Dennis

No fewer than 1,200 leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Labour Party (LP) on Wednesday joined the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Bayelsa State. The defectors were announced by the Special Adviser to the Bayelsa State Governor on Political Matters, Chief Collins Cocodia, during the inauguration of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council at the Peace Park in Yenagoa. Prominent among the defectors are former Director-General of the APC Governorship Campaign Council in 2019, Prof. Seiyefa Brisibe, Dr. Steven Ogola, Mr. Lucky Amadi, Chief Ebikiri Akpolo and Mr. Edwin Oweibi. Others are Adolphus Agwuo, Steven Adaka, Abaka Tamaraebi, Kankada Ebipabowei, Chief Ebikitin Diongoli, Adagbayan Hammoh, Kingsley Mirin and thousands of their followers. Speaking on behalf of the defectors, Prof. Brisibe and Dr. Ogola said men of good conscience cannot remain in the APC as the party lacked leadership and integrity. They said their time in the APC was like being in the wilderness for

The Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba, has warned men of the Nigeria Police Force to be apolitical as 2023 general election draws near.   IGP Alkali handed down this warning in Umuahia, Abia State after inaugurating various projects in the state including Divisional Police Officer’s quarters in Eastern Ngwa Divisional Headquarters, Obingwa, Ubakala Divisional Headquarters, Police Children’s School in Obingwa LGA and Special Protection Unit, at the Zone 9 Headquarters, Umuahia.   Addressing his men, IGP Baba warned, “You must be apolitical, diligent, and firm. You don’t introduce primordial loyalty and other sentiments in your policing network, capacity, and ability.   ''This is a period culminating into the election day and from the election day, we still move forward to after the election.   “Be a good ambassador of peace. The service is ready to partner with you. Members of the public are also going to support you when you are doing the right thing.   “Government is app

Owners of foreign-registered private jets, comprising top business moguls, leading commercial banks and other rich Nigerians, have dragged the Federal Government to court seeking to prevent the government from grounding their planes for allegedly refusing to pay import duty on the jets.   The Federal Government had last November approved the decision of the Nigeria Customs Service to ground 91 private jets belonging to some wealthy Nigerians over their alleged refusal to pay import duties running to over N30bn.   As such, following a presidential approval, the NCS in a letter directed the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, and the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency to ground the affected private jets with immediate effect.   But owing to issues bothering on inter-agency rivalry and disagreements, the relevant government agencies could not ground the private jets.   However, in the past few months, the Customs has been making underground moves

The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on Tuesday, said weapons being used for the war in Ukraine and Russia were filtering into the Lake Chad and Sahel regions.   He, therefore, called for increased collaborative actions by border control agencies and other security services to stop the circulation of illegal weapons in the region.   “Weapons used in the war in Ukraine and Russia are also beginning to filter into the region,” Buhari told leaders at the Lake Chad Basin Commission’s 16th Summit of Heads of State and Government.   This is according to a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, titled, ‘President Buhari calls for tighter security around borders in the Lake Chad basin with the proliferation of weapons from the Russia-Ukraine war.’   Buhari, who ended his tenure as Chairman of the Summit of Heads of State and Government, said although the threat from terrorists in the region had been relatively brought un

   Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has said it will take two days to replace the 65,000 Permanent Voter Cards burnt during an attack on the commission’s office in Ogun State.   The INEC boss said this on Tuesday in Abeokuta, the state capital, during an on-the-spot assessment of the burnt office in Abeokuta South.   Hoodlums had on November 10 attacked the Abeokuta South Local Government Area and destroyed over 65,000 uncollected PVCs, among others.   Yakubu, while speaking with newsmen after assessing the extent of damage, described the arsonists as “undemocratic and retrogressive elements.”   He said, “Whatever materials we have lost, the commission is making efforts to replace them. We lost 65,699 PVCs; we want to assure all those that have not collected their PVCs who may have been affected that we are making plans to reprint the PVCs quickly and to bring them back to Abeokuta South for people to collect and vote.   “We want to assur

  Not less than 2,000 residents in Edo State will benefit from free renal tests to tackle the increase of renal health challenges, courtesy of the state government.   The Chief Medical Director of Edo Specialist Hospital, Professor Ileogben Sunday-Adeoye, stated this on Tuesday when he disclosed that a one week programme tagged ‘Edo Health Impact’ would begin on Wednesday.   He said the event, which would have Governor Godwin Obaseki as the special guest, was meant to build capacity, improve patients’ care as well as raise community awareness and improve community health.   The CMD said, “At the event, we will also have experts come and talk to us about colon cancer and the reason to treat it early.   “Cancer of the colon was thought to be a problem of the Caucasians because of their diets but now we are beginning to have it among our people both the young and aged.   There is a looming crisis of renal disease in the state but the hospital has made provision subject to the governor’s p

