Governor Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State has mourned the death of former Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Nasiru Nono, who died  in a ghastly motor accident along Abuja-Keffi Road.

In a statement by Ismaila Uba-Misilli, Director-General, Press Affairs, Gombe Government House, Yahaya expressed sadness over Nono’s death.

Yahaya described the demise of Nono as a monumental loss to his family, Gombe and Nigeria as a whole.

He said the late former lawmaker discharged his legislative duties with tact, dexterity and statesmanship while presiding over the state legislature and earned the respect and loyalty of his colleagues.

He, however, prayed to Almighty Allah to grant the deceased Aljannat Firdaus.

A veteran Nollywood actor, Kenneth Chinwetalu, popularly known as Aguba, who created a scene when he demanded for a virgin girl from Israel as his wife, has returned to his hometown in Enugu State.

This was disclosed in a post via the verified Facebook page of the Omega Power Ministry, OPM.

Aguba, according to the Facebook post, returned to Enugu on Thursday because he desired to be in his hometown.

Recall that he was found homeless and brought to Port Harcourt, where the general overseer of the OPM, apostle Chibuzor Chinenye gave him a home and had him medically evaluated and treated.

The cleric had gotten him an apartment and a caregiver who was placed on monthly allowance.

Today, 22nd March 2023 the veteran Nollywood actor Kenneth Chinwetalu popularly known as AGUBA returns to his hometown Enugu State.

This is after some months since the general overseer of OPM found him homeless and brought him to Port Harcourt, gave him a home, cared for him, had him medically evaluated and treated him properly.

The post read, Now he returns to his hometown, Enugu, where the man of God has gotten him an apartment, a caregiver who Apostle chibuzor placed on monthly allowance and currently looking for a good shop to establish a business for him because Enugu is where he said he desires to be, his hometown

A renowned activist in Kogi State, Comrade Idris Miliki, has condemned the suspension of nine lawmakers and seven local government chairmen by the Kogi State House of Assembly.

Kogi State House of Assembly suspended nine lawmakers and Seven Council Chairman  over alleged gross misconduct, terrorism, electoral violence and anti-party activities in the just concluded 2023 general election.

Miliki, who took a swipe at the decision of the Assembly led by its speaker Hon. Mathew Kolawole to suspend the lawmakers and council chairmen, said the hallow chamber should not turn itself into a unit or department under the Government House in the State.

The activist called on Governor Yahaya Bello to respect democratic principles and due process in all his activities, including dealing with all citizens of Kogi State.

While describing as worrisome and dangerous to democratic development on the latest happenings in Kogi State House of Assembly, Miliki said, the legislators are supposed to be independent arms of government that set out its own rules and procedure. The recent development where members are suspended at random, call for caution, as legislators are elected to represent their constituencies, any suspensions carried out on any of them legitimately or otherwise have reflection and impact on the constituencies they represent.

Where a crime or criminality has been established, reports should have been made to relevant security agencies for proper investigation and persecution, as everybody is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court of law under the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Before any local government chairman can be remove, the legislative arm of such Local Government should have play a verifiable role, by carrying out their own legislative investigations as prescribe by law, and reports are made to the State Assembly in our own opinion. All reports made available to the public, doesn’t indicate such processes has been followed.

Godwin Emefiele, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, has said supporting gender parity will boost financial inclusion and the country’s economic growth.

Emefiele disclosed speech at the CBN’s International Women’s Day webinar, where he called for leverage on technology to bridge the digital gender gap.

According to him, the apex bank would continue to ensure its commitment to women through the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund (MSMEDF) and other initiatives.

He explained that the MSMEDF dedicates 60 per cent of its funding under the scheme to women-owned enterprises.

Emefiele added that the successes achieved by CBN are attributed to the female staff’s hard work, resilience, and commitment nationwide.

The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Mariam Katagu; the Deputy Governor of CBN, Mrs Aishah Ahmad; the pioneering Minister of Communication Technology, Dr Omobola Johnson, and others, called for the participation of women in the digital economy ecosystem.

