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  • Late vendor’s family drags Gbajabiamila to court, demands N500m compensation

    Late vendor’s family drags Gbajabiamila to court, demands N500m compensation

    Ifeanyichukwu Okereke’s family, the vendor who was shot dead by a security aide to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has demanded N500 million for compensation.

    Okereke’s family in a letter to the speaker dated November 23, 2020, demanded the compensation. The letter was signed by the lawyer of the family, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN).

    Ozekhome was asked to write the letter by the father of the deceased, Okorie Okereke; and the younger brother to the deceased, Destiny Okereke.

    In the letter, Okereke’s family made three demands which must be met otherwise they take legal actions.

    The family demanded firstly that the speaker uses his good office to ensure the immediate prosecution of your security aide (Abdullahi Hassan), who shot the innocent and armless vendor.

    “Our clients have instructed us to make from your good self, the following modest demands: That you use your good offices to ensure the immediate prosecution of your security aide (Abdullahi Hassan), who went on a frolic of his own, clearly acted outside the purview of his duty and responsibility by shooting to death an innocent, harmless and armless citizen, the letter read.

    Secondly, they asked that the speakers compensate the Okereke family with a modest sum of N500m. The family stated that the money cannot adequately replace the deceased but will at least mitigate the trauma and hardship of his premature demise.

    Okereke’s family demanded lastly that the speaker ensure that the safety of vendors are guaranteed as they have become afraid to return to the streets since the tragic incident.

    “Take note therefore that it is our clients’ firm instruction that in the event that you fail, refuse and/or neglect to accede to or proffer reasonable compensatory terms to our above modest demands within seven days from the date of this letter, we shall without any further correspondences from us, take appropriate legal steps to enforce our clients’ constitutional rights,” the letter stated.

  • Sack of Attorney-General plot to impeach me, Ondo Deputy Gov alleges

    Ondo Deputy Governor, Agboola Ajayi, has alleged Monday’s sack of the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Kolawole Olawoye, was part of the plot by Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu to ensure his impeachment.

    Ajayi said the impeachment of Ondo Deputy Speaker, Hon Ogundeji Iroju, was also part of the plans to remove him from office ‘by all means and at any cost illegally.’

    The Deputy Governor, in a statement by his Media Adviser, Allen Sowore, said Olawoye was sacked for standing against illegality and iniquity.

    According to him: “Today, Mr. Governor has clandestinely orchestrated the announcement of the removal of the Deputy Speaker of the House Of Assembly, Rt Honourable Ogundeji Iroju without any due process.

    “All these are premeditated efforts to circumvent the institutions of state and usurp the powers of both the legislative and judiciary arms of government to pave way for the illegal removal of the Deputy Governor.

    “The general public should be wary of these latest antics and desperation of the Governor to remove his Deputy through a macabre plan to forged signatures of members of the State House Of Assembly on the prepared impeachment notice.”

  • Senate receive Buhari’s letter seeking Yakubu’s confirmation as INEC Chairman

    The Senate on Tuesday received a request from President Muhammadu Buhari to confirm the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, for a second and final term in office.

    The request was contained in a letter dated 21st October, 2020, and read on the floor by the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan.

    The letter reads: “In accordance with the provision of Section 154(1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), I am pleased to present for confirmation by the Senate, the nomination of Professor Mahmood Yakubu for appointment as Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission for a second and final term.

    “While hoping that the Senate will consider and confirm the reappointment of the nominee, please accept Distinguished Senate President, the assurances of my highest consideration.”

    Meanwhile, the President in a separate letter, requested the upper chamber to confirm Professor Abdullahi Abdu Zuru as National Commissioner representing the North West in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    It reads:“Pursuant to paragraph 14 of Part I(F) of the Third Schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), I am pleased to present to the Senate for confirmation, the appointment of Professor Abdullahi Abdu Zuru as National Commissioner, representing North West in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).”

    “The Senate is invited to note that, this request is sequel to the resignation of Abubakar Ahmed Nahuche, National Commissioner representing North West, who served for four (4) years in the Commission,” Buhari added.

  • PDP can’t defeat APC come 2023 – Fashola

    Ahead the 2023 general elections, the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, has strongly advised the leadership of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to respect and honour agreement reached at the formative stage of the party.

    He also said that the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) lacks the strength of taking over from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) come 2023.

    Fashola who while chatting with newsmen covering the ruling party (APC Press Corps) in Abuja on Tuesday admitted there was an agreement on zoning which he said should be honoured.

