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  • Presidential Tribunal stalls APM’s petition against Tinubu

    The decision of the Supreme Court on Tuesday stalled the hearing on the petition instituted by the Allied People’s Movement (APM) against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his Vice, Kashim Shetima.

    Tinubu, through his counsel, Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN, told the Court that the petition challenging his declaration as President on the ground of “placeholder by Kabir Masari was resolved by the Supreme Court last Friday in a judgment on similar ground.

    According to Olanipeku, the Peoples’ Democratic Party’s (PDP) suit number SC/CV/501/2023 had resolved the grievances brought before the Court by APM.

    On May 26, the Apex held that PDP, or any other parties, have no right to delve into how other parties conducted their primary elections and nominated their candidates.

    The court described the party as a busybody and meddlesome interloper and imposed a fine of N2m on the party for meddling in the internal affairs of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    Olanipekun argued that the APM’S petition was similar to the case taken to the Supreme Court by the PDP and dismissed on the grounds that the PDP has no business interfering with the internal affairs of other parties.

    He submitted that the APM’S petition is predicated on the internal affairs of the APC and that the Supreme Court’s latest judgment resolved the issue in the petition.

    He promised to make a copy of the judgment available within two days to the Court to examine the effects on the APM’S petition.

    “We are sure the Supreme Court a decision on this same subject on Friday in suit no SC/CV/501/2023 in PDP vs INEC and 3 others.

    “The court considered all the issues and resolved it. We promise that within the next two days, certified true copies will be made available for us.

    “We will also confront the Petitioner whether there is still a need to continue with the petition,” Olanipekun submitted.

    Responding, Counsel to the APM, Mr Sheu Abubakar requested for adjournment in the hearing of the petition based on the submissions and revelations of Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN.

    “Based on the submissions of Olanipekun, we shall be praying to the court for an adjustment of the hearing of this Petition to enable us to apply to the Supreme Court for CTC to ascertain the effect the decision has on this Petition.

    “We pray for adjournment till Friday,” Abubakar prayed.

    Other parties in the matter had no objections to the motion for adjournment.

    Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani granted the request for adjournment and shifted the hearing till Friday, June 2.

      
  • Man remanded for allegedly defiling 14-year-old girl

    Man remanded for allegedly defiling 14-year-old girl

    A Badagry Magistrates’ Court in Lagos on Tuesday ordered a 40-year-old man, Adex Opara, who allegedly defiled a 14-year-old girl, to be remanded in a correctional centre pending legal advice.

    The police had on Tuesday charged Opara with defilement, breach of peace and threat to life.

    Opara pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him.

    The Magistrate, Mr T A Popoola, who did not take Opara’s plea, ordered the police to duplicate the case file and send the same to the office of the Director of Public Prosecution, for legal advice.

    Popoola, who frowned at the high rate of rape of minors, adjourned the case until July 31 for hearing.

    Earlier, the prosecuting officer, Inspector Ayodele Adeosun, told the court that the defendant committed the offences on May 21, at about 11.00 a.m., at No. 46, Komata Street, Magbon, Badagry, Lagos.

    Adeosun alleged that Opara was caught red-handed having canal knowledge by penetration with one eight-year-old girl, whom he lured into his room and defiled without her consent.

    The prosecutor said the defendant conducted himself in a manner likely to cause a breach of peace by having canal knowledge of the minor.

    The offences, he said, contravened the provisions of Sections 261, 168 and 56 of the Criminal Law of Lagos, 2015. 

  • Russia blames Ukraine for drone attacks on Moscow

    Russia has blamed Ukraine for drone attacks on Moscow, calling it an “act of terrorism.”

    “This morning, the Kiev regime carried out an act of terrorism with unmanned aerial vehicles on objects in the city of Moscow,’’ the Russian Defence Ministry said on Tuesday.

    A total of eight drones were used, all of which had since been destroyed, the ministry said.

    Three had been diverted from their original flight path and the remaining five had been shot down by Russian air defences, it added.

    Moscow did not provide any evidence for the accusations against Kiev. There was initially no reaction from Ukraine.

    Earlier, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported that his city had been attacked by drones in the early hours of the morning.

    Some residential buildings were slightly damaged and two people were slightly injured, he wrote. 