The webinar had more than 1,000 participants in attendance across diverse sectors of Nigeria’s economy.

The Supreme Court has re-affirmed Chief Edozie Njoku as the National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).

The apex court made the pronouncement on Friday in a judgement on an application by Chief Njoku, wherein he sought the regularization of the amended judgment of Justice Mary Peter Odili delivered on May 9, 2022.

Njoku’s motion followed a letter from the Supreme Court to him on January 19, 2023, wherein it had addressed him as the National Chairman of APGA and advised him to approach the Court by way of a motion to correct the slip.

The accidental slip, which the Supreme Court corrected, has restored Njoku as the actual National Chairman of APGA, which was wrongfully removed by a Jigawa High Court in Suit No: JDU/022/2021 between Alhaji Garba Aliyu and Chief Jude Okeke & 2 Ors.

In a lead judgment, Justice Garba Lawal held that it was Chief Edozie Njoku that was wrongly removed at Jigawa without being joined as a party.

Subsequently, Justice Lawal stated that Njoku’s application was meritorious and consequently granted it as prayed.

Reacting to the judgement, Chief Njoku appealed to the Governor of Anambra State, Charles Soludo, to make himself available for a roundtable discussion on the way forward for the party.

As APGA Chairman, Njoku said he would do everything humanly possible to bring stability and peace to the party.

The Federal government of Nigeria has been called upon to make wildlife hunting and trafficking unattractive.

There are widespread reports that illegal wildlife trafficking is now a multimillion dollars business and has been on the upscale in forest communities of Cross River State.

The counter widelife trafficking advisor, Wildlife Conservative Society of Nigeria (WCS), Elisha Bello spoke at a capacity building workshop on combating Illegal Wildlife Trafficking and Trade, organized for staff of National Environmental Standard Regulatory Agency of Nigeria (NESRA) in Calabar.

He called for increased involvement of the government by way of stiffer legislative penalties against trafficking.

While comparing wildlife trafficking to drug dealing in Nigeria, he said more needs to be done to make the wildlife hunting an unattractive venture.

The laws regulating wildlife trafficking in the country should be strengthened in order to mete out commensurate punishments to violators, he stressed.

Bello also explained that in drug trafficking, the risk is high, and the reward is high but that in wildlife trafficking, the risk is low because of the weaker laws in place.

Coordinator of NESRA, Mr. Adamu Ibrahim said much was expected to safeguard the country’s wildlife species.

We are participating in this workshop to ensure the conservation of our biodiversity. We have a duty to protect our wildlife so that they don’t go into extinction.

The training is timely and will go a long way to build a sustainable environment.

Also speaking, Country Director of the Nigeria Program in WCS, Andrew Dunn said the training is aimed at preparing the participants both intellectually, psychologically to enforce the laws.

Former permanent secretary, Ogun State, Adefemi Egbeoluwa, and his wife, Oluwafunmilayo, have reportedly been killed by gunmen who broke into their home at 1 Adefolu drive, Allen Avenue area of Lagos State.

Confirming the incident, the state police spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin stated that no suspect had been arrested in connection with the incident, although the investigation is ongoing at the time of filing this report.

Policemen have visited the scene. Investigation is ongoing. The house help was found unconscious, but she is responding to treatment now in the hospital.

The case has been transferred to the homicide section of the state Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, Yaba. SCID. No suspect yet.

Famous Nigerian Afrobeats musician, David Adeleke, professionally known by his stage name Davido, addressed his followers as he returned fully on social media.

Fully returning to social media on Tuesday, the singer, in a tweet on his Twitter handle, thanked his fans, stating that their love held him down.

The singer, who seems to be healing from the death of his three-year-old son, Ifeanyi, in 2022, said there is time to grieve and a time to heal.

He wrote, There is a time for everything. A time to grieve and a time to heal. A time to laugh and a time to dance. A time to speak & a time for silence. Thank you to everyone out there for your love that has held me down.

