A former Head of State, Gen Yakubu Gowon (rtd), has said Nigeria would have been a better country if President Umaru Musa Yar’adua had completed his tenure.

Gowon spoke on Monday during a first President Umaru Musa Yar’adua international leadership conference and awards organised by Global Initiative For Leadership Success in Abuja.

Recall that Yar’adua became president in 2007, but in 2010, he died as a result of ill- health.

Gowon said Yar’adua had achieved significant milestones for Nigeria within his short time in office including granting amnesty to the Niger Delta militants as a way of restoring the economy of the country.

He lamented that though Yar’adua admitted that the process that produced him as president in 2007 was flawed and constituted the Justice Muhammed Uwais Committee for electoral reforms, successive administrations failed to continue with his initiative.

Gowon said, “He was a decent man; a man with absolute integrity. He was an honest man. He did very well and he has to be remembered. He was so honest that he said the process that brought him to power was not right. And he set up a committee. But it was not followed by successive leaders.

"However, I believe that one day, we shall have a solution. He was honey and sincere in dealing with any problem, and he was incorruptible. You can not blame him for corruption; he was clean. His various activities including the amnesty programme that he brought to the Niger Delta ensured our economy was protected.

“His illness and death, I believe if God had allowed him to complete his years in service, I believe Nigeria would have been better. A lot of things would have been better because he meant well for the country. So continue that love for the country and love for one another to make Nigeria great.”

Gowon also decried the spate of insecurity in the country and called on government and security agencies to fish out perpetrators of violent killings, abductions of schoolchildren in the North, and kidnapping for ransom in other parts of the country.

In his welcome address, the Chairman, Board of Trustees (BOT) of the Global Initiative For Leadership Success, Gen A.B Mamman, said, “The blatant refusal to adopt and implement in whole this Uwais Committee report is consequential on the ever-faulty governance leadership recruitment system in Nigeria till date, accounting yet for her to remain in doldrums.

"Most public office holders continue to appear at the the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), or the Independent Corruption Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) office to answer questions on their tenure and so many reasons.”

Nigerian singer/songwriter, Harrysong has accused a yet-to-be-identifed person of allegedly using witchcraft against him.

This is coming following messy split from his estranged wife, Alexer following series of leaked chat where Harrysong urged his wife to get an ab*rtion for constantly birthing female children.

Taking to his Instastories, Harrysong bemoaned being played by an unidentified person who forced themselves into his peaceful life.

According to him, this individual tore down his world with their charm and witchcraft.

The singer vowed to expose the person because the world deserves the truth.

In his words: “You played me, forced yourself into my peaceful, beautifully blessed world with your juju,charm and witchcrafty,only to tear it Down? Is that how much of a threat I am to your evil devilish kingdom? Jesus Christ. The world deserve to know the truth about you. I’ll expose you.”

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The House of Representatives Joint Committee investigating the arbitrary increase in the price of cement in Nigeria has presented a report which compared the exorbitant cost of the commodity in Nigeria to other countries including its African counterparts.

Naija News recalls that on March 13, 2024, the House made a resolution to investigate the continuous rise in the price of cement.

This decision was prompted by the motion co-sponsored by Gaza Gbefwi (SDP, Nasarawa) and Ademorin Kuye (APC, Lagos).

On February 13, the Federal Government and cement manufacturers reached an agreement to set the price of a 50kg bag of cement between ₦7,000 and ₦8,000.

During the public hearing held on Tuesday in Abuja, organized by the House Joint Committee, the Chairman of the House Committee on Solid Minerals, Gaza Gbefwi, emphasized the urgent need to address the price of cement in the country.

He highlighted that in many African countries, the price of cement is significantly lower compared to Nigeria.

The lawmaker said: “Our findings showed that the price of cement is 69 per cent higher in Nigeria than in India, 39 per cent higher in Nigeria than in Zambia and 29 per cent higher than in Kenya given the official exchange rate.”

During his address at the event, the Speaker, Abbas Tajudeen, who was represented by the Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, reassured the manufacturers that the public hearing was not meant to target them, but rather to provide a platform for finding solutions to the issues impacting the housing sector, specifically the high cost of cement nationwide.

Blessing Agbebaku, the Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, has disclosed that the three lawmakers that were suspended on Monday were involved in diabolical activities to cause chaos in the house.

The speaker announced the suspension of Donald Okogbe (PDP Akoko-Edo II), Bright Iyamu (PDP Orihonmwon South), and Adeh Isibor (PDP Esan North-east I) on Monday.

Speaking during the plenary, Agbebaku accused the lawmakers of trying to change the leadership of the House through diabolical and other nefarious means.

The speaker alleged that the suspended lawmakers brought a spiritualist into the Assembly complex and dropped fetish items in the middle of the night.

He also claimed that the Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras on the Assembly premises exposed the spiritualist and the lawmakers who hired him.

He said: “They are being influenced to cause chaos in this house by planning to change the leadership of this house. But to God be the glory, they were exposed.

“They brought in a spiritualist into the Anthony Enahoro complex and dropped fetish items.

“They brought a herbalist into this house of assembly premises to plant some charms in the compound by 1am in the morning without knowing that the CCTV cameras will expose their nocturnal act.”

