The Northern Elders Forum has dissociated itself from a statement on withdrawal of “food to South blockade” issued by its publicity director, Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed. The position of the Forum is contained in a statement by its directors of mobilization, Nastura Shariff and made available to ASHENEWS on Saturday. According to the Forum, the statement by Baba-Ahmed was written without due consultation and therefore his personal view. “I write in my capacity as a Director in the Northern Elders Forum and one of its foundation members in regards to recent media statement by Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, NEF’s spokesperson purportedly on…
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The Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams has called on the six governors of South-West states to inject at least 15 per cent of their annual budget into agriculture. Speaking with newsmen on Friday in Lagos against the backdrop of the recent food crisis in the zone, Adams said such allocation would make huge impact on sustainable food production in the region. He urged the six state governments in the South-West zone to adopt the Rwanda model by engaging experise in their agricultural sectors. “Investment in agriculture will provide employment, enhance IGR, provide food security, reduce urban congestion, and enlarge the…
The ECOWAS Court of Justice has ordered the Nigerian government to pay over N53 million to a German national, Mr Martin Gegenheimer, for unlawful arrest and detention. The Court’s Communications Department disclosed this in a statement on Friday in Abuja, following the judgment of the court on the matter on Thursday. According to the statement, the court ordered the payment of N53 million as special damages to Gegenheimer for various losses suffered. It explained that the costs were incurred while Gegenheimer was under unlawful arrest and detention by the Nigerian Immigration Service. ”The cost related mainly to hotel expenses incurred…
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says revision of electoral constituencies and adjustment of their boundaries are joint responsibilities of the commission and the National Assembly, NASS. The commission made the clarification in a statement by Mr Festus Okoye, INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, in Abuja on Friday. Okoye said that the clarification became necessary following recent media reports regarding the commission’s responsibilities in the division, revision and adjustment of electoral constituency boundaries in Nigeria. He noted that the division of the country into electoral constituencies for Senate, House of Representatives and State Houses of…
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has recorded three deaths and registered 371 new cases of COVID-19, taking the total number of infections in the country to 158,042. The NCDC disclosed the figures on its official Twitter handle on Friday. The public health agency recorded three COVID-19 deaths, raising the total fatalities in the country to 1,954. The NCDC disclosed that the new infections occurred in 19 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in the last 24 hours. It stated that Lagos State reported the highest number of infections with 101 cases, followed by Rivers with 54 and…
The Osun Police Command has rescued seven people kidnapped on Ibokun-Osogbo Road on Tuesday. A statement made available to newsmen on Saturday in Osogbo by the police spokesperson, SP Yemisi Opalola, stated that the effort of the state Commissioner of Police and other security agencies led to the release of the kidnapped people. “The victims were released due to the pressure mounted on the abductors by the police and other security agencies. “The victims will soon be reunited with their families,’’ the statement said. The Commissioner of Police, Mr Olawale Olokode, appealed to residents to collaborate with the police to…
A Defense witness in the ongoing N2.1 billion money laundering trial of Abdulrasheed Maina, former Chairman of defunct Pension Reform Task Team on Friday, failed to provide any document in support of the claims of recovery of humongous sums he had made in his evidence before Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja. The witness (DW1) Ngozika Ihuoma, who claims to be a management consultant and politician, has been in the witness box for 4 consecutive court sessions. Led in evidence by counsel to the 1st defendant Olawole Abiola, he regaled the Court with tantalizing tales of recovery…
Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court Abuja on Friday, adjourned the trial of money laundering case against former senior special assistant on public affairs to Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Doyin Okupe till April 26 and 27, 2021 for continuation. At the resumed trial on Friday, March 5, 2021, counsel to the first defendant, G.K Gadzama, SAN, led in evidence, the fifth defence witness, Ehimare Edokwa Harold, an Assistant Manager at the Murtala Muhammed Airport Branch of Zenith Bank Nigeria limited, Lagos. The witness told the Court that he was mandated to appear and present the mandate card and statement…
First Bank of Nigeria Ltd has unveiled First Global Transfer (FGT) to promote international transfer of funds across its subsidiaries in sub-Saharan Africa. FirstBank Chief Executive Officer, Dr Adesola Adeduntan, disclosed this in a statement made available to newsmen on Friday. Adeduntan said that the FGT initiative was specifically designed to ensure safe, timely and improved efficiency in the transfer of funds across the network of FirstBank subsidiaries in Africa. He noted that the bank’s subsidiaries in Africa include FBNBank DRC, FBNBank Ghana, FBNBank Gambia, FBNBank Guinea, FBNBank Sierra Leone and FBNBank Senegal. He said that the FGT was not…