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Good morning Nigeria. Welcome to the Naija News roundup of top newspaper headlines in Nigeria for today, Thursday, 20th June 2024
1. Presidential Jets: ‘You’re More Interested In Protecting Your Life Than Defending Nigerians’ – Peter Obi Knocks Tinubu
The Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has criticized President Bola Tinubu for faulting his comment on the plan by the Federal Government to buy new aircraft for the presidential fleets.
Naija News reported that Peter Obi described the move as insensitive, especially when Nigerians are grappling with economic hardship occasioned by the Federal Government’s policies.
However, Onanuga, in a swift reaction, described Obi’s comment as insensitive, wondering if he would rather have the life of the President jeopardised by flying faulty aircraft.
In response, Peter Obi, while speaking through his media aide, Yunusa Tanko, in an interview on News Central, slammed Tinubu, stating Nigerians are dying of hunger, but the President is more interested in protecting his life than defending the citizens.
Tanko admitted that the president’s life is important, but it is also essential to care for the needs of Nigerians.
2. IGP Condemns Rivers Crisis, Orders Investigation, Heightened Security
The Inspector General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, has condemned in the strongest terms the recent outbreak of violence and subsequent breakdown of law and order at various Local Government Council secretariats in Rivers State.
Naija News reports that the crisis in Rivers State resulted in supporters of two political factions clashing over the tenure of Local Government Council Chairmen, which unfortunately led to the tragic deaths of a Police Officer – Inspector David Mgbada, and Samuel Nwigwe, a vigilante member at Eberi-Omuma in Omuma LGA.
In response to these heinous acts, the IGP, in a statement by Force spokesperson, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, has directed the Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, CP Olatunji Disu, to heighten security measures across the state and institute thorough investigations into the killing of the police officer and the vigilante operative, as well as the general violence which erupted in the state.
The IGP specifically deployed operatives of the Force Intelligence Response Team (IRT) to assist the Rivers State Command in apprehending the killers of the police officer and the vigilante member.
IGP Egbetokun warned individuals and groups of people who have a penchant for senseless attacks and mindless killings of police officers and other security operatives across the country to desist forthwith as the fullest force of the law will be meted on them.
3. I Left Nigeria Better Than I Met It – Obasanjo
Former President of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo, on Wednesday, claimed that he left Nigeria better than he met it.
Obasanjo, who was once a Head of State, was elected president in 1999, served two terms and left office in 2007.
The ex-president, while speaking at the Safe Online Youth Fellowship Bootcamp organised by NerdzFactory Company, supported by Meta at the Youth Development Centre, Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), Abeokuta, Ogun State, said his administration recorded landmark achievements.
Obasanjo, who simply defined success as leaving a place better than one found it, said that he achieved that in his administration with excellent track records.
He admonished the corps members from Lagos and Ogun states, who participated in the three-day boot camp, to dedicate their lives to championing national development.
4. ASUU Threatens Fresh Nationwide Strike, Gives FG Ultimatum
The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, has threatened to embark on a nationwide industrial action if the Federal Government fails to respond to its demands within the next three weeks.
Naija News reports that the Chairperson of ASUU Federal University Dutse, FUD, Branch in Jigawa State, Salim Ahmed, gave the warning at an emergency press conference held at FUD, ASUU Secretariat in Dutse.
Ahmed said the union had observed that the present administration deliberately ignored the leadership of the union since its inception on 29th May 2023.
Ahmed said the renegotiation of the FGN/ASUU 2009 agreement contains all the core issues of ASUU Members’ welfare, University Autonomy, Funding for the Revitalization of Nigerian Universities and Proliferation of Public Universities.
According to him, the core issues that pertain to the condition of service include all the contending issues as contained in the FGN/ASUU MoU 2012/2013, and the MoA of 2017, Illegal dissolution of Governing Councils in the Federal and State Universities, release of three and a half (7) months of the outstanding three and a half (7 ) months withheld salaries for a work that was already done.
Ahmed said ASUU is dismayed by the federal government’s unwillingness to address the outstanding issues with the union decisively.
He added that within the next three weeks, the union would set machinery in motion to mobilize its members further and sensitize them for further action.
5. PSC Union Charges Tinubu To Sack IGP Over Alleged Recruitment Controversy
The Joint Union Congress of the Police Service Commission (PSC) has urged President Bola Tinubu to dismiss the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, citing alleged interference in the recent recruitment of police constables.
The union voiced its concerns during a press briefing on Wednesday in Abuja, where members accused top officers of the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) of tampering with the recruitment list.
