One of the buses conveying stranded Nigerians from Khartoum, the Sudanese capital, to Port Sudan where they would move into Saudi Arabia caught fire in the early hours of yesterday.
Sani Aliyu, who is Sudan was quoted as explaining that one of the buses conveying some 50 Nigerian students from Sudan with a tag number (Katsina 1) heading to Port Sudan as part of the second batch of FGN evacuation got damaged due to excessive heat from one of the vehicle’s tyres.
He said: “Dr Hashim Idris Na’Allah, the chairman of the Nigerian Elders’ Forum in Sudan, was one of the passengers in the said bus, which contained a total of 50 students (49 males, 1 female).
“The incident happened around 2:30am Sudan time.
“The driver stopped the bus near an RSF checkpoint, just before the tire exploded causing a fire to start.
“All the passengers escaped unhurt. “Forty out of the 50 passengers were later distributed to the other buses evacuating the students, while the remaining passengers spent the night where the incident happened alongside the driver at the RSF checkpoint.
The students said the RSF really did their possible best to help the passengers and offered them with cups of tea in the morning before they left.”
However, they continued their journey to Port Sudan.
Over 1000 Nigerians are being evacuated through the Port Sudan route following the difficulties faced in getting the first batch of evacuees across the Egypt borders.
It was reported that the stranded Nigerians have spent five days at the borders as the Egyptian officials denied them access into the country where flights are already waiting to airlift them to Nigeria.
Bus Carrying Stranded Nigerians from Sudan Catches Fire
One of the buses conveying stranded Nigerians from Khartoum, the Sudanese capital, to Port Sudan where they would move into Saudi Arabia caught fire in the early hours of yesterday.
Sani Aliyu, who is Sudan was quoted as explaining that one of the buses conveying some 50 Nigerian students from Sudan with a tag number (Katsina 1) heading to Port Sudan as part of the second batch of FGN evacuation got damaged due to excessive heat from one of the vehicle’s tyres.
He said: “Dr Hashim Idris Na’Allah, the chairman of the Nigerian Elders’ Forum in Sudan, was one of the passengers in the said bus, which contained a total of 50 students (49 males, 1 female).
“The incident happened around 2:30am Sudan time.
“The driver stopped the bus near an RSF checkpoint, just before the tire exploded causing a fire to start.
“All the passengers escaped unhurt. “Forty out of the 50 passengers were later distributed to the other buses evacuating the students, while the remaining passengers spent the night where the incident happened alongside the driver at the RSF checkpoint.
The students said the RSF really did their possible best to help the passengers and offered them with cups of tea in the morning before they left.”
However, they continued their journey to Port Sudan.
Over 1000 Nigerians are being evacuated through the Port Sudan route following the difficulties faced in getting the first batch of evacuees across the Egypt borders.
It was reported that the stranded Nigerians have spent five days at the borders as the Egyptian officials denied them access into the country where flights are already waiting to airlift them to Nigeria.
[ThisDay]
SPEAKER of the Osun State House of Assembly, Mr. Timothy Owoeye, yesterday, disclosed that some factional leaders of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the state, connived with the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to betray former governor Adegboyega Oyetola and the party.
Owoeye, who spoke before the inauguration of the Committee on Repositioning of Osun APC by Oyetola, at the Tinubu-Shettima campaign office, in Osogbo, said the party is aware of clandestine meetings by some of the leaders and PDP, in Ibadan, Oyo State, before the last general elections.
He urged the committee to deal decisively with anyone found to have betrayed the party during the last election without fear or favour.
His words: “We will punish all those that are involved in anti-party affairs during the last elections. Those that are loyal to the party wholeheartedly will be rewarded greatly and God will continue to bless you.
“Some of our party members went to Ibadan to hold conspiracy meetings with PDP; we know that and at the appropriate time, we will expose them. I urge the committee to do justice while reviewing the activities of the party, and recommend appropriate punishment for party members who erred.”
While inaugurating the committee, Mr Oyetola said it was a product of several meetings between different party stakeholders in the state on the need to chart a new course for the APC in the state.
The former governor said: “To do that, we must also not gloss over some of the challenges caused by the excesses of some members of the party, some leaders and elected officials; hence, the inauguration of this committee.”
Chairman of the committee, Professor Isaac Adewole, who spoke on behalf of other members of the committee, said: “We do not doubt that the challenge is enormous, but as committed patriots, we shall, as passionate and caring physicians, propose ideas and strategies to heal our wounds as a progressive family and usher in a new era for the APC in Osun State.”
The presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 election, Mr. Peter Obi, has said recent speculations and reports claiming that he was arrested in United Kingdom are untrue.
He disclosed that he was neither arrested nor committed any offence in the country, stating that he was only stopped for a routine immigration check, “because there appeared to be a duplication of my identity.”
