government
Another batch of 255 Nigerians stranded in Saudi Arabia arrive Abuja
Another batch of 255 Nigerians stranded in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. This was disclosed by the Nigerians in the Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) via its official Twitter handle @nidcom_gov, adding that the returnees arrived via Saudi Air Flight SV3405 at about 1.00pm time Monday, 29th March. According to the commission, they will proceed on quarantine at the Federal Capital Territory Hajj Camp for 14 days in line with the reversed COVID-19 protocols by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19. The Nigerian government has evacuated nearly 2,000 of its nationals from the Kingdom in the last three months even as more returnees are expected in subsequent days. In February, Nigerian government received a batch of 420 returnees from S...
DPR: Market forces should determine gas prices
File Photo The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has advocated that market forces should be allowed to determine gas prices to guarantee the security of supply and demand of the commodity. Mr Sarki Auwalu, the Chief Executive Officer, DPR, disclosed this while presenting keynote address at the pre-summit conference on “Decade of gas’, in Abuja, on Monday. Auwalu said that the right and market-based pricing of gas was critical, as it would assure producers of returns on their investments. He also outlined five critical levers for gas development, especially as Nigeria moves to leverage its abundant gas resources for national growth, diversification of the economy and to use gas as the fuel for economic transformation. According to him, the levers include availability, accessibility, a...
Governor Makinde: Nigeria’s redemption will begin from Oyo
Governor of Oyo State, ‘Seyi Makinde, has declared that God will redeem Nigeria from its current challenges of insecurity, ethnic and religious tension starting from Oyo State. The governor, who dwelt on the uniqueness of figure seven, said that God will use the seventh election in the Fourth Republic coming up in 2023 to get Nigeria to perfection. According to him, the fact that Oyo State currently produced the Seventh President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), as well as the Worldwide President of the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) is a sign that God loves Oyo State and would redeem the country starting from Oyo. A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Taiwo Adisa, indicated that the governor also challenged Nige...
Yiaga Africa demands effective monitoring, evaluation of coronavirus vaccination
A Civil Society Organisation, CSO, Yiaga Africa, on Monday, demanded effective monitoring and evaluation of COVID-19 vaccination and also strengthening the nation’s health sector. This was stated by the Director of Programmes, Yiaga Africa, Cynthia Mbamalu, while speaking on the need for the vaccination to be guided by certain principles that would bring about the inclusion of all citizens in the process. Mbamalu said: “The conversation is important to ensure that the whole process of vaccination is guided by certain principles and every aspect of society is catered for. In the implementation of vaccines in Nigeria, we need to deploy effective monitoring and evaluation systems that will help document how well we have done, document the learning, and how we can improve on the system. “Beyon...
Presidency: Atiku Abubakar can’t extricate himself from Nigeria’s rot
The Presidency has attacked former Vice President Atiku Abubakar for his comment on the Bloomberg report that Nigeria may emerge the country with the highest unemployment rate in the world. The position of the Presidency was stated by the Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, on a Channels Television programme: Sunday Politics, on Sunday. Adesina said the recent report released by the National Bureau of Statistics that 23.2 million Nigerians are unemployed was not new. He said: “You will recall that in the build-up to the 2015 elections, when the APC (All Progressives Congress) was campaigning, the figure that was used by then candidate Buhari was that a minimum of 30 million Nigerians were unemployed, particularly youths, and that his governme...
CAN: Skewed appointments polarising Nigeria
File Photo The National President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Reverend Dr Supo Ayokunle, has said the polarisation being experienced was triggered by “skewed appointments” made by leaders of the country. The lopsided appointment, according to him, is polarising the nation on daily basis. He said the worsening security situation has shown that our leaders are at a loss of what to do. This came just as the new nations of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, Bishop Francis Wale Oke frowned at those calling for negotiation with bandits who kill, kidnap, rape and demand huge ransom saying the government has to put its feet on the ground to prosecute them as the law demands. Rev Ayokunle said this at thanksgiving service marking the election of Bishop Francis Wale Oke as the 7th n...
