Okolobi Gist Specials

 Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo state has asked the federal government to begin the process of bringing back Finland-based separatist Simon Ekpa to the country.  Speaking during a familiarisation visit from the new General Officer Commanding 82 Division, Enugu, Major General Hassan Dada, at the Government House in Owerri, the Imo State capital, Uzodinma outlined the need for peace to be restored in the South-East region of the country.  He said;    “What is topmost in our cases is this popular sit-at-home order. There’s one man called Simon Ekpa somewhere in Finland. “It is our hope that the security agencies, particularly the military, working with the Federal Government, will be able to either bring Simon Ekpa back to Nigeria to also sit at home with us or be made to face the wrath of the law.” 

 The military junta in Niger has warned West African leaders meeting in Abuja against military intervention in the country's ongoing coup. West African leaders will meet in the Nigerian capital Abuja on Sunday July 30, for an emergency summit on Niger, where a military coup took place earlier this week. The heads of state of the 15-nation Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) could suspend Niger from its institutions, cut off the country from the regional central bank and financial market, and close borders. France and the EU have already suspended financial aid and security cooperation with Niger. The US says it will follow suit. General Abdourahamane Tchiani, the head of the powerful presidential guard, declared himself the leader of Niger on Friday as the country's elected president Mohamed Bazoum has been held by the military for four days. "ECOWAS and the international community would do everything to defend democracy and ensure democratic governance cont...

 I give my wife N1million monthly for food - Pastor David Ibiyeomie The General Overseer Of Salvation Ministries, Pastor David Ibiyeomie has stirred reaction on social media after disclosing the amount he gives his wife monthly for only feeding. The man of God made this revelation while advising married women on the need to be prudent with the money given to them. Speaking in a recent sermon, Pastor Ibiyeomie, stated that he used to give his wife N600k for feeding every month and N500k to N600k for every service. According to him, he later increased the feeding allowance to N1 million per month, while noting the size of his house and his large family.  He said, “I used to give my wife N600k for feeding a month, then I use to give every service N500 to 600k per service when I was giving her N600k per month. “Then I shifted to N1 million per month, my house is big. All women who are not prudent, please be prudent. Don’t tell me your husband is rich so you waste money. If with al...

 Keep your militia away from Southeast– IPOB warns Asari Dokubo The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has warned, Asari Dokubo to keep his newly formed militia group away from the South East or face the wrath of the pro-Biafra group. In a statement released on Wednesday, July 26, IPoB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, expressed shock that Igbo political leaders and the Nigerian media are mute over the formation of militia group headed by Asari Dokubo.  IPOB alleged that the militia group formed by Asari is amongst the group causing mayhem in the South East region. He added that the first agenda of Asari's group is to make peaceful Biafra agitation look violent before the international community and secondly to create an unsafe environment in order to discourage Nigerians from the South East from bringing their investment home. IPoB’ s statement reads “The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPoB, led by Mazi  Nnamdi  Okwuchukwu  Kanu, wish to draw the at...

 Federal Universities remain Tuition-free - Presidency The Federal government has refuted reports claiming it has increased tuition fees in federal universities in the country. According to the Special Adviser to the President on Special Duties, Communications and Strategy, Dele Alake, the reports are inaccurate and not correct.  A statement released by Alake denying the claim 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...

 Banks have been directed by the Central Bank of Nigeria to vacate a post-no-debit restriction placed on the bank accounts of 440 individuals and companies. This is coming two years after the apex bank instructed banks to freeze accounts of 18 companies, ranging from bureaux de change (BDCs), construction firms, investment companies, laundering services, and property companies. The affected companies at the time include Bakori Mega Services, Ashambrakh General Enterprise, Namuduka Ventures Limited, Crosslinks Capital and Investment Limited, IGP Global Synergy Limited, Davedan Mille Investment Limited and Urban Laundry. Others were Advanced Multi-Links Services Limited, Spray Resources, Al-Ishaq Global Resources Limited, Himark Intertrades, Charblecom Concept Limited, Wudatage Global Resources, Treynor Soft Ventures, Fyrstrym Global Concepts Limited, Samarize Global Nigeria Limited, and Zahraddeen Haruna Shahru.  Bamboo Systems Technology Limited, Escale Oil & Gas Limited, ...

