The UN International Organization for Migration, IOM, has urged the Federal Government of Nigeria to prioritize youths’ interest in decision-making processes to advance migration governance.
Chief of IOM Mission in Nigeria, Laurent De Boeck, stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Wednesday in Abuja.
Speaking on the IOM 2022-2024 Impact Assessment on Migration, Boeck said that high internal and external migration persists despite the government’s efforts to tackle migration-related issues.
“We see statistically that there are still, unfortunately, young people who are suffering from migration abuse and end up in a very complex situation.
“They are stranded in another country and intercepted by police in those countries.
“Somehow mistreated or suddenly facing difficult issues, in terms of dignity and how to face their parents, siblings, and community, when they are forced to return not having succeeded.
“So, despite the fact we made progress with state and federal level support, priority on the youth must remain a priority to ensure they make informed choices going abroad.”
According to Boeck, the mission plans to prioritize regular pathways for tackling migration issues through more critical engagement with governments in 2025, stressing that such could be actualized by identifying regular pathways for the youth wanting to go abroad.
“Going shouldn’t be the panacea and the only solution. We want to engage the private sector employer in the country toward improving conditions of work and availability of employment.
“To ensure employability, skills acquisition, and vocational training through private sector engagement like Cisco, so we can do it wherever people are.
“We are focused on Borno for the time being, on people who have been displaced, we can increase their capacity to value and make them reintegrate into the society in Nigeria.
“This is another priority that will remain and my departure as head of mission is just on an individual basis,” he added.
Prioritize youths’ interest to advance migration governance – UN to Nigerian Govt
Prioritize youths’ interest to advance migration governance – UN to Nigerian Govt
Russian govt offers Moscow residents up to $22,000 to fight in Ukraine
Moscow authorities are offering a historic signing bonus to new recruits to fight in Ukraine, in an effort to bolster troop numbers.
CNN reports that the move is the latest indication of Russia’s struggle to recruit soldiers for its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
According to the report, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin has now announced a one-time bonus of 1.9 million rubles (approximately $22,000) for city residents who enlist in the military.
Sobyanin in the announcement said the significant financial incentive aims to attract new recruits and support President Vladimir Putin’s military efforts.
“Anyone taking up the offer would earn as much as 5.2 million rubles ($59,600) in their first year of service.
“Those willing to join the fight in Ukraine can also receive one-time cash payments of about $5,690-$11,390 for injuries, “depending on the severity,” and the family of a soldier killed in action could be paid $34,150”.
Russian govt offers Moscow residents up to $22,000 to fight in Ukraine
SGF, ministers hold emergency meeting today
The Federal Government has scheduled an emergency meeting for Wednesday (today) morning in response to a planned nationwide protest slated for August 1.
This comes after President Bola Tinubu pleaded with the organisers to shelve the protests and give his administration more time to execute people-oriented programmes.
A circular shared with The According on Tuesday by sources with knowledge of the meeting indicated that all the ministers, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume and the Special Advisers to the President on Policy and Coordination, Hadiza Bala-Usman; Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga and former Minister of Youth and Sports, Sunday Dare, were among those invited for the meeting.
The circular, signed by the Permanent Secretary of the Cabinet Affairs Office, Richard Pheelangwah, dated July 23, 2024, was titled, ‘Planned Nationwide Protest.’
It read, “I am directed to invite you to attend a meeting with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation on the above subject slated as follows: July 24, 2024, Time: 10 am prompt, Venue: Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation Conference Room.
“Attendance is mandatory. Please, accept the warm regards of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.”
The planned session is coming amid the clamour for nationwide protests from August 1 over the rising cost of living and the economic hardship in the country, which has blamed on the removal of fuel subsidy, the floating of the naira and other economic reforms implemented by the Tinubu administration.
The planned demonstration, inspired by the recent Kenya protests, has gained traction on social media, where it is trending under the hashtags ‘EndBadGovernance,’ ‘TinubuMustGo’ and ‘#Revolution2024.’