Obi mad the disclosure during an interview on Arise Television on Monday.
Obi said contrary to news reports, the interview with the immigration official lasted for about 20 minutes, adding that he was, “treated with all due respect” during the whole encounter.
He maintained that he never committed any offence in the UK from 1993 to 2005, when he lived in the country or found wanting in any part of the world.
He said, “I was never arrested; I was never detained and I didn’t commit any offence. I was stopped for a routine immigration check because there appeared to be a duplication of my identity.
“And all this lasted for a maximum of 20 minutes. And I was treated with all due respects. I have lived in the UK from 1993 to 2005. Not just that I live there; from that 1993 till now; it is a period of 30 years.
“I have never been questioned, arrested, detained in any country in the world. I have never for any reason found myself in any manner being questioned over any offence.”
The former Governor of Anambra State insisted, “I have not committed any offence and it was a routine immigration check and it lasted less than 20 minutes,
“I was actually given all the due respect by the boarder personality that interviewed me and who told me ‘Your identity is duplicated – be careful’, and actually had to walk me through what I can call the VIP process. And I have a written document from the British Government clarifying the situation.”
He said some Nigerians who arrived with him on the British felt traumatised over the development.
“People said I was detained, committed an offence and several offences or that his company was closed, he wasn’t paying taxes.
“For the years I lived in Britain, never had I been questioned,” he said.
The Lagos State Government has filed a notice of motion to appeal the judgement of the National Industrial Court of April 18 which nullified the appointment of a caretaker committee it put in place to run the affairs of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) in the state.
The notice of leave to appeal dated April 28 was brought pursuant to Order 6, Rules 1, 2 & 7 of the Court of Appeal Rules 2021, Section 243(3) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) as well as the inherent powers of the court.
The Attorney General of Lagos and the Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Mr. Sola Giwa were listed alongside the governor as appellants to the suit, while the RTEAN, all the members of the ad-hoc committee and the Commissioner of Police in Lagos State were listed as the 1st to 35th respondents.
The appellants in the notice say they are dissatisfied with the judgement of the National Industrial Court and are seeking an order of the court granting them leave to appeal against the said judgement.
They listed out seven Grounds in the Proposed Notice of Appeal.
In Ground one, the appellants say that the learned trial judge erred in law when it dismissed their preliminary objections dated Jan. 10, 2023 challenging the competence of the RTEAN’s originating summons and the jurisdiction of the trial court to hear the action as constituted.
In particulars put before the court, the appellants say that contrary to the position held by the lower court, the processes before it raised serious and substantial contentious and hostile facts which could not be appropriately remedied.
In Ground two, the appellants also submitted that the trial court erred in law when it granted the claims of the RTEAN when same were not proved and established.
Ground three says that the trial court erred in law when it held that “from the action of the Lagos State Govt in dissolving the democratically elected executive and substituting them with a caretaker committee under the guise of maintaining security shows that the government was more interested in the leadership of the applicant than the peace and tranquility of the applicant”.
Ground four says that the trial court erred in law when it relied on the affidavit depositions of the RTEAN, Exhibit Q in holding that the 2nd & 4th respondents dissolved the 1st respondent as a labour union and appointed the caretaker committee to run the affairs of the 1st respondent when Exhibit Q, the instrument issued by the Governor neither dissolved nor suspended the 1st respondent, nor does the document refer to the 1st respondent in any wise.
In Ground five, the appellants held that the trial court erred in law and fact in relying on Exhibits B1, B2 and B3 as a factual means for holding that the 2nd respondent suspended the entire branch of the 1st respondent or interfered with the 1st respondent by dissolving it as trade union.
In Ground six, the appellants submitted that the trial court erred in law when in granted the respondent’s claim, it failed to limit itself to the declarations sought but went ahead to grant enforceable orders on the originating summons.
In Ground seven, the applicants held that the judgement of the court is against the weight of evidence.
In their reliefs, they are seeking an order allowing the appeal and setting aside the judgement of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, Lagos Division delivered by Justice Maureen Esowe in the suit of the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria Vs The Executive Governor of Lagos State & 36 others delivered on April 18, 2023 or any other order the court may deem fit and proper to make in the circumstances of the appeal.
The court has yet to fix a date for the hearing of the suit.
warns Nigerians against imported Indomie noodles
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, (NAFDAC) has banned the importation of Indomie noodles into the country.
The Director General of the Agency, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, stated this in an interview with journalists, on Monday.
The Nigerian regulatory body took the action amid investigation by Taiwan and Malaysia authorities which reportedly discovered ethylene oxide, a cancer causing agent, in the product.
According to the NAFDAC boss, the compound of interest was ethylene oxide said already the Director of Food Lab Services Directorate has been engaged and has started working on the methodology for the analysis.