 Court grants Emefiele N20m bail, orders he be remanded in Ikoyi correctional center until bail is perfected Justice Nocholas Oweibo has granted the suspended the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, bail in the sum of N20m with one surety in like sum. The judge granted the bail after listening to the submissions of Emefiele’s counsel, Joseph Daudu (SAN). The judge rejected the Federal Government’s claim that Emefiele was a flight risk and should not be granted bail. The judge held that the government failed to provide any fact to support its claim. While tendering his bail application, Emefiele's counsel had urged the court to grant his client bail on self recognizance or on other liberal terms, pending the hearing and determination of the trial. “There is no counter affidavit from the Federal Government opposing bail. Also, the defendant is a renowned banker and can only stay at his house, he can’t travel anywhere.” But counsel to the FG, Nkiru Jones-Nebo in ...

 Former Governor of Edo state, Adams Oshiomhole has asked Nigerians to be patient with President Bola Tinubu’s government, as he is still working out solutions to Nigeria's problem.  Speaking during a live interview on Channels Television, Oshimhole said Tinubu is not a “magician” that will solve the country’s problems in one fell swoop. The Senator representing Edo North said; “They know they were not electing a magician. And nobody promised a magical solution. You don’t need to give me an example. I know what we (APC) promised more than you who were reporting it. Whatever you reported, we were the source. We did not promise a 24-hour solution. We did not promise miracles. We did not promise an overnight solution. “You show me any document that says in 48 hours, this will be done. In 14 days, this should be done. In 21 days, this should be done. “I think you are the one who has the illusion that once a promise is made, automatically once you get into office, either spirituall...

 Senator representing Edo North senatorial district, Adams Oshiomhole, has kicked against the N30,000 monthly minimum wage which he described as a “criminal wage”.   Oshiomhole who sat for an interview on Channels Television on Sunday night, July 23, revealed that his cleaner earns more than N60,000 monthly. He also stated that the average responsible private-sector employer is a better employer than the Federal Government or state government.    He said;    “What we call minimum wage is a criminal wage. If you exchange N30,000 at N800 or N700 to the dollar, what does that translate to? So, the value of that minimum wage when it was N125 – when it was first introduced under, I think, (Shehu) Shagari’s government – is about two times or three times the value many years later, even in the public service. “I can tell you what I have decided to pay my cleaner. My cleaner is just a primary school – I’m not sure she has even a school leaving certificate. But she’...

 Former Nigeria Vice President and presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has told the Presidential Election Petitions Court that heavens would not fall if the court resolves that Bola Tinubu was unlawfully declared president and subsequently removes him from office. Atiku declared this in his final written address in support of his petition challenging the declaration of Tinubu as winner of the February 25 presidential election. Atuku said the fact that a presidential election had never been nullified before in Nigeria was not good enough reason for the tribunal to avoid doing  the right thing. Arguing against the submission of Tinubu that nullifying the February 25 presidential election on account of interpretation of the 25 per cent of votes cast in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) could lead to chaos in the country, Atiku said nothing like that would happen if the tribunal reached such verdict. He said, “At this stage, it is pertinent ...

 Elon Musk now paying Twitter users with blue ticks with one popular already paid  $100,000  Verified Twitter users are finally getting paid for their posts online with one popular profile already paid $100,000 (£76,275). The platform will now 'help people earn a living directly on Twitter' as it announced plans to kickstart monetisation features just last night.  This scheme is only available to notable Twitter Blue subscribers, as creators will need to prove they received at least five million impressions on posts in the last three months. The platform explains that the impressions are a total tally of times a tweet has been viewed, and funds to support those who fit the bill will be sourced from Twitter's advert revenue. It comes just a week after rival Meta, run by Mark Zuckerberg, released a similar platform called Threads, which has since had more than 100 million new sign-ups. 'We’re expanding our creator monetization offering to include ads revenue sharing fo...

