The Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, on Sunday said cutting down of a tree either in private compound or in a public place without permission would attract a fine of N100,000. Mrs Riskatu Abdulazeez, the Director, FCTA Department of Parks and Recreation, made this known during a tour of the sites where flamboyant trees are planted within the city centre, in Abuja. She noted that once any tree planted in private houses had grown, it would become a public property that requires the permission of government before its removal. She explained that government was making efforts to mitigate the effects…
Author: Abdallah el-Kurebe
A media expert, Dr Piman Hoffman has condemned the recruitment of unprofessionals by some media organisations, saying the attitude has dented the image of journalism profession in the country. Hoffman, an Assistant Director with African Climate Reporters, noted that some private media organisations now recruit “phone callers, quacks and other unprofessionals into the field of journalism”. Hoffman made the observation when he spoke to newsmen on Sunday in Kaduna on the World Press Freedom Day. He advised such media organisations to stop the embarrassing action in order to save the profession. Hoffman urged the Nigeria Union of Journalists and other…
The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) has called on prospective investors to express interest in purchasing 100 per cent shareholding in any of the five power generation companies constructed under National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) listed for sale. It said this in a document signed by the Director-General, Mr Alex Okoh, and made available to the media on Sunday. The document said that it was in continuation of the ongoing reforms of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry and consistent with the Nigerian Electric Power Policy and Electric Power Sector Reform (EPSR) Act, 2005. It also said that the Board of…
The massive resurgence of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Brazil, Turkey and India has prompted the Nigerian government to impose fresh measures aimed at preventing further importation of the coronavirus into the country. The Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) on COVID-19, chaired by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Boss Mustapha, said in a statement on Sunday in Abuja that the new measures included a ban on entry of non-Nigerian passengers who had travelled to the three countries in the last 14 days. Brazil, Turkey and India recorded a combined 2,670 deaths as of May 1, 2021.…
President Muhammadu Buhari has reiterated the commitment of his administration to freedom of the press, and urged media professionals to wield such freedom responsibly. Mr Femi Adesina, the President’s spokesman, in a statement on Sunday in Abuja, said Buhari’s reassurance was contained in a message to mark this year’s World Press Freedom Day. The statement quoted Buhari as describing freedom of the press as “an irreducible minimum in a democracy that will flourish”, adding, however, that the freedom must be used responsibly. “Everything that is permitted must have rules of correctness, particularly in a polity seriously challenged as ours now.…
Our next-generation may not know what our generation knew, may not have what we had. We have failed to give them what the previous generation gave us. The peace and tranquillity we knew, the comfort and ease we had, the security and brotherhood we enjoyed, the careful laying of the foundation for our future we witnessed – all these we have failed to transfer to the next generation because we have thrown away the baton. The problems of Nigeria are such that you get lost when talking about them. Where do you start from? The betrayal of confidence by leadership…
The Special Task Force, Operation Safe Haven (OPSH) in Plateau and parts of Kaduna and Bauchi States has rescued a kidnapped victim. The victim, Mr Kelvin Eze, is a student of King’s College, Gana Ropp, Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau, who was kidnapped on April 29. Maj. Ibrahim Shittu, the Media Officer of the taskforce disclosed this in a statement on Sunday in Jos. He added that the victim was rescued by the soldiers on May 1, at about 8:35 p.m. Gunmen invaded the college in early hours of Thursday, April 29, and abducted one of the students.…
President Muhammadu Buhari has parted ways with an influential Catholic cleric, who previously described Buhari as “messiah’’ because the president refused to give him a juicy contract. In a week the president endured the pain of bloody events in the country, controversial cleric, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka proclaimed that Buhari should resign or be impeached because of current unwholesome developments nationwide. On April 30, the Presidency expressed shock over “the sudden U-Turn of Father Mbaka, a die-hard supporter of President Muhammadu Buhari, who is now asking the president to resign or be impeached because he failed to secure contracts from…
The Counsellor and Head of Cooperation, High Commission of Canada in Abuja, Kevin Tokar has commended the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) in Nigeria and the Project Steering Committee (PSC) of the Global Affairs Canada (GAC) project. He gave the commendation at the 2021 PSC meeting in Abuja, aimed at reviewing and validating the project’s 2020 annual report and the 2021 Annual Work Plan and Budget, and address gaps if any. The GAC-funded project is a three-year programme (2018-2020) aimed at “Addressing Gaps in Gender Based Violence (GBV) and Harmful Traditional Practices (HTPs) in Nigeria.” Tokar, who noted that even though…
A political stalwart and activist, Dr Nnamdi Onochie, has again called on the federal government to restructure Nigeria, to guarantee national peace and cohesion, ahead of the 2023 general elections. Speaking in an interview in Abuja on Sunday, Onochie said that current challenges could be addressed by listening to the relentless voices of the people. The outspoken Onochie argued that “the apparent refusal of the federal government to restructure the country has contributed immensely to demands for self-determination by ethnic nationalities’’. He pleaded with the current administration to take the bull by the horn by doing the needful to put…