News & Announcements

Professor Babagana Umara Zulum, the governor of Borno State, has sent a letter of condolence to the UN in response to the murder of a humanitarian aid worker on Thursday in Damboa by an unruly soldier.

Matthias Schmale, the resident representative of the UN in Nigeria, was the recipient of Zulum’s letter. The letter was dated Friday, November 18, 2022, and was titled “condolence and solidarity.”

The letter reads:

“I am shocked and deeply saddened by the incident that happened in Damboa yesterday (Thursday). My condolence goes to the family of Mrs Alem Muluseta, her colleagues at Medicine de Monde (DM), the whole Humanitarian Community and the United Nations, who continually make huge sacrifices to support our people”. 

“My condolence also goes to the families of gallant soldiers who lost their lives in trying to restrain the perpetrator.”

“This was a sad isolated incidence, the like of which we have not seen before, and which may not be unconnected with the mental health of the soldier involved”. 

“The injured pilot has been adequately attended to and he is recovering well. We will do all we can to continue to support him to get what he needs until he recovers”. 

“I want to assure our partners and the general public that this is an isolated incidence and the military is investigating what happened.”

“We remain confident that our Military and other security agencies are committed to.

Tourists from Nigeria have been advised of the severe norms of conduct required by the Qatari authorities by the Nigerian Embassy in Doha.

Beginning on Sunday, November 20, eight stadiums in Qatar will host the FIFA event.

National teams and supporters have started to arrive in the Middle Eastern nation, although the laws there are different from those in the West.

Fans must abide by Qatar’s severe prohibitions on alcohol, pornography, and pork.

The Embassy said it, “wishes to strongly advise that Nigerian fans traveling for the soccer fiesta should endeavour to obey and respect the laws of the host country while in Qatar.”

Before leaving on the trip, the Embassy also advised against disregarding the pertinent regulations for supporters traveling from abroad.

The Nigerian authority said, “The Embassy wishes to state unequivocally that the special world cup visa called Hayya card and Entry Permit can not and will not be changed or transformed to work visa or permit.

“Nigerians should therefore not fall victim to unscrupulous elements spreading fake news in that regards to trip off innocent Nigerians.”

Germany Embassy in Doha has issued a similar advisory to fans on its website a handbook entitled ” Useful information for visitors to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.”

Google will remove unlicensed loan apps on Play Store effective January 31, 2023.

According to Google, all loan apps must present all their licensing documents for the market before they are allowed on the platform.

With this, loan apps in Nigeria must now provide an approval document from the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) or risk being removed from the platform effective from January 31, 2023.

Specifically, the new Google policy guidelines outline requirements for loan apps in Nigeria, Kenya, India, the Philippines, and Indonesia. These countries are known to be the operational base of unlicensed loan apps.

Google says the policy applies to apps that offer loans directly and those that connect consumers with third-party lenders.

It adds that all new and existing apps will receive a grace period of at least 30 days from November 16, 2022, to comply with the changes, while the policy becomes effective January 31, 2023.

Compliance with FCCPC: For loan apps operating in Nigeria, Google said:
“Digital Money Lenders (DML) must adhere to and complete the LIMITED INTERIM REGULATORY/ REGISTRATION FRAMEWORK AND GUIDELINES FOR DIGITAL LENDING, 2022 (as may be amended from time to time) by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) of Nigeria and obtain a verifiable approval letter from the FCCPC.

“You must, upon Google Play’s request, provide additional information or documents relating to your compliance with the applicable regulatory and licensing requirements.”

Recall that the FCCPC has in recent times clamped down on unlicensed loan apps in the country, otherwise referred to as loan sharks due to their nefarious activities. The Commission had recently asked Google to remove 4 loan apps being used for unethical practices from the Play Store. The apps included Maxi Credit, Here4U, ChaCha, and SoftPay.

The Commission said its investigations revealed that the listed apps are owned by other popular apps that are under investigation for unethical practices and breach of consumer privacy. Specifically, it mentioned Soko Loan as the company behind several other apps being used to circumvent the efforts of the Commission.

However, despite the efforts of the FCCPC, several other unlicensed loan apps are emerging by the day on the app store even as many Nigerians continue to fall victim to their antics.

