The 81 Division Nigerian Army has apprehended nine individuals who were masquerading as soldiers and engaging in criminal activities in Lagos State.

The Acting Deputy Director Army Public Relations, Lieutenant Colonel Olabisi Ayeni, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.

The suspects were said to be involved in various offenses, including performing illegal duties, providing unauthorised security services, and offering illegal escort services while wearing military uniforms.

The statement partly read, “The impostors who were paraded to the media on 13 March 2024 at Headquarters 81 Division NA, Victoria Island Lagos were identified as, Mr. Abua Jacob, Mr. Solomon Abraham, Mr. Mohammed Jemilu, Mr. Michael Omieh, Mr. Dauda Samuel, Mr. Bida Musa, Miss Esther Audu, and Miss Vivian Titus.

“These suspects have been arrested for various offenses, including illegal duties, providing illegal security, and illegal escort services while donning military uniforms.

“Their actions have not only compromised the safety of civilians but also tarnished the esteemed image of the Nigerian Army.

“Mr. Abua Jacob, a dismissed soldier, was apprehended on February 7, 2024, at Alaba International Market, Ojo Lagos, for impersonation.

The Executive Chairman of the Lagos Internal Revenue Service (LIRS), Ayodele Subair said about fifty taxes will be cut down to a single digit.

Subair disclosed this in an interview with Arise Television.

According to Subair, the tax policy will be implemented sometime during the year 2024.

He said the Lagos State Government is looking at archaic and ancient tax laws and trying to make amendments to them.

The chairman said, “We are all aware that the commander in chief has appointed Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, who used to be the head honcho at Price Water House. So, there’s a committee called the Presidential Committee on Fiscal and Tax Reforms.

“So, they’re doing a lot of work right now trying to harmonise taxes. They’re looking at the ancient or archaic tax laws and trying to make amendments to them.

“So, we expect a lot of good news on that front for taxpayers. I’m sure they’ll be relieved to know that some of the taxes that bring the multiple taxation conversation will be dealt with.

“And he’s presently talking, from his interim report, he said that forty, fifty taxes will be thrown down to single digit. So, we are expecting the laws to come out sometime this year.”

The LIRS chairman urged Lagosians to file their tax returns before the deadline that is March 31st, saying that the filing of tax returns is “not only a constitutional obligation, it’s also a legal obligation, and also a moral or social obligation. It’s important that everybody files their returns before the end of the deadline.”

Subair said, “You’re supposed to report your global income. So basically, whether you’re in employment, or you’re in trade or vocation or some profession, you’re expected to aggregate all the incomes from all the sources and report it truthfully.

“All residents of Lagos are supposed to report all income, whether it is local income earned or foreign income earned. Now, we have a challenge with the local Japas as they are called, and they are expected to truthfully file what they’re earning, even if it comes from offshore,” he added.

He however revealed that there were incentives and specific types of tax returns when taxes are filed on time.

Subair said, “When we talk about tax credit, usually, it comes by way of repayment, perhaps they’ve made certain repayments. For instance, if you have rental income and you have a tenant, your tenant is expected to withhold a certain percentage of the rent and remit on your behalf, so, that becomes a credit to you.

“Also, if you have dividends in maybe a Plc, it’s also subject to withholding tax deductions. So, you’re allowed to set that off your eventual tax liability. So, those are the sorts of incentives. There’s also the fact that if you file within good time, then you’re entitled to 1% discount off the tax payable.”

He listed the consequences of not filing tax returns, saying, “If you fail to file, for instance, we will take you to court. And upon conviction, you will pay a fine of N50,000. Also, we can go the other route and do a best of judgement assessment on you.

“Usually, the best of judgement is based on probably what you filed the previous year, and when we issue that assessment notice against you, you have 30 days to respond, to pay, and if you don’t pay, we can go to a law court.

“And we don’t need to go to an open court, all we need to do is to go into the chambers of the judge, and once we lay all the records before him, we are likely to get that judgement against you. So, it’s not a good thing to be on the wrong side of the law.”

The LIRS chairman said, “Well, that’s very robust, because as a responsible organization, we subscribe to the NDPR- Data Privacy Act, and all data within our confines are treated as highly confidential. And this is a point we constantly, during our training with officers, we over emphasize this point, it’s got to be confidential.

“People have got to be able to come and tell the state that these are the economic activities that I’ve been involved in and this is the income that I’ve earned. And if they do not feel that they’re acting in a confidential way, it may deter some people from coming.