However, the Presidency and the police authorities called on youths to abandon the plan, describing it as ill-advised.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, on Tuesday conveyed the President’s plea to Nigerians in an interview with State House correspondents, after a meeting with Tinubu.
He said, “On the issue of the planned protest, Mr President does not see any need for that. He asked them to shelve that plan and he has asked them to await the government’s response to all their pleas.
“So, there is no need for a strike. The young people out there should listen to the President and allow the President more time to see to the realisation of all the goodies he has for them.”
Idris said the President took the protesters’ grievances seriously and was committed to ensuring a better future for Nigeria.
He mentioned the speedy passage of the National Minimum Wage Bill by the National Assembly and the recent approval and delivery of grains to state governments as evidence of the President’s commitment to the welfare of Nigerians.
Tinubu pleads
Idris added, “We also discussed the issue of the country generally and Mr President has asked me to again inform Nigerians that he listens to them, especially the young people that are trying to protest.
“For example, you saw that the Federal Government approve grains and rice for state governments, it was delivered to them expeditiously also.
“Like I said the other time, it is just the necessary first step; the government is going to continue in that direction, supporting them and ensuring that whatever interventions the Federal Government has put in place go to those that should benefit. It is very important that is being put out.
“The Federal Government is looking at strategies that every intervention would go directly to those who benefit from those interventions, not middlemen intervening along the way.”
The minister also said President Tinubu was passionate about the newly launched Student Loan Board, which aimed at ensuring that every eligible student had access to tertiary education.
“It is no longer a time for all of us to stay back and see our young able-bodied men and women that have passed the examinations to go to tertiary institutions that have not been able to do that because their parents are not able to pay for their fees.
“This is a thing of the past, the government is very desirous of ensuring that happens. You know the provision that was made to NELFUND (Nigerian Education Loan Fund). Already, we have excess of what is required today and the more the people are requiring that, the more the President will also give.”
The Federal Government also said it was perfecting a scheme to support young graduates who were yet to secure employment after completing their National Youth Service programme.
The initiative, it said, was part of the administration’s commitment to leave no one behind in its quest for progress.
“There is also the intervention the President is working out for those young men and women who have finished school, but who are yet to get employed, post-NYSC.
“For example, there is a scheme the government is perfecting now and that is also going to be pushed fast so that all those young men and women who have finished school, graduates of universities and polytechnics that are unable to get jobs, they will continue to be supported by the government until such a time that those jobs are offered to them.
“The whole idea is that no one is left behind, it’s an all-inclusive government and the President is determined to ensure that no one is left behind in this his attempt to march Nigeria towards progress,” Idris further assured.
Also, the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, said Nigeria had yet to recover from the 2020 #EndSARS protests, which resulted in the destruction of lives and properties across the country.
Speaking during a meeting with commissioners of police in Abuja, on Tuesday, Egbetokun noted that the country has had its fair share of violent protests with unpleasant consequences.
The IG added that the last #EndSARS protests aggravated crime rates and insecurity in parts of the country.
He said, “Before concluding this address, it is important I address an issue of urgent national importance which appears to have gained some momentum, particularly on social media, in the past few weeks.
“Some groups of people, self-appointed crusaders and influencers, have been strategizing and mobilizing potential protesters to unleash terror in the land under the guise of replicating the recent Kenya protests.
“While the Force acknowledges the right to peaceful protest as enshrined in our constitution, we must ensure that these protests do not snowball into violence or disorder. As a nation, we have had more than our fair share of violent protests, with rather dastardly consequences.
“The last #EndSars protest led to the destruction of public assets, including police stations, courts, and transport infrastructure, and the loss of several lives.”
He added, “Tales of sorrow, tears, and blood followed what was supposedly intended to be a well-intentioned exercise. Rather than lead to any positive outcome, #EndSars merely aggravated crime rates and insecurity in several parts of the country.
“Indeed, we are yet to fully recover from the huge economic losses and deep-seated psychological and emotional trauma inflicted upon our people by these protests.”
He urged the citizens to jettison the proposed protest, adding that the police has the responsibility to protect the citizens and their properties.