Although some of the apps are operating outside the app store, the new Google policy is expected to curb access to them via the platform.

 The Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Marwa (retd.), says the challenge of ensuring that youths stayed away from drugs and other illicit substances lies with everybody, including governments, parents, and other stakeholders.  

He warned that complacency from any quarter could lead to compromising the bright future ahead of the youth population.  

Marwa spoke on Thursday at the Sheraton Hotel, Lagos, the venue of the Realnews Magazine 10th anniversary lecture.

 He said, “Let me leave us with a thought-provoking submission about the danger of complacency in tackling drug abuse among youth.

By 2030, demographic factors project the number of people using drugs to rise by 11 percent around the world and as much as 40 percent in Africa alone.

This is an early warning that we should all ensure that we keep our young people away from dangerous substances that compromise the bright future ahead of them.” 

 He said instead of benefitting from the advantages of the huge youth population in Nigeria, the reverse may be the case if relevant stakeholders fail to stand up and join ongoing efforts against the drug scourge. “It is globally recognized that one of Africa’s comparative advantages is its huge youth population.

This country, Nigeria, for instance, has no less than 151 million young people, accounting for 70 percent of our estimated 217 million population. Youth means creativity, strength, resourcefulness, and productivity.

But how do we rake in these benefits when a significant number of this population is involved in the abuse of illicit substances?  The truth is instead of a boon they could become a burden because of abuse of illicit substances,” he added.

He said the NDLEA has initiated some youth-focused measures in response to ensure that young people have the information and develop the resilience to make good choices, especially as it relates to drug abuse.

Marwa added, “Such measures include, “War Against Drug Abuse campaign, a grassroots-oriented advocacy which we are using to diffuse anti-drug sentiment across the various strata of our society; NDLEA Twitter Space where drug issues are discussed by experts from within the country and around the world to an audience of young people; a 24/7 Drug Abuse call center with a toll-free helpline: 0800 1020 3040, which allows drug users, their families and employers to seek treatment without compromising their identities or safety, as well as open-door treatment at 26 NDLEA treatment facilities across the country.”  

Speaking earlier at a debrief workshop on Controlled Delivery Exercise of Drug Trafficking for Law Enforcement in Nigeria and Cote D’Ivoire organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, UNODC and ECOWAS Commission, Marwa noted that the capacity building training had further increased efficiency in tackling the scourge of drug trafficking, which in recent years had become one of the most devastating threats to the human race.

Chidinma Ojukwu, the alleged killer of the Chief Executive Officer, of Super TV, Usifo Ataga, has told a Lagos State High Court sitting at Tafawa Balewa Square that she was slapped and forced to sign statements written by policemen in the state.

Chidinma, who testified in her trial-within-trial as defense witness one, on Thursday, told Justice Yetunde Adesanya that policemen including Assistant Superintendent of Police, Olusegun Bamidele, and Olufunke Madeyinlo, told her to sign statements against her will.

She said Bamidele told her to narrate the statement he wrote to the state Commissioner of Police after tearing the statement she wrote.

Chidinma is standing trial over the alleged murder of Ataga. She is also charged with stealing and forgery alongside her sister, Chioma Egbuchu, and one Adedapo Quadri.

Addressing the court on Thursday, Chidinma, while being led in evidence in the trial-within-trial by her counsel, Onwunka Egwu, told the court that on June 23, 2021, she was in her room at home when her 10-year-old sister informed her that some men were asking after her.

The witness said, “Immediately, my sister called my Dad (her foster father, Onoh Ojukwu), who came out and asked who the men were. They said they were policemen from Panti and that they came to arrest me and search the house or that I should go in and bring the (Ataga’s) phone.

“I said I don’t know where the phone and car are and one of the policemen slapped me. My dad said you cannot slap my daughter in my house and the policemen tried to enter the room from the passage.”

Chidinma said when the policemen were taking her away, she told her foster dad to call the family lawyer, Egwu, adding that when they got to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, she was taken to the office of a policeman, Razak Oseni, who, alongside other policemen, questioned her.

