people
Archbishop Kaigama: Why Nigerians are afraid to accept coronavirus vaccine
File Photo Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, His Grace Most Revd. Ignatius Kaigama, on Sunday, said many Nigerians are afraid to accept the COVID-19 vaccine because they believe that the health crisis was being manipulated by some people. Kaigama, who stated this in Abuja during his homily at St. Jude’s Parish Zuba, however, urged Nigerians to disregard insinuations that the vaccine was not medically safe and affordable. He said, “Even though many today will seriously question facts about COVID-19 and fear that there is manipulation by some people, we know that the disease is real. “People very dear to us have died of coronavirus disease. There is no doubt that our world is currently sick, ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic. “The fear today is that the menace of Coronavirus will continue to be w...
Official: NDLEA seizes N1.4 billion worth of cannabis in Edo
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Edo State said it has uncovered suspected cannabis warehouses in Ukpuje forest in Owan West Local Government Area of the state. Buba Wakawa, the state commander of the agency, announced this at a news conference on Saturday in Benin City. Mr Wakawa said the village had four large warehouses with 233,778 kilogrammes of dried weeds suspected to be cannabis. The substance, according to him, has an estimated street value of more than N1.4 billion. Seven people believed to be running the cannabis trafficking syndicate have been apprehended, he said. “This is the largest single concentration of cannabis discovered by the command,” he added. Mr Wakawa said while the quantity seized weighed 2,249 kilogrammes, others weighing 231,529 kilogrammes w...
Senator Marafa moves to end Zamfara APC crisis
The APC crisis in Zamfara state might have been over as the Senator Kabiru Marafa faction meet in Kaduna to finalize moves of reconciling with the Abdulaziz Yari faction. This development followed the meeting convened by the Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abuja, where virtually all the APC stakeholders in Zamfara attended. Senator Kabiru Marafa, who addressed hundreds of his supporters on Saturday in Kaduna, said their resolve to reconcile was in the general interest of Zamfara state. He said “we are meeting with critical stakeholders of our faction (APC Mai Jama’a, which literally means APC of the grassroot) today in Kaduna.” “You will recall that the chairman of the caretaker committee of our party, His Excellency, Governor...
Northern elders restate total support for President Buhari, APC
Northern elders have restated their unflinching support to President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress, APC-led federal administration in the country. They have also appealed to Nigerians to be patient and believe in the Buhari government, saying the president was taking steps to addressing the current challenges especially insecurity confronting Nigeria. This came as they berated stakeholders in the region over what they described as their long silence in the face of unbearable criminal acts by herdsmen across the country thereby denting the image of the region. The elders under the umbrella of Coalition of Northern Elders for Peace and Development, in a statement on Saturday, however, commended renowned Islamic Scholar and preacher, Sheik Abubakar Gumi for taking bold st...
DJ Switch faults reopening of Lekki toll gate
Nigerian Disc Jockey, Catherine Udeh aka ‘DJ Switch,’ has kicked against the decision of the Lagos State Judicial Panel of Enquiry and Restitution for Victims of SARS to hand over the Lekki toll plaza to its owner, the Lekki Concession Company LLC. Newsmen had reported that the Judicial panel gave the company the nod to take over the plaza on Saturday and with this approval, the Lekki toll gate will commence operations. Reacting to this development, DJ Switch who gave a live recording of the shooting of protesters at the toll on October 2020, took to her Twitter account to express her opinion of the panel’s decision. She wrote: “We cannot allow operations to begin at the Lekki Tollgate when justice has not prevailed! “This is wrong! I have always known 4m the start The panel trolls screame...
Archbishop Sam Zuga: CBN lacks power to stop cryptocurrency
Archbishop Sam Zuga has reacted to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) new order on Cryptocurrency. The Apex bank had directed Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) and other financial institutions to close accounts of persons who are using their systems for cryptocurrency trading. Reacting to the shocking news, Archbishop Sam Zuga, the CEO of one of Africa’s fastest growing currency, Zugacoin expressed his disappointments at the CBN’s decision, while allaying the fears of Zugacoin investors and intending buyers. According to the Cleric’s message obtained from his social media page, “Cryptocurrency doesn’t need bank account to operate or exist.” He wrote, ”RICH PEOPLE WANT THE POOR TO REMAIN POOR. NOT AGAIN! This is is not news. It has been like this since the beginning of Cryptocurrency. But right n...
Nigerian government berates Amnesty International over call for service chiefs’ prosecution
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has berated the Amnesty International (AI) over its call for the arrest and prosecution of former Service Chiefs AI had in its recent report, called for the arrest and prosecution of the service chiefs at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged human rights violation in the prosecution of war against terror in the North-East region. Speaking on “Politics Nationwide,” a Radio Nigeria programme monitored by newsmen on Tuesday in Abuja, Mohammed said the global human rights protection organisation should “shut up because it had no proof of crimes committed by the Nigerian military’’. He said the country was fighting an unconventional war with insurgency that had no rule of engagement, adding that this was a double jeopard...
PTF: Nigeria has over 100 molecular laboratories
Nigeria can now boast of over 100 molecular laboratories for the testing of COVID-19 in the country, the Chairman of the Presidential Task Force (PTF), Boss Mustapha, has said. This is just as the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof Ibrahim Gambari, flayed the non challant attitude of people in his home state, Kwara, to the pandemic. The SGF who spoke Tuesday at the commissioning of State House Clinic Special Care Centre (COVID-19 Isolation Centre) stated that the number of molecular laboratories grew from two last year to more than 100 as at today and are spread across the 36 states of the federation. His words: ‘‘From just two molecular laboratories for the testing of COVID-19 in Nigeria, we now have over 100 molecular laboratories, public and private, across the 36 States of the Feder...
Rivers governor seeks end to external influence on NDDC
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has regretted the continuous interference of external forces who are not from the oil-rich region on the activities of Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, noting that the act frustrates programmes of the commission. Wike, however, condemned the posture of some ethnic groups in the region that behave as if the commission belongs to them, clarifying that NDDC was set up to cater for needs of the states of the region. The governor disclosed this in a statement signed by his Special Assistant, Media, Kelvin Ebiri, after the visit of the Interim Management Committee of NDDC to Government House, Port Harcourt, yesterday. The governor said people are abusing the entire region because the commission has wasted trillions of Dollars without lifting the mass...
Benue governor calls for arrest of ‘Fulani spokesman’
Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom has called for the arrest and questioning of a self-acclaimed spokesman of Fulani groups and All Progressive Congress, APC, chieftain, Garus Gololo, over alleged comments on Benue killings. Gololo had recently alleged that Governor Ortom was sponsoring attacks on Fulanis residing in Benue state. Piqued by the allegation, the governor demanded an apology and retraction. The Governor in a statement on Sunday by his Chief Press Secretary, Terver Akase, alleged that Gololo had not been new to such false and malicious statements after his request, to be appointed a Special Adviser in Benue state was turned down. “Since Governor Ortom turned down his request to be made Special Adviser preferring to appoint another Fulani man as his aide, Gololo has launched a ce...