Egbetokun said, “Hence, our position is that the proposed violent protests are ill-advised and should be jettisoned fortuitously. We have the responsibility to protect properties and everyone, irrespective of their race, colour, ethnicity, or tribe, who are lawfully embarking on their daily activities.
“We will therefore not sit back and fold our arms to watch violent activities unleash violence on our peaceful communities or destroy any of our national critical infrastructure and assets again.”
The IG stated that measures were in place to ensure that any hoodlums attempting to disguise themselves as protesters will be apprehended.
Egbetokun warns
“We have mapped out plans to ensure that no individual or group succeeds in fostering a reign of terror and anarchy on other law-abiding and dissolving Nigerians.
“Consequently, I want to seize this opportunity to sound the note of serious warning to hoodlums who may want to take laws into their own hands in the name of protests,” he cautioned.
However, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, described calls for the nationwide protests as treasonable.
He accused the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi, and his supporters of masterminding the planned protests, alleging that “they are not democrats but anarchists.”
“If they understand the meaning of their hashtags, they will realise they are clarion calls for treason. Wanting to end an elected government is high treason. Wanting revolution is a call for a coup d’etat, which is also high treason,” the presidential aide said.
The Labour Party refuted the allegation that Obi and his supporters were behind the planned nationwide anti-government protests.
The National Publicity Secretary of the LP, Obiora Ifoh, in a statement, said it was wrong of Onanuga to link the LP and its national leader to the protest.
In an interview with The According, Ifoh said the Presidency and security agents must tread carefully as any threat to clamp down on the people might be counter-productive.
LP against violence
He said, “As a party, we are not going to support any violent protest. But there is nothing wrong with a peaceful demonstration. What is important is that people should be allowed to speak their minds because we are in a democracy.
“Demonstration is backed by the law of the land. Freedom of speech and freedom of association is guaranteed all over the world, including the United States, the UK, Kenya and others.
“We saw what happened in Kenya a few weeks ago where people spoke their minds peacefully and the Kenyan government did the right thing. Nobody is asking for violence. Everybody that goes into violent protests should be made to pay the price. But we are insisting on allowing Nigerians to speak their mind through peaceful means.
“However, if there is any plan by anybody to introduce violence from any side, even from the government, that can never be part of it. That is our stance.”
Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party, described peaceful protests as the constitutional right of Nigerian citizens.
Atiku, the PDP’s 2023 Presidential candidate, emphasised the legal basis for public demonstrations in a post on X on Tuesday, saying, “For the avoidance of doubt, the rights of citizens to protest are enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution and affirmed by our courts.”
He cited Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution, which “unequivocally guarantees the right to peaceful assembly and association.”
The former Vice President criticised attempts to discourage or prevent the protests.
He stated, “Chasing shadows and contriving purported persons behind the planned protests is an exercise in futility when it is obvious that Nigerians, including supporters of Tinubu and the ruling APC, are caught up in the hunger, anger, and hopelessness brought about by the incompetence and cluelessness of this government.
“It is deeply ironic that those who now seek to stifle these rights were themselves leading protests in 2012.”
The statement further called on the government to fulfil its responsibilities in safeguarding the citizens’ rights.
“A responsible government must ensure a safe and secure environment for citizens to exercise their constitutionally guaranteed rights to peaceful protest,” Atiku stated.
“Any attempt to suppress these rights is not only unconstitutional but a direct affront to our democracy,” he declared.
PDP Deputy National Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor, also cautioned the authorities against restraining the youths from protesting, describing it as a response to the absence of good governance.
In an interview with The According on Tuesday, Osadolor stated that the PDP did not support or oppose the planned protests, and urged Tinubu to resign if he was unable to resolve Nigeria’s problems.
The opposition party chieftain stated, “President Bola Tinubu should realise that when he led protests with the Save Nigeria groups during President Goodluck Jonathan’s tenure, there was no law and nobody prevented him from protesting peacefully.
