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Nnamdi Kanu’s younger brother suspended the group’s sit-at-home

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Nnamdi Kanu’s younger brother suspended the group’s sit-at-home

The Indigenous People of Biafra’s leader, Nnamdi Kanu’s younger brother, has suspended the group’s sit-at-home order for observation every Monday in the south-east.

Kanunta Kanu’s announcement came just hours after the IPOB announced that a protest would begin on August 9 in order to pressure the Federal Government to release Mr Kanu, who is currently detained for treasonous felony.

Kanunta said in a statement on Sunday that the planned sit-at-home directive had been postponed to allow students in the geopolitical zone to take part in the National Examination Council.

He stated that the exercise would be rescheduled at a later date.

Kanunta said the group made the decision after hearing from well-intentioned individuals and groups both inside and outside the region.

Read also: Lalong expresses his regret for the attacks on Plateau communities

“We decided to shift grounds over the sit-at-home order after hearing pleas from well-meaning individuals and groups within and outside Biafra land that we consider the fate of our children who will be involved in the NECO Exam,” he said.

“Having recognized the academic deprivation that the already marginalized Biafra students who entered this year’s NECO would face, the IPOB decided to postpone the sit-at-home order until a later date, allowing the students to take their exams.

“Allowing the sit-at-home protest to take place as planned in the face of the NECO Exam would be assisting Biafra’s enemies in inflicting more injuries on her children.

“As a group fighting for the liberation of her people from oppression by her enemies, we realized that not suspending the sit-at-home order to allow Biafra students to take their exams would amount to assisting the said enemies in inflicting more harm on our children.

“The sit-at-home order has been suspended for the benefit of Biafra students taking the NECO Exam this year. IPOB members around the world and Biafrans in general should wait for further instructions in this regard.”

Banditry: Acknowledge Buhari’s failure, the PDP tells Masari

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Banditry: Acknowledge Buhari’s failure, the PDP tells Masari

The People’s Democratic Party has urged Katsina State Governor Aminu Bello Masari to “stop his empty lamentations over the state’s persistent banditry.”

Instead, the party urged him to “be on the side of the people by boldly declaring that President Muhammadu Buhari and his All Progressives Congress Federal Government have failed.”

“By not shedding his parochial politics to join other patriotic Nigerians in voicing out to President Buhari, the truth of his failures, Masari is doing a great disservice to his people, who have fallen victims to persistent banditry, owing to President Buhari’s incompetence and inability to secure the nation,” the PDP claimed.

Read also: Lalong expresses his regret for the attacks on Plateau communities

The party’s spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan, said this in a press statement titled, “Banditry: Don’t Be Hypocritical, Tell Buhari He Has Failed, PDP Counsels Masari…Cautions Buhari to Shape Up or Ship Out.”

“It is indeed a distressing and colossal mark of failure that President Buhari’s home state, Katsina, is being taken over by bandits, who are now overrunning local governments, killing, rapping, maiming, and pillaging innocent citizens, while Mr. President, who promised to lead the fight against insurgency from the fronts, continues to recede deeper into the safety and cohesion of the country, while Mr. President, who promised to lead the fight against

“It is deeply disturbing that, while Mr. President is engaged in pointless rhetoric in Abuja, bandits are having a field day in persistent attacks on ten local government areas, killing and robbing innocent citizens on a daily basis,” Governor Masari said.

“While it is well known that President Buhari has failed, particularly in his three-pronged focus of security, economy, and anti-corruption, it is regrettable that his administration has remained aloof, cold, and unconcerned as bandits ravage our citizens in most states, particularly in Mr. President’s home state. What a disaster!

Read also: Breaking: Capt. Hosa Okunbo, a billionaire businessman, died at the age of 63

“President Buhari and Governor Masari must understand that history will not be kind to them or their party, the APC, for their incompetence, insensitivity, and failures in governance, which have wreaked havoc on our beloved country.