 The Department of State Services this night announced that suspended Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele has been charged to court.  This is coming barely six hours after a Federal High Court ordered the DSS to either arraign or release suspended Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, from its custody.  DSS spokesperson, Peter Afunanya confirmed Emefiele's arraignment but did not give details of the charges levied against him.  Afunanya said in a statement;  “Sequel to an Abuja High Court Order of today, 13th July, 2023, the Department of State Services (DSS) hereby confirms that Mr Godwin Emefiele has been charged  to court in compliance with the Order. “The public may recall that the Service had, in 2022, applied for a Court Order to detain him in respect of a criminal investigation. “Though he obtained a restraining order from an FCT High Court, the Service, however, arrested him in June, 2023, on the strength of suspected fresh criminal infractions...

 The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reacted to Labour Party's call for its chairman, Yakubu Mahmood to be sacked over how the 2023 presidential election was conducted.  During a press conference held on Thursday, July 13, Labour Party had called for Yakubu's sack and for a forensic audit of INEC's expenditure before, during and after the election.  However reacting to Labour Party's demands, Chief Press Secretary to INEC chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi said the opposition party's demands are not only "illogical but also ridiculous”. Oyekanmi also said that it is strange that a political party in court challenging the outcome of the presidential election could still openly discuss the matter at a news conference, knowing fully that doing so is subjudice. He also noted that INEC accredited local and international election observers under specific rules and regulations, under which they were required to submit their reports to the commission. Oyaka...

  President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appealed to the Senate to approve a borrowing request of $800 million from the World Bank. Recall that former President Muhammadu Buhari had, towards the tail end of his administration, forwarded same request to the 9th Senate in May. However, the 9th Assembly could not consider the request before its tenure ended in June 11. In a letter read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during plenary on  Thursday, July 13, President Tinubu asked the 10th Senate to approve the borrowing request. He told the lawmakers that the loan would be used to scale up the National Social Safety Net Programme. The letter reads in part “Please note that the federal executive council led by President Muhammadu Buhari approved an additional loan facility to the tune of $800 million to be secured from the World Bank for the National Social Safety Net programme. Copy of FEC’s extract attached. You may also wish to note that the purpose of the facility is to expand cove...

 A dramatic scene played out at the House of Representatives on Wednesday, July 12, as a newly elected lawmaker was sent out of the chamber over improper dressing.  The lawmaker entered the chamber casually dressed in a red t-shirt and brown trousers. He reportedly sat at the upper gallery of the temporary chamber of the House when the House was almost rounding off the proceeding for the day. A member of the House, Billy Osaweru, raised a point of order, drawing the attention of the Speaker to the lawmaker’s improper dressing. He noted that it contravened the House dressing code. The lawmaker was forced out of the chamber after the speaker's attention was drawn to his outfit.

 The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs) to commence remittances pay-out in both Naira and foreign exchange to beneficiaries.  The apex bank said the Investors and Exporters’ (I&E) window foreign exchange rate should be used in determining the exchange rate for Naira pay-outs. CBN's Director of Trade and Exchange Department, O.S Nnaji, listed 62 approved IMTOs to carry out the directive in a circular to banks, IMTOs and the public. In the list are Western Union, World Remit Limited, CashPot Limited, eTransact International Limited, Leadremit Limited, Flutterwave Technology Solutions Limited, and Interswitch Limited. Others are Belyfted Limited, Caperemit UK Limited, Chime In (Sendwave), Colony Capital Limited, Comet Trading Nigeria Limited, CSL Pay Limited, CP Express Limited, among others. It read;  “Further to the circular referenced TED/FEM/FPC/GEN/01/011 dated November 30, 2020 in respect of the above subject, ...

 Caterer invited on the guise of being contracted to feed builders at a site killed and her car stolen.  The police in Imo state have arrested two suspects identified as Henry Chigozie Okorie, 39, and Okechukwu Nnali, 43, in connection with the k!lling of a caterer, Chinonye Ukachukwu, 38, who they lured to a building site under the guise of contracting her to provide food for builders and afterwards killed her and stole her Lexus SUV. Parading the suspect before newsmen on Wednesday, July 12, the spokesperson of the state police command, ASP Henry Okoye, said on November 30, 2022, the suspect, Okorie who hails from Amakpaka Ofekata Orodo in Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State, solicited for a gun from his gang member, Okechukwu Nnali of Umuduru Ihezie in same Mbaitoli LGA, Imo State, to go for an armed robbery at Delta State to rob the victim of her Ash coloured Lexus SUV Jeep. Okoye said on December 1, 2022, Okorie proceeded to Delta State and lured the victim to Isi...

