Author: Amina Mohammed

The House of Representatives on Wednesday, clarified controversies around media reports about the Counter Subversion Bill. A statement signed by Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Speaker, Musa Krishi, said the clarification on the bill sponsored by the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen was necessitated due to misconceptions. He said, “The attention of the Speaker, House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, Ph.D has been drawn to reports in sections of the media about the Counter Subversion Bill, which he sponsored. “The Speaker appreciates the interest Nigerians have so far shown on the Bill, which pertains to our…

The National Judicial Council (NJC) will meet on Friday, August 16, to select a successor for the outgoing Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola. Ariwoola will retire on August 22 upon reaching the mandatory age of 70. An anonymous Supreme Court source confirmed that the NJC’s decision on the new CJN will be forwarded to President Bola Tinubu. “The NJC has fixed Friday to meet and decide on the name to be sent to the President. No name has been sent yet as the NJC has not met,” the source said. Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, the most senior Supreme…

A Libyan driver was arrested on Tuesday in the Bishr area of Libya for attempting to smuggle six undocumented female migrants from Nigeria. The arrest was made during a routine police patrol, which intercepted the vehicle and detained the driver. According to Migrant Rescue Watch, an organisation that monitors migrant activities, the driver claimed that the women were his family members in an effort to evade arrest. However, authorities saw through the ruse and took the driver and the women into custody. The individuals involved have been transferred to the Bishr Police Department, Libya for further legal action as authorities…

British annual inflation rose back above the Bank of England’s target in July, official data showed on Wednesday. The Consumer Prices Index rose 2.2 per cent last month, compared with a 2.0-per cent gain in June, the Office for National Statistics said in a statement It means overall prices are rising faster than the Bank of England’s 2 per cent target, although an increase was widely predicted. The rise is largely due to prices of gas and electricity falling by less than they did last year. The Bank expects inflation to rise further this year before falling back again. AFP

US-mediated Sudan ceasefire talks were to kick off in Switzerland on Wednesday, even though the Sudanese government is set to stay away. Tom Perriello, the US Special Envoy for Sudan convening the discussions, insisted they go ahead regardless, saying the suffering people of Sudan, ravaged by the devastating conflict, cannot wait any longer. War has raged since April 2023 between the Sudanese army under the country’s de facto ruler Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo. But while the RSF delegation is in Switzerland for the talks — taking…

The management of the Dangote Refinery has dismissed reports of a fixed petrol price of ₦600/litre, calling them “speculative announcements” with no basis. This was contained in a statement signed on Tuesday by the Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer, Dangote Industries Limited, Anthony Chiejina. The denial comes following reports by some publications, that the refinery was in talks with oil marketers, and that petrol may sell for as low as ₦600 per litre. The company, however, emphasised that it has not partnered with the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), and will communicate through official channels. It states,…

Bauchi State has concluded preparations to distribute 70 trucks of fertilizer donated by the Central Bank of Nigeria to the state through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security. The chairman of the distribution committee, Emir of Jama’are, Nuhu Wabi, disclosed this on Tuesday, saying that the donation of the 70 trucks of fertiliser to Bauchi farmers is part of efforts to boost farming activities in the state. Wabi said, “The committee would take the commodity to farmers in all the polling units in the 20 local government areas of the state. “All communities, labour unions, religious organizations, women’s…

The Senate Committee on Public Accounts on Tuesday, blasted the management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Nigeria Police Force and 12 other MDAs for their persistent failure to respond to queries raised against them in the 2019 report of the Auditor General of the Federation (AuGF). The Chairman of the Committee, Senator Ahmed Wadada Aliyu (SDP – Nasarawa West), told reporters in Abuja that since heads of the affected agencies refused to respond to queries raised against them in the 2019 audit report after several opportunities given them to do so, any…

Ukraine now controls 74 settlements in Russia’s Kursk border region, the country’s president Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday. The governor of the Kursk region, where Ukraine is mounting a week-long incursion, previously said Monday that Ukraine controls 28 settlements. “There are 74 settlements under the control of Ukraine,” Zelensky said in his evening address. The president said that “despite difficult, intense fighting, the advance of our forces in the Kursk region continues.” Zelensky said that Ukraine has been able to “replenish” its numbers of Russian POWs to exchange for its own troops and “preparation for our next steps continues”. He posted…

The National Council of State has insisted that any change in government in Nigeria must follow constitutional procedures. The council also passed a vote of confidence in President Bola Tinubu over his “achievements” in the last year since he assumed office. The National Council of State reacting to the recent #EndBadGovernance Protests frowned upon the call by some sections of the protesters for the resignation of President Bola Tinubu. Those who attended the meeting physically were former Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari, while former Heads of State, Generals Gowon Yakubu and Abdulsalami Abubakar joined the meeting virtually. State governors,…