Author: Festus Adeloye

Amid complaints by the Airline Operators of Nigeria over multiple taxation, the Federal Government has expressed its intention to further raise its charges. The Managing Director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, Umar Farouk, announced this on Friday at the League of Airports and Aviation Correspondents seminar themed “Aviation Survivability amidst a Challenging Macro-Economic Environment,” held in Ikeja, Lagos. He stated that the agency would raise its en-route navigational charges from N2,000 and N6,000 to N18,000 and N54,000 per flight. Similarly, the airspace agency increased the extension of service hours to airlines from N50,000 to N450,000, representing an 800 per…

The Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has urged all groups planning to participate in the proposed nationwide protest to submit their details to the Commissioners of Police in their respective states. He spoke while addressing journalists in Abuja on Friday. He said this was to ensure the protest was peaceful. Egbetokun said, “We acknowledge the constitutional right of Nigerian citizens to peaceful assembly and protest. “However, in the interest of public safety and order, we urge all groups planning to protest to provide necessary details to the Commissioner of Police in the state where the protest is intended to…

Grammy-winning artist Damini Ogulu, popularly known as Burna Boy, has equalled Tems’ record as the Nigerian artist with the second-most certified singles in the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) history, with a total of four certified singles each. This accomplishment follows the Gold certification of his collaborative single “Location” with British Grime artist Dave, recognising sales of 500,000 units in the United States. Burna Boy’s previously certified songs in the US include “Last Last” (Platinum), “Ye” (Gold), and “On The Low” (Gold). Wizkid maintains his position as the most certified Nigerian artist in the US, with a total of…

Ahead of the proposed nationwide protest, the Federal Capital Territory police command has deployed a total of 4,200 policemen across the nooks and crannies of the nation’s capital. The command also announced the deployment of explosive ordinance device experts at various strategic locations. The command in a statement on Friday by its spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, said the deployment was to ensure public safety, protection of protesters and to prevent the protests from being hijacked by non-state actors. She added that there would be raids on identified black spots, uncompleted buildings/shanties, and stop and search operations among others in collaboration with…

Emergency responders are currently battling to put out a raging fire that gutted a manufacturing firm at Abule Osun, Amuwo-Odofin Local Government Area, Ojo, Lagos. According to eyewitnesses, the fire gutted the firm, JOSIEN Complex in the early hours of Friday. Several items were said to have been destroyed in the process, while men of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, and Lagos State Emergency Management Authority, LASEMA, and Nigeria Police are on the ground on a rescue mission. As of press time, 11 am, there was neither record of death nor injury in the incident. Permanent Secretary, LASEMA,…

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has reported that its job application portal is experiencing downtime due to an overwhelming surge in traffic. On Friday, NNPC launched a recruitment drive for qualified candidates, with the application window set to close on August 20. The agency’s website is currently showing server error messages. In a statement on social media, NNPC explained that their technical team is working diligently to address the issue. “Due to unprecedented traffic to the NNPC Ltd. career page from applicants applying for vacancies, the site is currently experiencing slow load times,” the statement reads. “Our technicians…

The Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN) has shut down a total of 571 pharmacies and medicine shops across Bauchi State following a major enforcement operation. During a press conference, the Director of Enforcement at PCN, Pharm Stephen Esumobi, highlighted that the operation involved a total of 762 premises, including 88 pharmacies, 284 patent medicine shops, and 390 illegal medicine shops. Of these, 37 pharmacies, 144 patent medicine shops, and 390 illegal outlets were found in violation of regulatory standards and were subsequently sealed. The PCN’s enforcement operation was carried out in 10 local government areas; Bauchi, Tafawa Balewa, Darazo, Ganjuwa,…

The Lagos State Government has closed down several businesses in the Ikorodu area of the state, as a way to tackle noise, air pollution, and other environmental infractions in the state. A statement by the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, disclosed this in a statement on X.com on Friday, said the move was after a recently conducted comprehensive enforcement operation in key areas of the state, including Agric, Ibeshe, and Ikorodu. He added that despite prior warnings, several establishments, including hotels, bar, gas filling station, poultry farms, and lounge, continued to flout Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency’s directives. “As…

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited is set to hire more workers. The NNPC spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye, confirmed this in a statement on Friday. Soneye said the recruitment would be for various positions across various departments within the energy company. He directed interested applicants to visit the NNPC careers page for application instructions. “NNPC Ltd is pleased to announce that we are currently hiring for multiple positions across various departments. We are seeking talented and dedicated individuals to join our team. Visit our careers page for application instructions,” Soneye stated. In an update, Soneye disclosed that due to unprecedented traffic…

A “massive attack” against France’s high-speed TGV rail network was an “outrageous criminal act”, Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete said Friday, hours ahead of the Paris Olympics opening ceremony. There would be “very serious consequences” for rail traffic throughout the weekend with connections towards northern, eastern and northwestern France halved, Vergriete said, while rail operator SNCF chief executive Jean-Pierre Farandou said 800,000 passengers were affected. Details later AFP