  The management of a popular Abuja health facility, Alliance Hospital, has said that it had done  64 kidney transplant surgeries with 97 per cent success since it took off some years ago.   The hospital was responding to allegations by the family of a man who donated a kidney to his uncle and accusing the hospital of alleged organ harvest.   A man was seen in a viral video on Instagram and Facebook pages of some blogs accusing the hospital of allegedly harvesting the organ of his younger brother.   The man who was seen in the viral video outside the hospital building claimed his younger brother was a minor that cannot consent to an organ donation.   “This hospital does not have any right to remove a 17-year-old kidney and sell it. I am taking this issue up and will report it immediately to human rights officials”, he had threatened.   But the Chief Consultant Surgeon and Medical Director of Alliance Hospital, Dr. Christopher Otabor, told Journalists in Abuja that the reports linking i

Retirees from primary schools across the 25 local government areas of Delta State on Monday barricaded the state seat of power over non-payment of pension for the past seven years.   The protesting retirees, who wore black attire, carried placards with different inscriptions, such as ‘Wicked Okowa, pay us our pensions,’ ‘Okowa you are owing the living and the dead,’ among others.   They also stopped vehicular movement into government house, shouting “only Okowa will address us.”   One of the retirees, Mr Patrick Lori, said they were being owed since 2015.   He said, “We are protesting here today because we are tired of fake promises; what we need now is action and we will keeping coming here.   “Is it a crime to work for the government for 35 years? As I speak to you now, about 68 retirees have died from 2015 to date.”   Another retiree, Mr Smaiia Isitual, said the N2.5bn the state claimed to have released for pensioners of 2014 and 2015 had not been received.   The retirees rejected c

  The Federal Government has approved the commencement of a 14-working-day paternity leave for federal civil servants.   The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation Dr. Folasade Yemi-Esan, said this on Monday in a circular with ref no: HCSF/SPSO/ODD/NCE/RR/650309/3, dated 25th November, 2022.   The circular titled, ‘Computation of Leave Based on Working Days and Approval of Paternity Leave in the Public Service’, said that this was in line with the provisions of the Public Service Rules, 2021 Edition.   “Government has also approved Paternity Leave for serving male officers whose spouse delivers a baby. The period of the leave shall be fourteen working days. The leave shall not be more than once in two years, and a for maximum of four children.   ''Where the family of a male officer adopts a child under four months old, the officer will similarly enjoy Paternity Leave for a period of fourteen working days,” Yemi-Esan said.   She said that request for such leave shall be acc

  The Academic Staff Union of Universities on Monday has warned Nigerians that if the Federal Government kept withholding their pay, a new crisis in the country’s universities would transcend break out.   It urged interested parties and well-meaning Nigerians to pressure the Federal Government into paying its members’ withheld eight-month salaries across the nation.   The University of Ilorin, ASUU Chairman, Prof. Moyosore Ajao, raised the alarm at a special congress of the local branch held at the university’s main auditorium on Monday.   Ajao’s speech was read by the Secretary of the union, Dr AbdulGaniyu Olatunji.   The university lecturers had staged a solidarity rally within the university’s campus before returning to the auditorium, where they addressed newsmen on ‘Casualisation of Intellectual Workers in Nigeria: Prelude to Our Response.’   Ajao said, “Members of the public are hereby sensitised and put on notice again that a fresh crisis, which will surpass all previous ones, i

  The All Progressives Congress and the Osun State House of Assembly have tackled the new Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, over the six Executive Orders he signed on Monday.   They condemned the new governor for reversing some appointments and job recruitments made by his predecessor, Gboyega Oyetola.   In his first official action as governor, Adeleke who was elected under the Peoples Democratic Party platform announced the sacking of alleged 12,000 workers employed by his predecessor.   He also deposed three monarchs and allegedly ordered the withdrawal of the certificate of return of local council chairmen elected under the APC in the October 15 local government elections conducted by the State Independent Electoral Commission.   The decision to withdraw their certificates of return was contained in a statement signed by the OSIEC Executive Secretary, Adedapo Adejumo, in Osogbo on Monday.   The PUNCH reports that Justice Nathaniel Ayo-Emmanuel last Friday nullified the council