Author: Adejuyigbe Francis

Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State on Thursday met with his predecessor in office and current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike. The two leaders met and exchanged pleasantries in Port Harcourt, the State capital at the rededication service of the 2023/2024 Legal Year. The event was held at the Saint Cyprian’s Anglican Church, Hospital Road in the state capital. It was the first time both politicians would be meeting in public since the political crisis in the state. Speaking at the event, Fubara pledged his loyalty to his predecessor, maintaining he (Wike) remains his principal. He described…

Senate President Godswill Akpabio has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to fire any head of government agency that fails to honour the invitations of the National Assembly committees. Akpabio stated this Thursday at the opening of a public hearing on the 2024-2026 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) at the Senate. In the MTEF/FSP, the federal government pegged the price of crude oil at $73.96; exchange rate at N700/$; oil production at 1.78 million barrels per day; debt service of N8.25 trillion; inflation at 21 per cent and GDP growth at 3.76 per cent. The aggregate…

Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, on Thursday presented a N273 billion budget for 2024 to the State House of Assembly. The budget, christened “Budget of Reconstruction and Recovery,” has an estimate of Two Hundred and Seventy- Three Billion, Nine Hundred and Eight Million, Nine Hundred and Ninety -Seven Thousand, Four Hundred and Ten Naira (N273,908,997,410). Speaking to lawmakers at the assembly, Adeleke said the figure is made up of recurrent expenditure of One Hundred and Sixty-Five Billion, Six Hundred and Fifty-Four Million, Nine Hundred and Seventy-Six Thousand, Seven Hundred Naira (N165,654,976,700) and capital expenditure of One Hundred and Eight Billion,…

The Lagos State Government has sealed illegal buildings at the International Trade Fair in Ojo. Announcing the development in a statement released via its official website, the state government disclosed that the exercise was carried out by a special enforcement team led by the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Oluyinka Olumide. According to the statement, Olumide, during the exercise, lamented that the International TradeFair was notorious for illegal constructions. The enforcement operation also impacted structures under construction at the trade fair complex, including those built on drainage alignments. The Commissioner criticized developers for their persistent refusal to budge despite…

The Akwa Ibom State Government has permanently closed down a Chinese firm, Golden Tripod Company, over environmental pollution. The government had ordered the relocation of the manufacturing company out of the city centre, along Ikot Ekpene road, Uyo, to a suburb over environmental pollution in August. However, the state Governor, Pastor Umo Eno, who frowned at the illegal reopening of the company despite the directive, ordered that it be closed down permanently. Speaking on Thursday in Uyo during the State Executive Council meeting, Eno said the company, accused of activities hazardous to human health and the environment, would remain shut…

No fewer than 23 ,000 pensioners in  Osun State will be enrolled into the Health insurance Scheme put in place by Osun State Government. Governor  Ademola Adeleke dropped this hints while flagging off pensioners’ enrollment for the Health insurance Scheme held in Osogbo yesterday. He said the government is registering all the pensioners in Osun State in line with his electoral promises to the good people of the state. He said:” Today I demonstrate in clear terms my commitment to the wellbeing of our retired citizens. “These are men and women who meritoriously served the state. They deserve all the support now…

The General Manager, Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), Mr. Tunde Ajayi, yesterday called on club owners to soundproof their walls so as to prevent noise from coming out from where they operate. Ajayi, who made this call at a one-day stakeholders’ parley on ember month noise pollution in Lagos, expressed concern that on the list of complaints made by the people, noise pollution was the highest and its effect on health is debilitating. According to him, “Noise is a problem in Lagos, especially on the Island, because some people own clubs and they have not complied with government regulations.…

The Naira depreciated against the US Dollar in the official market (Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market), the parallel market, and the Peer-to-Peer (P2P) segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Wednesday, November 8 as the inflow of forex gradually shrinks after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) cleared the country’s backlogs of matured FX futures contracts. The domestic currency lost N4.80 or 0.6 per cent against the Dollar in the spot market yesterday to close at N874.71/$1 compared with the previous day’s rate of N869.91/$1, amid an improvement in the supply of forex into the market. The value of…

In line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s commitment to address food security in Nigeria, the Federal Government, through the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation, has launched the 2023 Dry Season Irrigated Farming initiative through the Benin Owena River Basin Development Authority. The Honourable Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Engr. Prof. Joseph Terlumun Utsev, FNSE, FNICE, FNIWE, made this announcement during his visit to the River Basin Development Authority in Benin City on Wednesday November 8, 2023. The Honourable Minister revealed that, as part of the ongoing assessment tour of Agencies and projects under the Federal Ministry of…

The Nigeria Police Force has clarified that it has not withdrawn police escorts from VIPs who are legally and statutorily entitled to police escorts. In a statement released on Thursday in the wake of reports that earlier suggested that the Inspector General of Police, IGP Kayode Egbetokun, ordered that escorts be withdrawn from VIPs in the buildup to off-cycle elections, the police explained that withdrawing police escorts from VIPs would be unsafe and counterproductive. The police explained that the objective of withdrawing security details from Nigerians who were not statutorily entitled to police escort was to reassign the personnel to…

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday morning arrived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to attend Saudi-Africa Summit holding tomorrow, Friday. In the summit, President Tinubu will underscore Nigeria’s commitment to attracting more Foreign Direct Investment and expanding business partnerships, strongly reinforced by his administration’s ongoing domestic economic reforms. Also, discussions at the first Saudi-Africa Summit will revolve around supporting joint actions, enhancing political coordination, addressing regional security threats, and facilitating economic transformation through research and the local development of new energy solutions, all while bolstering cross-sectoral investment cooperation. The President was accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb Yusuf Tuggar; Minister of…

President Bola Tinubu shelves plan to increase electricity tariff and instead proposed nationwide power consumption subsidies, revealed Adebayo Adelabu, the Minister of Power. Adelabu announced the government’s intent to scrutinise the five-year licence extension granted to privatised power distribution and generation companies, which would have expired on October 31, 2023. Speaking at a press conference held in Abuja on Wednesday, the minister used the opportunity to read out the riot act, promising to dismiss any underperforming chief executives within the ministry. He said, “The power sector is an industry that is very sensitive to any leader. You cannot jump overnight…