The Niger State Government has given a 48-hour ultimatum to a joint task force committee to resolve persistent gridlocks along the Lambata-Maje-Diko Road, which have severely disrupted commuter travel. The task force, comprising commissioners for Homeland Security, Transport, and Works, alongside representatives from the Nigeria Police Force, Federal Road Safety Corps, Department of State Security, Vehicle Inspection Office, and Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, has been tasked with restoring smooth traffic flow in the affected area. The committee’s directives include the immediate removal of all broken-down articulated vehicles and those parked along the roadside. Additionally, they have been tasked…
Author: Ifeanyi Nwagboso
Ebonyi State has received a significant delivery of medical equipment valued in billions of naira, aimed at equipping 13 general hospitals and other health facilities across the state. The equipment, which includes delivery beds, operating beds, and various specialized beds, marks the fourth tranche of medical resources procured under Governor Francis Nwifuru’s administration. During an inspection of the equipment, housed in a central warehouse, the state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Moses Ekuma, emphasized that the acquisition addresses longstanding challenges within Ebonyi’s healthcare system. He highlighted the government’s efforts in overcoming equipment shortages as a major milestone in enhancing healthcare delivery.…
The Governor of Kogi State, Ahmed Ododo, has approved the sum of N600 million for the payment of 2024/2025 West African Examinations Council (WAEC) fees for 18,734 students in public secondary schools across the state. The disclosure was made by the Commissioner for Education, Wemi Jones, during a press briefing held in his office on Tuesday. Jones explained that the payment aligns with the state’s Free Examination Fees for Public Schools Law, which mandates the government to cover examination fees for both internal and external examinations in public schools. “With the enactment of this law, every internal and external examination…
The Ogun State House of Assembly has called on the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) to intensify efforts in repairing deteriorating federal roads across the state, particularly the Abeokuta-Ibadan road. Speaker of the House, Oludaisi Elemide, made the appeal during Tuesday’s plenary session held at the Assembly Complex in Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta. Elemide emphasized the need for FERMA, through its Comptroller of Works and officials in Ogun State, to support the state government’s efforts in road infrastructure by conducting urgent palliative works on the affected federal roads to ease vehicular and pedestrian movement. “There is a pressing need for FERMA to…
President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday held a telephone conversation with U.S. President Joe Biden, during which they discussed several key issues, including the recent release of Tigran Gambaryan, the Head of Financial Crime Compliance at Binance. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, disclosed the details of the call while briefing State House correspondents in Abuja. According to Tuggar, the conversation took place around 4 p.m. Nigerian time and lasted approximately 30 minutes. Among the topics discussed was the need for Africa to have a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council. Tuggar revealed that President Biden assured…
The newly elected Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kano State, Yusuf Ado Kibiya, has disclosed that the party opted out of Saturday’s local government elections, describing the process as undemocratic. Speaking to journalists at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Press Center in Kano on Monday, Kibiya criticized the elections, stating that they lacked fairness from the outset. “There is no way local government elections, under the type of governance we operate in Nigeria—especially at the state level—can be free and fair,” Kibiya remarked. “The last council election in Kano was the worst in the history of…
The Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has criticized Tony Okocha, a factional chairman of the party, for allegedly seeking to stop revenue allocations to the state’s 23 local government areas. In a statement on Sunday, APC spokesperson Darlington Nwauju expressed concern over Okocha’s continued disregard for a court ruling that removed him and his seven-member caretaker committee from their positions. Nwauju described Okocha’s actions as a deliberate effort to undermine the judiciary and disrupt governance in the state. “The APC cannot remain indifferent to political moves that negatively affect the livelihood of Rivers citizens. Okocha’s attempt…
The kidnappers of Rev. Fr. Thomas Oyode, a Catholic priest and Rector of Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary, Ivanokpodi, in Agenebode, Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, have demanded a ransom of N200 million. InfoStride News reports that the priest was abducted around 7 p.m. on Sunday after gunmen invaded the seminary. Sources revealed that Fr. Oyode offered himself to the kidnappers in exchange for two students of the seminary who were initially abducted. The gunmen accepted his plea, releasing the students and taking the priest instead. On Monday evening, the kidnappers contacted the Catholic Diocese of Auchi, led…
A 34-year-old man, Segun Adegbite, was found dead with machete wounds at a construction site near WitchTech Factory along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. The Ogun State Police Command spokesperson, Omolola Odutola, confirmed the incident to Newsmen on Tuesday. According to Odutola, the incident was reported by one Adedeji Adegbola to the Sagamu Police Division on Monday. Adegbola said he was informed of the situation by Hassan, a local security guard attached to the site, who reported a violent altercation between Adegbite and some unidentified individuals. “The incident was reported to the Sagamu Police Division by Adedeji Adegbola, who resides along Lagos-Abeokuta…
The Body of Federal and State Auditors-General of Nigeria has urged government functionaries to intensify efforts in combating corruption across the country. The National Chairman of the body, Sunday Adegoke, made the appeal on Monday during the flag-off of a four-day capacity-building workshop for auditors-general of state and local governments in the Southeast zone, held in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State. Adegoke emphasized that financial misappropriation and other corrupt practices are global challenges that require urgent action in Nigeria. “The public finance actors, especially key government functionaries managing public funds, have a primary responsibility to ensure that this menace is curtailed,” Adegoke…