“Indomie noodles have been banned from being imported into the country for many years. It is one of the foods on the government prohibition list. It is not allowed in Nigeria, and therefore not registered by NAFDAC.”
“What we are doing is an extra caution to ensure that the product is not smuggled in, and if so, our post marketing surveillance would detect it. We also want to be sure that the spices used for the Indomie and other noodles in Nigeria are tested.
“That is what NAFDAC Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (FSAN) and Post Marketing Surveillance (PMS) are doing this week at the production facilities and in the market, respectively,” she said.
She, however, promised that Nigerians will be duly updated with the outcome of the investigation.
The agency said it will begin random sampling of indomie noodles including the seasoning from the production facilities from Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the makers of Indomie noodles, Indofod, defended the safety of its products, saying all instant noodles produced by the ICBP in Indonesia were processed in compliance with the food safety standards from the Codex Standard for Instant Noodles and standards set by the Indonesian National Agency for Drug and Food Control.
“ICBP has exported instant noodles to various countries around the world for more than 30 years.
The company continuously ensures that all of its products are in compliance with the applicable food safety regulations and guidelines in Indonesia as well as other countries where the ICBP’s instant noodles are marketed,” a press statement by Indofood read in part.
WITH the completion of the governorship primaries of the various political parties, the battle for the Kogi State Government House known as Lugard House is getting clearer and tougher.
Political gladiators have returned to their trenches plotting to win the November 11 governorship election and become Governor Yahaya Bello’s successor in January next year.
Interestingly, the just concluded governorship primaries produced 11 candidates, who are jostling for the votes of the electorate in the Confluence State.
Those eyeing Lugard House and holding party tickets are Ahmed Usman Ododo, All progressives Congress, APC; Dino Melaye, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP; Leke Abejide, African Democratic Congress, ADC; Olayinka Braimoh, Action Alliance, AA; Dauda Isah, Allied Peoples Movement, APM; Adejoh Okeme, Labour Party, LP; Usman Jibril, Social Democratic Party, SDP; Julius Elukpo, Action democratic Party, ADP; Musa Mubarak/Abdullahi Bawa, New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP; Samson Omale, Young Progressive Party, YPP; and Abdullahi Bayawo, Peoples Redemption Party, PRP.
Of the 11 contenders, one is from Kogi Central, three are from Okun extraction of Kogi West and the rest are from Kogi East.
Disputed primaries
Majority of the parties’ primaries ended up in disputes, some parties even held parallel primaries.
In the NNPP, Musa Mubarak and Abdullahi Bawa emerged as parallel flagbearers.
While Mubarak was elected in the primary at the Children Amusement Park that party members in Kogi participated in, Abdullahi Bawa, a serving House of Representatives, emerged from a process allegedly handled by national officers from Abuja.
Also, while Okeme emerged at the KAFAS multipurpose hall as the Labour Party candidate, another faction of the LP produced another candidate the same day at the Big Brothers Hotel in Lokoja.
The same scenario played out in ADC which produced Leke Abejide as the sole candidate on Saturday only for the Kogi West Senatorial candidate of the party, Dele Williams, to be declared winner of another primary spearheaded by the suspended state chairman, Kingsley Ogga, 24 hours later.
However, the ADC national body had forwarded the name of Abejide to INEC as the party’s candidate.
In the APC, the direct primary adopted has been criticized by majority of the aspirants who felt that the primary committee favoured Governor Bello’s anointed candidate, Usman Ododo, who emerged as winner. For the likes of Senator Smart Adeyemi; APC Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Muri Ajaka; former Minister, Stephen Ocheni; and four others, the primary did not hold.
Even now, a party stalwart, Mr Rilwan Okpanachi, a lawyer, has approached the court for the primary to be quashed. It was the same Okpanachi who made the court to nullify the delegates’ election the APC intended to use for indirect primary before opting for direct mode.
The People’s Democratic Party, PDP, also has its fair share of dispute, as no less than three other aspirants, namely – Yomi Awoniyi, Bolufemi Olarotimi and Haruna Usman, have kicked at the emergence of Dino Melaye as the party’s candidate.
To them, Dino connived with some executive of the party to have his stooges as the 185 delegates instead of the authentic names. They had, days before the primary, vowed to ‘destroy’ the party if nothing was done to change the delegates list to the authentic names. They have continued their threats insisting that authentic delegates did not vote at the primary that produced Melaye.
Despite the number of candidates, the contest as of now, appears to be a three-horse race among the ruling APC, PDP and ADC.
Burning issues
Two major burning issues in the state have been the tussle for power rotation and demand for a Christian governor.
Power shift
The emergence of Dino Melaye (PDP) and Leke Abejide (ADC) has not only rekindled the hope of Kogi West agitators for power-shift but has also balanced the demand for a Christian governor. Leke and Dino are of the Okun extraction from Yagba East and Ijumu council areas of Kogi West Senatorial District respectively; and both are Christians.
