Category: NEWS & LIFE

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NEWS & LIFE

Troops rescue 8 kidnap victims in Kaduna

Eight people who were kidnapped along Kaduna-Birnin Gwari highway on Wednesday have been rescued by troops of Operation Whirl Punch under 1 Division, Nigerian Army, Kaduna.

“The troops tracked the kidnappers to where they were hiding in Labi village, Chikun Local Government Area in Kaduna State and rescued the victims at about 5pm on Wednesday, hours after their abduction.

“The victims who were travelling from Kano to Ilorin had their journey interrupted by bandits, who kidnapped and moved them to one of their fortified hideout in the forest,”
a reliable military source.

He said that the victims were rescued following credible information.
“The troops swung into action and stormed the bandits’ camp.

“During the encounter that ensued, the gallant troops overwhelmed the bandits with superior fire power resulting in the bandits abandoning the victims and fled with gun shot wounds.

“The troops immediately released the abductees and asked them to continue with their journey.”

It is the second time in two weeks troops of 1 Division are rescuing kidnapped victims in the state.

The source said the General Officer Commanding, Maj.-Gen Faruk Yahaya had commended the troops and urged them to keep putting pressure on criminals to make the area safe for all.

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NEWS & LIFE OPINION

Tribunal upholds election of Gov. Udom Emmanuel

COVID-19
Gov. Udom

The Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Uyo, on Thursday affirmed the victory of Gov. Udom Emmanuel of the Peoples Democratic Party in the March 9, general elections.

ThepPetitioners, Mr Nsima Ekere of the All Progressives Congress (APC) filed a petition challenging the result of the March 9 election in which INEC declared the re-election of Gov. Emmanuel as the Governor of Akwa Ibom.

Delivering judgment, the three-member tribunal headed by Justice A.M Yakuba, dismissed the case filed by APC and its candidate, Mr Nsima Ekete, on grounds that the petition lacked merit.

Justice Yakubu held that the petitioners failed to call witnesses in eight local government areas out of the 21 where they claimed to have won.

Consequently, tribunal discountenance every documentary evidence that were brought before it.

Tribunal accordingly declared Gov. Emmamuel as the duly elected governor of Akwa Ibom.

NAN reports that the petitioners approached the tribunal, after several amendments on grounds that the election was invalid by reason of non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act,

They also argued that Gov. Emmanuel was not duly elected by majority of lawful votes cast at the election.

They prayed the tribunal to declared that Gov. Emmanuel did not secure and could not have secured the majority of lawful votes cast at the elections;

They also prayed the tribunal to declared that the election was void and invalid due to non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act.

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NEWS & LIFE

Court sentences carpenter to 9 months in prison for stealing Tv set

A Dutse Grade I Area Court, Abuja on Thursday sentenced a carpenter, Yusuf Aliyu,28, to nine months in prison for stealing a 22-inches LG television and clothes.

The Presiding Officer, Mr Suleiman Mohammed, sentenced Aliyu after he pleaded guilty to theft and begged the court for mercy

Mohammed, however gave the convict an option to pay a fine of N40, 000.

The presiding officer held that the convict, who said he stole from the complainant because he owed him money, had no right to take the law into his own hands.

The act, according to Mohammed was not justifiable.

The convict, a resident of Barangoni in Bwari, was arraigned by the police and convicted by the court on a three-count charge of criminal trespass, house breaking and theft.

Earlier, the Prosecution Counsel, Mrs Idowu Ojo, told the court that the matter was reported at the Bwari Police station by Bitrus Gabriel of Kuduru village, Bwari on Sept. 9.

Ojo said that the convict on Aug. 26, trespassed the complainant’s house, broke his door and stole also stole two new wrappers, valued N4, 000 each, a shirt, two pair of trousers valued at N7, 000 and a cash sum of N11, 000.

The prosecution said that during police investigation, the convict confessed that he sold the tv set to one Emmanuel Sunday for N5000.

Ojo said that the offence contravened the provisions of sections 348, 346 and 289 of the Penal Code.

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HEADLINES NEWS & LIFE

Buhari meets Service Chiefs

President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday met behind closed doors with Service Chiefs at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

It was reported that he meeting is coming almost 24 hours after the Head of Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Winifred Oyo-Ita, was directed to proceed on indefinite leave.