Recall that the singer has taken a break from social media after he lost his only son, Ifeanyi, on October 31, 2022.

In December 2022, Davido briefly returned after performing at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar and revealed he would take a break from social media until March.

However, a few days into the month he promised to return, some fans have become curious about why he was yet to fulfil his promise.

Two weeks ago, trending videos on social media showed some Davido fans taking to the street to protest his refusal to return to social media some days into March.

The Governorship and State House of Assembly elections were held nationwide last week. While the election has come and gone, mixed feelings and concerns surround the electoral process, especially the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, and the role played by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

Before the election, many governors held high hopes and were optimistic about clinching victory for themselves, for those who participated as candidates, or they would produce their successors.

However, the results declared by the electoral commission in some States threw up surprises and shocks.

At least seven outgoing governors failed in their bid to cross over to Nigeria’s Senate after their two-term tenure of eight years.

The outgoing governors lost their respective senatorial districts’ election during the February 25 National Assembly elections.

Meanwhile, some governors suffered double losses as they could not produce successors in their respective States.

Lalong

Governor Simon Lalong lost the bid to clinch the Plateau South Senatorial District slot.

Lalong lost to Rtd AVM Bali Ninkap Napoleon of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the National Assembly elections. While announcing the results, the Returning Officer, Professor Meshak Goyit, declared that Bali Napoleon of the PDP scored 148,844 votes to defeat Governor Lalong of APC with 91,674 votes.

As if the loss wasn’t enough, the governorship candidate of the PDP in the State, Caleb Mutfwang, defeated Lalong’s candidate, Nentawe Yilwatda of the All Progressives Congress, APC.

Omo-Agege
On Monday, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress in Delta State, Ovie Omo-Agege, lost the governorship seat to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, candidate, Sheriff Oborevwori.

Omo-Agege polled a total of 240,229 votes, while his counterpart in the PDP polled, Oborevwori scored 360,234 total votes. Omo-Agege won in only 4 local governments out of 25 local government areas in the state.

This is despite the fact he is the current deputy senate president and the senator representing the Delta Central Senatorial District.

Ortom

The Benue Governor, Samuel Ortom suffered a double loss. Ortom first lost the senatorial election to the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Titus Zam, who incidentally was his former Special Adviser on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs.

Zam polled 143,151 votes to defeat Ortom, who scored 106,882, while the Labour Party candidate, Mike Gbillah, polled 51,950.

Meanwhile, Ortom suffered another loss as Rev Fr Hyacinth Alia, a Catholic priest of the All Progressives Congress, APC, defeated his candidate, Titus Uba of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

The INEC Returning Officer, Prof. Faruk Kuta, said the APC candidate polled 473,933 votes to defeat his closest rival, Titus Uba of the Peoples Democratic Party, who scored 223,914 votes.

Ugwuanyi

Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi lost his senatorial bid to the Labour Party, LP, candidate for the Enugu North Senatorial District election, Okechukwu Ezea.

The Returning Officer for the poll, Chukwuemeka Ubaka, announced the result at the collation centre of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Nsukka Local Government Area headquarters.

Ezea, the LP candidate, polled 104,492 votes to defeat Ugwuanyi of the PDP, who came second with 46,948 votes. Ugwuanyi may still suffer another loss as his favoured candidate, Peter Mbah, is on the verge of being defeated by Chijioke Edoga of the Labour Party, LP. A result from one of the Local Governments in the States is still under review by the INEC.

Ikpeazu

Enyinnaya Abaribe of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) handed Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, a defeat when he emerged winner of the senatorial election for the Abia South District. According to INEC, Abaribe got the highest number of votes in the election, having scored 49,903 votes. The Labour Party (LP) candidate, Chinedu Onyeizu, scored 43,903, while Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of the Peoples Democratic Party scored 28,422 votes to come third.

Before the election results were announced, there were protests in the state over alleged moves by the authority to alter the original results.