The agitators for power shift are hinging their stand on the fact that the Igala-dominated Kogi East had held power for 17 cumulative civil years while the Ebira-dominated Kogi Central are on the verge of completing eight years but the West has never tasted power.
To them, the 16:8:0 formula is unpalatable to a heterogeneous state like Kogi and there’s a need to balance power.
On another hand are Christian governor agitators like former CAN chairman, Bishop Emmanuel Ibenu, who said that it was not out of place for people to demand for a governor of Christian extraction in a 32 years old state that has experienced five elected Muslim governors.
Abejide’s chances
The ADC candidate, Leke Abejide, is expected to garner a majority of the votes from the Western axis of the state if all things remain constant. Abejide, through his widely accepted Free WAEC payment for his Yagba Federal Constituency was not only able to win a resounding second term in the February 25 National Assembly election, he has also been able to spread his good fortune to another Federal Constituency, Kabba-Bunu/ Ijumu where his party won the seat. He also helped to deliver Yagba West state Constituency for his party.
The ADC as a party may not have strong structures but what they lack in structures they made up in Leke’s goodwill. Abejide had twice defeated APC and PDP in their strongholds of Yagba Federal Constituency through coalition. He understands the politics of harvesting aggrieved party members from other parties to work for his victory; same strategy he will be taking to the governorship poll.
Sources said the ADC is already talking with Muri Ajaka of the APC to come and deputise Leke. The combined forces of Leke, Muri and other aggrieved members of PDP and ADC may spring a surprise in the election.
The opposition ADC on the other hand is perceived to enjoy a robust relationship with the APC President-Elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Abejide jettisoned his party’s presidential candidate to create a support group – Asiwaju Confluence Campaign Organization, ACCO, that worked for Tinubu success in the February presidential election.
Despite being a first timer in the National Assembly from an opposition party, Abejide was made the Chairman, House Committee on Custom and Excise duties. Abejide is also a close friend of Jigawa State Governor, Badaru. It is to be seen if these factors will swing victory to him at the poll.
Melaye’s cross
Dino is going into battle with bruised party structures. Aside from the disputed primary, PDP has lost its streaks in the state. The leadership of the party has not only lost steam, they are presently at their lowest ebb. Governor Bello jubilated openly when Dino won the PDP ticket.
From one Senate seat, and three House of Representatives seats in 2019, the party has gone down to zero Senate seats and one House of Representative seat in 2023. They also managed to win two out of the 25 State Assembly seats.
Though Dino has quickly commenced fence-mending with aggrieved members and critical stakeholders of the party, he has the Herculean task of surmounting the Federal Government might of Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu, who will be the sitting president during the election. Dino had so much taunted Tinubu during the presidential campaign, causing political pundits to predict a ‘pay back’ in the November 11 poll. Political observers rate him below Abejide of the ADC in Western Senatorial axis.
I’m on a rescue mission – Melaye
Melaye said he is coming to liberate Kogites from the misrule of Yahaya Bello. To him, the existing infrastructures in the state were projects initiated and completed when PDP governors ruled the state, boasting that the party is poised to return to power based on that.
He said that there was no way PDP’s achievements in 13 years of governing the state would be compared to the eight years of maladministration by Governor Bello. He even termed the first ever fly over in the state capital as ‘Centre table.”
Will incumbency factor deliver Ododo?
The APC and its candidate, Odod, will rely so much on the power of incumbent governor, Yahaya Bello. Both Bello and Ododo hail from the same Okene community. To some, Ododo can easily pass as Bello’s cousin.
The APC also boasts of three senators, six House of Representatives members, and 22 of 25 House of Assembly members in their kitty.
The APC candidate is the only Egbira and candidate from Kogi Central as majority of the other parties supported power shift to West or believe that the zone should not retain power after Bello’s eight years in office.
This means Ododo will also benefit from the solidarity of his kinsmen who are known to always support their brothers in any race, aside from a few like Dr. Tom Ohikere who is in the forefront of the power shift to Kogi West. The Central controls 25 percent register voters.
Speaking shortly after picking the APC ticket, Ododo, who was the auditor-general of the state under Bello said he would be building on the legacies of his boss, especially in security and infrastructure.
Igala as political bride
The Igala, despite commanding 45 percent of the registered voters, has now taken the back bench in the governorship election. The zone has no strong candidate in the race but has become the political bride as the three major parties are looking to pick their deputies from the zone.
The choice of the deputy will go a long way to determine the winner of the race. A strong deputy will curry favour for its governorship flag bearer.
The Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the February 25th election, Peter Obi, has averred that the leadership tussle in the party is as a result of individuals who have been paid to destabilize the party.