“For the umpteenth time, the PDP calls on President Buhari to wake up to his office’s responsibilities, pick himself up, and lead from the front in the fight against insurgents, as he promised during his campaign. Either he needs to change his ways or he needs to leave.

“However, our party urges Nigerians, particularly the people of Katsina state, not to succumb to despair over President Buhari’s failures, while charging our valiant troops to remain strong as we work tirelessly to rescue our country from the APC’s misrule, which has resulted in the escalation of our country’s woes.”

Covid-19: The FG has decided to postpone the second round of vaccinations

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Covid-19: The FG has decided to postpone the second round of vaccinations

The Presidential Steering Committee on Covid-19 has announced that the second batch of Covid-19 Moderna vaccine doses donated by the US government will be postponed in order to intensify the virus’s fight.

In a statement issued yesterday in Abuja, the Director Press, PSC, on Covid-19, Willie Bassey, confirmed this.

The exercise was originally set to start on Tuesday, August 10, 2021, at the Federal Medical Centre in Jabi, Abuja.

The PSC announced the start of the virus’s second phase of vaccination after receiving four million doses of moderna vaccine donated by the US government through COVAX.

Joe Biden, the US President, pledged in May to share 80 million vaccines with countries around the world to protect the world’s most vulnerable people. Africa is expected to receive 25 million of this total.

The first shipments have arrived in Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Ethiopia, and now Nigeria.

The exercise was postponed, according to Bassey, due to unforeseen circumstances.

“This is to announce the postponement of the national flag-off of phase 11 vaccination program earlier scheduled for Tuesday this week due to unforeseen circumstances,” the statement reads in part.

It stated, “A new date will be communicated.”

The government confirmed the third wave of the pandemic in the country, following an increase in Covid-19 cases linked to highly transmissible delta variants.

Read also: In Kwara, seven wedding guests, the pastor, and five others were kidnapped

According to data from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the country had 177,615 coronavirus cases and 2,185 fatalities as of Aug. 7.

Despite the fact that the country began immunizing its citizens against Covid-19 in early March, only 3,938,945 people have been vaccinated across 36 states and the FCT.

2,534,205 people have received their first dose of the vaccine, and 1,404,205 have received their second dose of the vaccine.

Nigeria began vaccination with the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, which is given in two doses. After the first jab, a person is required to return for a second jab a few weeks later.

The government announced the end of vaccination of the first batch after approximately four million doses of vaccines delivered through the COVAX facility were exhausted.

COVAX is a United Nations-backed initiative that aims to provide vaccines to up to 20% of the populations of participating countries.

Read also: In Kwara, seven wedding guests, the pastor, and five others were kidnapped

The Nigerian government set an ambitious goal of vaccinating 40% of the country’s over 200 million people by the end of 2021, and 70% by the end of 2022, in order to achieve herd immunity against the virus.

“The vaccine roll-out will be in four phases, beginning with health workers, frontline workers, the Covid-19 rapid response team, the laboratory network, policemen, petrol station workers, and strategic leaders,” said Dr. Faisal Shuaib, executive director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, NPHCDA.

 

The Senate is not in a position to create new states, according to a spokesman

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The Senate is not in a position to create new states, according to a spokesman

The Senate claims it is not in a position to propose or recommend the creation of new states unless Section 8 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic, as amended, is followed.

Senator Ajibola Basiru, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, said in a statement yesterday.

The statement, titled ‘Senate Committee Did Not Propose Creation of 20 New States,’ was issued in response to reports that the Senate Committee on Constitution Review, chaired by the Senate Deputy President, Ovie Omo-Agege, had recommended the creation of 20 new states in addition to the 36 currently in existence and Abuja.

Read also: For striking doctors, the FG enforces a no-work, no-pay order and opens attendance registers

According to Basiru, it is up to the Independent National Electoral Commission to decide where a new state should be established.

“Far from recommending the creation of any state,” the statement says, “the Senate committee, while acknowledging receipt of several bills proposing the creation of new states, decided that it is not in a position to recommend or propose the creation of any state unless there is compliance with the provisions of Section 8 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic as amended.”

