Niger State Police Command has urged members of the public and other security agencies in the state not to panic at the sound of sporadic gunshots.
The Command explained that it will embark on a shooting range practice on 18th July, 2024, between the hours of 6am-6pm, behind the Nigeria Air Force Base, Maikunkele Minna.
The Police Command made this disclosure in a statement signed by the Public Relations Officer, SP Wasiu Abiodun, which was made available to newsmen in Minna.
“We wish to inform members of the public, sister security agencies and other critical stakeholders in the state that the Police Command will embark on a shooting range practice slated for 18th July, 2024 between the hours of 6am-6pm, behind the Nigeria Air Force Base, Maikunkele, Minna.
“We appreciate your usual cooperation and understanding with the Police and other security agencies, as we always strive to be proactive and responsive in serving the public better,” the statement said.
Shooting range practice: Niger Police urges public, sister agencies not to panic
Shooting range practice: Niger Police urges public, sister agencies not to panic
Abiodun to compensate Lipede market fire victims
The Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, has promised to compensate shop owners at the Oba Lipede International Market, Kuto, Abeokuta, who lost valuables during Saturday night’s inferno.
Abiodun gave the assurance when he toured the market to ascertain the level of destruction caused by the fire incident on Tuesday
He said that enumeration would be carried out to determine the losses incurred by shop owners at the market to immediately provide succour to those affected and ensure that they can quickly come back on their feet.
The governor commended the state fire service for their timely intervention, which prevented the fire from extending to other parts of the market.
“A lot of our people have sustained losses; those that are selling fabrics, food items, those that are tailors, those that are selling dried food items, flours, banana, plantain, yam. But, thankfully, our fire service team responded on time. The emergency response system was activated.
“All hands are on deck. So, what we are going to do is to first enumerate the losses that have been incurred so we can provide a cushion to them. It is most unfortunate that this has happened at this time, the time when most of them are struggling. So, we feel their pains and identify with them, and I have told them they are not alone. I will not leave them alone.
“As a responsible government, we are going to step in and provide the needed support for them at this time so they can continue to do their businesses,” he said.
Abiodun said the government would study the report on why the fire started and look at how best to prevent future occurrences.
He added that he has directed the Bureau of Electrical Services to provide better illumination and lighting for the market built over 40 years ago.
The fire incident which reportedly started at about 10:15 pm on Saturday, was said to have been caused by the explosion of a generator being powered by gas and owned by a businessman in the market.
The Commissioner for Special Duties, Funmi Efuwape on Sunday, told newsmen that 15 shops were affected by the incident.
Efuwape said that the fire started from the illegal structures outside and erupted into the main building saying that the government would consider the demolition of shanties and illegal structures in the market to restore sanity and orderliness.
NCDC warns of rising yellow fever cases amid cholera outbreak in Nigeria
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has issued a warning about the increasing number of yellow fever cases in the country, coinciding with the ongoing cholera outbreak that has affected nearly all states.
Dr Jide Idris, the Director-General of the NCDC, issued the warning at a press conference on Tuesday in Abuja.
Idris said that since June, the NCDC has been actively managing a cholera outbreak that has spread across 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory, impacting 187 Local Government Areas.
According to him, as of July 15, Nigeria has recorded 3,623 suspected cholera cases and 103 deaths, with a case fatality rate of 2.8 per cent.
He said that there was a slight decline in reported cases and fatalities in the past week, attributing the improvement to ongoing national and state-level efforts.
But he cautioned that the peak of the rainy season, which typically exacerbates cholera outbreaks, was still ahead.
Idris said there were concerns about underreporting due to inadequate resources for surveillance and political stigma associated with the disease.
He said that the agency had also observed a troubling rise in yellow fever cases, particularly with the onset of the rainy season.
“Three presumptive positive cases have been reported, two in Ekiti state and one in Bayelsa, along with one death.
“Yellow fever, a viral hemorrhagic disease transmitted by infected mosquitoes, presents symptoms such as fever, chills, headache, back pain, body aches, and jaundice,” he said.
Idris highlighted the importance of vaccination as the most effective prevention method against yellow fever, offering lifelong immunity.
He urged the public to ensure that they were vaccinated, use mosquito repellents, wear protective clothing, and eliminate stagnant water to reduce mosquito breeding sites.
According to him, heavy rainfall and flooding significantly impact the spread of waterborne diseases like cholera and yellow fever.
NCDC warns of rising yellow fever cases amid cholera outbreak in Nigeria
Niger clarifies report on slapping of Islamic cleric
The Niger State Government has clarified a viral video of the state governor, Mohammed Bago, seen ordering security personnel to slap a man during the Fidua prayer for the late wife of the deputy governor, Zainab Yakubu.