Naija News reports that Peter Obi during an interview on ARISE TV on Monday to celebrate Worker’s Day, insisted that Julius Abure is the chairman of the Labour Party.
He said there was actually nothing wrong with the party, stressing that the leadership crisis is a case of hired individuals causing confusion in the party.
According to the former governor of Anambra State, since the factional chairman, Lamidi Apapa came into the limelight, he has never had any kind of interaction with him.
He added that despite the infiltration of the party by the paid agents, the party is intact and attempting to bring everyone back.
He said, “There is nothing wrong with the Labour Party.”
“It is the same rascality that is going on all over the place; the chairman of the Labour Party is Barrister Julius Abure.
“Yes, because people are paid; people are hirelings; they have been paid to distort things and everything. For example, I have never met Mr. Apapa, and supposedly you can say that I am a meaningful figure of Labour Party and the presidential candidate.
“So I have not met the other party chairman, and he is not looking for me. There was a purpose. It is because of the transactional politics we practise, where rather than spending our energy and time trying to do the right thing, we spend our energy and time trying to do the wrong thing. Paying people to do the wrong thing because we live off this confusion.
“But that notwithstanding, we are even trying to bring everybody, even those who say they have paid you; maybe you have done the job they want you to do; come let all of us be a family.
“Yes, because those who live off the confusion who were already in the other party would not go away, trying to create confusion everywhere. They are not going to keep quiet.
“Don’t think these people are going to go away; no, they are not going to do that. But if we keep doing the right thing, eventually we are going to win.”
The Abia State Governor-elect, Dr Alex Otti on Monday celebrated workers in the state in commemoration of May Day, assuring them that help is on the way.
In a statement he personally signed, the incoming governor told them to “weep no more”, adding that his administration is committed to addressing their concerns.
“Today, by the mercy of the Almighty God, our prayer, battle cry and admonition, ‘Weep No More, Help is on the Way’, has been answered and we can assuredly declare, help is here!” Otti stated.
“I have always held the view that a worker that is neglected or poorly treated is a threat to the economic prosperity of a state and argued that one of the ways to stimulate a depressed economy is to pay salaries and allowances as well as pay contractors to inject funds into the economy, which will in turn lead to increased demand for goods and services, higher productivity and job creation.
“I’m convinced that God saw through our hearts, hence, He crowned our efforts with that nationally celebrated historic victory that has given us the platform to serve you.”
He saluted Abia workers, especially those in the “State and Local Government civil services, who, despite being owed many months of salary arrears, have ensured that the wheels of public service continue to spin.”
Noting that majority of the workers are celebrating this year’s May Day on empty stomachs as a result of non-payment of salaries, he stated that such “sad experience will become a thing of the past going forward.”
Otti commended them for their resilience, long-suffering and uncommon dedication to duty in the service of Abia State.
Lamenting that the outgoing administration of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is leaving behind “humongous liabilities,” Otti said he is undaunted in addressing the challenges upon assuming office.
Having won the March 18 governorship election, Otti will be sworn in as the next Abia governor on May 29.
Chris Ngige, minister of labour and employment, says his monthly salary after the deduction of taxes is N942,000.
Speaking on Monday in an interview with Channels Television, Ngige said he was not entitled to any allowance as a minister except when on official trips.
“My salary is N942,000 a month. That is my salary with My PA. Gross total after-tax — my feeding, my transport, the transport of one PA, the salary of my gardener, my cook,” the labour minister said.
“They are all consolidated. After huge taxation, they paid me N942,000. Every minister you see, that is what you will see. The special advisers get around that amount too.
“The allowances are not anything. We don’t have any allowances except if you travel, you can get duty tour allowance, like every other public officer.”
Ngige noted that the federal government recently reviewed the travel allowance the ministers, permanent secretaries and others are receiving.
“It was reviewed to N100,000 for a minister, and I think ministers of states, N75,000; permanent secretaries, N70,000, and down the line. Level one, everybody else’s own was reviewed, not only our own,” he said.
Speaking on the issue of minimum wage, the labour minister said the outgoing administration of President Muhammadu Buhari will not increase the salaries of workers before leaving office, adding that the next administration will address the issue of workers’ salaries after assuming office.
“I’m sure that the incoming government of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu will tow the same line and do the necessary fixing. He is a finance manager. He managed the finances of Lagos very well. He paid the salaries that needed to be paid and even add the extra payment for the judicial workers in Lagos. I have no fear about that at all,” Ngige said.
While reacting to the challenge of unemployment, the labour minister said the responsibility of job creation is a “cross-cutting” issue that should not be left in the hands of the public sector alone.
Ngige attributed the challenge to the decline in foreign direct investments.
“The point is that job creation is a cross-cutting thing. It is not only for the public sector to do,” he said.