Lalong expresses his regret for the attacks on Plateau communities

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Lalong expresses his regret for the attacks on Plateau communities

The recent attacks on communities in his state by suspected herdsmen, according to Governor Simon Lalong, are regrettable.

Despite the government’s efforts to address the problem, the governor lamented the state’s growing insecurity, noting that attacks on communities have continued unabated.

This was stated by Lalong during the launch of four books published by COCIN President, Rev. Dacholom Datiri, at the church headquarters in Jos yesterday.

He was responding to recent attacks by herdsmen on communities in the state’s Bassa and Riyom LGAs.

Maritime security: NIMASA will begin removing wrecks from Nigerian waters

“The recent attacks in Bassa and Riyom LGAs were regrettable, coming so soon after the state government spent a large sum of money to purchase and distribute 50 patrol vehicles and 200 motorcycles to security agencies,” Lalong said.

“Now is the time for everyone to act as a first line of defense by gathering intelligence, passing it on to security agencies, and taking all necessary precautions to avoid vulnerability.”

Four notorious bandits are killed by troops in the Kaduna forest valley

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Four notorious bandits are killed by troops in the Kaduna forest valley

In the Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State, four notorious bandits were killed in a valley known as ‘Maikwandaraso.’

According to reports, the military used a ground and air assault on the four identified bandits’ enclaves to neutralize them.

The names of the bandits who were neutralized were Alili Bandiro, Dayyabu Bala, Bala Nagwarjo, and Sulele Bala, according to Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs Samuel Aruwan, who confirmed the news yesterday.

Read also: Maritime security: NIMASA will begin removing wrecks from Nigerian waters

Several other bandits, he claims, were eliminated in the same air and ground offensive cycle.

Maikwandaraso is close to Karshi village and shares borders with the infamous Kawara and Malul forests, both of which are located in the same Igabi LGA and have been identified as a hotbed of bandit camps and hideouts.

According to the Commissioner, Governor Nasir el-Rufai was ecstatic when he received word of the military’s valor in defeating the bandits.

In Kwara, seven wedding guests, the pastor, and five others were kidnapped

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In Kwara, seven wedding guests, the pastor, and five others were kidnapped

In two kidnapping incidents that occurred between the Kwara-Ekiti axis on Saturday evening, a total of 13 people were abducted, including seven wedding guests, a pastor, and his wife.

According to police sources, seven guests on their way back to Ilorin in a Sienna bus from a wedding in Ekiti State were kidnapped at a point between Oke-Onigbin and Omu-Aran in the Irepodun Local Government Area of Kwara State around 5.35 p.m. on Saturday.

A pastor and his wife, as well as four other people, were involved in the second incident, which occurred between Ekan-Meje in the Oke-Ero Local Government Area of Kwara State and Ekiti State.

SP Ajayi Okasanmi, the Public Relations Officer for the Kwara State Police Command, confirmed the two kidnapping incidents, but added that nine of the victims had been rescued.

Read also: Nasarawa APC is investigating the land commissioner for insubordination

In a press statement issued late yesterday, Okasanmi said that the joint security men rescued four of the seven victims of the first kidnapping incident that occurred between Oke-Onigbin and Omu-Aran, while only the pastor and his wife have yet to be rescued in the second incident.

“Reports of two kidnapping incidents were received simultaneously by the Kwara State Police Command on Saturday 07/08/2021 at about 1735hrs to the effect that, along Okeonigbin/Omuaran highway and Ekiti / Ekan Meje axis, six armed men emerged from the bush and stopped a Siena bus in transit from Ekiti state on its way to Ilorin and the seven occupants of the vehicle were marched,” the statement said.

“The Command quickly dispatched its tactical units, which included anti-kidnapping and anti-cultists units, as well as local hunters and vigilantes, while police patrols on the routes were alerted,” said the statement.

“The abductors were immediately chased into the bushes, and four of the seven abducted people were rescued; efforts to rescue the remaining three are still underway.