The video which went viral on Saturday captured Bago speaking in Hausa and ordering a security operative to slap the man and arrest him.
The Special Adviser to the governor on Print Media, Aisha Wakaso in a statement on Tuesday said the cleric was only an impostor who attempted to play the role of an Imam.
Wakaso stated that the man had since apologised to the governor and forum of Imams for his misconduct, saying that he was neither slapped nor arrested by the security operatives.
“The attention of the Niger State Government has been drawn to an editorial in the Daily Trust Newspaper of 15th July 2024, titled “Bago: Let Temperance Reign”. This editorial and many other reports did not only misrepresent the incident that took place during the three-day Fidau Prayers for the late wife of the Deputy Governor, Hajiya Zainab Garba, wherein the Governor ordered security agents to remove an individual who attempted to take over the spiritual duties of the Imams gathered at the Deputy Governor’s residence, it also came up with some fictitious claims.
“While the state government preferred not to engage in the controversy currently celebrated on social media and other platforms, especially when the state was in a mourning period due to the demise of the deputy governor’s wife, it has become necessary to set the record straight and correct the misconceptions about the Governor’s actions.
“The governor considers the three days Fidau Prayers as a very sensitive and important event that should be presided over by an Imam or any renowned Islamic Scholar, not by an unqualified individual. The governor’s decision to ask the individual to leave the venue of the prayer is based on maintaining the sanctity and solemnity of the occasion.
“He found the act of the person not just as disrespectful to the dead and the reason for the gathering but also as insensitive which led to him requesting that he be taken out by the security agents. The continued attacks on the Governor’s character by some. media outlets over this issue are unfortunate and uncalled for, especially since the Governor’s actions were meant to curb the excesses of unruly individuals and prevent the Fidau prayer from being reduced to a mere spectacle or a child’s play,” Wakaso stated.
The Special Adviser, who disclosed that the fake cleric had been a fan of the governor whom the governor had tried to empower several times, merely showed his overzealousness to get noticed by the governor.
“The individual involved not only denied being slapped by the security agents who ordered him out of the deputy governor’s residence in a video but has publicly apologized to the Imams and the governor, acknowledging his overzealousness and inappropriate actions. He has shown remorse and requested forgiveness from both the governor and the forum of Imams.
“The Governor’s actions were driven by respect for the deceased, the purpose of the gathering, and the need to preserve the sanctity of the Fidua Prayer,” she added.
Osun assembly confirms ex-AIG Osun Amotekun chairman
The Osun State House of Assembly on Tuesday confirmed the appointments of Wale Abbas as the chairman, Osun Amotekun Board and Adekunle Omoyele as the Corps Commander respectively.
The confirmations followed the nomination of Abbas and Omoyele by the state governor, Ademola Adeleke, on July 5.
The governor had forwarded their names to the House of Assembly for the necessary legislative approval.
A statement by Olamide Tiamiyu, the Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker, Adewale Egbedun, said the confirmation was a move to strengthen the state’s security apparatus.
“The House of Assembly confirmed Abbas, a retired Assistant Inspector-General of Police, as the new Chairman of the Amotekun Governing Board. It also confirmed Omoyele as the Corps Commander.
“The confirmations came after the nominees were screened by the lawmakers on Tuesday, July 16th, 2024. The screening process allowed the House to assess the qualifications and suitability of Abbas and Omoyele for their respective roles,” the statement read in part.
Following the confirmation, the Speaker, Egbedun congratulated the new appointees, urging them to leverage their wealth of experience to enhance security across the state.
He also advised them to foster strong working relationships with other security agencies to make Osun a safer place.
Kano: Three second class emirates created to enhance economy – Gov Yusuf
Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, has said that the three new Second Class Emirates were created to enhance economic viability and bring the people closer to the government.
The governor said this while signing into law the new Second Class Emirates Council Bill presented to him by the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Jibrin Falgore on Tuesday.
He said the Assembly has discharged yet another constitutional responsibility by passing the bill into law.
“The action of the State Assembly is yet another testament of the government’s commitment to recognize the constitutional roles of local government and the Emirates Council and the role they play in developing the state.”
The governor urged the newly established Emirate Councils to work in tandem with constitutional provisions and be law abiding in the discharge of their duties.
“The Councils will enhance local government and traditional cultural viability and preserve their heritage, the passage was in response to the yearning of the people.
“I urge the newly established Emirates to work in harmony with Kano Emir, Muhammadu Sanusi II, for the betterment of the state,” the governor added.
He said the government would soon announce the new Emirs who will take charge of the new emirates.
Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Jibrin Falgore, said the Kano State Emirate Council, 2024, Act is aimed at improving the economy of the areas and bring people closer to the government,
The newly established second class Emirate Councils are Rano, Karaye and Gaya.
Kano: Three second class emirates created to enhance economy – Gov Yusuf
LP chieftain seeks constitution amendment to deepen LG autonomy
The Labour Party candidate in the 2023 governorship election in Enugu State, Chijioke Edeoga, has urged the Attorney General of the Federation to initiate moves that will saddle the Independent National Electoral Commission with the conduct of local government elections in Nigeria.
This was just as he stated that only through an amendment of the 1999 Constitution would Nigerians reap the benefits of the recent Supreme Court judgement which affirmed autonomy to local councils in the country.
In a statement made available to According Online on Tuesday, Edeoga who recently hailed the Supreme Court’s judgement on local government autonomy, called for the deletion of Section 197 1(b) of the Constitution which created state INEC, while an amendment should be made to Section 153 (1) to empower INEC to conduct LG elections.
He noted that although Nigerians welcomed the judgment, they have equally pointed out that the judgment would be ineffectual without a corresponding amendment that guarantees relatively fairer and freer council elections.
Edeoga admitted that an amendment process of some critical sections of the Constitution was going on, the particular section that affects local government autonomy should be isolated and its amendment fast-tracked to key into what he described as the “national consensus” that trailed the Supreme Court judgement.
“To this end, an Executive Bill to excise Section 197 1(b) of the Constitution which created the state Independence Electoral Commissions should be initiated by the office of the Attorney General of the Federation. Section 153 (1) which created the INEC should also be amended to fully vest the national elections management body with the powers to conduct elections to local government councils.
“Efforts should be made to isolate the sections relating to local government elections from the basket of other amendments that have been proposed to the 1999 Constitution by the National Assembly and give it immediate attention to attain quick passage and Presidential assent”, he stated.
He called on both the AGF and the National Assembly to address the matter urgently to ensure a quick return of responsible local government administration in Nigeria.
“Speed is of the essence, given that at least 22 of the 36 states currently run the local government areas in their respective states under undemocratic caretaker arrangements. This means that if the amendment is fast-tracked and approved by the President, elections in the local councils can be arranged to fall into a single calendar,” the Enugu State Labour Party leader stated.
He explained that the sense of urgency stems from the possibility of state governors continuing to exercise undue influence on local government council Chairmen through the instruments of the state electoral commissions.
“Given the clear and present possibility that the intendment of the judgment which is transparency and accountability in the use of local government resources by duly elected officers of local governments might still be manipulated by governors in whose powers it still is to determine who gets elected as Chairmen of the councils.”
He stressed the importance of the third tier of government to national development, insisting that the autonomy being restored to elected officers of local governments would spark off rural development in ways that have not been witnessed in Nigeria since 1999.
“Local government administration is to national political and infrastructure development what micro, small, and medium-scale enterprises are to national economic development – just as MSMEs represent the biggest employers of labour in most economies, council administration touches more lives on the aggregate than both states and federal government.
“In Nigeria for instance, where MSMEs are said to be capable of employing an equivalent of 84 per cent of the population, the 774 local government areas in the country, if granted full financial and administrative autonomy, will have the potential to not just employ more people than all the 36 state governments, but also spike the incubation and growth of more businesses at the grassroots level,” he said.
FG evacuates 190 Nigerians from UAE
The Federal Government has evacuated 190 Nigerians from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) disclosed this in a statement issued on Tuesday by its Director for the North- Central, Bashir Garga.
He said the returnees arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja at 5:57 a.m. and were received by government officials.
READ ALSO: FG declares Nigerian passport holders now free to obtain UAE visas
The statement read: “The federal government urges all Nigerians, wherever they may be, to act as exemplary ambassadors of their country, upholding the fundamental values of patriotism, rule of law, decency and integrity.”
The government evacuated 542 Nigerians from the Gulf State in October 2022.
The post FG evacuates 190 Nigerians from UAE appeared first on Latest Nigeria News | Top Stories from TVN.
NNPP petitions CJN over Ondo caretaker committees
The New Nigeria People’s Party on Tuesday wrote the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Olukayode Ariwoola, over the appointment of transition committees by the All Progressives Congress-led government in the 18 local governments and 33 council development areas of Ondo State.
The opposition lamented that the move was a gross violation of the recent judgment of the Supreme Court affirming the right of local governments to receive monthly allocations directly from the federation account.
The party also stressed the appointment rubbished the June 20 ruling of Justice A.O Adebusuoye of the Ondo High Court in line with the Local Government Creation Law (2023).