    When asked on the zoning arrangement, the former Lagos State governor said, “the truth is that what makes an agreement spectacular is the honour in which it is made not whether it is written. If it was written there would be no Court cases of breach of contract because it’s document that is written and signed that go to court. But the private agreement you make with your brother and sister should not be breached, it must be honoured.”

    Though he argued that zoning may not feature in the party’s constitution but noted that party leaders at the formative stage entered into agreement which must be honoured.

    According to the Minister, “All political parties are clubs where you write agreements just like a social club and we can decide that it is the youngest person who will be the Chairman of the Club or we can decide that it is the oldest person or the next female or the next male, that is the matter of agreement between people.”

    On whether the ruling party can still retain its governing status come 2023, Fashola vehemently dismissed the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) as no match to APC, arguing that they will have to think better to unseat the ruling party come 2023.

    “Our opposition (PDP) has to think better than us in order to defeat us, right now they are not doing that. When it’s election time they should come and meet us.

    “Some governors have joined us, from where we think we could not get voters before. To retain power in 2023, certainly if we keep our promises, people will vote for us. It is that simple, that is politics. If you do what you said you will do even if you don’t do 100 percent and they see that you are making progress, they will even want you to finish somewhat you started.”

    He also called for support for the Governor Mai Mala Buni led Caretaker/Extra-Ordinary Convention Committee (CECPC) noting that the Committee was a product of necessity following the leadership crisis that engulfed the party.

    “It was a crisis that led us to have a caretaker committee, we must respect the caretaker committee, let it do its job. Those of us who didn’t contest party positions, let’s focus on our jobs too and stop getting in each other’s way.

    “Let’s be ready to support one another, every support that the caretaker committee requires, we will provide if it is within our means to do so. At the end of the day, we are governed by rules.”

  • BREAKING: CBN retains lending rate at 11.5%

    The Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria has retained the Monetary Policy Rate at 11.5 per cent.

    The CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, disclosed this after the committee’s two-day meeting in Abuja on Tuesday.

    It also retained the Cash Reserve Ratio and Liquidity Ratio at 27.5 per cent and 30 per cent respectively.

    At the last MPC meeting in September, the committee reduced the MPR from 12.5 per cent to 11.5 per cent.

  • Senate approves Buhari’s request to refund N148bn to five states

    The Senate on Tuesday approved President Muhammadu Buhari’s request for a refund of N148,141,969,161.24 to five states for projects executed on behalf of the Federal Government.

    The States are: Rivers, Bayelsa, Cross River, Osun and Ondo.

    The approval was sequel to the consideration of a report by the Committee on Local and Foreign Debts Chaired by Senator Clifford Ordia (PDP – Edo Central).

    Ordia in his presentation stated that most of the Federal highways in the beneficiary states where said projects were executed “were at a deplorable state before the intervention of the state governments.”

    According to him, “series of visits were carried out by the Federal Ministry it Works and Housing on all Federal Roads completed by the States and ascertained that the quality off work done met the required standard.”

    The lawmaker, however, noted that states like Cross River, Rivers, Bayelsa and Ondo States embarked on the highway projects execution as far back as 2005 to date.

    He added that while the State Governments have completed all projects, as well as paid all contractors, the Federal Bureau of Procurement on its part certified that due process was followed accordingly.

    Meanwhile, the Senate on Tuesday confirmed the nomination of Barr. Benedict Umeano (Anambra – South East); Hon. Ehiozuwa Johnson Agbonayinma (Edo – South South); and CP. Olayinka Babatunde Balogun Rtd (Ogun – South West) as Members of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).

    The confirmation of the nominees followed the consideration of the report of the Senate on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions.

    In a related development, the upper chamber on Tuesday referred President Buhari’s request seeking the confirmation of nominees to the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission Tribunal to its Committee on Trade and Investment.

    The nominees who are expected to appear for screening before the Committee include: Mrs. Sadatu Mama Shafi, Chairman (North Central); George Chukwuma Mbonu, Member (South East); Barr. Thomas E. Okosun (South South); Umar Dauda Duhu (North East); Ibrahim El-Yakubu (North West); Mrs. Sola Salako Ajulo (South West); and Kenneth Tersoo Gyado (North Central).

  • Customs comptroller reads riot act to smugglers

    Mr Yusuf Lawal, the new Comptroller Federal Operations Unit (FOU), Zone C, Owerri, said the unit will go tough on smugglers during the yuletide and beyond.

    Lawal warned smugglers to reframe from illegal business or face severe punishment if arrested.

    “The forthcoming yuletide and beyond will be tough for smugglers in the combined 11 states under the zone. We will continue to act tough against smugglers and get them arrested and seize their wares,” he said.

