NewsReports

The Senate on Tuesday said the nomination of Lauretta Onochie, an aide to the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), was rejected because of her partisanship and breach of federal character principle. Onochie’s nomination had attracted condemnation from a large section of Nigerians who argue that she is too partisan to be an INEC commissioner. In a statement titled, ‘Senate …

Barely some hours after bandits demanded N200 million ransom to release the Chief of Kajuru in Kaduna state, Alhaji Alhassan Adamu and his relations who were abducted last weekend, the chief has been released  Monday evening but his relations were still in captivity. “He was released at about 5 pm, after spending a night in the custody of the bandits. …

The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, on Monday, welcomed the formation of the legal team by the apex Igbo socio-cultural group, Ohaneze Ndigbo, to monitor the trial of the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu. Malami, in a statement that was signed by his media aide, Umar Gwandu, maintained …

A Federal High Court, Abuja, on Monday, fixed July 16 to hear a suit challenging the defection of Gov. Bello Matawalle of Zamfara to the All Progressives Congress (APC). Justice Inyang Ekwo fixed the date after listening to the ex-parte motion of the plaintiffs’ counsel, Kanu Agabi, SAN, praying the court for an order to serve the 1st and 2nd …

A total of N4.8 (4,870,350,000) billion has been allocated to the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) to monitor WhatsApp messages, phone calls, text messages, among others. Of the figure, N1.93 billion was earmarked for “WhatsApp Intercept Solution” and N2.93 billion for “Thuraya Interception Solution” – a communications system used for monitoring voice calls or call-related information, SMS, data traffic, among others. This was contained in …

The front banners of major newspapers in Nigeria on Monday bore a picture of an individual with a sealed mouth. “Information Blackout,” read the caption that ran with the picture. “It’s not just against the media….it’s about society’s right to know, your right to be heard.” The message is a joint release from the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Nigerian …

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, on Monday said he would not be a party to any bill that sought to gag media practitioners. Mr Gbajabiamila made the assertion at an award ceremony tagged ’’Recognising Good Governance and Legislative Excellence in the Face of Adversity,” in Abuja. The speaker was reacting to calls to expunge the Press Council …

A former Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, has advocated the amendment of the 1999 Constitution to reflect a single term rotational presidency. Mr Ekweremadu made the call on Monday in Lagos while speaking at the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Ikeja Branch Law Week 2021 with the theme “The Nigeria of Our Dreams.” He said he had long advocated a …

Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria and the Joint Committee for Establishment and Public Service of the Senate and House of Representatives Committees on Pension have agreed to review lump sum payable to retirees. FILE: Unpaid federal retirees The agreement was contained in a communique on Monday at the end of the third annual PenOp-NASS retreat in Lagos. The lawmakers and …

If the new provision on fuel imports inserted by the Senate in the Petroleum Industry Bill is adopted by the House of Representatives and the President, only active refinery licence holders will be allowed to import petroleum products into the country when the bill becomes a law. Companies holding refining licences in the country include Dangote Oil Refinery Company, Waltersmith …