Senate
Senator Lawan distributes palliatives to thousands in Damaturu, Yobe North
President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has distributed food palliatives to thousands of residents in Damaturu and the six local government areas in Yobe North Senatorial District of Yobe State. The local governments are: Bade, Nguru, Jakusko, Yusufari, Karasuwa, and Machina, respectively. The gesture by Senator Lawan was aimed at providing relief to residents in Damaturu, the State Capital and his Constituency, who are affected by the lockdown policy following the spread of the COVID-19 disease. The distribution of palliatives was accompanied with the provision of infrared thermometers, chemicals for disinfection, spraying machines, hand sanitizers, face masks, hand gloves and boots. Also to be provided are Personal Protective Equipments (PPE) to some hospitals across the various local gove...
Presidency: No discrimination against any state
File Photo The Presidency says no state will suffer any such discrimination in dealing with security and all other matters on account of their political differences with the government at the centre. Presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, said this in a statement issued to announce a massive plan by the Ministry of Defence to launch “Operation Accord” in the North West and North Central States. Shehu said the plan, whose arrangements had been concluded, was a major military exercise aimed at flushing out insurgents from the contiguous states of Kaduna, Niger, Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto and parts of Kebbi State. He said while Tuesday’s Senate resolution was “perfectly in order”, it was important to state that, in his duty as Commander-in-Chief, President Muhammadu Buhari had already approved th...
Senator Lawan: Why privatisation of power sector must be reviewed now
President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has called for the immediate review of the privatization exercise of the power sector by previous administrations. Lawan gave the charge in his concluding remarks on a motion considered on the floor during plenary on Tuesday. The motion titled: “Power Sector Recovery Plan and the Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic” was sponsored by Senator Gabriel Suswam (PDP – Benue North East). The Senate President, who bemoaned what he described as the “inefficiency of Power Generating and Distribution companies” in the country, called for a review or eventual reversal of the terms of privatization. According to Lawan, parties involved in the shared purchase agreement with the federal government can only seek the intervention of the latter when sufficiently justified. “The...
National Assembly leadership meets finance minster over 2020 budget amendment
The Leadership of the National Assembly on Thursday met with the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning to be briefed by the latter on the plan by the Federal Government to amend the N10.59 trillion 2020 budget passed by the National Assembly in December last year. The meeting which had in attendance principal officers from both chambers, was presided over by the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila. The Senate President, in his welcome address told the Executive arm of Government to ensure that the interest of Nigerians remains protected in the proposed cut to the 2020 national budget. Lawan also expressed the willingness of the Federal lawmakers to expeditiously consider the proposed amendment to the 2020 budg...
Senate Votes to Allow FBI to Monitor Browsing History Without a Warrant
Remember all those memes about the FBI spying on you through your computer? Well, the joke is about to become a very scary reality. The US Senate, led by Republican Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell, has just given law enforcement agencies the power to access your internet browsing history without a warrant. The ground-breaking ruling came Thursday as part of a move to reauthorize the Patriot Act, which was originally passed in 2001 in response to the September 11th attacks and affords the government broad surveillance powers. Now, federal agencies such as the FBI and the CIA don’t need a probable cause in order to obtain your online browsing data. Democratic Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon and Republican Senator Steve Daines of Montana had proposed an amendment that would have successful...
Senator, CAN condemn Kajuru killings, sue for peace
The Chairman, Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions, Senator Uba Sani, and the Kaduna State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) have condemned the spate of killings in communities in Kajuru Local Government Area of the state. In separate statements issued on Thursday in Kaduna, they decried the ugly situation in the communities and sued for peace. In his statement, Sani, who represents Kaduna Central Senatorial District which include Kajuru, said he was “pained over renewed Fulani/Adara hostilities” in the area and called for restraint among the two groups. He noted that the Fulani and Adara communities have been living in peace for decades, adding that just like other communities in Nigeria and across the world, misunderstandings and cha...
Scores flee as bandits sack Niger communities
File Photo Bandits on Tuesday sacked three communities in the Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State. It was learnt that Galkogo, Farindoki and Rafin seyin communities, made up of about 1,500 people, were forced to abandon their homes as a result of the attack. A source close to one of the affected communities said it began about 12 noon. It was gathered the bandits, numbering about 60, blocked all the entry routes into the communities to prevent the people from escaping. “It is possible the bandits just wanted to show force and at the same time disrupt movement today, being our major market day in Zumba town. “Nobody could go to market today from these three communities because they blocked every road in and out as people scampered to safety, all the vehicles that were heading to Zu...
Center tasks Senate on thorough probe of allegations against NDDC
Pool Photo The Global Center for Good Governance, GCGG, has tasked the Senate on the need to embark on a thorough probe of the allegations leveled against the Interim Management Committee, IMC of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC. The group in a statement, yesterday, also affirmed that it is not interested in the likely outcome of the probe adding that if the allegations against the Minister for Niger Delta Affairs, Chief Godswill Akpabio, and the IMC are irresponsible, an unreserved apology should be extended to them. GCGG Country Director, Dr. Chris Udoh in the statement, said: “We salute both chambers of the National Assembly for rising to the challenges of exercising its oversight functions on the NDDC. “If the maelstrom of allegations against the Minister and the IMC turn o...