Ikpeazu’s favoured candidate in the State governorship election, Okey Ahiwe, is also still on the verge of losing to Alex Otti of the Labour Party, LP. The results collated from the 16 local Governments showed Otti is leading with 172,246 votes, while his main challenger, Ahiwe, polled 78,628 votes. The difference in the margin between the LP and the PDP candidates stands at 93,618 votes.

As of the time of filing in this report, the result from Obingwa LG is under review by the INEC.

Tambuwal

Governor Aminu Tambuwal’s candidate, Saidu Umar, lost the States governorship election to Ahmed Aliyu of the All Progressives Congress, APC. Aliyu polled the highest number of votes and was declared the winner of the governorship election.

The State Collation Officer, Bichi Amaya’u, who announced the result in Sokoto on Sunday, said Aliyu polled 453,661 votes to defeat his closest rival and candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Saidu Umar, who polled 404,632.

Aliyu, an ally of a former governor of Sokoto State and sitting senator, Aliyu Wamakko, was the deputy to Governor Aminu Tambuwal during his first tenure between 2015 and 2019.

Ishaku
Darius Ishaku of Taraba State is a two-term PDP governor. However, he lost his senatorial ambition. Ishaku contested to represent Taraba South Senatorial District in the Senate. The governor lost to his counterpart in the All Progressives Congress, APC, David Jimkuta, who polled 85,415 to defeat him as he scored 45,708 votes.

Ayade
Governor of Cross River State, Ben Ayade also suffered defeat in his bid to return to the Senate after completing his second tenure as governor. Ayade was a Senator from 2011 to 2015. He had hoped to return to the role as senator representing Cross River North but the incumbent, Jarigbe Agom-Jarigbe, defeated him. Agom-Jarigbe of the PDP got 76,145 votes, while Ayade polled 56,595 votes.

Bagudu
Kebbi State governor, Atiku Bagudu, lost his bid to represent Kebbi Central Senatorial District in the Senate. Bagudu of the APC lost to Senator Adamu Aliero of the PDP.

The Returning Officer, Abbas Bazata, declared Adamu Aliero, the winner, having polled 126,588 votes as against Bagudu’s 92,389 votes.

Dogara

Despite his fierce opposition to the second-term bid of the Bauchi State Governor, Mohammed Bello, the erstwhile Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Yakubu Dogara, lost his home local government area, Bogoro LGA, to the governor. Governor Mohammed was the flagbearer of the PDP, while Dogara backed the immediate Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Baba Abubakar (retd) of the APC.

A Federal High Court, Abuja, on Wednesday, dismissed an application filed by suspended DCP Abba Kyari seeking an order dismissing the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA’s charge against him.

Justice Emeka Nwite, in a ruling, held that the court had the exclusive right and jurisdiction to hear drug-related cases as enshrined in the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the NDLEA Act.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Justice Nwite had, on Jan. 18, adjourned for ruling in the application filed by Kyari and three other co-defendants in the suit bordering on a drug offence.

The applicants are Kyari, ACP Sunday Ubia, Insp Simon Agirigba and Insp John Nuhu.

They had prayed the court to quash the criminal charge against them in fresh motions on notice filed by their lawyers on the grounds that the suit was incompetent.

They urged the court to stop their trial because they had not been subjected to the internal disciplinary action of the Nigeria Police Council (NPC) and the Police Service Commission (PSC), as provided by the constitution.

They said that the failure of the complainant (NDLEA) to await the disciplinary action against them rendered the charge incompetent and deprived the court of jurisdiction to entertain the charge.

But the NDLEA counsel, Mr Joseph Sunday, opposed the application.

He argued that most of the cases cited by lawyers to the defendants did not relate to the Police Service Act, saying the instant charge against the defendant was a criminal matter.

He submitted that the defendants, through their applications, had not, by way of affidavit or legal argument, established any condition precedence required for the filing of this charge.

He said, To that extent, their application must fail and be bereft of any factual evidence.