As the Ondo State gubernatorial election draws near, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Ganduje, has called on the people of the state to vote massively for the party. Ganduje made the appeal on Monday while inaugurating a 305-member national campaign council for the November 16 governorship election. He urged voters to support the APC, emphasizing that casting their votes for the ruling party would honor President Bola Tinubu, who hails from the region. InfoStride News reports that the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, will chair the campaign council, with Kebbi State Governor Nasir Idris and…
The National Patriotic Coalition (NPC) has criticized the recently concluded local government elections in Kano State, describing them as a “sham” and an attack on democratic values. InfoStride News reports that despite a Federal High Court ruling disqualifying the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) candidates, Governor Abba Yusuf allegedly proceeded with the election in defiance of the court’s decision. In a statement signed by NPC spokesperson Kunle Solomon, the coalition denounced the election results—where the NNPP reportedly won all 44 chairmanship positions and 484 councillorship seats—as illegitimate. Solomon described the election as “a comedy taken too far” and labeled it…
The Ogun State Police Command on Monday confirmed the death of a hunter, identified as Femi, who was found with bullet wounds in a forest near Ijebu Igbo. Omolola Odutola, the command’s spokesperson, stated that Femi, a resident of Ofemodoko village, went hunting on Friday with a companion named Taoreed, popularly known as Kokoro, but failed to return home. According to Odutola, Femi’s wife, Grace James, raised the alarm after her husband’s prolonged absence. She reported the incident to the village head, who organized a search party to locate him. “On October 26, 2024, Grace James, a resident of Ofemodoko,…
A Magistrates’ Court in Jos on Monday sentenced a 25-year-old security guard, Lucky Bulus, to 18 months in prison for stealing 350 litres of diesel. Magistrate Shawomi Bokkos issued the sentence following Bulus’s guilty plea during a summary trial. In his judgment, Bokkos gave the convict the option of paying a N30,000 fine to avoid six months in prison. He also ordered Bulus to pay N150,000 in compensation to the complainant, with the alternative of serving an additional one-year jail term if the payment is not made. Prosecutor Insp. Labaran Ahamed told the court that the theft was reported on…
Signs of division within the Ondo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) became evident on Sunday as several groups within the party announced their support for the Social Democratic Party (SDP) governorship candidate, Benson Akingboye, over APC’s Lucky Aiyedatiwa ahead of the November 16 election. The coalition of groups—including Ondo Patriots, Ondo APC Solidarity Group, Jagaban Coalition, and APC Youth League—argued that the process that led to Aiyedatiwa’s candidacy was flawed, prompting their decision to support Akingboye. In a statement issued by Dele Oyewo of Ondo Patriots, the groups labeled Aiyedatiwa an “opportunist,” claiming he continuously betrays those…
The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Ganduje, has declared that the party is determined to take over the leadership of Rivers State in future elections. Ganduje made this assertion during the defection of Dawari Ibietela George, the 2023 governorship candidate of the Action Alliance (AA), to the APC. He assured that the state chapter of the party would be “rebuilt and repositioned” to establish a firm political foothold. The APC chairman emphasized the party’s strategy of welcoming diverse interests while promoting fairness among members. He praised George’s political experience, referring to him as a “big fish,”…
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State has condemned a lawsuit filed by one of its chieftains, Tony Okocha, seeking to block the disbursement of funds to local government councils in the state. In a statement issued by the party’s spokesperson, Darlington Nwauju, the APC criticized Okocha’s legal action, accusing him of undermining governance at the grassroots level and acting against the interests of the state. Nwauju noted that Okocha and his caretaker committee had been removed from office by a court ruling but have continued to act contrary to the judgment. “We are shocked at the continuous and…
The Taraba State Task Force on Environmental Protection, Public Safety, and Prohibition of Land Degradation has linked its crackdown on tree burning for charcoal production to the need to prevent desert encroachment and environmental degradation. This effort has triggered concerns among residents over the rising cost of charcoal, with many families lamenting the additional hardship in light of the high prices of cooking gas and fuel. Addressing the public outcry, the chairman of the task force, Gen. Jeremiah Faransa, acknowledged the economic challenges but stressed that the government’s primary goal is to stop the illegal logging and burning of economic…
A legislative move by the Senate to establish the Federal University of Agriculture and Entrepreneurship in Bama, Borno State, garnered overwhelming support from stakeholders during a public hearing on Monday in Abuja. The public hearing, organized by the Senate Committee on Tertiary Education and TETFund, featured the sponsor of the bill, Senator Kaka Shehu Lawan (APC, Borno Central). He emphasized that the rising unemployment rate and the overreliance on white-collar jobs highlight the need for a specialized university focused on agriculture and entrepreneurship. “Entrepreneurship education provides students with the knowledge, skills, attitude, and motivation needed for success in business ventures,”…
The Gombe State Police Command has arrested 21-year-old Mubarak Haladu for kidnapping, culpable homicide, shop breaking, and theft. Haladu allegedly abducted his seven-year-old nephew, Haruna Bello, and demanded a ransom of N1.5 million from the boy’s father, Bello Haladu. ASP Buhari Abdullahi, the Police Public Relations Officer, confirmed the arrest on Friday, detailing the tragic sequence of events. “Mubarak made a ransom demand through a phone call, leaving his brother devastated,” Abdullahi said. The police launched a search operation, but the young boy was later found dead in an abandoned building. Bello Haladu, the boy’s father, recounted the ordeal: “I…