 President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has said that he never knew that he would ever become the President of Nigeria.  A statement released by presidential spokesperson, Dele Alake, said the President disclosed this while addressing the class of 1999 Governors at the council chamber of Aso Villa, Abuja. The ex-governors were at the State House to identify with Tinubu, who was the governor of Lagos State from May 1999 to 2007. “We served as governors and sat in this Council Chamber. All I wanted was democracy and the salvation of the country. I never thought I was going to be here as President, but God Almighty has brought me. My commitment to that democratic value is unwavering. I am overwhelmed and honored by the numbers of you here. I have an open door policy. You are my advisers. We went into the pond and wrestled with a pig. We got dirty, and cleaned up. That is why I am here today,” he said President Tinubu, while noting that the country would not make meaningful progress without ...

President Bola Tinubu has written to the National Assembly seeking amendment to the 2022 supplementary appropriation act to allow the Federal Government source N500 billion for palliative to cushion the effect of the subsidy removal.  In a letter addressed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, and read during plenary today, July 12, President Tinubu said the money will be sourced from the 2022 supplementary Appropriation Act of N819. 5 billion. The letter titled: “Request for the amendment of the 2022 appropriation act” reads in part. “I write to request the approval of the House of Representatives an amendment of the 2022 appropriation act in accordance with the law. The request has become necessary in other to source for funds to provide necessary palliatives to cushion the effect of the recent removal of fuel subsidy in Nigeria. The sum of N500 billion only has been extracted from the 2022 appropriation act of N819.536 for tht provision of palliatives t...

 The federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has warned that they would reach out to Google to permanently delete digital money lending apps harassing and slandering customers from its Play Store . The announcement was made by Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of FCCPC, Babatunde Irukera, during an interview on Arise TV on Tuesday, July 11.  Irukera stated that while these digital lenders are welcome to do business in the country, those that harass their consumers will be dealt with promptly. He said “Our concern is if these lenders we’ve approved are still doing it (harassing customers), even if they do it just for once, we will permanently delete them from the Google Play Store. As we discover them, we go after them. “There are things they can do wrong where they will be given a second chance but with respect to harassing consumers or defamatory messages, there will not be a second chance.”   Also sharing his thoughts on debt recovery, Irukera added;...

Rivers State Governor, His Excellency, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, GSSRS has said his administration will be signing the contract for the construction of the single biggest project that will be undertaken by any State in Nigeria and that investors across various sectors are excited and ready for the derivable benefits.  Governor Fubara made this known on Tuesday shortly after inspecting deplorable sections of Degema Street, Harbour Road and Reclamation Road in the old Port Harcourt Township and the ascending section of the bridge connecting Dr. Peter Odili Road to Woji Town. The governor noted that the Port Harcourt Ring Road, which will traverse six local government areas will be a legacy project that will decongest roads in the various localities within Port Harcourt and Obio Akpor Local Government Areas. According to him: "When all these places are opened up, people including the real estate investors will start moving in there and businesses will open up because people have started...

 A deadly virus is reportedly spreading across Europe, Africa and the Middle East and is feared to soon become the biggest threat to the public. The virus has been identified as Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) broke out in Iraq and Namibia and there have been cases in Spain as well as deaths recorded in Pakistan. An urgent health warning has already been issued in what has been described as the current biggest threat to public health and is feared to be accelerated by climate change.  The disease is caused by Nairovirus and according to the World Health Organization (WHO), it has a fatality rate of between 10 and 40 percent.  The virus' symptoms include headaches , high fever, back and joint pain, stomach ache, and vomiting. Red eyes, a flushed face, a red throat, and petechiae (red spots) on the palate are also common. In severe cases, WHO warns, jaundice, mood swings and sensory perception are encountered. As the illness progresses, large areas of severe bruising...

 Former president, Olusegun Obasanjo, has said it is unconstitutional and immoral for lawmakers to decide their salaries, adding that those who should uphold the law were the ones undermining it.   Obasanjo stated this while delivering a speech at the 60th anniversary celebration of legal icon Aare Afe Babalola’s call to the Bar held in Ado Ekiti on Monday, July 10.   He said fixing of salaries for elected officials is the responsibility of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) but lawmakers now fix salaries for themselves.   “Under paragraph 32(a-e) of Part I to the third schedule of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the commission is saddled with determining the remuneration appropriate for political officeholders, including legislators, among other functions. The point in Nigeria which I have seen and which I can attest to is most of the people who are supposed to be operationalising or managing and seeing the constitution and democra...

