The presidency says federal universities in the country remain tuition-free.

Some federal universities and unity schools recently announced a hike in school fees for freshers and returning students.

The development led to an uproar on social media platforms, amid the ballooning cost of living and soaring inflation caused by some of the federal government’s recent economic policies.

In a statement on Wednesday, Dele Alake, special adviser on special duties, communications and strategy to President Bola Tinubu, said the hike in school fees by some universities are “discretionary charges for hostel accommodation, registration, laboratory and other charges. They are not tuition fees”.

“It was widely reported earlier this week across some news media outlets that the Federal Government had increased tuition fees in federal universities in the country. These reports are inaccurate and not correct,” the statement reads.

“We are aware that some universities have in recent weeks announced increase in the amount payable by students on sundry charges.

“However, the fact remains and we have confirmed that these are discretionary charges by each university for hostel accommodation, registration, laboratory and other charges. They are not tuition fees.

“Authorities of these universities even made this fact clear enough in explaining the rationale behind these new fees. For avoidance of doubts, federal universities in Nigeria remain tuition-free.

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu remains committed to his promise of ensuring that every Nigerian, regardless of the economic situation of their parents, have access to quality tertiary education.

“In addition to the Students’ Loans Scheme, under the Student Loans Bill signed into law by President Tinubu last month, which will go into implementation ahead of the next academic session in September, the Federal Government will also strengthen other mechanisms to support indigent students.

“Parts of the government’s plans to make sure all diligent students complete their education on time, notwithstanding their parents’ financial situation, include work-study, merit-based scholarships and grants.”

President Bola Tinubu has said the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, would not tolerate actions that incapacitate democratically-elected government in the sub-region, a direct message to soldiers who have held Niger Republic’s President, Mohamed Bazoum, hostage at the palace.

President Tinubu gave the warning in his capacity as the ECOWAS Chairman in a statement on Wednesday, describing the blockade of the presidential palace in Niamey by soldiers as ‘unpleasant developments’.

A source said disgruntled members of the guard sealed off access to the President’s residence and offices, and, after talks broke down, they “refused to release the president.

“The army has given them an ultimatum,” the source said.

Meanwhile, Tinubu’s statement read: “I wish to say that we are closely monitoring the situation and developments in Niger and we will do everything within our powers to ensure democracy is firmly planted, nurtured, well rooted and thrives in our region.

“I am in close consultation with other leaders in our region, and we shall protect our hard-earned democracy in line with the universally acceptable principle of constitutionalism.

“As the Chairperson of ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, I state without equivocation that Nigeria stands firmly with the elected government in Niger and equally conveys the absolute resolve of leaders in our sub-region that we shall not waiver or flinch on our stand to defend and preserve constitutional order.”

[Vanguard]

Barcelona midfielder Ikay Gundogan has revealed that he “didn’t know anything about football” before his arrival at Manchester City.

The German international arrived at the Etihad from Borussia Dortmund in 2016 for £20 million and was Pep Guardiola’s first signing after the Spaniard gaffer joined Manchester City. 

Gundogan left City last summer after seven years at the club, winning several trophies, including a treble as the club’s captain in his last season.

While reflecting on his time under Guardiola, he revealed that Guardiola had much influence on him at the club.

“Before I joined Manchester City, I thought I knew football,” said the five-time Premier League winner. ”I was 25 or 26 years old, and I’d seen a lot. I’d played in the Champions League final.”

“But now standing here after seven years of Pep’s school, I’d say I didn’t know anything about football before. His influence on the team and me personally was immense.” Gundogan told ESPN.

He also admitted that he needed to seek a new challenge, which was the reason behind his departure from the Champions League winners.

“I’ve known him [Guardiola] well for seven years, but I like challenges and constantly surpassing myself. All that the coach and [Barcelona] have done to convince me is that my desire to sign for the club has grown a lot.”

Gundogan made 304 appearances in all for Manchester City, scoring 60 goals and assisting 40.