“Using similar tactics by operatives, those abducted in the Ekanmeje/Ekiti axis using the same modus were equally rescued, leaving only a pastor and his wife, whom the Command is frantically trying to rescue unharmed,” Okasanmi said.

For striking doctors, the FG enforces a no-work, no-pay order and opens attendance registers

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For striking doctors, the FG enforces a no-work, no-pay order and opens attendance registers

The Federal Government, FG has ordered all chief medical directors in teaching hospitals across the country to open attendance registers in order to prevent doctors participating in the National Association of Resident Doctors’ strike from receiving pay.

Dr. Uyilawa Okhuaihesuyi, the President of NARD, confirmed the order yesterday.

“The government is determined to implement the no-work-no-pay order,” a senior health official told PUNCH. In all hospitals, attendance registers will be opened as of tomorrow. Everyone will be paid based on attendance.” Recall that NARD resumed its strike on Monday last week after the Federal Government promised to meet its demands, which included payment of the residency fund, Covid-19 allowance, hazard allowance, and outstanding salary shortfalls.

Before resuming their strike on Monday, the doctors claimed that the Federal Government had failed to implement the Memorandum of Understanding that had been signed with them after their previous strike had been suspended for more than 100 days.

Despite the efforts of Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, to ensure that the Medical Residency Training Funds are included in the supplementary budget, they claim that the Federal Government has failed to distribute the funds to their members.

Read also: The White House intends to build a new State House Clinic within the Villa

The strike brought tertiary hospitals across the country to a halt, as consultants left to care for patients were overwhelmed by the sheer volume of patients.

The Federal Government announced on Friday that it had invoked Section 43 of the Labour Act’s “no work, no pay” rule.

Chris Ngige, the Minister of Labour and Employment, stated this in an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today, a current affairs program, saying that the government had communicated its position to the leadership of NARD.

“We are aware that they are going to bring down registers tomorrow,” the NARD President said in an interview with PUNCH yesterday. We are aware that they have discussed this with the chief medical directors. We are aware that they have sent a circular to all teaching hospitals about no-work, no-pay.

“We don’t know if they’ve responded to our ultimatum. What have they done to persuade the younger generation to return to work when they have not responded to our Memorandum of Action signed on March 29 and April 9? So, these are the major concerns.

“You’re in government, and you want to discipline a child. You beat the child, but you still hold his mouth shut so he doesn’t cry out. You had 116 days since you signed a time-bound Memorandum of Action with a six-week deadline, but it will be 117 days tomorrow and you have done nothing. Will you continue to bully your child because you haven’t paid them in months and want to impose a no-work, no-pay policy?

“He (Ngige) has already written to the chief medical directors of hospitals, and we are aware that they are already invoking the no-work-no-pay policy,” Okhuaihesuyi said.

Okhuaihesuyi said the alleged threat by the Federal Government to fire NARD members if they do not resume this week was a positive development.

The President of the NARD argued that anyone hired by the federal government would automatically become a member of the organization.

Read also: Amnesty International: When Human Rights Campaign Is Misplaced

He also wondered where the government would find doctors to replace the 16,000 NARD members who had already completed their training.

“I don’t see how they’re going to replace someone who’s been in training for three to five years with someone who knows next to nothing. “Anyone who is hired as a resident doctor is automatically a member of our organization,” Okhuaihesuyi said.

He also mentioned that his organization had been invited to meet with the House Committee on Health on Monday (today).

“The chairman of the House Committee on Health, Dr Tanko Sununu, has invited us to meet with him in Abuja on August 9, 2021,” he said.

Maritime security: NIMASA will begin removing wrecks from Nigerian waters

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Maritime security: NIMASA will begin removing wrecks from Nigerian waters

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has completed preparations for the start of a major wreck removal operation in Nigerian waters.

Dr. Bashir Jamoh, the Agency’s Director-General, made the announcement during a Ministerial retreat hosted by the Federal Ministry of Transportation (FMOT) in Lagos.

