Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom finally presented 2018 budget of N651.50 billion to the Akwa Ibom House of Assembly for consideration. Reports have it that the budget is higher than 2017 figure 0f N485.79 billion with N165.71 billion. Emmanuel said that the total projected recurrent revenue for the year was N289 billion as against N188.50 billion estimated in 2017. He said that the Bill christened “Budget of Consolidation on Industrialisation” , was expected to drive the state government’s industrialisation policy to logical conclusion. The governor said that the preparation of the budget was guided by the International Public Sector Accounting…
Author: David Folami
Rilwan Akiolu was in Zaria recently where said that training and re-training of teachers was important to keep them at par with their counterparts worldwide. “For instance, this issue of teachers failing examinations in Kaduna, for me, there should be training and retraining of teachers. “This will make us get the best of them that can compete anywhere with their counterparts,” the royal father said. Akiolu urged Nigerians to imbibe the culture of genuinely praying for the country as this would help solve a lot of problems in the country. “My opinion on the government of the day is that…
Prof. Ben Ayade, has advised the National Assembly to live up to its responsibility of repositioning the country’s economy. “The way Africa is driven is a function of our leadership and governmental structure which is what we are to discuss today – restructuring.” “Therefore, you are in position in history to make or mar Africa because Africa is looked through the windows of Nigeria.” “I want to use this opportunity to thank President Muhammadu Buhari who came to carry out the ground-breaking of the construction of the deepest sea port in Africa.” “In all of these great expectations, none of…
Femi Falana, has debunked claims that he purchased a property in Maitama District, Abuja, from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). In a statement by lawyer and human rights activist on Saturday, November 25, 2017, Falana gave a response to reports which quoted Abubakar Malami, attorney-general of the federation (AGF) as saying the said property worth N1 billion was sold to “a Lagos lawyer”. Explaining what he posited as true facts, the senior advocate of Nigeria said the property was one of the assets used as collateral of a loan obtained from Bank PHB by A Group Properties over…
Dr Orji Kalu, said on Saturday that President Muhammadu Buhari might not be interested in getting an automatic ticket to re -contest. “Buhari himself is not even looking for automatic ticket. “He is a man that is very fair and free in what he does. “And his feeling is that if any candidate is willing to contest against him, he should come out. “So President Buhari is also feeling that an automatic ticket for him is not right. “He believes that the political space should be opened up for other people who also want to contest and he wants an…
Mrs Betty Ayanwu-Akeredolu, wife of Gov. Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State, has rallied for the involvement of wives of traditional rulers in ensuring inclusive maternal and child healthcare delivery. She said: “The Ministry of Health should make use of the untapped resources in the lives of wives of our traditional rulers in improving maternal and child health. “We are mobilising all available women resources, including wives of our traditional rulers, because their position is respectful in our communities. “This will help in improving the health of children and their mothers in our communities,” Ayanwu-Akeredolu said. She also said she was…
Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has said his home is in the heart of his wife, Oludolapo Osinbajo. Writing via his Twitter handle Osinbajo described his wife as “my treasure”. He wrote: “When our worlds collided, it was just a matter of time. “Our story began today, many years ago. The harmony in the symphony. My treasure! Happy Anniversary Oludolapo “Your heart is my home.” So sweet.
Mr Muhammed Abbah-Gana, Former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory has mourned the death of Former Vice President of Nigeria Alex Ekwueme. He described Ekwueme as a great Nigerian leader and statesman, who had been a trusted and tested democrat. “A great Nigerian leader and statesman has departed. A trusted and tested democrat. “A proven patriot and nationalist and second to none team player. “He came to the national limelight as Vice President from Oct 1979 to 31st Dec 1983. “His immense contributions to the 1994 and 1995 National Constitutional Conference endeared him to the generality of Nigerians.” “Above all…
Jose Mourinho has accused Henrikh Mkhitaryan of “disappearing” this season and revealed the midfielder has been left out of Manchester United’s last two squads as punishment. “I was not happy with his last performances. “I’m not speaking about one or two, I’m speaking about three, four or five. He started the season very well and after that, step by step, he was disappearing. “His performance levels in terms of goal scoring and assists, high pressing, recovering the ball high up the pitch, bringing the team with him as a No.10, were decreasing step by step. “That was enough because the…
Manchester United legend Eric Cantona says he “loves” Jose Mourinho but would prefer the team were coached by Man City boss Pep Guardiola. United are second in the Premier League and, despite this week’s surprise defeat at Basel, top of their group in the Champions League. Cantona said attacking football was part of United’s tradition and feels there’s another manager that could bring that quality to Old Trafford. “I love Mourinho as a manager and I said it before he arrived in Manchester, he is very intelligent, clever, he takes all the pressure on himself,” Cantona told BBC 5 Live.…