Union representatives claimed that some senior officials within the NPF attempted to “smuggle names” into the list of recruits, compromising the integrity of the process.
They also expressed concerns over the state of police training facilities, which they described as inadequate to train new recruits properly.
According to the union, these issues reflect a broader attempt by the NPF to divert attention from their unpreparedness and the dilapidated condition of training infrastructure.
The controversy escalated after the PSC released the names of 10,000 successful candidates from the recent recruitment drive.
However, this list was subsequently rejected by the NPF, which labelled the recruitment process as “fraudulent.”
6. Ban On Alcoholic Sachet Drinks Has Not Been Lifted – NAFDAC
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), has declared that the ban on the sale and consumption of sachet alcoholic beverages in the country is still in force.
The Director-General of NAFDAC, Professor Moji Adeyeye, made this known during a press briefing in Lagos State on Wednesday.
According to her, the ban imposed on sachet alcohol is a ministerial directive and the ban remains effective until the Minister says otherwise.
Naija News recalls the deputy spokesman for the House of Representatives, Philip Agbese, had last Friday disclosed the House and NAFDAC resolved to lift the ban on the sale and consumption of sachet alcoholic beverages in the country.
Agbese said the resolution to lift the ban temporarily was arrived at after a meeting between the House Committee and NAFDAC officials.
7. IPOB’s Nnamdi Kanu Wants To Negotiate With FG Over Terrorism Charges
Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has indicated his willingness to engage in negotiations with the Federal Government through his lead counsel, Alloy Ejimakor.
This move is pursuant to Section 17 of the Federal High Court Act, which encourages amicable settlement and reconciliation among parties.
Kanu, through is legal counsel, made this known on Wednesday after he moved two applications brought before the court.
The first application is to move form 49 and an application objecting to the jurisdiction of the court.
Ejimakor said if the applications are denied they will move for the implementation of section 17 of the Federal High Court Act.
However, the Federal Government’s counsel, Adegboyega Awomolo, clarified that he lacks the authority to negotiate on behalf of the government, and instead suggested that Kanu’s team should approach the Attorney General of the Federation.
Justice Binta Nyako emphasized that the court’s role is to hear cases, not to solicit negotiations.
8. Fubara Swears In Rivers Caretaker Committee Chairmen
In a ceremony held on Wednesday morning, Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara officially swore in newly appointed caretaker chairmen for the 23 local government areas of the state.
Naija News reports that this event took place at the Government House in Port Harcourt, the capital of the state, with high-level security measures in place.
This news platform reports that the appointment of the CTC chairmen was made a day following the submission of the list to the state House of Assembly, which is currently under the leadership of Speaker Victor Jumbo.
9. Nigeria To Send First Civilian To Space
President Bola Tinubu-led government is set to send its first citizen to space.
The Director General of the National Space Research and Development Agency, Mathew Adepoju, disclosed this at a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday.
The FG signed the Memorandum of Understanding in a collaboration between NASRDA and The Space Exploration and Research Agency.
He highlighted the potential of this endeavour to foster technological progress and ignite interest in STEM disciplines (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) among Nigerian youth.
According to The Guardian, Nigeria has been actively pursuing space exploration since 1999, when it established NASRDA.
The West African country had launched several satellites into orbit, the most recent being the NigeriaSat-X in 2011.
10. Emefiele: Details Of How $6.2 Million Allegedly Stolen From CBN Was Shared Emerge
Documentation has exposed how the $6,230,000 in cash, allegedly taken from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on February 8, 2023, was divided.
A special presidential investigative team, headed by Jim Obaze, which examined the tenure of former CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele, claimed that the $6.2 million was taken from the central bank’s vault under the pretence of paying election observers.
In court documents obtained by The Nation, investigators described the theft as an insider job, allegedly orchestrated primarily by CBN officials in collusion with two outsiders, identified as Adamu Abubakar and Imam Abubakar.
According to the documents, investigators alleged that Odoh Eric Ocheme, a personal assistant to Emefiele during his tenure as CBN Governor, received $3,730,000 from the funds, while the remaining $2,500,000 was divided among three other individuals.
Ocheme allegedly claimed that he needed to settle other interests within the central bank, which is why he received the majority share.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has charged Emefiele with complicity in the theft in a 20-count amended indictment filed at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), charges to which he has pleaded not guilty.
However, during a hearing in the case, a Deputy Director and Head of the Service Delivery Division of the CBN, Michael Onyeka Ogbu, confirmed the cash withdrawal from the apex bank’s Abuja branch, where he was in charge.
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