Dr. Jamoh also stated that plans had been finalized for the recycling of wrecks and derelicts recovered from the waters in collaboration with the Bayelsa State Government and the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), which already has a wrecks recycling foundry in Lagos, with the ultimate goal of creating wealth from waste while providing jobs for Nigerians.

Minister of Transportation Chibuike Amaechi, speaking at the retreat’s opening, said the two-day event was organized to assess the performance of the Ministry’s agencies in order to improve the efficiency of service delivery to Nigerians.

“We are here to assess the progress made so far in the maritime sector in order to improve the efficiency of our operations,” Amaechi said.

Read also: Private doctors will honor Odebiyi, and Maduka at the Centenary Anniversary Award

“This administration has accomplished a lot in areas like rail transportation, port operations, maritime safety, and security, among others, and our goal is to do more to enhance productivity,” the NIMASA DG said.

He also revealed that the Agency’s automation push had resulted in the integrated use of technology in the Certificate of Competency (CoC) verification process, resulting in a decrease in manual verification.

“In 2020, the number of manual CoC verifications dropped from 4,112 in 2019 to 2,750, a 33 percent decrease in manual certificate verification,” Jamoh said. In 2020, there were 9,723 online verifications.” On the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF) disbursement, Jamoh said NIMASA was working with the Ministry to resolve all grey areas and ensure smooth distribution of the Fund.

Nasarawa APC is investigating the land commissioner for insubordination

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Nasarawa APC is investigating the land commissioner for insubordination

Dr Salihu Alizaga, the Nasarawa State Commissioner for Lands and Survey, has appeared before an All Progressives Congress (APC) investigative committee in Nassarawa Eggon Local Government Area to answer questions about his alleged insubordination to the party leadership.
While answering questions from the committee and petitioners in Nassarawa Eggon on Sunday, Alizaga admitted that he called a meeting on July 18 without the consent of the party because he wanted the party to grow.
“The governor gave me orders to coordinate party activities in the Nassarawa Egggon local government area,” says the governor.
“I called for the meeting on July 18th, 2021, as the governor’s representative in the local government area, because I want to have all inclusive, more electorally valuable stakeholders in order to move the party forward,” he said.

Read also: Breaking: Capt. Hosa Okunbo, a billionaire businessman, died at the age of 63

He claimed that the purpose of the meeting he convened had nothing to do with the party’s chairmanship candidate.
The commissioner also denied receiving any meeting invitation from the Nassarawa Eggon/Alizaga ward, which allegedly led to his suspension.
“No one has ever invited me to meetings in my ward, whether by phone calls, letters, or messages,” he said.
Also speaking, Mr Ibrahim Ebbe, the Deputy Chairman Youth Leader, and other Nassarawa Eggon/Alizaga ward executive members insisted that the commissioner had been invited to three ward meetings in the area but had failed to attend any of them.
They claimed that the commissioner’s insubordination prompted them to write a letter of complaint to the state party leadership.
Earlier, the chairman and secretary of the investigative committee, Alhaji Mohammed Ubangari and Mr Bala John, expressed their gratitude to the commissioner and the party executive members for accepting their invitation.
They stated that the committee would be guided by the party constitution in order to complete their task with a positive report.

Read also: In Jigawa, 700 supporters of the PDP and SDP have joined the APC

The committee urged all parties involved to continue to provide them with the necessary support and cooperation in order to help them resolve the problem.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the commissioner was suspended on July 22 by Mr Malle Moses, Chairman of the APC Caretaker Committee in Nassarawa Eggon Local Government Area, for alleged insubordination to the party leadership in the area.
Moses announced the suspension while appointing a seven-member committee to look into the allegations leveled against the commissioner by local APC officials.
He stated that Alizaga’s suspension was to allow for a thorough investigation into the matter.

“As you can see, the APC leadership of Nassarawa Eggon/Alizaga ward, which is his ward, has filed a formal complaint/petition against Hon. Dr. Ahmed Salihu Alizaga,” Moses said.

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