  • Juventus reject €50m offer from Bayern for Vlahovic 

    Juventus Football Club have refused a 50-million-euros (53.45-million dollars) offer from Bayern Munich for forward Dusan Vlahovic.

    Vlahovic moved to Juventus from Fiorentina last summer for a sum of 80 million euros and has a contract until June 2026.

    In spite of a weak season, in which he scored 14 goals in 42 games, Vlahovic is still seen as a future talent.

    According to the report, Juventus expect better offers for the forward to consider starting negotiations.

    Due to a 10-point deduction for irregularities in the club’s accounting, Juventus are set to miss the UEFA Champions League next season.

    Vlahovic’s sale could help the team compensate for the financial losses. 

  • Subsidy Removal: We’ll tackle supply disruptions – NMDPRA

    *Urges Nigerians not to panic

    The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has said it is working with NNPC Limited and other stakeholders to guarantee a smooth transition following the removal of fuel subsidy.

    President Bola Tinubu, in his inaugural speech on Monday, said the fuel subsidy regime had ended with the commencement of his administration.

    NMDPRA made this known on Tuesday in a statement signed by Mr Kimchi Apollo, General Manager, Corporate Communications, NMDPRA, to address concerns regarding the removal of fuel subsidy.

    Apollo said the authority was working to avoid disruptions in the supply of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, as well as ensure that consumers were not short-changed in any form.

    He assured that there was an ample supply of PMS to meet demand and that the authority had taken necessary steps to ensure that distribution channels remained uninterrupted and fuel readily available at all filling stations nationwide.

    He urged Nigerians not to panic over the removal of subsidy as the authority had ensured availability of petrol nationwide.

    “Contrary to speculations and concerns, the announcement is in line with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA 2021), which provides for total deregulation of the petroleum downstream sector to drive investment and growth.

    “We, therefore, call on Nigerians to remain calm and resist the urge to stockpile as it poses a significant safety hazard.

    “The NMDPRA reassures all Nigerians that the removal of subsidy on PMS is a step towards building a more sustainable and prosperous future for our nation.

    “We will continue to monitor activities and implement necessary measures to enhance transparency and accountability in the petroleum downstream sector,” he said. 

  • Fuel Subsidy Removal: Queues return to filling stations in Abuja, other cities

    Following the announcement of fuel subsidy removal by President Bola Tinubu in his inaugural speech on Monday, fuel queues have returned to filling stations in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, and Ilorin metropolis.

    NIGERIAN ANCHOR observed that since Monday evening, only few stations were selling fuel with long queues.

    On Tuesday morning, long queues were seen at the NNPC filling station along the Kubwa Expressway. Other filling stations like Emadeb along Banex area also had queues while Rano and Shema filling station were not dispensing.

    Many filling stations in the Lugbe area of Abuja sold petrol at prices ranging between N194 and N198. Outside Abuja, residents said fuel stations sold petrol for N230.

    On Tuesday morning, a long queue of motorists was observed at the NNPC filling station along Airport Road, Lugbe, according to reports.

    In Ilorin filling stations were selling at their different rates, but some were shut down.

    Some motorists who spoke to NIGERIAN ANCHOR however said they had envisaged the scarcity of fuel, hence the panic-buying.

    Mr Paul Chinaka said he would not have the time to go round in search of fuel later in the day, so he was ready to join the long queue to buy before mid-morning.

    Another customer, Mr Iliya Badmos, said the stations were out to exploit the customers as they have started hoarding their products.

    ”That is the reason why I decided to refill my tank today, so that I will not suffer searching for fuel around when the filling stations start their artificial scarcity,” he said.

    For another motorist, Emmanuel Gana, the announcement by Tinubu was a good one but he has to put measures in place to make sure that ordinary Nigerians do not feel it too much.

    “This fuel subsidy issue has lingered for too long. If we must speak frankly, what the new President, Bola Tinubu said yesterday is a step in the right direction. His predecessor could not have the balls to remove it so they passed it to him.

    “We all know the scam behind the fuel subsidy imbroglio so ending it is welcome. What I expect the new president to do now is to issue directives on how to cushion the effect his pronouncement will cause. Already, you can see that filling station owners are saboteurs who are out to make their own money.