“Everybody has it in mind that it is the government that creates jobs. If we don’t work in a federal ministry or government agency, we have not got a job. No, the private sector is there.”
Some civil servants across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) have been suspended for their alleged roles in salary “padding”, The Nation has learnt.
Those affected are from the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) and an undisclosed institute.
It was learnt that the suspended workers connived with some officials in the OAGF to pad their salaries by manipulating the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS).
An assistant director (AD) deployed in the IPPIS unit of the RMAFC is undergoing probe over salary padding.
The assistant director, who is desk officer in charge of staff’ salary was alleged to have connived with the OAGF personnel to pad the salaries of unspecified number of lower cadre workers.
A source familiar with the incident said: “The AD in connivance with some staff members are deep in the salary padding racket. The alarm blew recently when a Level 7 officer, whose salary should be in the range of N60, 000 was paid over N400, 000 – the salary package for a director.
“What happened was that another colleague on same salary scale saw the pay slip of a female colleague with a net pay of over N400, 000. Surprised, he tried to get details of the excess payment but was rebuffed.
Following the cold attitude from his colleague, the aggrieved staff raised the alarm and a committee was set up to investigate the matter”.
The salary padding racket The Nation learnt has been on for a while among a small clique of civil servants in different MDAs with the IPPIS office in the OAGF as the epicenter of the activity.
Reacting to the development, the OAGF in a statement said it is “in receipt of enquiries over alleged “salary padding” on the IPPIS involving some unspecified MDA.
The OAGF noted that “there is no evidence of salary padding” before the OAGF at this time; however, the office is aware of reported breach of the IPPIS third party payment protocol at an Institute outside Abuja.
“The incident has since been reported to, and is being investigated by relevant anti-corruption, security and regulatory agencies.
“In the meantime, a staff suspected to be connected with the breach has been suspended to allow for thorough investigation.”
The OAGF added that all necessary steps are being taken to strengthen the controls around the IPPIS payment platform and an independent forensic audit of the entire payroll system is underway to ascertain if the reported breach is isolated or widespread”.
Confirming the development, the RMAFC Chairman, Mohammed Bello Shehu, said the commission has identified some culprits and placed them on suspension pending the investigation of the incidence.
He said some workers at the commission were found to have manipulated the IPPIS system to pad their salaries above what they were supposed to earn.
“If the indicted officials are found culpable of the salary padding allegations, they will be handed over to the appropriate authorities for prosecution,” Bello Shehu said in a chat.
The RMAFC boss, who declined to disclose the number or the identities of those involved, emphasised that the commission will not condone such blatant disregard of the civil service rules.
“We will investigate to know how long this has been going on, how much has been illegally acquired and attempts made to recover the excess from those involved”, he said.
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Two weeks after his abduction, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Okey Wali (SAN), has been released.
Okey Wali, the 26th President of the NBA, was abducted in the early hours of April 17, 2023, after his convoy was attacked along East–West Road, in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The President of the Nigerian Bar, Yakubu Maikyau (SAN), confirmed his release in a press statement on Monday.
Maikyau who said he had spoken with Okey Wali noted that the former NBA President has been reunited with his family and “is in good spirits”.
The NBA President also used the opportunity to call on the Federal Government to live up to its constitutional responsibility of protecting the lives and properties of all Nigerians.
“Every life is valuable and must be treated with honour and dignity. There must be a deliberate and appropriate investment in the improvement of the welfare of all security agencies, particularly the police, and adequately equipping them to function effectively and efficiently. Otherwise, it will be hypocritical, if not fraudulent, to expect any meaningful result from the Nigerian Police in its constitutional duty of protecting the lives and properties of Nigerians,” he said.
This is the second time Mr Wali will be kidnapped. He was first abducted in Port Harcourt, Rivers State by gunmen on Oct 11, 2014, after his tenure as NBA chief. He was released 13 days later on Oct 24, 2014.
Wali, an indigene of Rivers State, was elected the NBA President in 2012 and served in that capacity until July 2014.
Find below the full statement of the NBA President:
1 May 2023
STATEMENT OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE NIGERIAN BAR ASSOCIATION, MR YAKUBU CHONOKO MAIKYAU, OON, SAN, ON THE ABDUCTION OF MR. OKEY WALI, SAN
Update I
Distinguished Colleagues,
To the glory of God Almighty, I am pleased to announce the release and return of Mr Okey Wali, SAN to his family. I personally spoke with him, and he is in good spirits. The 26th President of the NBA was kidnapped and held for 14 days following a violent attack on his convoy along East– West Road, in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State on 17 April 2023.
On behalf of the members of the Nigerian Legal Profession I thank all well-wishers who stood by the Bar and the family of Mr. Okey Wali, SAN, in thoughts, prayers and deeds, throughout this horrific ordeal.