“So, confidentiality is key. And we have audits on data protection, and we have an annual audit, and we have to be certified. We have a data protection officer who is assigned specifically to ensure that confidentiality is maintained at all levels,” he said.

Barring any further change in date, the Port Harcourt refinery will begin delivering refined petroleum products two weeks from now.

The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mr. Mele Kyari, stated this in Abuja on Thursday.

Kyari, who spoke at the National Assembly shortly after meeting with the Senate Ad-hoc Committee on Turnaround Maintenance of the country’s four refineries, disclosed that the rehabilitation of the refinery had been completed, having passed its “completion mechanical” procedure.

He disclosed that the Warri refinery was almost ready too, while the refinery in Kaduna would be completed and ready to go into production in December this year.

Kyari spoke further, “Completion mechanical means that you are done with your rehabilitation work; now you are to test if this completion is okay.

“As for the Warri refinery, we have also completed the mechanical works on it and it is undergoing the regulatory compliance processes that we are doing with our regulator.

“This also will be completed and it will be ready.

“Kaduna will be ready by December. We have not reached that stage (of Port Harcourt and Warri) with Kaduna.”

Kyari explained that there were no challenges with the pipelines to deliver crude to the refineries, as the existing lines were fully pressurized to deliver crude.

“All crude lines are active and have actually delivered over 450,000 barrels into the Port Harcourt refinery.

“We are confident in its integrity. Yes, there may be security issues, but the government is also responding to the situation,” he stated.

Kyari earlier met with the committee, chaired by Sen. Ifeanyi Ubah (Anambra-South).

To verify the state of readiness of the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries and the extent of work done in Kaduna, the committee said its members would conduct oversight tours of the sites.

Kyari and the committee agreed to liaise and agree on the dates to commence the oversight visits.

The senator representing Katsina Central in the National Assembly, Abdulaziz Musa Yar’Adua, has emerged as the new chairman of the Northern Senators’ Forum.

Yar’Adua, an All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmaker, was appointed as the forum’s new chair two days after the suspension of Senator Abdul Ningi.

Ningi, who represents Bauchi Central, accused the upper chamber of padding the 2024 budget to the tune of N3.7 trillion.

Although the issue of budget padding is not new in Nigeria, it is however the first time a serving senator who actively participated in the passage of the budget will accuse the lawmakers of such an act.

On Tuesday, Ningi blamed his resignation on unfolding events in the National Assembly, the north, and the nation at large.

The forum also named Senator Tahir Mungono representing Borno North as its spokesperson to replace Senator Sumaila Kawu who was warned by the Senate to stop sharing posts capable of causing unrest in the country.

Sheila Courage, the estranged wife of Isreal ‘DMW’, an aide to popular Nigerian singer David ‘Davido’ Adeleke, appears to have embarked on a new romantic journey.

Taking to her Instagram stories, she shared a cryptic note, stating that she said yes again.

Her post read:

“I said yes!!! Again,” accompanied by an answered prayer emoji which hinted at her newfound happiness.

Furthermore, her announcement was reinforced by a congratulatory repost from one of her friends.

See the posts below:

The post sparked curiosity among Nigerians and prompted speculation about Sheila’s engagement barely months after falling out with Israel DMW.

Popular Nigerian film actor, Daniel Etim-Effiong and his wife Toyosi have welcomed their third child.

The couple took to Instagram to announce the birth of their daughter, while thanking God for His kindness.

They are also parents to an older daughter and a son.On the photo and video sharing platform, they wrote:

“She’s here ☺️ Our song! Our love-gift! Our evidence!! Another arrow in our quiver to the glory of GOD!!

Thank You LORD for your kindness towards us ❤️.”

Recall Nigerian film actor, Daniel Etim-Effiong and his wife, Toyosi announced they were expecting their third child together.

Actress Elvina Ibru has said she does not have an issue with people engaging in threesomes.

The 51-year-old said this in a podcast with media personality Joseph Edgar.

In a clip from the yet-to-be-released episode, Elvina who appears to be referring to someone else, said she thought the threesome was quite beautiful. She said in the one-minute clip:

“I didn’t have an issue with the threesome, in fact, I thought it was quite beautiful.”

Elvina Ibru is an ex-presenter with Classic FM, Lagos.

Her sister is singer Gloria Ibru.

The Bling Lagosians actress is the daughter of the late industrialist Michael Ibru.

