Each gold medalist from Oyo State in the just concluded National Sports Festival (Edo 2020) is to get N500,000, silver medalists, N350,000 and bronze medalists, N250,000.
Also, each of the state’s 55 coaches to the festival is to receive
N500,000, irrespective of whether their trainee won a medal or not.
Governor Seyi Makinde made this announcement when he received the
state’s contingent to the festival at the governor’s office, Ibadan, on
Wednesday ||READ
NORE|
While the Bible encourages and even commands gathering together as believers, nowhere do we find that a perfect church is expected or even possible.
I was not very excited about my first Sunday at my church three
years ago. Still aching from the closure of the church I had attended for
years, I missed the people I was used to seeing every week. It took me a solid
year of back-and-forth before I decided I would stay at this new church, and it
took me even longer to feel like I was finding my place in it.
At first glance, my church may not look like the ideal church for
singles. We’re a smaller congregation with less than 200 people, most of whom
are families with kids. We don’t have a singles ministry, a young adult group,
or even Sunday school |||READ
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Idriss Deby took power in a coup decades ago and died fighting against rebels trying to oust him. Over 30 years, Deby has been a maverick figure in the Sahel region, with friends in the West but enemies close to home.
Idriss Deby, the son of a shepherd who went on to lead his country
Chad and become one of Africa's longest-serving heads of state, has died on a
battlefield with anti-government rebels. He was 68.
The shock announcement came from the Chadian military, just a day
after Deby was confirmed president-elect after securing nearly 80% of the April
11 vote. Meanwhile, Deby's son, Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, has taken over as
interim leader of a transitional military council, the military said |||READ MORE
The Senate on Tuesday approved $1.5billion and Euro 995million external loans for the Federal Government.
This followed consideration of the report of the Senate Committee
on Local and Foreign Debts on the external borrowing plan of the Federal
Government at plenary.
Chairman of the committee, Senator Clifford Ordia, presented the
report.
The loans are part of the external borrowing plan of the Federal
Government |||READ
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AHEAD of 2023 general and Presidential elections, the umbrella body of South East people, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has asked Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, the All Progressives Congress, APC, and other political parties to zone the presidency to the South East for equity, justice and fairness.
Addressing journalists yesterday in Abuja, the President General of
Ohaneze Ndigbo, Professor George Obiozor, who noted that time is ripe for
Nigeria to get a President of South East extraction in 2023, said the talent of
Igbo is yet to be fully utilized and maximised by Nigeria.
Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, yesterday, inaugurated the state Human Development Core Working Group with the charge to improve the lives of residents and provide excellent opportunities to make life more meaningful in line with the National Human Development Plan.
The group is chaired by the Deputy Governor, Dr Obafemi Hamzat,
with the mandate to ensure the effective coordination and implementation of
Human Capital Development Intervention in the state as defined in the National
Human Development Plan.
The Special Adviser, Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs and
Investment, Mrs Solape Hammond, will serve as the State Coordinator and Focal
Person while the Office of the SDGs and Investment will be the Secretariat of
the Core Working Group in the state |||READ
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Professor of Political Science, Abia State University, Professor Hatz Ofoeze, has cautioned members of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB, and other Biafra agitators not to be carried away by the promise by the United Kingdom to grant asylum to ‘persecuted’ members of the movement.
Ofoeze in an interview with our Correspondent said ” Britain can
never be trusted”, hence, he holds the promise with a pinch of salt.
He said that Britain was the cause of Nigeria’s woes, and doubted
the sincerity of the promise |||READ
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An undated viral video which surfaced on Wednesday involving a motorist and a policeman is currently causing public outrage on the social media after the motorist was seen assaulting the armless policeman over an argument in Lagos.
The policeman had apparently insisted on impounding what looks like
a mini-truck. Argument ensued between the policeman and a man holding a bottle
at the back of the vehicle, who was trying to force the security man to come
down from the truck.
Onlookers were also heard from the backgroud prodding the man with
the bottle, who is apparently the owner of the vehicle, to assault the
policeman and the latter brazenly did by hitting the policeman with the bottle
on the head |||READ
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The federal government has approved an N8.39 billion augmentation for the completion of a section of the Sokoto-Makera Road, which traverses Sokoto, Kebbi and Niger states.
Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola (SAN), disclosed
this to State House Correspondents yesterday after the federal executive
council meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the presidential
Villa .
According to him, the handlers of the 185 kilometre long project,
CRCC Construction Company, requested for the contract augmentation because of a
range of factors |||READ
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The Senate, on Wednesday, approved the sum of N257,183,671,694.71 as budget for the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) for the 2021 fiscal year.
The approval followed the consideration of a report presented by
the Committee on Customs, Excise and Tariffs.
Chairman of the Committee, Senator Francis Alimikhena (APC, Edo
North), in his presentation, said out of the amount budgeted for the Customs in
the 2021 financial year, the sum of N99,719,722,681.71 is for Personnel Cost;
N19,530,769,000.00 for Overhead; and N137,933,180,013.00 for Capital Cost |||READ
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WASHINGTON – Freshman Rep. Jake Auchincloss, a Democrat, has begun
turning to an unusual source when trying to decide whether he wants to work
with a Republican he thinks makes a good point during committee hearings:
Google.
The Massachusetts lawmaker says he knows his constituents want him to work across the aisle, but he's drawing “a sharp red line” at working with Republicans who voted not to certify the Electoral College results as part of then-President Donald Trump's failed bid to overturn his election defeat.