[OpinionNigeria]

The Nigeria Nation is indeed at crossroads and never before have we had it so colourful. Every Nigerian at home and abroad feels it so bad one way or another. But for most of us, it does seem that there is very little we can do to improve things. This is because the path to the much-needed transformation is riddled with immense difficulties with near impossibilities some will say.

No country is immune to corruption. The abuse of public office for private gain erodes people’s trust in government and institutions, makes public policies less effective and fair, and siphons taxpayers’ money away from schools, roads, and hospitals. Godwin Emefiele, suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), arrived at the federal high court in Ikoyi, Lagos, around 9:18 am on Tuesday, clutching the Bible. The King James Version (KJV) of the holy book was tucked inside a red paperback. Accompanied by the bible! The big question is; is religion a scam?

Religion is not a scam in itself but there are so many scammers using religion to scam people. They have discovered that the easiest way to scam people and still not be seen as a criminal is by telling them God said this or that. Who will go and ask God if he said it or not? And Israel has been a secular state for decades. Their decisions have nothing to do with religion. Corruption of church officials may concern property or the manipulation of religious teachings to fit national or political aspirations. Nonetheless, the challenge of our society is the level of Emeifele in many of us.

Godwin Ifeanyi Emefiele CFR is a Nigerian politician, economist, and banker who served as governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria from 4 June 2014 until his suspension by President Bola Tinubu, on 9 June 2023. ‘Emperor Meffy’ Godwin Emefiele was the second-longest-serving governor of Nigeria’s central bank and oversaw its biggest economic downturn. His biggest undoing turned out to be a widely criticized currency redesign. Meffy got to unravel the key that unlocks the hearts of the Nigerian men of power. Its acronym is GGG – Graft, grits, and genuflection. Immediately after Jonathan exited as president, he effortlessly meandered into the hearts of the next holders of the reins of power. ‘Emperor Meffy’ in the eyes of the storm.

For Hon. Kazaure, a former member of the Federal House of Representatives (MHR), Meffy is the emperor in a corrupt empire where he singly decides who to turn into a billionaire overnight. What Kazaure is saying is not new. Meffy’s predecessor publicly made allusions to the trend long ago. It also formed talking points in bars and gardens around Abuja. Many people allege that Meffy’s encouragement of the parallel forex market was a window to create instant billionaires among members of his cycle within his political party.

Furthermore, Kazaure, said you could be in your bed and they send you $10m at the official CBN rate through your bank. The bank would call to inform you that you have been given $10m from the CBN at the official rate. The same bank would open an account in your name and tell you how much they will buy the dollars from you. Once you accept, your account will be credited with the difference between the CBN rate and what the bank bought from you. According to Kazaure, that is how easy it is for Meffy to create billionaires.

Enter the ‘Meffy’ syndrome’ which is synonymous with average Nigerian public office holders and their mindsets. I believe that a major root cause of our problem as a nation is our unprogressive mindset as Individuals, as a society, and as a nation. A mindset is a set of beliefs or a way of thinking that determines one’s behavior, outlook, and mental attitude. As we all know, mindsets influence the way we think, the way we do things, and ultimately, our behaviour. Our wrong mindsets have brought about wrong orientations, eroded value system, and a thwarted worldview of ourselves and issues.

Interestingly, the ‘Meffy’ syndrome’ represents the way of thinking and mindsets of many of our citizens particularly the political elites and public office holders as exemplified by the likes of Abubakar Malami, Ned Nwoko, Abdulrasheed Maina, Diezani Alison-Madueke and many others. The Nigeria Nation is indeed at crossroads and never before have we had it so colourful. Every Nigerian at home and abroad feels it so bad one way or another. But for most of us, it does seem that there is very little we can do to improve things. This is because the path to the much-needed transformation is riddled with immense difficulties with near impossibilities some will say.

In conclusion, I daresay, that, the ‘Meffy’ syndrome’ is the root cause of the problems associated with poverty, and Nigerians from across the country are lamenting the hardships in the land, crying out for urgent measures by the government at all levels to mitigate their suffering which they said was becoming intolerable. Hence the need to reactivate the moribund NATIONAL ORIENTATION AGENCY (NOA) for efficiency and national re-birth reorientation, ethics, and cohesion – Mind Restructuring Advocacy on my mind.

