matters into law, as passed by the Imo House of Assembly.
The first was a bill for a law to establish the Imo State Security Organisation to assist in maintaining law and order in the state and related matters therein.
The second bill established the Imo State land administration and geographic information service for the purposes of regulating land administration in the state and other related matters therein.
Uzodinma, in a statement by Mr Oguwike Nwachukwu, his Chief Press Secretary, pointed out that “the two laws could not have come at a more auspicious time owing to the security challenges in Imo and Nigeria, generally.
The governor said the bill was sent to the house of assembly to address the challenges of militancy, attacks on police formations and politically influenced violence.
He said the law was made to assist the law enforcement agencies in maintaining law and order and to secure life and property in Imo.
According to him, the law on security bans unauthorized persons from carrying firearms in the state.
The governor added that the second law would address the several petitions and complaints about illegal land acquisition by some individuals, as well as generally sanitise land administrations in the state.
Earlier, the speaker of the House of Assembly, Mr Paul Emeziem, said the Imo security organisation law would support such other laws in fishing out criminals and ending the spate of criminality.
He said the Imo Land Administration and Geographic Information Service, on its part, would support already existing whitepaper and gazettes on the recovery of fraudulently acquired lands and property.
The National Examinations Council (NECO) has rescheduled the 2021 National Common Entrance Examination (NCEE) into Federal Unity Colleges to Saturday 5th June 2021 as approved by the Federal Ministry of Education.
The Examination, initially scheduled for Saturday 29th May 2021, was rescheduled to give states with low registration of candidates the opportunity to register their candidates for the examination.
Mr Azeez Sani, Head of Information and Public Relations, NECO announced the reschedule in a statement made available to journalists in Abuja on Wednesday.
Sani enjoined candidates, parents, guardians and relevant stakeholders to take note of the new date for the examination.
He said: “All candidates, parents, guardians and relevant stakeholders are therefore enjoined to take note of the new date for the examination.
“The registration of candidates will continue till the new date of the examination.
“Candidates, parents and guardians are advised to download the new Examination Time Table from the Council’s website: www.neco.gov.ng”
British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Laing, has expressed sympathy for Nigeria while cautioning politicians and elected officials to cement their legacies on a positive note by ensuring peaceful 2023 elections.
The High Commissioner spoke to Vanguard News in Rivers State on her maiden visit to the state.
“I do have some sympathy for Nigeria because if we as UK have one of these problems your country is having today, we will be struggling. Here, you deal with everything, from insurgency to kidnapping, to piracy off the Gulf of Guinea and you don’t have such a large army and police force for a country of this size”. She said
“The only way you turn this thing around is that government has to build the trust of its people, to have the people working with the government to deal with criminality. That’s how successful anti-criminal operations work. “People willingly report those committing crime, working with police to identify criminals, same with the military on the insurgency situation.
“It’s only when the community is on the side of the police and security services that they can turn around the situation.” On the expectations for Nigeria’s 2023 elections, Laing said: “2023 is not alright. What happens in the elections is very crucial, not just for Nigeria, but Africa to the world. You (Nigeria) are a large democracy.” She stated further.
“It doesn’t have to be a perfect election. There would be problems, but we want it to be better than the last one. We want it to be secure, peaceful, the process should be run well, and you need to get people to register.”
On her choice of candidates, she said: “My ideal candidates would be two younger presidential candidates, both with female vice presidential candidates,” apparently referring to the two leading political parties. To Wike and Amaechi on the next Rivers State governorship election, she said: “It is essential that there’s a peaceful election in Rivers State.
It’s going to be a crucial part of his (Wike) legacy, how the election goes in this state. We’ve been saying the same thing to Amaechi. “Another thing we will be doing is to remind people that if people do incite violence or act violently, we will be prepared to deny them visas to the UK. We will make that statement clear and say it over again.” she empasized.
Unidentified persons have attacked and burned two offices of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Ebonyi and Ezza North Local Government Areas of Ebonyi State. According to a brief update posted on the commission’s twitter page, the buildings suffered extensive damages but there are no casualties.
Attacks on INEC offices and police stations in the South-East have become quite common in the last few months, with some happening simultaneously or within days of each other.
NewsWireNGR recalls that barely days after an office of the Independent National Electoral Commission was razed in Udenu Local Government of Enugu State, the state headquarters of the commission was also attacked on Sunday night.
Gunmen have abducted a judge at a Sharia Court in Bauren Zakat village in Safana Local Government Area of Katsina State.
NewsWireNGR learnt that the attackers broke into the court around 3pm on Tuesday and abducted the judge identified as Alhaji Husaini Sama’ila.
The Katsina Police Public Relations Officer, Gambo Isah, confirmed that the judge was kidnapped by gunmen.
According to him, “yes, we learnt that the Judge was kidnapped by gunmen but there are fundamental issues and questions involved in this matter. “The place from where he was said to have been kidnapped is no longer a court because that court was relocated to Safana town because of security threats” he said.
“So, what was he doing there more so as everybody is aware that courts are not currently sitting due to the ongoing strike action by judicial workers.