I appreciate the interventions of the Governor of Rivers State, His Excellency, Nyesom Wike; the Inspector General of Police; the Director General of the Department of State Services; the Commissioner of Police and the State Director of Service, Rivers State; together with all their officers and men, who worked tirelessly since the ugly incident took place. I am grateful to all members of both the Bench and Bar, for the display of camaraderie during this period of trial. The support, prayers and goodwill have greatly helped the efforts deployed towards the safe release of our brother and leader. The leadership and members of the Bar in Rivers State have been exceptionally wonderful. We thank God Almighty for answering our prayers and granting us the safe return of Mr Okey Wali, SAN.
We reiterate our call on the Federal Government to live up to its constitutional responsibility of protecting the lives and properties of all Nigerians in all its ramification. Every life is valuable and must be treated with honour and dignity. There must be a deliberate and appropriate investment in the improvement of the welfare of all security agencies particularly the Police, and adequately equipping them to function effectively and efficiently.
Otherwise, it will be hypocritical, if not fraudulent, to expect any meaningful result from the Nigerian Police in its constitutional duty of protecting the lives and properties of Nigerians. One can only give from the abundance of what he/she has.
As our past President recovers from the experience of this ordeal, I pray that God will comfort the families of those who were killed in the incident and grant them eternal rest. I also pray for the quick recovery of the police officers who suffered gunshot injuries from the incident.
I thank you all.
Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau, OON, SAN
PRESIDENT, NBA
Peter Obi, the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, has vowed to reclaim his alleged stolen mandate in court.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting in Awka, the former Anambra State governor reiterated his commitment to exploring every legal option to ensure that he reclaims his mandate.
Obi had contested in the last presidential election and came third, behind the President-elect, Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Despite coming third, Obi insisted that he won the election and had headed to court to contest the outcome of the poll.
“Earlier, I interacted with the Anambra State Labour Party Stakeholders in Awka. The meeting was quite animated and constructive.
Part of our discussions centred on the way forward for the party,” Obi tweeted. “I reassured them of my readiness to go all the way and explore every available legal option to ensure that we get our mandate back. I appreciated all their support so far, as I assured them of mine. PO.”
Obi’s determination to reclaim his mandate underscores his belief in the democratic process and the importance of upholding the rule of law.
His commitment to exploring all legal options available to him is a testament to his resilience and unwavering determination to ensure that justice is served.
The LP stakeholders’ meeting provided a platform for Obi to engage with party members and outline his plans for the future of the party.
Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State has approved an exit package of N10,000 each for Ebonyi State workers.
Umahi made the disclosure on Monday in Abakaliki at the 2023 Workers Day celebration with the theme: “Workers’ Rights and Socio-economic Justice”.
Represented by his Deputy, Mr Kelechi Igwe, the governor said: “The exit package is also for local government workers, and that shall be added in their May salaries.
“My administration has made government-worker friendliness possible. Our relationship with civil servants has been cordial.
‘In my eight years in office, we can say that we have created over 65,000 direct and indirect jobs for the people.
“We have created four more federal institutions – David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences, David Umahi Federal Teaching Hospital, Muhammadu Buhari International Airport and Isu College of Education.”
The governor said that the creations meant more income tax from both federal employees and state employees to the state government, improved welfare of the people, more funds to the economy and increased commercial activities in Ebonyi.
Umahi said that he understood the significance of the 2023 Workers Day celebration all over the world.
“It reminds us of the ugly past where workers were dehumanised and their rights and freedom denied them,” he said.
Professor Oguguo Egwu, the state Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), said that there was the need for the government to engage more teachers, medical doctors and nurses.
Egwu said that engaging more teachers in the state public and secondary schools would go along way in enhancing quality of education.
“I commend the governor on efforts to renovate the state health facilities.
“We, therefore, urge the governor to engage more doctors and nurses to achieve more in healthcare delivery.
“We also need enhancement of workers’ welfare package.
“Your excellency, we ask you to look deep into your good heart and, in liaison with your successor, design a take-home package that will be unique to Ebonyi workers,” the NLC chairman said.
Mr Jenifer Nwafor, Special Adviser to the Governor on Labour Matters, also congratulated the workers, and pledged continued cordial relationship with the workers.
…Commits over $20bn to Pan-African Investments
Africa’s foremost entrepreneur and President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote has urged African countries to dismantle all economic barriers hindering free trade among the nations, in order to achieve sustainable growth and development across the continent.
The leading private sector player also expressed the irrevocable commitment of his Pan-African conglomerate, Dangote Industries Limited to solving some of the economic challenges faced by the African continent and her people. To realise this goal, the organisation has committed over 20 billion dollars on investments in several key sectors of the African economy.
Dangote who made this disclosure said the massive investments were meant to turn around Africa’s economic fortunes in the quest for sustained economic growth of the continent through free trade and economic integration.