A statement issued from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation on Wednesday, said Oyo-Ita’s indefinite leave was to allow conclusion of the investigation being carried out by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

The agenda of the meeting is however, unknown to newsmen as at the time of filing the report.

NAN however, gathered that the president may be briefed by the service chiefs on the nation’s security developments in preparation for the UN General Assembly engagements.

The President is bid to attend the 74th Session of UN General Assembly in New York on Sept 22.

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NEWS & LIFE

Assembly urges Sokoto Govt to upgrade model school

Sokoto discharges 22 COVID-19 patients
Gov. Tambuwal

The Sokoto State House of Assembly on Thursday urged the State Government to upgrade the Kasuwar Kanawa Model School in Sokoto South Local Government Area (LGA), of the state to a junior secondary school.

This followed the adoption of a motion by Alhaji Mustapha Abdullahi (APC- Sokoto South I) and seconded by Alhaji Habibu Modachi (PDP- Isa), at plenary.

Abdullahi said that the action would help to improve school enrolment especially among the girl child in the area.

“This is in view of the fact that the present administration has placed high priority in uplifting the standard of education at all levels of learning.

“However, considering the rate at which our schools are over being over populated and the need to encourage the enrolment of pupils to school especially the girl child.

“Upgrading the school will help bring education closer to people especially considering the fact that the Kasuwar Kanawa Model School has a well established structure,” he said.

A number of lawmakers who contributed in the debate spoke in favour of the motion.
The Speaker, Alhaji Aminu Achida, put the motion to a voice vote and it was unanimously adopted.

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NEWS & LIFE

Anambra govt. tackles Onitsha, Ogidi flooding

The Commissioner for Works in Anambra, Mr Marcel Ifejiofor, said on Thursday that the state government had awarded contracts to tackle perenial flooding in Onitsha and Ogidi.
Ejiofor said this in Awka but declined to disclose the cost of the two project.

He said that the projects were being handled by Bene-jaf and Nigercat.

He said: “Work has commenced on the Onitsha project, being handled by Bene-jaf and the project is to degsilt Sakamori water channel, dredge about 4.2 kilometers from the confluence of Sakamori to River Niger.

“The target of the project is to enable water from Sakamori to enter the water channel of Sakamori at 90 degree as well as water from Idemili River,” he said.

Ifejiofor said that government embarked on the project, when it discovered that water stagnation at Sakamori was the major cause of flooding in Onitsha.

The commissioner said that the Ogidi project was expected to be completed by April, 2020.

“We are at the verge of completing the due process on the Ogidi project and in the next three weeks the process will be over and the firm will move to site.

“Once Nigercat starts the job, before April next year, the job would be completed and problems of flooding being experienced by residents of Ogidi will be a thing of the past”, he said.

Ifejiofor said that the firm handling Ogidi project would channel the waters into natural water sources in the area.

He however advised the people of the state against unhealthy sanitary practices.
He said that throwing solid waste and building on waterways were major factors that cause flooding in the area.

The commissioner also regretted the impact of flood waters on roads in the area, saying the damage was becoming collosal.

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NEWS & LIFE

Tricyclist in court over alleged cheating

Businessman in court over alleged sale of substandard phone

A 39-year-old tricyclist, Ahmed Yusuf, was on Thursday arraigned in a Kaduna Chief Magistrates’ Court over alleged cheating.

Yusuf, a resident of Kinkinau, Kaduna, is facing a two-count charge of criminal breach of trust and cheating.

The Prosecutor, Insp. Chidi Leo, told the court that one Aminu Usman reported the matter at the Ungwan Rimi Police Station on Sept. 2.

Leo quoted the complainant as alleging that he entrusted his tricycle, valued at N1.2million, with the defendant for commercial purpose sometime in December 2018.

He said that on Aug. 21, the defendant claimed that the said tricycle was snatched while he was working without any concrete evidence.

The prosecutor said the offence contravened sections 297 and 308 of the Penal Code Law of Kaduna State, 2017.

When the charges were read to him, he pleaded not guilty.

In his ruling, the Magistrate, Mr Ibrahim Emmanuel, granted the defendant bail in the sum of N200,000 with one surety in like sum.

Emmanuel ordered that the surety must be a resident within the jurisdiction of the court and adjourned the matter until Oct. 4, for hearing.