    “Just like the DSS did last time when they forced filling stations to sell their fuel, the government should do so again and force them to sell because they’re already trying to sabotage and over-heat the polity by hoarding their products,” he said.

    Recall that President Bola Tinubu said on Monday during his inaugural speech, that fuel subsidy favoured only the rich.

    “We commend the decision of the outgoing administration in phasing out the petrol subsidy regime which has increasingly favoured the rich more than the poor.

    “Subsidy can no longer justify its ever-increasing costs in the wake of drying resources. We shall instead re-channel the funds into better investment in public infrastructure, education, health care and jobs that will materially improve the lives of millions,” Tinubu said.

  • Don throws weight behind fuel subsidy removal

    Professor of Finance and the Capital Market at Nasarawa State University, Uche Uwaleke, has backed the removal of fuel subsidy due to its huge cost on the economy. 

    In a chat with Nigerian Anchor on Monday in Abuja, he said the continued payment of subsidy by the federal government had become unsustainable.

    President Bola Ahmed Tinubu during his inaugural speech at Eagle Square had said his government would no longer subsidise fuel. 

    According to Uwaleke, “fuel subsidies have proven to be sustainable.

    “I equally support unification of exchange rates because doing so will discourage round tripping, bring more transparency to the forex market which supports foreign investments.”

    To minimise the impact of the subsidies removal, Uwaleke called for caution as the government goes ahead with it’s implementation. 

    “However, in order to minimize negative impact on the livelihoods, issues of fuel subsidy and exchange rates unification which he mentioned in the speech should be handled with care.

    “Stakeholder engagement is required.

    “To this end, I suggest an immediate constitution of an “Economic policies’ coordinating committee” made up of  Economic and Finance experts,” he said. 

  • We’re not in a hurry to shut down 2G, 3G network- MTN

    The Chief Technical Officer of MTN Nigeria, Mohammed Rufai, has said the telecoms giant is not in a hurry to shut down its 2G and 3G network as it deploys its 5G network.

    The CTO noted that with many Nigerians still unable to upgrade their devices to 4G or 5G, it would be difficult to end investments in 3G technology.

    Rufai added that the 3G spectrum can also be converted to provide 4G and 5G service when 3G is shut down in the future.

    “The fact that we are going to 5G does not mean we will not cater to the needs of subscribers that require the lower technology.

    He revealed that 90 per cent of Nigeria’s population has 2G technology while over 83 per cent of the population has 3G coverage, and the 4G coverage has reached over 79 percent of Nigerians and it is still growing.

    “Each subscriber has their own needs. Some only need 3G; some subscribers will move to 4G. Even though there are significant benefits to moving to higher technology in terms of speed and latency, we try to cater to the needs of everyone. So, devices are one of the main factors in moving to higher technology, and we’re moving quickly.

    He said the company is making progress in the 5G service expansion, saying that it has so far deployed the service in 6 more cities after the initial 7 at the launch in September last year. This brings the total number of cities with 5G networks to 13.

    “So, right now, we are in 13 cities (Lagos, FCT, Owerri, Ibadan, Maiduguri, Abeokuta, Shagamu, Ifo, Warri, Enugu, Benin City, Kano, Port Harcourt etc) and are still expanding. Nigerians are already enjoying the benefits of 5G,” he said.

    Ends

  • New A’Ibom Gov promises enhanced security, welfare for civil servants

    New A’Ibom Gov promises enhanced security, welfare for civil servants

    Newly sworn-in Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Mr. Umo Eno has called on all Akwa Ibom people to join hands with him to take the state to enviable heights.

    He made the call after he was administered the oath of office by the Chief Judge of the state, Justice Ekaette Obot, at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo.

    Umo promised to create an enabling environment for investors to lift Akwa Ibom people out of poverty as he assumed the mantle of leadership, whilst pledging to improve security, education, health, and the welfare of the civil servants a priority of his administration.

    He promised a golden era for Akwa Ibom, saying his government would usher in a new era of peace and security for the state.

    The governor urged the people to support his ARISE agenda to build on the legacies of the immediate past governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel.

    He said he would be the governor of all Akwa Ibom people irrespective of their political affiliations.

    “I am in awe of the grace that has located me. I am in awe of the grace of God upon my life. I am sure together, we will usher in the golden era for our state.