Speaking in Lagos at the launch of a Special publication “The World Ahead 2023” by the renowned media outfit, The Economist, Dangote, who was represented by the Group Executive Director/Group Chief Risk Officer, Dangote Industries Limited, Dr. Adenike Fajemirokun, noted that the crucial task of building a sustainable future that guarantees equitable growth and prosperity for all, should not be the exclusive role of the public sector alone, but should also involve the private sector.
“Our massive investments of over 20 billion dollars across key industries, including Energy, Agriculture, and Infrastructure. Our recently commissioned 3Million Metric Tonnes’ Fertiliser Plant, expansions in cement production, and our soon-to-be commissioned 650,000 barrels per day world’s largest single-train refinery, are all set to empower farmers, foster backward integration, create thousands of jobs, eliminate our dependence on imported products, and improve our nation’s foreign exchange earnings significantly.
“We are also confronting environmental issues through our investment in alternative fuels, as well as unlocking enormous opportunities in the communities where we have our footprints, while ultimately ensuring that we keep delivering huge value to our shareholders.
“The multilayered issues that we face globally and across regions today, ranging from rising energy costs, food insecurity, supply-chain disruptions, access to quality healthcare, cybersecurity, inflation amongst others brought about by the pandemic or other human factors like the Russia-Ukraine war, call for an objective rethink of geopolitics and geo-economics, especially as they vastly affect policy execution and the ease of doing business in more vulnerable economies,” he stated.
Drawing the attention of the international audience to the need for all hands to be on deck towards lifting Africa above the various socio-economic challenges facing the member-countries, Dangote pointed out that the African population has been growing exponentially.
“Nigeria, for instance, is projected to be the world’s third largest population by 2050 surpassing the United States, only behind India and China, so the question of sustained economic growth has become increasingly critical and isn’t one for a single sector to tackle alone. To secure the future of our country and our continent we must forge strong public-private partnerships and dismantle regional barriers with vehicles like the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).”
Dangote advised that “going forward, the overarching conversations, whether at global or regional levels, in emerging markets or in OECD countries, must be refocused towards exploring the specifics of our fast-changing world, in order to align public-private perspectives and identify areas for collaboration for the collective good of people, planet, and profit.”
He commended ‘The Economist’ for putting together the publication that was being launched, describing it as a rich body of work that offers useful data for all sectors to draw insights from and synthesize the same towards arriving at cutting-edge action points.
In his remarks, Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat described the publication as a valuable document for policymakers and strategic planners, and noted that its contents reaffirm part of the strategies the Lagos State government has executed to make Lagos assume its status as the preferred destination of choice for investors.
According to him, Lagos has just 0.4 per cent of the land mass of Nigeria but has 11 per cent of the country’s population, which explains why some of the challenges in Lagos are peculiar to the metropolis, disclosing that some of the strategies adopted by the state government are geared toward solving the challenges.
He said Lagos is Africa’s fastest growing economy and added that a key policy of the state government is to improve its investment profile by providing an enabling environment. Hamzat also noted that the state has invested billions of Naira in infrastructure and technology, citing the Lekki Deep Seaport as one of the enablers which has made Lagos to attract 60 per cent of the Foreign Direct Investment into Nigeria.
Also speaking, the Regional Executive and Managing Director of Ecobank Nigeria Limited, Mr. Mobolaji Lawal hailed the Economist special launch, as it provides an opportunity for knowledge sharing for the government and private sector to explore emerging opportunities in the digital space.
“If we get it right, it will stimulate growth and drive transformation and ensure economic growth”, the Ecobank boss stressed.
The renowned The Economist Group at the weekend in Lagos launched its special publication titled “The World Ahead 2023”
(L-R): Group Executive Director/Group Chief Risk Officer, Dangote Industries Limited, Dr Adenike Fajemirokun; Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr Kadri Obafemi Hamzat and Regional Executive/Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria Limited, Bolaji Lawal at the launch of “The World Ahead 2023” a special publication of the renowned The Economist in Lagos at the weekend.
(L-R): Lagos State Commissioner for Finance, Dr. Rabiu Olowo; Managing Director, CT Productions, Camelia Oros Tsarouchis; Group Executive Director/Group Chief Risk Officer, Dangote Industries Limited, Dr Adenike Fajemirokun and Regional Executive/Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria Limited, Bolaji Lawal at the launch of “The World Ahead 2023” a special publication of the renowned The Economist in Lagos at the weekend.
(L-R): Managing Director, CT Productions, Camelia Oros Tsarouchis; Group Executive Director/Group Chief Risk Officer, Dangote Industries Limited, Dr Adenike Fajemirokun and Regional Executive/Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria Limited, Bolaji Lawal at the launch of “The World Ahead 2023” a special publication of the renowned The Economist in Lagos at the weekend.