The NNPP’s petition was in reaction to the letter from the Attorney General of Ondo State and Commissioner for Justice, Dr Olukayode Ajulo, clarifying the position of the state on the engagement of transition committees.
In the letter dated July 11, sighted by our correspondent, Ajulo emphasised that the appointment was a lawful exercise of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s constitutional powers.
He said, “The committees are intended to ensure seamless transition and continuity of government business in the affected areas.
“The judgment of Hon Justice A.O Adebusuoye on 20th June 2024, only declared the Local Government Creation Law 2023 unconstitutional, but did not invalidate the executive and administrative powers of Ondo State governor to take steps that will ensure effective and good governance of any part of the State.
“The legality of the LCDAs is currently the subject of ongoing legal proceedings, which are presently under appeal. The court has taken notice of this appeal.
“Therefore, the Governor’s appointment of Transition Committees is not in contempt of the court’s judgment, but rather a prudent action to ensure that the business of government continues uninterrupted in the affected areas.”
However, the NNPP disagreed with his position.
In the petition jointly signed by Ondo NNPP Chairman, Peter Olagookun and the state Secretary, Adekunle Oluwayomi, on Tuesday, the party described the appointments as a ‘gross misconduct and flagrant disobedience of court judgements.’
The opposition party also demanded that Ajulo be stripped of his Senior Advocate of Nigeria title over his action.
The letter partly read, “We are constrained to bring to your attention the report of gross misconduct and flagrant disobedience of court judgement against Dr. Kayode Ajulo, the Attorney-General and the Commissioner of Justice of Ondo State, bordering on the ignoble role he played in the matter.
“In flagrant disobedience to the validly given judgement of the Ondo State High Court given on 20/06/2024 and in an attempt to over-reach the judgment of the Supreme Court delivered on 11/07/2024, the governor of Ondo State announced the constitution of caretaker committees for the 33 LCDAs and the 18 LGAs and under the cover of the night, surreptitiously swore them in, in flagrant disobedience to these subsisting orders of Court.
“This act of Dr Kayode Ajulo has been widely criticised by the people of Ondo State and there have been calls for him to resign his position as the Attorney-General and the chief Law officer of the state. Attached herewith is a press statement by the Peoples Democratic Party, condemning the act of Dr. Ajulo and marked Annexure II.
“This act is to say the least unbecoming of the person occupying the exalted position of the office of the Attorney-General and the chief law officer of a state, and also a member of the inner bar. It is therefore reasonable to say that his membership of the inner bar and position as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria is unmeritted and therefore should be withdrawn. We are aware of the fact that persons found not to be worthy of holding the position of SAN have had such position stripped off them by this August office.”
The According reported that the apex court granted full autonomy to the 774 local governments in the country as stipulated in the 1999 Constitution (amended).
The seven-man panel in a unanimous decision agreed that it is illegal and unconstitutional for governors to continue to receive or retain funds allocated to the local governments.
The court further declared that a state government has no power to elect caretaker committee and a local government council is only recognizable with a democratically elected government.
Ogun Assembly condemns harassment of residents by Lagos police operatives
The Ogun State House of Assembly has decried the continued invasion of the state by officers and men of the Nigeria Police Force, Lagos State Command.
The House alleged that operatives of the Lagos Police Command, especially from Zone 2 Command Headquarters and FCIID, Alagbon, invade Ogun State with the sole aim of carrying out incessant arrests of innocent residents, thereby aiding the activities of land grabbers and illegal claimants to chieftaincy stools in the state.
The Speaker, Oludaisi Elemide, condemned the act while responding to the submissions of the member representing Ipokia/Idiroko State Constituency, Adebisi Oyedele and his Yewa North I counterpart, Adeyanju Adegoke, who spoke under Personal Explanation at the plenary on Tuesday.
Elemide pointed out that the actions of the security operatives who carry out operations beyond their jurisdictions was as a result of the vested interest of some criminal elements using them to perpetrate unlawful activities.
He noted that the illegal operations had continue to affect the security of lives and properties of the people in the state.
Recalling that the State Governor, Dapo Abiodun had zero tolerance for land grabbing and other criminal activities, the Speaker noted that the governor was committed to rid the state of criminal elements.
He called on the State Attorney General/Commissioner for Justice, the Commissioner of Police and the Commander of the State Amotekun Corps to activate all security apparatuses to curtail criminal activities in the state.
He equally called on the Inspector General of Police to wade in, noting that there is a Police Command domiciled in the state, and stressed that Ogun State would not submit its sovereignty to any other authorities under any guise.
Ogun Assembly condemns harassment of residents by Lagos police operatives