She said, “We went back to my house and then returned to the DCP’s office and he started questioning me. I told him I don’t know anything about the death of Mr Ataga, and that was when they made the video that was played in court.

“The DCP said I should make my statement then the IPO, Bamidele, took me to the interrogating room with Mr Chris, and gave me a blank statement form and asked me to write what happened.

“I started writing, then he (Bamidele) took my left hand and handcuffed it to the chair. I wrote what I said at the DCP’s office. While writing the statement, Bamidele read through it and said it was not what happened.”

Chidinma said she told Bamidele that she was writing what happened, adding that before she started writing the statement, she informed him to help her confirm if her foster father had called the family lawyer.

She said, “He (Bamidele) said my (foster) dad cannot make a call as he was in custody. That was when I started writing the statement. When he said the statement I wrote was not what happened, and I told him it was what happened, I received two slaps from Mr Jemiyo.

“Jemiyo and Chris sat at the back and Bamidele was facing me. He said you are going to write the truth, tore the statement I wrote, and presented another blank statement form. I told him I was writing the truth and you tore it.

“He said if I did not comply, my family, my dad, 10-year-old sister, and relative will be charged in the murder case. He (Bamidele) brought out his phone, played the video obtained from the scene of the apartment, and showed me pictures of Mr Ataga’s body.

“He said now you are going to write and then I started writing. He said why I am slow and I received another slap on my back. I told him that I was not feeling well and needed to rest.

He (Bamidele) said there was no time, he then collected the statement form from me and he started writing. Chris then handcuffed my hands to the chair.”

Chidinma said Bamidele initially asked her questions but later stopped, adding that after he was done writing, he read the statement to her and she said what he wrote was not what happened.

She said, “He said this is what you are going to say or else my family will be charged. He read the statement to me again and told me that I should rehearse it. He said that is what I should tell the CP.

“Bamidele and Chris returned in the morning and said I should sign the statement but as I was reluctant in signing it, Chris said I should because nobody is coming for me and that they will provide me with a good government lawyer.

“After signing the statement, I was brought out of the interrogation room, given water to wash my face, and then we entered a vehicle and drove to Ikeja. When we arrived at Ikeja, Bamidele took me to the CP and I said what Bamidele wrote.”

She said after her interrogation at the CP’s office, she was taken downstairs, where she saw a lot of people (journalists) with cameras, adding that she was not feeling well then.

Chidinma said, “After I was taken to the press, then we drove back to Panti where Bamidele said we are going to do a video recording, and he said I should say everything he had written in the statement and they recorded the video which was played here in court.

“I was returned to the cell; in the evening on the same June 24, Oseni brought me out of the cell, and took me to an office, where Madeyinlo and another female officer Bola were. When Oseni left, I was given a blank statement form and I was told to write another statement.

“Jemiyo also walked in and I said I had already written a statement. I said I am tired and had not eaten. I was just sitting when Jemiyo came beside me and hit my head on a wooden table. This was when officer Bola had left.

“Madeyinlo said I should start writing. I picked the pen, wrote the date, and my name, then she (Madeyinlo) started dictating to me and said that I should write what she said. I started writing and at the end of writing the statement, she asked me to sign.”

All Progressives Congress Presidential Candidate, Asíwájú Bola Tinubu, has promised the people of Southeast massive economic development and a forward-looking government that will assuage the past difficulties of the region.

He spoke at a Town Hall meeting with leaders of the private sector and trade associations on Thursday in Owerri, Imo State capital.

The APC standard bearer was responding to the remarks of Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahi who said that the Southeast had been neglected and abandoned since the end of the civil war, asking what Tinubu had in stock for them.

Before his response to Governor Umahi, the APC presidential candidate thanked Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma who is also the Southeast Coordinator of the Tinubu/Shettima Campaign for facilitating the town hall meeting.

Asiwaju Tinubu used his address to comprehensively address the issues raised by the Ebonyi State Governor and other development challenges of the old Eastern region first by recalling his experience as a son brought up by a mother who was a trader and market leader.

Tinubu said that based on his experience and the lessons learned, he understands the challenges traders, business owners, and people of the South-East are going through.