“If he had any reasons to go to that court, why did he not inform the police and moreover, what of his orderly. It is sad that he was kidnapped but what took him there? “ he queried.
In recent times armed bandits operating out of abandoned forest reserves are ransacking communities in Northen Nigeria, Katsina being among states in the region.
In the last decade more than 8,000 people have been killed in the states of Kebbi, Sokoto, Niger and Zamfara, according to the International Crisis Group.
Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Tuesday, sacked the 25 Commissioners in the State, Secretary to the State Government, Chief of Staff Government House, Senior Political Adviser, and others.
The immediate past Commissioner for Information, Mr Charles Aniagwu, who disclosed this while briefing newsmen on the outcome of the State Executive Council meeting, said the move was to give room for fresh blood to strengthen the administration’s agenda of a stronger Delta.
Aniagwu named those affected by the dissolution to include the 25 Commissioners, Secretary to the State Government, Mr Chiedu Ebie; Chief of Staff, Mr David Edevbie; Senior Political Adviser, Mr Funkekeme Solomon; Chief Strategist, Festus Agas and Special Advisers.
According to him, the Governor thanked members of the dissolved cabinet for their contributions to the successes of his administration in the past six years including those who joined in last two years. Aniagwu said Okowa has directed all the affected former political appointees to hand over to the Permanent Secretaries in their respective ministries.
He said before the dissolution, the exco approved the sum of N2.8 billion for the purchase and upgrade of facilities at recently established three universities in the state.
He said the Exco also approved the dismissal of one Bernard Onomugo from the State Civil Service for allegedly recruiting names into the state payroll.
Today, leaders from across Africa meet in Paris to discuss plans to recover from the impact of a common enemy – COVID-19. But for African nations from across the Sahel region and beyond, the issues are inseparable from the fight against another common enemy which is terrorism. And like the war against the coronavirus, it is one we are fully united with France in our strong determination to overcome.
Across the world, conflict and Coronavirus have not been far apart. As governments have struggled to contain COVID, jihadists have taken advantage in the Sahel – the vast arid stretch of territory that lies between the Sahara and Sub-Saharan Africa. Terrorist incidents have become tragically common across Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. Around the Lake Chad Basin, Boko Haram terrorism have taken advantage of the pandemic and pushed back into my country Nigeria, whilst still launching raids and attacks in Chad, Cameroon, and Niger.
We have seen more than once how Boko Haram – which in French means “l’éducation occidentale est un péché” – can regroup, morphing in form and tactics. A matter of only a few years ago, they were reduced to a territory-less group, where once they had controlled an area in Nigeria three times the size of Lebanon. It has demonstrated why pushing against one front can prove futile if groups can simply migrate to ponds of insecurity across porous borders. Yet as instability has spread, so the networks that sustain it have strengthened – whether that be weapons supply chains from Libya, ideological imports of Al-Qaeda and ISIS from the Middle East, or trafficking networks that take money from those escaping instability and feeds it back into the system that generates it.
Meanwhile, the infection is spreading further afield and reaching into the heart of Europe and France is not being spared the malignant, with innocents murdered on its streets. In that context, our fate is linked. Hence Paris has been active in this common fight. The French Operation Barkhane has provided critical boots on the ground in shoring up security across our region. Though challenges remain, it has ensured a wide expanse of territory has not descended into lawless playground where terrorists masquerading as fighting for Islam groups can freely flourish and multiply. That assistance has been profoundly appreciated in the region.
Now Nigeria and France should deepen our anti-terror cooperations if we are to overcome this scourge – particularly in the aftermath of the murder of the late President of Chad. Where for historical ties, support came to Nigeria from the UK, and to the G5 from France, the terrorists do not recognise these border-aligned distinctions. We must be agile and flexible, cooperating cross our borders to cut the head off their groups.
Indeed, we have already done much to strengthen our bond. Intelligence sharing is well developed, along with training against improvised explosives. But there is more we can do in cross-border military exercises and coordinating strategy. At the same time, we know France has borne much of the strain for combating terrorism of the region, and we – the leaders of Sahel countries – must also do more to present a unified front to lobby other Western nations, particularly Great Britain and the United States and the European Union for further military and humanitarian assistance.
However, we know that military gains do not provide the whole solution. Without security, economic opportunity remains fragile. Without economic opportunity, the propensity for conflict grows. The solution must therefore be two-pronged. If we do improve those conditions, it leaves our people vulnerable to indoctrination, as one is vulnerable to COVID-19 without a vaccine.Advertisement
In the Sahel, crises converge. Traditionally, this vast arid land has been poorer than its Mediterranean neighbours to the north and fertile land to its South. Now, climate change and environmental degradation squeeze the region of water sources, draining opportunity and increasing competition amongst various groups for scarce resources. The fallout from Libya has flushed the whole region with weapons, making any disputes and competition far more destructive. And it is upon these conditions, the lies and propaganda of terrorists who falsely claim to be Islamists promising salvation can find an audience. Islam is a religion of peace.