“Again, if there was good governance, nobody would protest. It is the absence of good governance that Nigerian youths are angry about. The economy is in jeopardy, more Nigerians are losing their jobs as a result of failed government policies, and there is hunger and anger in the land. And months after the removal of the fuel subsidy, the government has failed to come up with cushioning measures.”
However, the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, described the planned demonstration as “political gimmicks” by those seeking to gain popularity.
Speaking during an inspection of the Apo-Karshi Road project on Tuesday, Wike stated, “The country was rotten, you know that the country was rotten, and then a government has just come to see what it can do, at least to move from where we are to a certain level. And you say that a miracle must be performed within one year?”
In the same vein, the Cross River State Government has urged residents of the state not to participate in the August 1 protest, citing the violence that trailed the #EndSARS protests.
The state Commissioner for Information, Dr Erasmus Ekpang, in a statement in Calabar, on Tuesday, said that though Nigerians were passing through a difficult time, the government at all levels was showing ‘’Enormous commitment to the wellbeing of the citizenry.’’
Also, a businessman and Egba High Chief, Yinka Kufile, cautioned against any violent protest. “Such an unreasonable move will always aggravate the challenge at hand, causing destruction of properties and avoidable loss of life,” Kufile stated this at a press briefing in Abeokuta.
- Additional report: Adebayo Folorunsho-Francis, Abdulrahman Zakariyau, Nathaniel Shaibu, Bankole Taiwo and Ted Odogwu
Hardship in Nigeria: Kaduna non-indigenes condemn planned protest
Non-indigenes in Kaduna State have cried out over the looming consequences of the planned nationwide protest against the increasing cost of living and economic hardship in the country.
They alleged that hoodlums hiding under the protest would loot their shops, market and business premises across the state.
The members of the Kaduna Non-Indigenes Forum, particularly the Igbo traders, said they decided to withdraw from the protest, because of past experiences in which once there was any demonstration or crisis situation in the state, the target was usually market stalls and business areas with extensive looting of food items; electronics and valuables.
According to a statement jointly signed by the Chairman, Chief Emeke Emmanuel Okafor and Secretary, Mr Adewale Peter Adelanwa, the Forum urged the citizens to shun the directive to embark on the planned protest, considering the fact that the Police Command in State recently banned all forms of unlawful protests.
Expressing concerns over the possibility of violence, citing past instances where similar protests in the State had degenerated into an escalated crisis, the forum called on the state government to deploy armed security operatives to red zones or identify flash points to secure lives and properties.
It described Kaduna as a volatile state, with non-indigenes most hit and suffering huge losses of lives and property during any crisis period over the years, adding that they can’t afford to lose anyone and valuables.
“It is our desire that, considering the past crisis experiences and strong possibilities of hoodlums hijacking the peaceful process, we strongly advise against any form of protest in Kaduna for now .We want to categorically state that we are part of the people facing the economic hardship, but we cannot afford to lose our hard earned investments and properties at this critical period, when Nigerians are currently battling one of the country’s worst inflation and economic crisis sparked by the government’s twin policies of petrol subsidy removal and unification of forex windows.”
“There was a report where the United Nations (UN) department of safety and security warned that the planned protests in Nigeria may be hijacked by groups with ulterior motives, hence our decision to appeal to citizens against joining the protest action,” the Forum added.
Hardship in Nigeria: Kaduna non-indigenes condemn planned protest
Katsina probes Hisbah over alleged torture, murder
The Acting Governor of Katsina State, Faruk Umar, on Tuesday, inaugurated a committee to investigate a viral video on social media showing the alleged torture of some individuals by the personnel of Hisbah.
Activities of Katsina State Hisbah Board were recently tagged by residents as anti-social and infringement of rights of people across the State.
Investigations by According Online revealed that on May 5, 2024, in the Katsina metropolis, a joint operation by Hisbah and Community Watch Corps at a wedding ceremony turned violent. The security forces fired shots into the crowd, resulting in the tragic death of Mallam Gambo Maipaci, a middle-aged vulcanizer.
An eyewitness, Mohammed Musa, told According Online that “immediately the Hisbah alongside CWC alighted, without much ado, they started shooting while those with knives too were seen chasing the crowd.