Nigerian clergyman and relationship coach, Pastor Kingsley Okonkwo has opined that some single ladies are in love with people that would not marry them.

According to him, these ladies give negative and unavailable vibes to the guys that want them, thereby prolonging their singleness.

"A lot of single ladies are in love with someone that won't marry them. And by that, they are giving negative & "unavailable" vibes to the guys that want them thereby prolonging their singleness," he wrote in a post on Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
 
"I know most of you are dreaming of marrying your favorite single worship minister or preacher but reality is that he will marry ONLY ONE woman
 
"No amount of fasting, desire or prayer will change that, I encourage you to start showing interest and answering the chats of the brothers around you 

 
“I just said I should tell you.....oh and please why is your page private again...I thought you are single and searching not single and hiding.”

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First Lady, Sen Remi Tinubu has applauded Second Lt. Oluchukwu Owowoh for achieving a major feat as the first Nigerian female cadet to graduate from the Royal Military Academy (RMA) in Sandhurst, United Kingdom.

Mrs Tinubu received Owowoh, who was led by the Commandant of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), Maj.-Gen. John Ochia, at the State House on Monday.

The First Lady described Owowoh’s achievement as outstanding and divine, adding that her story is that of aspiration, resilience and determination.

She said: “Your story is that of aspiration, resilience and determination, really, your case is divine; it is not because you studied very hard but because God selected you for a purpose.

“It is going to be from glory to glory, that is why we are here to celebrate you for what you have done, and I know that you still have more worlds ahead of you.

“I pray that goodness and mercy will continue to follow you. The nation would continually celebrate you because of what you have done.”

The wife of President Tinubu also commended the Nigeria Army for giving a female, the chance to excel.

She added: “I want to thank the Nigerian Army for giving you that opportunity, for realising that this is your time and you did not disappoint them.

“You have opened doors for other women so that they can look at them and given them a trial.

“I pray that God will teach you every step of the way, how to behave and you will bring joy to your generation and generation unborn because you have become a reference.”

Mrs Tinubu further encouraged the nation’s youth to emulate Owowoh’s resilience and cautioned them to desist from being destructive, lousy and problematic.

She, however, recommended Owowoh for a national award and encouraged her superiors to encourage her to become a youth advocate for others to learn positively from her.

Miss Owowoh, a 23-year officer of the Nigerian Armed Forces, graduated from RMA in a colourful sovereign parade on April 12.

She was a member of 70 Regular Course before she proceeded to the RMA for training.

Miss Owowoh passed out as second lieutenant alongside 24 other International Cadets with honours and was recognized for her exceptional performance during her time at the RMA.

The All Progressives Congress, APC, have again accused Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, the 2023 Presidential candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party, NNPP, of attempting to undermine the political relevance of its National Chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, ahead of the next election in Kano State.

This was disclosed by the National Legal Adviser of the APC, Prof Abdulkareem Kana when he was featured as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today.

Both Ganduje and Kwankwaso, two former Kano governors, were allies before they fell out a few years ago over political differences in the state.

But Kana claimed all evidence at their disposal suggested that the leadership of the NNPP and its chieftains in Kano state were behind the pockets of sponsored protests to remove him as the national chairman of the APC.

The lawyer also admitted on the live programme that it was a show of power targeted at making Ganduje irrelevant ahead of the next election in the state.

He said, “I am not from Kano. But I have heard analysis from prominent politicians who think so (a war between Kwankwaso and Ganduje). It is an attempt to create a problem within our party. Of course, I have heard my chairman speak on this matter and I will believe his analysis that the idea is to demystify him going into the next election in the state. It is also possible to impact his influence, which is looming in Kano.

“But what could have led to the seeming collapse in the relationship between him and Kwankwaso, I really cannot say. These are two politicians who have come a long way. So I think this is pure politics at play and at some point, I am confident that they may likely find themselves at a point of convergence in which the issue will be resolved.

“The individuals who perpetrated the act of claiming identities that were not theirs are not members of our party. Within that community, they are known to be NNPP members. The NNPP is trying to scratch our skin but they are not capable of destabilising our party.

“Having worked with Ganduje for a month, I have come to see him as a father. He is a very responsible leader from the little I have learnt from him and he makes efforts to carry everybody along in his activities. He is a very experienced administrator and we are seeing the quality of his service in the party.”

When contacted, the National Publicity Secretary of NNPP, Ladipo Johnson, described the APC as a confused party with a delusional leader.

He said, “Usually the NNPP won’t like to join issues or give a reply to everything Ganduje and the APC say. The Kwankwaso he mentioned has nothing to do with his travail, which he caused with his own hands.

“We are talking about a man who is having a running battle with the party executives of his ward and who is not bold enough to go to court to face the charges against him.”

The plot to remove the embattled national chairman from office gathered momentum in the past month.

It reached a crescendo two weeks later when scores of demonstrators stormed the APC secretariat in Abuja to demand his resignation and have the seat of the party leadership, previously occupied by Abdullahi Adamu, returned to the North Central zone.

The protesters hinged their request on the recent suspension of Ganduje by a faction of his ward executive and the bribery allegation levelled against him by the Kano State government.