Richard Odusanya is a Mind Restructuring Enthusiast.

The Senate has rejected a motion to release from the detention the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu.

The motion which was moved by Senator Osita Izunaso (Imo West) sought to address the constant sit-at-home order enforced by unknown gunmen in the South-East.

The lawmaker, in the motion co-sponsored by other lawmakers from the South-East, noted that the senators were aware that thousands of innocent lives had been lost since the action started, and properties worth over a trillion had been destroyed resulting in investors leaving the region.

He said, “The sit-at-home civil disobedience actions in the South-East have led to the disruption/destruction of economic activities and immeasurable financial losses for businesses, workers, and the local economy. Because, when people are forced to stay at home and businesses remain closed, productivity declines and income is reduced, affecting livelihoods and economic growth.

"The security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of the government."  Section 14 (2)(b) of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution (as amended).

The Coalition of #EndSARS Protesters and Supporters, national and globally are horrified by the planned mass burial of 103 protesters and civilians who tragically lost their lives in the October 2020 state-sponsored violence and murder at the Lekki Toll Gate, and the callous and insincere statement by the Lagos State Government in response to the leaked memo approving the contract for the mass burial.

The Babajide Sanwo-olu led Lagos State Government continues to disinform the global community in an attempt to manipulate public perception and evade justice and accountability.

Between October 21-23, 2020, Mr Sanwo-olu had contradicted himself thrice, first, he said, “Nobody died at Lekki Toll Gate”; next day, “One person died and it was from blunt trauma to the  head”; and on the 3rd day, he said, “Two deaths have now been confirmed among the protesters in Lekki.”

#EndSARS protesters and investigative journalists are convinced that many people died at Lekki Toll Gate. The report of the Judicial Panel set up by Mr Sanwo-Olu, established there was a massacre at Lekki Toll Gate, and pages 297 & 298 of the report (copy attached) clearly name nine people that were killed,1 with four more missing, but presumed dead.2 Therefore, to state that no one died at Lekki Toll Gate or only two persons were confirmed is a wicked and brazen lie.

In addition, the panel found that the Lagos State Government, the Nigerian Military and the Police were culpable in the massacre of peaceful protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate. The report noted that the military and the police shot at peaceful protesters on October 20, 2020 at the Lekki Toll Gate. The military, on the invitation of the Lagos State Governor, Mr Sanwo-Olu, took away the bodies and corpses of the dead protesters in their vans, in an attempt to cover up and clean up the crime scene.

Despite its own findings, the Lagos State Government continues to shamelessly try to divert attention from the undeniable evidence, which includes the FIJ and CNN reports, that innocent citizens were killed by security forces during the #EndSARS protests. The government portrayed these citizens as "unscrupulous elements," dismissing the leaked memo as the work of "mischief makers'', thereby exacerbating the pain and suffering endured by the families of the

Kolade Salami, Folorunsho Olabisi, Victor Sunday Ibanga, Abouta Solomon, Jide, Olalekan Abideen Ashafa, Olamilekan Ajasa, Kenechukwu Ugoh, Nathaniel Solomon,Ifeanyi Nicholas Eji, Tola, Wisdom, and Abiodun.

victims as well as citizens, whose crime was to protest against injustice and for a better quality of life.

It is important to remind the global community that the #EndSARS protests were a plea for justice, an end to police brutality, a review of the welfare package for law enforcement officers and accountability for the actions of renegade officers. This was clearly articulated in the #5for5 Demands that were accepted by the federal and Lagos State governments. Not only were peaceful protesters killed at the Lekki Toll Gate, they were also murdered statewide - over 100 protesters and non-protesters alike! The government's attempt to downplay the magnitude of the casualties is a disservice to the memory of those who lost their lives and the pain endured by their families. They are not nameless. Lagos State says some of the 103 people are  from a jailbreak at Ikoyi Prison - even if you don’t know the names of the others, how can  inmates be nameless? They were sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, and friends. Each life lost had dreams, aspirations, and loved ones left behind.