Zinedine Zidane admitted his team needed to improve after their difficult 3-2 La Liga win at home to Malaga on Saturday afternoon. “We started well and got the first goal but they equalised,” Zidane said. “We did not use our best weapon — possession of the ball. There were a lot of losses of possession, the second half was also a bit difficult. “We can say we are happy with the result, at 2-2 with time running out we got the third goal. Today there were some good things, but others not as we wanted. For us today three points,…
Lionel Messi has stopped speculation about his future by signing a new contract with Barcelona until 2021. Messi’s previous deal had been due to expire at the end of the season, but this is the ninth professional contract the Argentine international has signed since he moved to the Camp Nou and commits him to the club until he is 34. Barca announced the news in an official club statement, which read: “FC Barcelona and Lionel Messi signed on Saturday morning a new contract that will keep the Argentinian superstar at the Club through the 2020/21 season. “The buyout clause was…
Arsene Wenger believes his Arsenal team will be taking on the “most unexpected team” in the Premier League when they travel to Burnley on Sunday. Asked whether there was an argument that Burnley have been the most impressive team, he replied: “With the points they have? “They are the most unexpected team to be there with 22 points. You cannot deny that, of course. “We have a few [selection] uncertainties but we will have to check that ahead of the game.” Arsenal played well to beat their local rivals as Shkodran Mustafi and Sanchez struck in a 2-0 win over…
Jose Mourinho has said Michael Carrick has been offered a coaching role at Manchester United when he decides to retire. “Michael as a person is more important than Michael as a player,” Mourinho told a news conference after the 1-0 win over Brighton on Saturday. “We gave him the time to relax, to recover and to feel confident, to make the decision he wants to play, he wants to stop. “He knows that my coaching staff has a chair for him if he wants, when he wants. I want that, the board wants that, the owners want that, so Michael…
Jose Mourinho agreed he may have played with too many attackers as Manchester United laboured to a thin 1-0 victory over Brighton at Old Trafford. “I wouldn’t be surprised if today some of the pundits say we play with too many attackers. I wouldn’t be surprised,” Mourinho told a news conference. “But if they say that, I think they were right. Sometimes you play with too many attacking players and you lose control of the game. We had a few problems defensively because [Nemanja] Matic and Pogba, they were a bit isolated in the centre of the park. “If you…
Jurgen Klopp is of the opinion that Willian’s equaliser in Liverpool’s 1-1 draw with Chelsea could have been prevented had they been allowed to make a substitution that would have changed his side’s system. When asked the explain the situation around Lallana’s change, Klopp told his postmatch news conference: “Maybe ask the ref, I don’t know. “That’s how it is, we never did really time play [wasting] — people can say we are not really smart, but we don’t do it because of that, we wanted to change the system, we wanted to bring a player and that means we…
Barcelona will move seven points clear at the top of La Liga on Sunday with a win over second-placed Valencia but coach Ernesto Valverde warned against drawing conclusions in the title race at this stage of the campaign. “Whatever happens in the match, there will still be a long way to go in La Liga,” Valverde said in a news conference before the trip to Mestalla. “And regardless of Valencia’s form, it’s always a big game against them. “If we win, mathematically speaking it will be important in La Liga, but I insist: the season’s just getting started and there’s…
Gary Cahill has said that Manchester City were the big winners after Chelsea and Liverpool held each other to a 1-1 draw at Anfield, but Antonio Conte insisted he was happy with the “amazing reaction” of his players to earn a point after going behind. “On reflection, I thought in the second half we deserved to equal the game up,” the Chelsea captain told BT Sport. “They had some good spells in the first half and we came on strong in the second half, especially late on. “We made a few changes and had a few [crosses] flash across the…
Trippie’s melodic style has gained him a huge following over the last year-and-a-half. Before his fans knew him as a rapper, Trippie grew up with his mother in the Midwest and listened to whatever his she was playing on the radio. He began rapping when his older brother—who was recording music at the time—passed away in a car accident. Trippie decided to carry out his brother’s dream and pursue a career in music. After he moved to Columbus, Ohio, he developed his sound further, and later on, headed to Atlanta. He went on to release Awakening My Inner Beast, Beast…
The tale of a 16-year-old killer is spreading around the world, after some of the planet’s most famous women joined a campaign to free her. Cyntoia Brown was sentenced to life in prison in 2004 for shooting dead Johnny Allen, a 43-year-old Nashville estate agent who picked her up for sex. The teenager who went home with Mr Allen that night had been repeatedly raped and beaten. She was on the streets by order of her boyfriend, described as a violent, drug-addled pimp named “Kutthroat”, who she said verbally abused her and made her strip at gunpoint. He had demanded…