If a quick search produces evidence that one of his Republican colleagues refused to acknowledge President Joe Biden's win, he said, “I kind of throw cold water on the whole thing,” adding that while he doesn't like political litmus tests, "insurrection against the United States government qualifies.” |||READ MORE
WASHINGTON — Vaccine holdouts could end up being the last obstacle
to defeating the pandemic, and a growing effort is aimed at convincing one
substantial group of skeptics: Republicans.
While efforts to combat vaccine hesitancy and access have so far been mostly focused on African Americans and Latinos, recent polls suggest the largest group of Americans either hesitant about the Covid-19 vaccine or outright opposed to it are Republicans, and efforts to reach them are only in their infancy.
Success convincing skeptical conservatives could be the difference between the United States reaching herd immunity or not. That's why a group of Republican pollsters and politicians, plus the White House, are all already working on getting the skeptics on board |||READ MORE
Senator Ali Ndume (APC-Borno South) has expressed worry over the
increase in criminal activities, adding that security and welfare are
threatened in Nigeria.
Speaking at a press briefing on Saturday, Ndume said Nigerians and
government are still not taking the security situation seriously.
He called on citizens and government to match faith with action on ensuring an urgent improvement in the security situation |||READ MORE
Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Adams has said the federal
government and security agents are not ready to protect Nigerians.
Speaking in an interview with The Sun, he also accused the
Muhammadu Buhari administration of playing the ethnic card on issues of
security.
While describing the current state of security in the country as unfortunate, Adams said the poor handling of criminal activities may lead to war READ MORE
Human rights activist, Aisha Yesufu, and the former lawmaker
representing Kaduna Central senatorial district, Shehu Sani, have reacted to
the video released by bandits showing them flogging the missing 39 students
abducted from the Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation in Afaka, Igabi
Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
The bandits on Saturday released a video requesting for the sum of
N500m as ransom to release the students.
Parents of the students have also confirmed that the abductors have reached out and are demanding the sum of N500 million |||READ MORE
Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has promised that his
administration will no longer negotiate or grant amnesty to criminals again.
Naija News recall that Terkura, the elder brother to Gabriel
Suswam, former Benue governor, was killed alongside his aide on March 2.
They were both attacked at Terkura’s hometown in Anyiin LGA of the state.
Speaking at his funeral on Saturday, Ortom said the state will no longer offer amnesty to criminals, except they repent and beg for forgiveness |||READ MORE
The Federal Government Rural Women Cash Grant Programme was flagged
off yesterday in Borno and Yobe States. A total of 5,840 women are expected to
receive cash grant of N20, 000 each in Borno, while 3,400 women of the same
category will benefit from Yobe state. At the flag off on Friday at the
Multi-Purpose Hall, Government House Maiduguri, the Minister of Humanitarian
Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya Umar Farouq,
explained the importance of the programme to President Muhammadu Buhari’s
administration.
She said the Conditional Cash Transfer has been catering for Internally Displaced Persons in Gonikachallari, Bakasi and NYSC Camps due to the peculiarity of security situation in Borno State. “We currently have 12,190 Poor and Vulnerable Households (PVHHs) that have been enrolled in 13 Local Government Areas. They are Konduga, Gubio, Magumeri, Hawul, Shani, Mafa, MMC, Chibok, Mobbar, Kaga, Jere, Akira-Uba and Dikwa LGA’s and disbursement is set to commence as soon as the security situation improves.
“A total number of 5,840 women are to benefit from the cash grant
of 20,000 each to uplift the socio-economic status of the rural women in Borno
State. It is President Muhammadu Buhari’s social inclusion and poverty
reduction agenda, with the realization of the national aspiration of lifting
100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years,” the minister explained |||READ
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This is the dream of a Lagos crack dealer: to see the sun rise daily in its silvery splendour while the city stirs to hustle and thrill seekers pursue a new kind of “jonzing.”
His name is Kola but “customers” call him O’ngbana. At 49, O’ngbana swaggers through Ipodo like a cocky prince of the barrio. Amid the shanty in Ikeja, Lagos, he made a killing everyday until COVID-19 struck, dwindling patronage to a trickle.
Business is at a scary low. A dribble here, a trickle there, makes O’ngbana very worried. “People don’t have money to eat let alone smoke crack (adulterated cocaine). But I have my loyal customers. Come rain or shine, they will always show up,” he said, and forlornly recalled the glory days of his hustle, when he made as much as N10, 000 in a day and about N50, 000 in a week, dealing crack and Indian Hemp |||READ MORE
Popular Nollywood actress, Iyabo Ojo, has shared how she was raped
five times.
She recalled the first incident was when she was just 14.
She spoke during a recent episode of her YouTube series titled
‘Bare it all with I.Y‘monitored by THE NATION.
The actress explained she decided to share her story to encourage others who have had a similar experience to speak up with a view to tackling rape and sexual violence in society |||READ MORE
The Federal High Court in Abuja has been asked to restrain and stop
President Muhammadu Buhari and the Federal Government from borrowing an
estimated N895bn of Nigerians’ money in the form of their unclaimed dividends
and balances in dormant accounts.
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project filed the lawsuit after the recent move by the Federal Government to take over and borrow unclaimed dividends and dormant account balances owned by Nigerians in any bank in the country. But the same legislation explicitly excludes dormant official bank accounts by all branches of government and their agencies.
In the suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/31/2021 filed by its lawyers Kolawole Oluwadare and Ms Adelanke Aremo, last Friday, SERAP is seeking “an order of perpetual injunction restraining and stopping President Buhari from demanding, taking over, borrowing, and collecting Nigerians’ money in the form of their unclaimed dividends and funds in dormant accounts or transferring and moving the money into a trust fund known as ‘Unclaimed Funds Trust Fund” |||READ MORE\