We advise TOS Funeral Services to be careful not to get involved in an attempt to  cover-up murder. There must be dignified burials for these victims, which must not happen until family members have the opportunity to identify their loved ones. Since 2020, the Lagos State government has tried unsuccessfully to cover up its tracks. The government must stop using deceitful tactics and face the reality that their actions led to the death of defenseless Nigerians.

We must all be very concerned about this government's continued lack of empathy and conscience in addressing this important issue, as it is deeply distressing that the government chooses to continue to evade responsibility for the atrocities committed against peaceful protesters, but engages in a blame game, instead of addressing the grievances of the affected families and the public.

Given the current climate and disaffection amongst youths and Nigerians generally; the high cost of living, occasioned by the fuel price increase among others, and in order to ignite much needed peaceful protests, we make the following demands to the Lagos State government to appeal to the conscience of the public:

1. Suspend the planed mass burial of 103 bodies in TOS Funeral Services immediately.
2. Implement the recommendations of the Judicial Panel of Inquiry’s White Paper.
3. Establish a one-month notice for citizens to access the 103 bodies, in the hopes of identifying their loved ones.

4. Conduct a DNA mapping of all 103 bodies using a reputable private organisation.
5. Pay compensation and provide therapy for the trauma they have caused families over the last 3 years.

As #EndSARS protesters worldwide, we will not be silenced or deterred by the government's failed attempts to discredit our actions. We will not rest and will continue to peacefully  protest until justice prevails. As we mourn the innocent lives lost during the #EndSARS protests, we call on Lagos residents, and people of conscience to stand in solidarity with these victims and join us in demanding justice and accountability for the innocent lives lost during the #EndSARS protests. Together, we will ensure that the sacrifices of those who lost their lives during the #EndSARS protests will not be in vain.

Signed:

#EndSARS Frontliners

#EndSARS

Google has partnered with Verve to make digital transactions on Google Play Store easier for Nigerians.

The firm noted that as from Wednesday (today), Nigerians can now use their Verve cards to make purchases on the Google Play Store.

It stated that under its new partnership, Google will process Verve transactions within Nigeria and the transactions will be undertaken in naira and treated as local transactions by the country’s banking institutions.

Commenting on the development, the Head of Retail and Payment Partnerships, Google Play, Anthea Crawford, said, “We are thrilled to collaborate with Verve, expanding Google Play access for more Nigerians. The introduction of local payments with Verve cards is a significant milestone, enabling more Nigerians to participate in the app economy and access the apps they need.”

The Managing Director, Verve International, Vincent Ogbunude, added, “The integration with Google Play is a significant stride towards achieving Verve’s vision of promoting financial inclusion. We are excited to bring digital content and services closer to Verve cardholders, hence bridging the digital divide.”

The Nigeria Labour Congress on Wednesday said Nigerians lost their peace of mind following the “Subsidy is gone” comment made by President Bola Tinubu during his May 29, 2023, inauguration.

The labour congress in a statement jointly signed by the national president, Joe Ajaero and Secretary-General, Emmanuel Ugboaja, in Abuja, faulted the Tinubu administration over its “unfriendly” policies while adding that the administration had continued to treat Nigerians as slaves.

The NLC, however, noted that it would mobilise a nationwide strike on August 2,2023 should the government fail to meet all its demands namely the immediate reversal of all “anti-poor policies such as the hike in price of Premium Motor Spirit; increase in public schools’ fees; increase in Value Added Tax among others”.

The statement partly reads, “The Central Working Committee of the NLC observed that the Federal Government has shown enormous disdain and contempt for Nigerian people and workers having acted and continued to act without regard to the welfare and cries of the citizenry.

