Wednesday
Federal government okays N20.1 billion for Nigerian customs equipment
The federal government has approved a total of N20,114,002871 for the acquisition of various operational equipment for the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS). The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, disclosed this to State House Correspondents after the federal executive council (FEC) meeting presided over by Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo at the presidential villa on Wednesday. The Minister said further that Council also approved the sum of N539,277,673 for the construction of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) building at the Ilupeju Medium and Small Taxpayers’ office in Lagos. On the breakdown of contracts approved for Customs, the Minister said a total of 427 operational vehicles, worth N14.55 billion and nine assorted gunboats worth N5,564,002,871 were a...
Jailbreaks: Nigerian Army to train NCoS armed squad
The Nigerian Army has accepted to assist the Nigerian Correctional Service in giving refresher training to its armed squad personnel. This is sequel to the increasing spate of invasion of custodial centres by armed hoodlums and the consequent jailbreaks. The acting Controller-General of Corrections, John Mrabure had, in a letter to the Chief of Army Staff, requested assistance in training the armed squad personnel in the low-intensity engagement of armed non-state actors who have made jail attack a regular feature. A statement on Wednesday by the NCoS spokesman, Francis Enobore, a controller of corrections, said the training, which was expected to commence soon, will cover relevant tactical components to strengthen the capacity of Correctional Service armed guards to engage invaders adequa...
UEFA confirms Rome as Euro 2020 host city
Rome’s Stadio Olimpico has been “fully confirmed” as a venue for Euro 2020 matches after the Italian government guaranteed the presence of at least 25 per cent of fans, UEFA announced on Wednesday. Rome was one of four of the 12 host cities threatened with having its matches removed because it could not give assurances that spectators would be allowed into grounds given the ongoing Covid-19 situation. “The authorities have guaranteed at least 25 per cent of the stadium’s capacity will be filled,” European football’s governing body said. “As a result, UEFA considers Rome to be fully confirmed as a venue for the tournament.” Three other cities — Munich, Bilbao and Dublin — have until April 19 to provide UEFA with additional information on their plans for spectators. Rome is set to host the o...
Payroll fraud: Gombe approves N1.49 billion for biometric system installation
The Gombe State Government has approved the sum of N1.499 billion for the supply and installation of biometric attendance system to check payroll fraud in the state’s civil service. Muhammad Magaji, the state’s Commissioner of Finance and Economic Development, stated this, on Wednesday, while addressing newsmen after the 12th State’s Executive Council meeting. Magaji said the initiative tagged “Gombe state Integrated Payroll Payment Gateway and Human Resource Management Information System’’ would help to reduce, if not eliminate, payroll fraud. According to him, when installed, the system would increase transparency in the payment of salaries and pensions, as well as effectively manage the state’s human resource capacities at both state and local government levels. He stated that the initi...
Official: TETFund spends N120 billion on academic staff training since 2008
Academic Staff from public institutions across the country have so far accessed over N120 billion for training, within and outside Nigeria, from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) since its inception in 2008. The Chairman, Board of Trustees of TETFund, Alhaji Kashim Imam, disclosed this on Wednesday when he led a delegation of the fund to the University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID) on an assessment visit. Imam said for 2021 alone, the fund was investing N25 billion on academic staff training and development. Imam said the team was in the university for a verification visit and to assess the impact of the training programmes, through interaction with management and beneficiaries. He noted that the fund had to suspend the sponsorship of academic staff attending international conferences, ...
Nigeria’s senate president, others bag NIS fellowship award
Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, and the governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, were on Wednesday in Abuja presented with the Honourary Fellowship Award of the Nigerian Institution of Surveyors (NIS) alongside a former Minister of Defence, Brig-General Mansur Dan-Ali (rtd) and the Emir of Nasarawa, HRH Alh. Ibrahim Usman Jibril, at the institution’s 2021 investiture ceremony. Also, 24 members of the NIS, including Surveyor-General of the Federation (SGoF) Surv. Taiwo Samuel Adeniran and Registrar/CEO of the Surveyors Council of Nigeria (SURCON), Surv. Kabir Mohammed Mamman, were confirmed Fellows of the institution. Appreciating the honour, Senator Lawan said though right now he is in the political sphere, he felt drawn back to his professional root by the award, assuring ofevery suppo...