    He urged businessmen under the zone to be compliant with the rules in their dealings, adding that the unit would not spare defaulters.

    According to him, smugglers were clear sabotage to the Nigerian economy, adding that the unit would continue to help the country’s economy to grow.

    Meanwhile, he called on sister agencies to continue to synergise with the unit in tackling activities of smugglers.

  • Nigeria joins League of Nations with Professional Association for CSR and Sustainability

    The Association of Sustainability Professionals of Nigeria (ASPN) will host an industry conversation to discuss the urgent need for attaining an inclusive economy in Nigeria and the roles that Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) professionals can play in this regard on Thursday, November 26, 2020.

    The dialogue, which doubles as the formal launch of the professional group, will explore the need for synergy among sustainability experts, subject-matter specialists, and advocates to support the efforts of government and drive private sector leadership for social inclusion as well as the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs) in line with the beginning of the Decade of Action.

    After many years of mainstreaming CSR and Sustainability through various initiatives, milestones, and adoption of all major international conventions on Business Sustainability, Climate Change, Environmental Standards, and other development agendas; Nigeria formally joins the league of nations with professional associations specially set up for the practice of CSR and Sustainability.

    ASPN is a non-profit organisation founded in August 2019 to redefine and improve the practice and profession of Sustainability and CSR in Nigeria.

    Through various strategic partnerships, policy formulation & advocacy activities, ASPN seeks to set standards for professional ethics, best practices and long-term systems thinking amongst individuals and businesses to foster the sustainable development of Nigeria.

    To formally unveil the ASPN, the event will feature discussions on the theme: Professionalising Sustainability for an Inclusive Development and has been slated to hold on Thursday, November 26, 2020.

    Professor Wayne Visser, Founder, CSR International will participate as the Guest Speaker whilst other speakers will include: Professor Chris Ogbeche, Deputy Dean, Lagos Business School; Solape Hammond, Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on SDGs; and Dr. Aisha Mamood, Sustainability Director, Central Bank of Nigeria. Also, in attendance at the event will be government and regulatory agencies, sustainability experts, corporate organisations, and industry experts, non-governmental organisations and the public.

    Nigeria, like most present-day societies, has adopted various measures to minimize pollution and promote environmental, social, and economic sustainability as a fundamental component of socio-economic development. For example, the last decades of the century witnessed increased concerns – with the private sector at the forefront, about climate change. Therefore, the need to develop, implement and drive cohesive policy, that would go a long way in meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of the future to meet its needs is paramount.

    Consequently, a need to have a body that drives cohesive policies seeking sustainable development and growth in the country in a more coordinated manner is essential.

    According to the ASPN President, Prof. Kenneth Amaeshi, “We are excited about the formal launch of the ASPN because we have existed for so many years as a community of passionate and committed advocates. We look forward to strengthening our alliances and contributing significantly to Nigeria’s active role in the Decade of Action”.

    The ASPN is led by passionate and renowned professionals with many years of experience committed to practicing advocating teaching and mentoring on sustainability-related issues within Nigeria and internationally. These professionals are Ini Abimbola, Founder, ThistlePraxis Consulting. Ismail Omamegbe, Head, Media & External Relations; Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability, FirstBank; Bekeme-Masade Olowola, Chief Executive, CSR-in-Action; Ken Egbas, CEO, TruContact CSR Nigeria; Eunice Sampson, Head, Sustainability, Dangote Cement Plc; Ibrahim Salau, Managing Director, Environmental Accord; Bolanle Victor-Laniyan, Head, Sustainability, Access Bank and Kenneth Amaeshi who serves as Chair in Business and Sustainable Development and Director of the Sustainable Business Initiative at the University of Edinburgh.

    To join the conversation and participate in this event, please visit: https://bit.ly/ASPNUnveiling or follow ASPN on social media on @ASPNigeria on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. For more information, please visit the ASPN Website: https://aspn.org.ng  or email, [email protected] or call: 0706 752 3702

  • Trump imposes new rule on African tourists

    The outgoing administration of U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday issued a new temporary rule that could require tourist and business travelers from two dozen countries, mostly in Africa, to pay a bond of as much as $15,000 to visit the United States.

    The U.S. State Department said the temporary final rule, which takes effect Dec. 24 and runs through June 24, targets countries whose nationals have higher rates of overstaying B-2 visas for tourists and B-1 visas for business travelers.

    The Trump administration said the six-month pilot program aims to test the feasibility of collecting such bonds and will serve as a diplomatic deterrence to overstaying the visas.