Meanwhile, Nigerian actress cum politician, Laide Bakare came under fire for commenting under Portable’s 30th birthday post.

The actor who turned 30 on Tuesday, March 12, shared photos of himself in his attire, while wishing himself a happy birthday.

Laide Bakare despite their recent clash had taken to his comment section to make fun of him, rather than just wish him well like her colleagues.

This was before she set the record straight on her supposed relationship with a mystery man, who she has been parading on social media as her lover.

The actress repeatedly showed off photos and videos with the man, and at a point dropped a Lagos location for where her supposed marriage will take place, inviting her well wishers.

In a fresh post, Laide made a video debunking her earlier remarriage claim, stating that the actor is married and they simply got married only in movies.

Reality TV star Kiddwaya has taken to social media to celebrate his ex-girlfriend and fellow BBNaija alum Erica Nlewedim’s 30th birthday with a heartwarming post on Instagram.

The unexpected tribute from Kiddwaya, who had been romantically linked with Erica in the past, came as a surprise to many fans amidst their public breakup and subsequent engagements with other partners.

In a simple yet affectionate post, Kiddwaya curated a video showcasing a nostalgic moment shared between him and Erica Nlewedim.

Accompanying the endearing footage was Kiddwaya’s heartfelt birthday message addressed to Erica, where he fondly referred to her as “mango cheeks” and extended his warm wishes for her special day.

“Happy birthday mango cheeks @ericanlewedim,” Kiddwaya wrote.

The exchange between Erica and Kiddwaya reignited conversations among fans about the nature of their relationship and the significance of their bond.

The Federal Government has said that it plans to spend N178.9 billion on the implementation of the eight priority areas of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs, Zaphaniah Jisalo, made this known in the executive summary of the 63-page FMSDIGA strategic plan 2024-2028 presented on Wednesday in Abuja.

According to the minister, the key priority areas of the strategic plan includes food security, ending poverty, economic growth/job creation, access to capital, inclusivity, security, fairness and rule of law and anti-corruption stance.

Jisalo said his ministry is among the three Federal Ministries saddled with the responsibility to contribute to the implementation of President Tinubu’s developmental policies and National Development Plan (NDP) 2021-2025.

The minister also pledged strict monitoring of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs’) projects, including constituencies’ projects across the country.

He said: “On our own part as a ministry and as part of our mandates, is to monitor, do evaluation and also certify the payment.

“You know some of the projects are not in our ministry, they are in other ministries, we will collaborate with them to know what the national assemblies are doing.”

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike maintains he is still a member of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) despite threats of expulsion from some chieftains of the party.

Wike, the immediate past governor of Rivers State, fell out with the PDP hierarchy in the run-up to the 2023 presidential election. He had insisted the party maintain its internal power-sharing formula by zoning the presidential ticket to southern Nigeria. While he backed out from supporting Atiku Abubakar – from northern Nigeria – who won the PDP primary election, the former governor worked for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), leading to the emergence of President Bola Tinubu.

Tinubu later appointed him as a minister, a move that triggered debates on whether Wike is still a member of the PDP. Despite the calls for his expulsion, the FCT minister says he is still a member of the PDP, doubling down on his support for Tinubu – the APC flagbearer for the 2023 election.

“I am a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP),” he said during a Friday media parley with selected journalists in Abuja. “Have you ever seen me change anything?”

‘Everybody Should Carry Their Cross’

Even though Wike insists he is a member of the PDP, the FCT minister has been absent from major meetings of the party and has not been seen campaigning for them in the recent off-cycle elections, he does not regret his action.

“The one I supported before, what happened? I have decided to take a break. As you see me now, everybody should carry their cross,” Wike maintained.

“I was in PDP and I did not hide it: I told them I was not going to support their presidential candidate. Is it that I spoke or acted in a way people did not understand?”

He maintains he is an advocate of the rule of law, saying his non-support of the party in the 2023 presidential election was the right step and thus moves for his suspension are uncalled for.

“Discipline me for what? That I did what? I am an advocate of the party’s constitution. Assuming we lost the governorship, will they be talking about Rivers as a PDP state?”

Since the elections and politicking are over, Wike has only one thing in mind.

“Now is the time for governance. Now is the time to do your assignment. The president has given me an assignment and I am busy carrying out my assignment,” the former governor said. “When the time for politics comes, we would know who is where and who is not where.”