Nigerian faces 10 years in jail for obtaining U.S. citizenship using fake identity
The United States authorities have charged 48-year old Modestus Nwagubwu Ifemembi to court over fraudulent claims he provided to obtain the US citizenship 10 years back. Ifemembi, who secured his US citizenship in 2001, has worked as a Federal providers’ officer with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for seven years. According to a report by the US Department of Justice (DOJ), Ifemembi, originally of Nigeria, was arrested in Maryland on Wednesday, April 7, 2020, on a federal charge that he obtained U.S. citizenship under a false name. It added that he made false statements to acquire U.S. citizenship, in addition to employment with USCIS. The report disclosed that Ifemembi was charged under the false name of Karl Nwabugwu Odike Ifemembi. His arrest followed investigatio...
JAMB scraps use of email for UTME, DE registration
File Photo The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has said the use of email is no longer required for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and Direct Entry (DE) registration processes. The Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, who made this known while addressing newsmen on Wednesday in Abuja, said email will only be requested at the successful completion of the registration by candidates to access information on the exam. He said as from Thursday, April 15, 2021, candidates will no longer be required to provide any email address during registration, adding that consequently, candidates will have the options to access their profile during or after registration. He said the options include “mobile APP on the candidates’ phone, on the 55019 option (being desig...
Reports: Governments ‘gender blind’ to coronavirus’ ‘greater impact’ on women
Governments are putting women and girls at greater risk of the health and socio-economic impacts posed by the coronavirus pandemic, two global studies released Wednesday show. They called on leaders to prioritise gender equity in their response to the health crisis. Two studies, one from a global research partnership led by the Global Health 50/50 Project in London and another by the Center for Global Development (CGD) in Washington, were released Wednesday to coincide with World Health Day that highlight major failings by national governments to consider sex or gender in their COVID-19 policies. Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, several studies have pointed to the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on women. Many women have shouldered a heftier burden taking on more unpa...
Police nab ‘cultists’ in Anambra
The police in Anambra say it has arrested two suspects involved in a rival cult fight in which four people were killed in Awka on Wednesday. DSP Toochukwu Ikenga, the police spokesman in Anambra, disclosed this in a statement made available to reporters on Thursday in Awka. Ikenga gave the identity of the arrested suspects as Victor Ikechukwu, 30; and Ifeanyi Uyanne, 35. He said that a Toyota Corolla car and a military camouflage were recovered from the suspects. According to the spokesman, the suspects were arrested following Wednesday’s shoot-out at Tempsite, Okpuno, Awka. Mr Ikenga said the Commissioner of Police Monday Kuryas had advised parents/guardians to watch over their children/wards and prevent them from engaging in cultism and associated vices. Get more stories like this on Twi...
Missing Nigerian student found dead in UK pond
A Nigerian student at Oxford Brookes University, Richard Okorogheye, has been found dead after two weeks of searching. According to his mum, Evidence Joel, the 19-year-old left home on March 22 and was reported missing two days after. Mrs Joel had repeatedly pleaded for information on her son’s whereabouts. “All he said to me was ‘mummy, I’m going to see my friend’. I trusted him, I had no doubt or no reason to ask him further questions. “It’s my baby, it’s my treasure. He’s my oxygen, he’s my crown. He’s everything to me, he’s the reason I live, the reason I exist. Right now I’m empty, there is nothing to look forward to. He’s taken my breath away from me,” she told Sky News. But on Wednesday, the Metropolitan police, in a statement, confirmed that a corpse found in a pond Monday has been...
Senate faults PTF conversion to PSC, laments doctors strike
The Senate Committee on Health said on Thursday that the Presidency should have consulted the National Assembly before converting the the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 to the Presidential Steering Committee. The panel also expressed surprise that the National Association of Resident Doctors embarked on strike despite the fact that their demands had been met by the Federal Government. Chairman of the Senate panel, Yahaya Oloriegbe, stated these during a public hearing on a bill seeking to establish a Federal Medical Centre in Mubi, Adamawa State. Oloriegbe said, “I was listening to the radio yesterday (Wednesday) and I heard that the PTF (on COVID-19) has been converted to a steering committee. “We were not consulted in terms of what will be the operational mechanism and so on. “I am ...