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NEWS & LIFE

UTME: Commission targets 1m students for NIN enrollment in Jigawa

NIMC registers 56m Nigerians for NIN

The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), Jigawa office, says it is targeting about 1 million post-basic and basic students for enrollment into the National Identity Database for their National Identity Number (NIN).

Alhaji Aminu Jakada, the coordinator of the commission in the state, made in Dutse on Thursday.

Jakada said the gesture was in line with decision by the Joint Administration and Matriculation Board (JAMB) that from 2020, all candidates writing the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), must have a NIN.

“So for this reason, the Jigawa NIMC has planned to enroll 114,970 post basic students and 828,768 basic students in the state.

“So students and their parents should be aware of this and take it serious and ensure that they cooperate with the NIMC officials for successful conduct of the exercise,” Jakada advised.

He explained that the exercise would be conducted in collaboration with the State Government, Ministry of Education, State Universal Education, Patents Teachers’ Association (PTA), Local Government Councils (LGCs) and Traditional Leaders.

The coordinator added that the commission proposed to enroll all post-basic students in the state within the current academic session (2019/2020), and that basic students were to be enrolled next session (2020/2021).

Jakada said the exercise would be conducted in schools in order to ease transportation difficulties for the students, as well as get the targeted number enrolled.

“We will take the enrollment exercise to the schools for easy and successful registration of the students.

“The gesture will enable the students enrolled without having to travel to local government headquarters or our state office.

“The overall objective of the exercise is to enroll the students before the mandatory use of the NIN is enforced ,” the coordinator explained

He also called on other people who were yet to enroll, to do so before the mandatory use of the NIN is enforced.

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HEADLINES NEWS & LIFE POLITICS

Dickson fires aide for criticizing him

I have no rift with Diri - Dickson says
Bayelsa Gov. Dickson

Gov. Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa has sacked Mrs Hellen Bob, his Special Adviser on Talent and Gender Development over alleged misconduct and indiscipline.

The special adviser’s sack was announced in a statement by Mr Fidelis Soriwei, Chief Press Secretary to the governor on Thursday in Yenagoa.

The statement said Bob was relieved of her duties for gross misconduct, indiscipline and irresponsibility.

“Mrs Helen Bob was dismissed for repeated acts of gross misconduct, indiscipline, irresponsibility and acts unbecoming of a person occupying the position of special adviser.

“Mrs. Bob was among 130 special advisers engaged by the governor to render necessary services to the state and to give a sense of belonging and legitimate support to party members,” the statement read in parts.

Meanwhile some analysts have attributed Bob’s sack to her divergent views concerning the outcome of the recently concluded Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primaries in the state.

Reacting to her sack, Bob said she was not surprised at the development, and thanked the governor for giving her the opportunity to serve in the state government.

“I am happy to have stood for the truth, frankly speaking, I am a woman of truth and will always stand by it.

“Gov Seriake Dickson has done very well not to have ignored my comments which of course I know must have touched his heart.

“And the gods of the land will be so proud of a true Izon daughter, truth is very very bitter, this is not a surprise at all,” she said.

She however stated that her sack came belatedly because she was already out to speak against the mismanagement of PDP in Bayelsa.

“Sincerely it is already late, no amount of sack will stop me from stating the truth, no amount of sack will stop the flood that is about to submerge the PDP if it fails to redress the issues raised,” she said.

Bob was a former Chairman of Brass Local Government Area of the state.

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NEWS & LIFE

Court remands dismissed soldier over alleged impersonation

Police arrest robbery, kidnap suspect in Enugu

A Kaduna Chief Magistrates’ Court, on Thursday ordered that a dismissed soldier, Stephen Adams,35, be remanded in a correctional facility for allegedly dressing in military uniform.

Magistrate Ibrahim Emmanuel adjourned the case until Oct. 4 for hearing.

The police, charged Adams, who reside at Sabo Tasha Kaduna with impersonation.

Earlier, the Prosecution Counsel, Insp. Chidi Leo, told the court that the defendant committed the offence on Sept. 1 at Makera, Kakuri Kaduna.

Leo alleged that the defendant was caught parading himself as a serving member of the Nigeria Army, and terrorising pedestrians by the Air Force Bus Stop, Kakuri Kaduna.

The prosecutor said the offence contravened the provisions of Section 378 of the Penal Code Law of Kaduna State, 2017.