 Labour Party has alerted its members about a possible rerun of the presidential election.  National Chairman of Labour Party (LP), Julius Abure, claimed they've been informed that President Bola Tinubu’s All Progressives Congress (APC) led government is also getting set for a rerun. Speaking during a virtual meeting held with Nigerian-American Coalition for Justice and Democracy led by Prof. Eddie Oparaoji, who is the Lap Diaspora Chairman in the United States, on Monday, July 10, Abure said members of the party should get ready to “further humiliate” APC and its government at the polls. He said;  “Those in government are already planning for rerun and this is one of the support we will be canvasing from you.  We should also be getting prepared because since all those in government are already preparing for rerun we too should not be taken unawares. “So we will be needing your engagement and support on this aspect if par adventure it happens today, that the election...

 GWR: Govt bans planned 72-hour kissing marathon event in  The Ekiti State government has announced a ban on the planned three-day kissing marathon to set the Guinness World Record in the state. A group identified as Sugartee released an advert saying that on July 7 they will be embarking on the longest world kissing marathon in a popular amusement park in the state capital. Reacting to the development, the state Ministry of Arts and Culture in a statement released today July 5, banned the scheduled competition of the marathon and warned all Hoteliers in the state not to allow their premises be used for such exercise. The state government warned that heavy sanctions will be placed on any hotel found to permit such an exercise in their facility. The letter signed by the Director of Tourism Adebanji Adelusi on behalf of the permanent secretary of the ministry, Dele Ogunsemoyin noted that the planned event tagged ‘Kiss-a-thon ‘ was capable of denigrating the image of the state. ‘...

 The Federal Government has rejected the European Union’s report on the 2023 general elections.  The EU Electoral Observer Mission had said that trust in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had been severely damaged, especially as a result of the failure to upload the result of the presidential election electronically. The EU which identified six areas for improvement in Nigeria’s electoral process moving forward, noted that the presidential election exposed enduring systemic weaknesses and therefore signalled a need for further legal and operational reforms to enhance transparency, inclusiveness and accountability. However, reacting to the report, Dele Alake, Special Adviser to the President on Special Duties, Communications and Strategy, described it as a “product of a poorly done desk job that relied heavily on few instances of skirmishes in less than 1000 polling units out of over 176,000 where Nigerians voted on election day.” He claimed that the EU elect...

 JAMB withdraws result of student who secured a N3million scholarship after faking her result The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board(JAMB) has said it would withdraw the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination(UTME) result of Miss Ejikeme Joy Mmesoma for parading a fake score. A statement released by the board's Head of Public Affairs and Protocol, Fabian Benjamin, on Sunday July 2, says Mmesoma scored 249 in the examination as against the 362 she is parading. The organisation said it would prosecute Miss Ejikeme for tampering with its result. It added that Miss Ejikeme was offered a N3 million scholarship by founder of Innoson motors, Innocent Chukwuma for scoring 362 in the 2023 UTME. The statement reads “The attention of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board(JAMB) has been drawn to several publications in both print and online media celebrating certain candidates for being high scorers in the 2023 UTME. The Board is constrained to set the records straight and wis...

 Gunmen k!ll RCCG pastor, k!dnap seven church members in Ogun Gunmen suspected to be kidnappers have k!lled a pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) in Ogun State and abducted seven worshippers. It was gathered that the gunmen stormed the RCCG parish at Abule-Ori in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of the state on Saturday, July 1, 2023.  The Ogun State So-Safe Corps Commander, Soji Ganzallo, who confirmed the incident to newsmen said his officers have since rescued the seven church members and ki!led one of the kidnappers during a rescue operation.  In a statement made available by the So-Safe Director of Information and Public Relations, Moruf Yusuf, Ganzallo was quoted as saying that the incident occurred at about 12 am.  “The special operation team of the Corps, Owode-Egba Zonal Command, under ACC Jimoh Rasaki Omoniyi, received a distress call that some of the members of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Desires of Nations Parish, under Ogun...