“That Government seems to have declared a war of attrition on Nigerian workers and masses without any care leaving them to the throes of hopelessness and helplessness; the Federal Government has refused to put in place safeguards to protect Nigerians from the harsh economic situation that its policies have inflicted on the people rather it has decided to insult the sensibilities of Nigerian masses by offering us N8,000 per family and offering themselves N70bn.

“That the Federal Government has frustrated and abandoned its own committee which was a product of social dialogue between the government and workers’ organisations in the country. While the committee has not met, the government embarked on unilateral actions and programmes.

“That since Mr. President’s “subsidy is gone forever” speech at the inauguration day; the peace of mind of Nigerians has gone; decent living gone increasing despair of unimaginable dimensions. That the federal government has continued to treat Nigerians as slaves and conquered people which it treats with impunity without any concern on the consequences.

“That the Federal Government has continued in an unholy mission of robbing the poor to pay the rich in Nigeria as typified by its continued frustration of the activation of the agreed alternatives to Premium Motor Spirit and new hike in prices of PMS to N617 per litre.”

Speaking further, the NLC noted that the Federal Government has continued to promote the “gang-up of the ruling elite against the Nigerian people and workers; churn out without relenting policies designed to emasculate Nigerian wor

signs 12-point communique

In line with the Federal Government’s drive to facilitate trade and improve Nigeria’s economy to become globally competitive, a delegation of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), led by the Ag. Comptroller General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi has paid a working visit to the Republic of Benin and signed a 12-point communique which aims to fully re-open the border between both countries, a statement signed on Tuesday by National Spokesman of Customs, Abdullahi Maiwada revealed.

According to the Customs statement, “The Ag. CGC and his delegation visited the Nigerian Embassy on Monday, 24th of July and met with Ambassador Kayode Aluko, the Nigerian Ambassador to the Republic of Benin.

“Thereafter, they were received by the Director General of the Customs Administration in Benin, Mr. Alain Hinkati, Customs partners Webb Fontaine and Benin Control.

“They also visited Customs facilities at the port of Cotonou, where the Ag. CGC was taken through the processes and operations at the port.”

During the visit, the two chiefs engaged with stakeholders from both countries and their concerns were identified and effectively considered.

Notable among the concerns is the request to review the possibilities of reopening the border, as well as addressing the issue of administrative charges.

According to the Ag. CGC, “The visit is to deepen collaborations in mutually positive areas.

“The objective of the visit is for us to review friendship with the Customs administration of Benin and also to deepen collaborations in areas of common interest.”

“I saw the attention that was given to the port of Cotonou, the progress that is being made in reducing clearance time, ensuring that there is no congestion at the Port and, more importantly, using technology to drive operations of the Customs Administration”, he said.

“The attempt which Benin Customs has done towards trade facilitation is something that Nigeria Customs will also be doing particularly to look at where we can use our processes to reduce the cost and time of doing business.”

At the end of the meeting, a joint communique signed by the two delegations read as follows:

“The continuation of efforts to promote the ECOWAS trade liberalization scheme and the facilitation of the movement of goods and community products in particular;

“Facilitation of the issue of Laisse passe for a short stay in one of the countries of means of transport registered in the other country;

“The removal of barriers and other obstacles to legitimate trade and the establishment of Customs units when the traffic justifies it;

“Strict compliance with transit rules;

“Harmonization of the list of products prohibited by the two countries;

“The rapid integration of Nigeria into the Interconnected System for the Management of Goods in Transit (SIGMAT), which already includes the Customs Administrations of Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo;

“Strengthening the fight against cross-border crime through cooperation, intelligence sharing and the pooling of resources;

“Holding meetings twice a year to discuss matters of common interest;

“The reactivation of the joint committee for monitoring trade and transit relations;

“The revival of consultation frameworks of border customs units with the active participation of the private sector;

“Promoting good relations with border populations, professionalism and tax compliance;

“and securing the international supply chain.”

Meanwhile, the Ag. CGC and his delegation had a private meeting with the President of the Republic of Benin, his Excellency Mr. Patrice TALON, on Sunday, 23rd of July, expressing the desire to initiate a new turning point marked by close collaboration in all areas.