He said, “In the process, a bullet pierced through Mallam Gambo, the vulcaniser. They rushed him to a nearby hospital where he later died. Not only that, Hisbah has been infringing on our rights ever since its establishment by Radda’s administration.”
Inaugurating the committee on behalf of the acting Governor, Secretary to the Katsina State government, Abdullahi Faskari, read the terms of reference to include “investigate the veracity or otherwise of the viral video on the social media on alleged torture of individuals by personnel of Hisbah.
“Other allegations of victimisation and torture being perpetrated by the personnel of Hisbah; study the Law establishing HISBAH Board with a view to determining lapses (if any) leading to violations of fundamental human rights; identify Hisbah personnel who are involved in the act of victimisation and torture of people and recommend sanctions as appropriate.”
He said the committee will submit a report within 10 days from the date of inauguration of the Committee.
The Commissioner of Youth and Sports Development, Aliyu Zakari, will chair the committee, while others are Permanent Secretaries of Ministries of Religious Affairs, Justice, Internal Security and Home Affairs, among others.
NPFL U-17 camp opens in Abuja
The Nigeria Premier Football League U-17 camp has opened in Abuja.
TVN reports that the camp is aimed at grooming the players selected during the inaugural edition of the NPFL Youth League.
The exercise will run for two-weeks at the Goodluck Jonathan Athletes Performance Hostel inside the FIFA Goal Project of the MKO Abiola National Stadium.
30 players are currently taking part in the camping exercise.
They are made up of seven players from the NPFL champions, Rangers Youth Team, six from the NPFL runners-up Remo Stars Youth Team and five from winners of the maiden NPFL U17 Youth League, Rivers United.
The rest are four from Plateau United and Katsina United, two from Lobi Stars and one each from Abia Warriors and Sunshine Stars.
The players were picked from the five zonal qualifiers, which held in February at Lafia, Kaduna, Ado-Ekiti, Enugu and Port Harcourt as well as in Benin.
NPFL U-17 camp opens in Abuja
Taiwan shuts down as Typhoon Gaemi approaches
Taiwan closed schools, suspended the stock market, and declared a typhoon holiday Wednesday as Gaemi barrelled towards the island, bringing torrential rains and whipping winds to its northeast.
Typhoon Gaemi, packing sustained wind speeds of 190 kilometres (118 miles) per hour, also affected Japan and the Philippines — which announced government offices would close for the day.
It is expected to make landfall in northeast Taiwan by 10 pm (1400 GMT), and President Lai Ching-te urged everyone to “put safety first” during a morning emergency briefing.
“Gaemi is this year’s first typhoon to make landfall in Taiwan,” Lai said.
“I hope that through our joint efforts, impact from the typhoon can be minimised… I also encourage fellow citizens across the country not to go out unless necessary during the typhoon, especially not to dangerous places.”
The weather forced the self-ruled island to cancel some of its annual Han Kuang war games — which test preparedness for a Chinese invasion — but an anti-landing drill went ahead as scheduled on Wednesday morning on Penghu island, west of Taiwan.
Authorities evacuated more than 4,000 people living in precarious conditions in the northern regions, particularly Hualien — a mountainous area with high risk of landslides.
By afternoon, authorities said nearly 60 people were injured across the island from the typhoon’s impact.
Trains and ferry services were suspended and hundreds of international and domestic flights cancelled on Wednesday.
“We expect that the impact of the typhoon will be extended to four days (until Friday),” said Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration chief Cheng Jia-ping, adding that the public would need to “take precautions against heavy rain and strong wind”.
The typhoon is expected to pass through the Taiwan Strait and hit China by Thursday in the eastern Zhejiang and Fujian provinces, where authorities have issued a red storm alert.
In Taiwan’s northeastern Yilan county, massive waves crashed against the shore, while market vendors worked quickly to protect their stalls with canvas and shops had taped glass windows.
At a harbour crowded with docked vessels, a fisher surnamed Hsu tied down his boat at a typhoon shelter.