NANS flays ‘commercialisation’ of tertiary institutions
The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), has decried an alleged clandestine move to commercialise public tertiary institutions stressing that it might deprive many the access to quality education. The NANS National President, Com Sunday Asefon, said this on Thursday at the Lagos State University (LASU), while speaking on the decadence of the Nigerian educational system. Asefon in a statement entitled : ‘Need to Perceive Education As a Social Service’ , and made available to newsmen in Ado Ekiti, on Friday, said any developing nation that views education from the prism of commercialisation would fail in giving the youth the right attitude to life. The students leader described education as a veritable weapon to rid the society of ignorance, criminality, and building of future l...
Thousands flee to Thailand after Myanmar army’s air strikes on villages
About 3,000 villagers from Myanmar’s southeastern Karen state fled to Thailand on Sunday following air attacks by the army on an area held by an ethnic armed group, an activist group and local media said. Myanmar’s military launched air strikes on five areas in Mutraw district, near the border, including a displacement camp, the Karen Women’s Organization said. “At the moment, villagers are hiding in the jungle as more than 3,000 crossed to Thailand to take refuge,” a statement from the group said. Thai PBS reported about 3,000 had reached Thailand. Thai authorities did not immediately respond to requests for comment. At least two soldiers from the Karen National Union were killed, said David Eubank, founder of the Free Burma Rangers, a relief organisation. “We haven’t had air strikes ther...
Sudan and rebel group sign agreement on separation of religion and state
The Sudanese government and a major rebel group from its southern Nuba Mountains on Sunday signed a document which paves the way for a final peace agreement by guaranteeing freedom of worship to all while separating religion and the state. The signing is viewed as a crucial step in efforts by the power-sharing government headed by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan to reach accords with rebel groups across the country and end decades of conflicts that left millions displaced and hundreds of thousands dead. Last year Sudan signed a peace agreement with many groups, including from the Western region of Darfur. But a key faction of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu, did not join in last year’s agreement because it stuck to its demand that Sudan dispens...
Sokoto conducts council polls amidst boycott by APC
Council elections went on in Sokoto on Saturday despite a boycott by the main opposition party, All Progressives Congress. According to the State Independent Electoral Commission, 10 political parties participated in the election but only PDP agents were seen in most of the polling units observed by newsmen. Some political observers opined that other participating parties were not financially buoyant to recruit and deploy agents to the polling units. However, there was low turnout in some of the polling units observed, especially in the state’s metropolis while in other areas. Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, who cast his vote in his hometown of Tambuwal, noted that, periodic local government election was fundamental to a sustainable democracy. “We all know that local council election is a ...
Ibrahim Gambari: We must not assume President Buhari alone can solve our problems
Ibrahim Gambari, chief of staff to the president, says Nigerians should not assume that the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration can solely solve the problems affecting the country. Gambari stated this on Saturday when he represented the president at the 2021 annual lecture of Arewa House, in Kaduna. Delivering the president’s message, Gambari called on Nigerians to put the nation first in all their dealings, as was done by the country’s founding fathers. He said good leadership will provide a platform for the nation to overcome its challenges and unlock the huge potentials of the country. Gambari also noted that there is a need to improve coordination and collaboration among leaders at all levels of government, adding that all hands must be on deck to steer the country towards the path of ...
Yoruba monarchs warn Nigerians to stop making inflammatory comments
Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, and the Oluwo of Iwoland, Oba Abdul-Rasheed Akanbi, yesterday, cautioned Nigerians against making inflammatory statements that could ignite ethnoreligious crisis in the country. The monarchs gave the warning during the visit of Oba Akanbi to the Alaafin’s palace, in Oyo. Asking those stoking ethno-religious crises to have a retrospective look at the past, the monarchs advised that anything that could fan the embers of discord should be avoided. They said: “Nigerians must exercise restraints; they must bear in mind Nigeria’s long history of ethno-religious conflicts, as people use this type of deep-seated animosity in their speech precisely because of the culture of impunity which reigns in the country.” “What is more, hate speech is an agent provocateur ...