The Town Hall meeting was attended among others by APC National Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, the party’s Vice Presidential Candidate Senator Kashim Shettima, Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahi who is the Coordinator for South, House of Representatives Deputy Speaker, Hon. Idris Wase, APC Deputy National Chairman, South, Barrister Emma Enekwu, Deputy National Chairman, North, Senator Abubakar Kyari and some members of the National Working Committee for the party.

Tinubu said about his mother: “She gave me the grit and determination which has served me well in politics. 

“More important, she taught me that patience, wisdom, tolerance, and generosity are the hallmarks of a good leader, be they a market leader or a candidate aspiring to the highest office of the land.”

On his plans for the Southeast after becoming Nigeria’s president on May 29, 2023, Tinubu said new industrial hubs would be created in Aba and Owerri, while already existing ones would be modernized.

He also spoke on making access to credit facilities available to traders across the region and the country in general.

“My government shall build an economy with a growing industrial base, more and better jobs for our youth, and more high-quality home-grown goods to sell and merchandise.

“We shall establish industrial hubs throughout the nation and modernize existing ones. 

“We will encourage and facilitate greater production in places like Owerri and Aba. At the same time, we shall broaden opportunities for you to engage in more international commerce by steering more activity toward ports outside of Lagos such as Onne.

“I envision the Owerri-Port Harcourt and Aba-Port Harcourt corridors becoming more active and lucrative trade and manufacturing corridors than they already are.

“My administration will establish policies that widen your horizons and expand your business reach both in terms of the goods you sell and your geographic reach to new markets.

“Working with the state governments, the CBN, and the banking industry, we shall embark on a two-pronged credit revolution.

“First, on the sale and supply side, we shall seek to drive down interest rates on business loans, especially for investment in manufacturing as well as small and medium-sized enterprises.

“Second, we seek to make consumer loans more available. This will allow more people to afford and buy more high-quality goods from you. By empowering the consumer, we increase economic activity and prosperity for the overall economy as well as for your individual businesses.

“We will put in place policies that will boost trade and commerce. We will solve the forex crisis and ensure that traders like you have easy access to a unified forex market.

“We shall seek to revive struggling industries in this region and throughout the nation.

“Working with governor Uzodimma, we shall continue to push to return Avutu Poultry to its status as a world class poultry farm. This will increase food and nutrition while creating jobs and giving us a chance to open new markets. Ada Palm can, once again, become a fulcrum of job creation and foreign currency earnings.”

On infrastructure development, the APC presidential flagbearer said the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri would become fully operational to help the large-scale movement of goods across the region while priority would also be placed on the completion of the Abakaliki-Benin section of the rail project, integrating the Southeast to the national rail system.

“Our national infrastructure plan shall pay great attention to roadways eaten by erosion and flooding. We shall give traders the sound roads they deserve in order to move goods for the benefit of the rest of the population.

“For those of you in the agricultural sector, commodity exchange boards and other measures will be established to better link local markets and farmers with the global economy while also assuring them minimum prices for their harvests.

“The idea is to boost farm incomes, thus giving farmers a greater incentive to produce more.

“We can hold too little of these good economic things without adequate peace and security. Our response to terror, kidnapping, and violent criminality includes increased manpower, better communications, and mobility equipment and training,” Tinubu added.

The former Lagos State governor also didn’t fail to mention that he would work towards integrating all regions in the country to ensure Nigeria continues to remain in unity.

“For me the unity of this nation is sacrosanct, it is non-negotiable. However, I realize that many people have genuine and painful grievances in need of fair and durable resolution.

“My government will be comprised of people from every section of the country and ready to discuss legitimate grievances with those in search of a peaceful resolution.

“Our nation is still in its infancy compared to other nations. I am proud of how far this nation has come. I also understand the great strides still to be made if we are to build for ourselves a nation of democratic good governance, development, justice, and unity,” he said.

Governor Uzodimma said the TownHall meeting was a deliberate strategy of the APC candidate to interface with the business leaders and trade associations in the Southeast so he can factor their positions and views in the business of government when elected.

APC Chairman Abdullahi Adamu said he was at the event to demonstrate that the APC is with the Southeast people and will not forsake them if they vote to entrust the next 4 years in the hands of the party.