“I am worried about the typhoon — the boats are my tool for making money,” he told AFP.
In the capital Taipei, government offices were closed and streets emptied, while some stores sandbagged their entrances to prevent potential floodwater.
Taiwanese chip giant TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said it would maintain normal production and the firm “has activated routine typhoon alert preparation procedures” at all fabrication plants.
Taiwan is accustomed to frequent tropical storms from July to October, but experts say climate change has increased their intensity, leading to heavy rains, flash floods and strong gusts.
In neighbouring Japan, authorities of a southern island region of Okinawa urged residents to “exercise strong vigilance” against storms, high waves and floods.
In the Philippines, meanwhile, heavy downpours in Manila triggered widespread flooding and a landslide in a nearby mountainous province killed four people.
AFP
FG doles out N150,000 grant for small businesses in Jigawa
The Federal Government, on Tuesday, offered N150,000 grants to outstanding Micro Small and Medium Enterprises in Jigawa.
Vice-President Kashim Shettima announced the offer while launching the 4th edition of the Expanded National Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Clinic, in Dutse, Jigawa.
The expanded National MSME Clinics is one of the federal government’s strategies for ease of doing business in Nigeria.
This will be achieved through a series of business forums organised nationwide to provide on-the-spot solutions to challenges confronting MSMEs.
The first, second, and third editions were launched earlier this year in Benue, Ogun, and Ekiti States.
Shettima, who reiterated the federal government’s support to MSMEs, noted that the N150,000 grant “is an outright grant that does not require beneficiaries to repay.”
He said, “I am pleased to announce that His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has mandated that a grant of N150,000 each be awarded to outstanding exhibiting MSMEs at today’s event.
“Rest assured that this is an outright grant, and the beneficiaries will not need to repay it.”
Shettima said that as the foundation of the nation’s economy, the MSMEs sub-sector had remained a top priority of the Tinubu administration.
He noted that the MSMEs not only represent 96 per cent of all businesses in Nigeria but contributed more than 45 per cent to its Gross Domestic Product.
Shettima added that MSMEs provided a crucial lifeline to 80 per cent of the nation’s workforce.
“We recognise your essence, and that’s why we are establishing MSME clinics across the nation.
“These clinics will act as incubators for small businesses and offer alternative financing. They will also ensure that you have the support and resources you need to compete and thrive,” he noted.
He observed that the prosperity of small businesses was the prosperity of Nigeria and their downturn was the downturn of Nigeria.
Shettima urged the business owners not to harbour any fear, assuring that the Tinubu administration would not rest until each of them “is in a vantage position to access the support and capital made available for them.”
Earlier, Governor Umar Namadi thanked the federal government for providing dividends of democracy to the people of the state through the MSME Clinics and related projects scattered across the area.
Namadi urged the existing and aspiring small business owners in the state to take advantage of services provided through the clinics.
He described the initiative as a rare opportunity for operators in the sector in Jigawa.
He said the state government was aligning with the federal government’s Renewed Hope Agenda through the ‘Greater Jigawa Initiative’ that provides social protection services and projects for the people.
The high point of the event at the Malam Aminu Kano Triangle was the inspection of exhibition pavilions by MSMEs in the state and the commissioning of the Jigawa Retail Empowerment Shops.
Earlier on arrival in Dutse, Shettima commissioned the 10-hectare, Solar-powered irrigation farm at the Sumore Farm in Madobi.
He also commissioned 1,435 J-AGRO Agricultural Extension Agents and the distribution of agricultural inputs under the NG-CARES Fadama Programme.
NAN reports that the inputs will benefit more than 26,000 individuals, out of which 30 per cent are women.
Similarly, Shettima inaugurated the Palliative Shop initiative at Yalwawa before proceeding to the Dutse Ultra Modern market where he commissioned a 120KVA Solar Plant.
Shettima said the solar unit would ensure that the entire market receives a minimum of eight hours of electricity per day during market hours.
NAN
PROTESTS: Tinubu’s aide, Onanuga, dares Peter Obi over threat of lawsuit
Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Communications and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has insisted that he will not take back his words regarding allegations he made against the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi.