    “As we begin this government, we will invite all Akwa Ibomites to arise to the feat of greatness with our ARISE agenda from investment in agriculture, healthcare services, and education; we will ensure that we continue changing the narratives of our state.

    “We will continue to support our state civil servants, and we will ensure that their welfare becomes paramount. We will continue to build on the successes of Udom Emmanuel’s administration.

    “We will tackle insecurity and we will ensure that Akwa Ibom continues to remain peaceful. We are resolved to ensure we fight insecurity in our state because we have the assurance of the security agencies to continue and improve upon what they are doing currently,” he said.

    Eno, who commended Emmanuel for supporting him against all odds, applauded the people for their support of his candidacy.

    He appealed to Emmanuel not to desert him after he exits the office, as he would continue to seek his wise counsel.

    Eno said he never believed he could be a Governor of Akwa Ibom because he had no aspiration for the office of the governor, added that the grace of God has placed him in the current position to govern the state.

    The governor said he would ensure the development of agriculture, education and empowerment of Akwa Ibom youth.

    The Chief Judge also swore in Sen. Akon Eyakenyi as the Deputy Governor of the state. 

  • Atiku, Murray-Bruce, Momodu, others mourn Dokpesi

    Some politicians and celebrities have described the death of Chief Raymond Dokpesi, Chairman, DAAR Communications and founder of AIT and Ray Power FM, as a great loss to the media industry.

    Dokpesi reportedly died at the age of 71 in Abuja on Monday.

    A former federal lawmaker, Sen. Shehu Sani, on Twitter, expressed shock at the news of the death of the media icon.

    “I received the shocking news of the demise of High Chief Raymond Dokpesi. He was a detribalised Nigerian and a patriot who has made a tremendous contribution to the struggle, restoration and sustenance of democracy in Nigeria.

    “He raised the bar in professional broadcasting and was a champion of press freedom. He fought many political battles in the pursuit of justice and freedom. Dokpesi was an institution and his life an inspiration. Life is transient. May his soul rest in Peace. Amin,” he said.

    Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, on his Twitter account wrote,  “I am in a state of shock! As we say in Islam: from God, we came, and to Him, we return.

    “I am in prayers and will continue in prayers! My everlasting and deepest condolences to the Raymond Dokpesi family. May God forgive his sins and grant him eternal rest. Ezemo, not on a date like this should you leave us! -AA.”

    Media mogul, Dele Momodu, also shared a condolence message on his Instagram page mourning the death of Dokpesi.

    “This is too sad to bear. Our media IROKO is gone… Good night High Chief Dr Raymond Aleogho Dokpesi. May your great soul Rest In Peace,” he said.

    Nigerian politician, Ben Murray-Bruce, mourning the media icon on his Twitter page said, “Chief Dokpesi left an indelible mark on the world of media and broadcasting.

    “It is with a profound sense of sorrow that I learned of the passing of High Chief Raymond Dokpesi, a monumental figure whose influence and contribution to society will never be forgotten.

    “Chief Dokpesi left an indelible mark on the world of media and broadcasting, instilling a standard of excellence and professionalism that remains unparalleled. His tireless efforts to foster unity and promote progress will always be remembered and appreciated.

    “While we mourn this immense loss, we also celebrate a life of purpose and impact. My deepest condolences to the Dokpesi family—our thoughts and prayers are with you during this incredibly difficult time.

    “We hope that you find solace in the knowledge that Chief Dokpesi’s legacy will continue to inspire generations to come. May his soul rest in perfect peace.”

    Nigerian singer, Eedris Abdulkareem, on his Instagram page prayed that God comfort  the family and that the soul of Dokpesi rest in peace.

    “My condolences to the family of Chief Raymond Dokpesi. Wishing you peace, comfort, courage, and lots of love at this time of sorrow. My heart goes out to you at this difficult time.

    “I am thinking of you and your family and sending caring thoughts your way, may the lord rest the soul of Chief and grant him eternal rest Amen,” he said.

    A visit to AIT office at Kola, in Alagbado area of Lagos State, revealed a sombre environment.

    The security personnel on duty refused visitors into the premises, saying “There are no officials or staff to attend to any interviews but you can come back tomorrow.”