The former governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose, has declared that he will refrain from insulting Bola Tinubu, the APC’s presidential candidate, in order to demonstrate that he does not support his ambitions.

Fayose pointed out that despite their political differences with President Muhammadu Buhari, certain northern governors and lawmakers avoid insulting words.

He referred to Tinubu as a Yoruba leader and added that he holds PDP presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar in the same regard as the APC leader.

“Let me tell you: if people are expecting me to abuse Tinubu to show that I am not supporting him, I would not do that,” Fayose said.

“If the only way to demonstrate to everybody that I am Bola Tinubu’s enemy is to come out as a Yoruba man and insult Bola Tinubu, I will never do it.

“Listen to me, Atiku Abubakar and Bola Tinubu are over 70 years old leaders, why were they sitting together to rub minds and did not carry cutlasses against it each other? Count me out of that (insulting Tinubu).

“I am not going to be insulting Atiku. I am not going to be insulting Tinubu.”

Xu Yanjun, the first Chinese spy transferred to the US for prosecution in 2021, was given a 20-year prison term on Wednesday.

The US Justice Department reports that Xu was found guilty of conspiracy in November 2021 for planning to steal trade secrets from different US aviation and aerospace companies.

On counts of conspiring and attempting to commit economic espionage and trade secret theft, a US federal court in Cincinnati, Ohio, sentenced him.

In the meantime, the claims against Xu were called “untrue” by Chinese officials in response to the judgement on Thursday.

To serve as a deterrent against future similar behavior, prosecutors had requested a 25-year term; however, Xu’s attorneys had argued in prior court files that such a sentence would be longer than those handed down to those who had been convicted of identical offenses.

“Today’s sentence demonstrates the seriousness of those crimes and the Justice Department’s determination to investigate and prosecute efforts by the Chinese government, or any foreign power, to threaten our economic and national security,” US Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.

Following a Federal Bureau of investigation(FBI), Xu, 42, who was charged with working as a career intelligence officer for China’s Ministry of State Security, was imprisoned in Belgium in 2018. (FBI).

He was accused of targeting many American aviation and aerospace companies between 2013 and 2018, including GE Aviation, a division of General Electric Co., by using front companies and aliases (GE.N).

However, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning stated that the allegations against Xu “are completely wrong” at a news conference in Beijing, the country’s capital.

“We ask the U.S. side to handle the case without bias and in accordance with the law and protect the lawful rights and interests of Chinese citizens,” Mao said.

Bukayo Saka, an Arsenal winger, has funded “life-changing operations” for 120 kids in Kano state.

The charity organization Big shoe that teamed up with Saka to assist underprivileged children with medical operations announced the sponsorship in a tweet on Thursday.

The organization disclosed that the children underwent their opearations at Kano’s Prime Specialist Hospital.

Saka said he is always delighted to assist children who are struggling to realize their ambitions.

“For me, every child has the same opportunity to achieve their dreams and if I can really do anything to help, it’s really important for me to do this,” he said.

“It makes me very happy, especially when I see the kids are happy, the parents are happy. I just want to more and more as much as I can.”

The 19-year-old acknowledged that he felt a connection to Nigeria even though he choose to represent England rather than Nigeria.

He also thanked BigShoe for seeing to it that the project was realized.

Simon Adokwu, a student at the University of Lagos’ Department of Social Work at the Faculty of Social Science, died while playing football, according to reports.

According to reports, Adokwu collapsed and passed while while playing football on the school’s grounds in Akoka, Lagos State.

After attending church, the late student walked to a field next to the university’s Human Resource Development Center to play football.

Adokwu’s colleagues hurriedly transported him to the hospital in an effort to save him, but the attending physician declared him dead there.

Adejoke Alaga-Ibraheem, the university’s public relations officer, who confirmed the event on Thursday, claimed that Adokwu informed his buddies he was sick before coming to the football field. But he still insisted on going ahead to play football.

“The DSA called his parents and when they came over, they said they would like to take his body but that is not our tradition. We still need to do an autopsy and post-mortem evaluation. At that point, we had to move his body to the LUTH, Idi-Araba,” she said.