Onanuga had, in a statement on Saturday, accused Obi and his supporters popularly called Obidients, of being behind the planned EndBadGovernance protests scheduled to commence on August 1st across the country.
Apart from accusing the former Anambra State governor of sponsoring the planned nationwide protests against Tinubu’s administration, Onanuga also said Obi would be held responsible for any liabilities that arise from the public demonstrations.
After a few days of silence, Obi decided to slam a N5 billion lawsuit against Onanuga for defamation of character, as well as demanding a public apology to be published in four national newspapers.
In a letter addressed to Onanuga through his lawyer, Chief Alex Ejesieme, Obi described the presidential aide’s comments as defamatory to his reputation and personality.
READ ALSO:Utomi blasts presidential aide, Onanuga, over mass protest allegations
Part of the letter read:
“We have our Client’s mandate to demand that you retract the statement made in the publication and tender an unreserved apology to him within 72 hours of the receipt of this letter in not less than 4 National Dailies to wit: Vanguard, This Day, Punch and the Cable, including your verified “X” handle – “@aonanuga1956”.
“Our Client also is making an unequivocal demand for monetary damage of N5,000,000,000 (Five Billion Naira) only for the embarrassment your defamatory publication has caused him and his family.
“Take Notice that in the event of your failure to meet the demands set out above, our Client shall be constrained to approach a Court of competent jurisdiction and take legal action against you for defamation and libel. Be advised accordingly.”
But while reacting to the lawsuit in a post on X on Tuesday, Onanuga claimed he is yet to receive any letter from Obi’s lawyer and that he is not even scared of legal actions.
“I am still waiting for the letter from Peter Obi’s lawyer threatening a N5 billion suit and demanding an apology to Peter Obi over the planned ‘revolution’.
“Let me just tell Obi and his lawyer: I am not afraid of any legal action. We shall meet in court.”
The post PROTESTS: Tinubu’s aide, Onanuga, dares Peter Obi over threat of lawsuit appeared first on Latest Nigeria News | Top Stories from TVN.
UK PM faces grilling after suspending seven MPs
The United Kingdom Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, faces his first House of Commons grilling on Wednesday after suspending seven of his own Labour MPs for rebelling over a controversial welfare policy.
Starmer suspended the Labour rebels late Tuesday after they backed a motion demanding the removal of the contentious two-child limit on benefits introduced by the previous Conservative government.
Their votes supporting ending the cap — introduced in 2015 and which restricts payments to the first two children born to most families — is an early test of Starmer’s authority.
The new UK leader has warned there is “no silver bullet” to ending child poverty but acknowledged the “passion” of MPs who oppose maintaining the policy.
Starmer’s decision to suspend the whip from the group of left-wingers, which included former finance spokesman John McDonnell, was seen as a show of ruthlessness from his new administration.
The Labour leader took power just weeks ago after his party, in opposition for 14 years from 2010, won a landslide in the July 4 general election.
The victory followed a four-year struggle since he became party leader to shift Labour back to the political centre ground from the hard-left regime of former leader Jeremy Corbyn.
The party in 2019 experienced its worst election result in nearly a century under Corbyn.
Starmer will be on his feet in the Commons at 1100 GMT for his first weekly Prime Minister’s Questions session, when the politically charged two-child cap could feature.
Late Tuesday, MPs voted 363 to 103 to reject a Scottish National Party amendment to scrap the cap, giving the government a majority of 260.
However, in addition to the seven who voted with the amendment, more than 40 Labour lawmakers recorded no vote, highlighting the level of unease within the centre-left party at the measure.
Liverpool MP Kim Johnson said she had voted with the government “for unity” but warned that the strength of feeling within the party was “undeniable”.
“We moved the dial, the campaign will continue,” she said.
The SNP’s Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said Labour had “failed its first major test in government” by choosing not to “deliver meaningful change from years of Tory misrule”.
“This is now the Labour government’s two-child cap — and it must take ownership of the damage it is causing, including the appalling levels of poverty in the UK,” he said.
AFP