To counteract these, we must focus on initiatives that sustainably spread opportunity far and wide across the Sahel. Transport links across the Sahel have become dilapidated, much of it still the remnants of the colonial era. For the region’s burgeoning young population, reinvigorating these links or building anew is critical. It allows for efficient allocation of labour; the movement of inputs such as seed, fertiliser or equipment to the areas that need it; and freight to take produce or extractives to market or value-add factories.
Now, as the world emerges from the pandemic, we have the chance to build back better. Though we always knew it, COVID-19 underlined how interconnected and interdependent the world is. With that shattering reminder, we can create a world with that idea at its forefront – one that provides security and opportunity for both of us.
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Muhammadu Buhari is the president of Nigeria.
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Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai to “immediately end the growing crackdown on workers and protesters in his state.”
In a statement today signed by SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said: “Governor, Nasir El-Rufai and Kaduna state authorities must end the harassment and intimidation of NLC leaders and withdraw the illegal statement declaring Mr Wabba and other NLC leaders ‘wanted’.
The statement read in part: “Kaduna authorities must respect the human rights of Nigerian workers, and ensure the safety and security of the leaders of Nigeria Labour Congress.
“Declaring NLC leaders ‘wanted’ simply for peacefully exercising their human rights is antithetical to the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 [as amended] and the country’s international obligations.”
“Kaduna authorities ought to protect workers from attacks by thugs. Allowing thugs to disrupt peaceful protest by workers is illegal and unconstitutional.
“The government of President Muhammadu Buhari should investigate why the security forces stood by and watched as thugs disrupted and assaulted protesters-and take action against those who did so.
“Using thugs to attack peaceful protesters is a crime against humanity. Authorities need to find out who was responsible for the assaults and punish them appropriately.
“Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai should immediately reinstate Kaduna State University lecturers and nurses unlawfully dismissed for allegedly joining the strike in the state.
“We’ll hold Governor Nasir El-Rufai and Kaduna authorities to account for the blatant violations of human rights.
“Governor Nasir El-Rufai should explain why he reportedly unlawfully sacked all nurses below grade level 14 in the state on the pretext that the nurses embarked on strike in solidarity with the NLC.
“We’ll see in court if the lecturers and nurses are not immediately reinstated.
“We urge the UN human rights special rapporteurs to put pressure on Governor Nasir El-Rufai and Kaduna state to immediately end the brutal crackdown on workers and peaceful protesters.”
President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Mallam Abubakar Nuhu Fikpo, as the substantive Director-General of the National Directorate of Employment (NDE).
Before his appointment, Mallam Fikpo held the position in acting capacity.
A statement by Presidential Spokesman, Garba Shehu Tuesday, said that the President also approved the appointment of Comrade Issa Aremu as the Director of the National Institute for Labour Studies (NILS).
“Comrade Aremu has been a notable Trade Unionist who has risen through the ranks in the Trade Union hierarchy in Nigeria.
“The appointments, which are for a period of four years take effect from May 18, 2021.”
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has approved the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine in Nigeria.
The vaccine is to be administered to persons from eighteen years of age.
The Director-General of the agency, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, made this known in a statement released in Abuja today May 18.
“After a thorough evaluation, the NAFDAC vaccine committee concluded that the data on the vaccine were robust and met criteria for efficacy, safety and quality,” she said.
“The data also show that the vaccine’s known and potential benefits outweigh its known and potential risks thereby supporting the manufacturer’s recommended use. Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine is the third vaccine recommended in Nigeria for preventing COVID-19.
The Janssen COVID-19 vaccine is administered as a single dose. Results from a clinical trial involving people in the United States, South Africa and Latin American countries found that Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine was effective at preventing COVID-19 in people from 18 years of age.
On vaccine efficacy, Adeyeye noted that the Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine is administered as a single dose and results from a clinical trial involving people in the United States, South Africa and Latin American countries found that Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine was effective at preventing COVID-19 in people from 18 years of age.
She added: “The Phase III clinical trial involved over 44,000 people. Half received a single dose of the vaccine and half were given placebo (a dummy injection). People did not know if they had been given Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine or placebo.
”The trial found a 67 per cent reduction in the number of symptomatic COVID-19 cases after two weeks in people who received Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine.
On side effects, she said the most commonly reported side effects with the vaccine were pain at the injection site, headache, fatigue, muscle aches and nausea. Most of these side effects were mild to moderate in severity and lasted 1-2 days.
Speaking on vaccine safety, she said in line with the NAFDAC’s Pharmacovigilance and safety monitoring plan for COVID-19 vaccines, Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine would be closely monitored and subject to several activities that apply specifically to COVID-19 vaccines.
“Manufacturers are required to provide monthly safety reports in addition to the regular updates generated by NAFDAC activities. Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine works by preparing the body to defend itself against COVID-19.”
She further explained that unopened vaccine vials can be stored and/or transported frozen at -25°C to – 15°C for up to 24 months and three months when stored at 2 to 8°C.
She also stated that the Ministry of Health and National Primary Health Care Development Agency will announce when the vaccine becomes available for use in Nigeria.