    Trump, who lost a re-election bid earlier this month, made restricting immigration a central part of his four-year term in office. President-elect Joe Biden, a Democrat, has pledged to reverse many of the Republican president’s immigration policies, but untangling hundreds of changes could take months or years.

    Biden’s transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment related to the visa bond requirement.

    The visa bond rule will allow U.S. consular officers to require tourist and business travelers from countries whose nationals had an “overstay rate” of 10% or higher in 2019 to pay a refundable bond of $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000.

    Twenty-four countries meet these criteria, including 15 African countries. While those nations had higher rates of overstays, they sent relatively few travelers to the United States.

    Historically, U.S. consular officers have been discouraged from requiring travelers to the United States to post a bond, with State Department guidance saying processing of the bonds would be “cumbersome,” the temporary rule said.

    Countries whose tourist and business travelers could be subject to the bond requirement include those from Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Sudan, Chad, Angola, Burundi, Djibouti and Eritrea. Other countries include Afghanistan, Bhutan, Iran, Syria, Laos and Yemen.

    Read more Here

  • COVID-19: Health ministry to inaugurate 18 man committee on vaccine

    The Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) says it will inaugurate an 18-man National COVID-19 Vaccine Task Team (VTT), as part of measures to ensure vaccine security against the virus in Nigeria.

    The Minister of Health, Dr  Osagie Ehanire, said this on Monday in Abuja at the joint national briefing of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19.

    “Now that vaccines are known to be close at hand, the Federal Ministry of Health is taking measures toward vaccine security, for which an 18-man National COVID-19 Vaccine Task Team with seven Terms of Reference (ToR) will be inaugurated.

    “The ToR will include generating strategies for acquisition, deployment and options for licensed production by Biovaccine Nigeria Ltd.

    “Our options with WHO/GAVI led Covax facility remains our first line of engagement,” Ehanire said.

    He said that as at Monday, November 23, 2020, Nigeria  recorded 66,383 COVID-19 cases from 743,298 samples tested so far, with 62,076 persons successfully treated and discharged.

    He said that the nation sadly recorded 1167 deaths with a case fatality rate of 1.76%.

    The minister said that eight states accounted for 72 per cent  of confirmed cases, because they were testing and reporting steadily.

    According to him, of  the 1,235 confirmed cases reported in 22 states in the past week, Kaduna, Lagos, FCT, Oyo, Plateau and Ogun account for over 84 per cent.

    “We are thus not yet where we want to be with our testing rate. We shall continue to engage states to strengthen active case finding and testing, since we are committed to lowering case fatality rate to less than one per cent, to save more lives from COVID-19.

    “We are by no means out of the woods and must not become complacent.

    “Citizens with symptoms suggestive of COVID -19, or those who had contact with confirmed COVID-19  patients should present themselves for testing and if positive, comply with instructions for treatment,” he said.

    The minister said that the government was keeping vigilance, with regard to the exploding numbers of COVID-19 cases in Europe and America by strengthening the capacity for treatment, ensuring health workers were kept updated and ensuring the health facilities had adequate supplies of needed materials.

    He said that the government was also reviewing the entry protocols at the nation’s borders, to reduce risks of COVID-19 importation by sealing gaps in present protocol and responding to emerging threats.

    He said: “Strategies for capacity building continues, with nationwide training of intensivists, of which three trainers will emerge per state and FCT, who will  scale training down to nurses and other cadres of health workers.

    “The strategy to keep our health system ready includes ensuring oxygen availability at Points of Treatment and scaling up oxygen availability to state hospitals and PHCs,” he said. 

    Ehanire said that the government would analyse reports of isolation and treatment centres to identify gaps and challenges, the result of which would be  used to address thematic areas like monitoring of isolation and treatment centres, logistics, data management,  training and development and review of protocols and SOPs.

    He also advised against non-essential travels to high burden countries, due to increased risk of exposure to infection, especially of persons with known co-morbidities.

    The minister also said that the reported “strange deaths” in Delta, Enugu, Ebonyi, Benue, Bauchi and Kogi states,  turned out to be yellow fever outbreak, as confirmed by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), who were responding professionally with Rapid Response Teams to the outbreak.

    “Of 586 suspected cases, 40 were confirmed in laboratory tests, with 10 deaths as at last week,” he said.

    Ehanire said that in spite of increased COVID-19 alert, Nigeria still virtually hosted the global Stop Tuberculosis Partnership Board meeting last week, at which President Muhammadu Buhari delivered a virtual welcome message and the First Lady, Hajiya Aisha Buhari delivered a statement, as the TB champion.

    He said, “Nigeria’s response in the fight against TB suffered decline due to COVID-19 and a new strategy was needed to  step up performance.”