The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Nigerian news

  • Man jailed two years for drug trafficking

    Man jailed two years for drug trafficking

    A Federal High Court in Lagos, on Thursday  sentenced a 30- year-old man, Abubakar Nasir, to  two years imprisonment for drug trafficking.

    The unemployed convict who was arraigned by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency ( NDLEA ) on a count charge of dealing in narcotics, had pleaded guilty.

    He begged the court to temper justice with mercy and give him another chance and promised to be a better person in life, if given the opportunity.

    In her judgment, Justice Oluremi Oguntoyinbo, found the defendant guilty as charged and accordingly convicted him.

    Read also: Court docked man for N.26m fraud

    She, consequently, sentenced him to two years imprisonment, beginning from the date of his arrest.

    Earlier, the Prosecutor, Jeremiah Aernan, had told the court that the convict committed the offence on Sept. 20.

    Aernan said that the man was arrested at the Yadoya Market in Mile 12 Lagos.

    He said that about 300 grammes of cannabis sativa known as Indian hemp was recovered from the convict and he was arrested and subsequently charged to court.

    He said that the offence contravened the provisions of Section 11 (c) of the NDLEA Act Cap. 30 Laws of the Federation, 2004.

    NAN

  • NGO organises professional snooker competition in Lagos

    NGO organises professional snooker competition in Lagos

    Come Alive Initiative, an NGO, says it is organising a two-day snooker competition to meaningfully engage youths and create recreation for adults, especially in the Obawole area of Ogba, Lagos, as they prepare for the Yuletide.

    The competition is being co-sponsored by Meer Essentials Ltd and Allied Amusement Nigeria Ltd, a leading snooker marketing and manufacturing firm in the country.

    The championships tagged “1st Obawole Professional Snooker Competition’’ will hold from Dec 16th and 17th at Adam’s Gate Hotels and Suites Obawole in Ogba, Ifako-Ijaye Local Council Development Area, Lagos State.

    The National Coordinator of Come Alive Initiative, Victor Enwezor, said on Wednesday in Lagos that the organisation put together the competition as its own way of giving back to the society by engaging the youths.

    “We have looked at the situation of the Nigerian youths and felt that apart from our other activities, use this competition to engage our youths meaningfully and take their minds off vices.

    “We felt so because those that will participate will be busy training to perfect their skills in readiness for the competition and therefore will have little time to think or engage in negative activities.

    “It is also a way of promoting the game of snooker in Nigeria,’’ he told NAN.

    “The competition is also designed to enrich the pockets of the participants in whatever small way and that is why the winner will take the star price of N15,000 and the first and second  runners-up N10,000 and N5000 respectively.

    “There will be lots of consolation prizes as well as other side attractions, including stand-in DJ, live band among others.’’

    The event, he said, would be an annual event and would continue to witness innovations as well continue to promote the game of snooker as a gentleman’s game.

    NAN reports that snooker is a cue sports which originated among British army officers in Etawah, India in the latter half of the 19th century.

    It is played on a rectangular table covered with a green cloth or baize, with pockets at each of the four corners and in the middle of each long side.

    Using a cue and 16 colored balls, each player must strike the white ball to pot the remaining balls into the pocket, first to pot the black ball wins the game.

    NAN also reports that Come Alive Initiative is youth development and empowerment organisation which presently focuses on the rehabilitation and re-integration of drug addicts into the society as well as empowering and giving them a new lease of life.

    The organisation has currently rehabilitated over 30 youths and young adults in different parts of the country.

    It also promotes the importance of effective giving for the development and assistance of the needy in communities and assists rehabilitated drug addicts with stigma and promote their tolerance and acceptability in communities in association with other government and non-governmental institutions.

  • Trader arraigned for N240, 000 fraud

    Trader arraigned for N240, 000 fraud

    A 28-year-old trader, Chima Akwo, has been docked at an Apapa Magistrates’ Court for fraud after he allegedly obtained power shower worth N240,000 from a businessman under false pretences.

    The accused is facing a two-count charge of stealing and obtaining an item under false pretences, to which he pleaded not guilty.

    The prosecutor, Sgt. Olusegun Kokoye told the court that the accused, who resides in Apapa area of Lagos, committed the offences on Sept.15 at the Satellite town in Lagos.

    Read also: Court docks dispatch riders for stealing N643,388

    Kokoye claimed that the accused obtained power shower worth N240,000 from one Obinna Akanazu with a promise to pay him the following day.
    He said that the accused started using the power shower but refused to pay Akanazu as promised.

    Kokoye said that the complainant reported the case to the police and the accused was arrested for questioning.

    The offence contravened Sections 287 and 314 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015 (Revised).

    Section 314 of the law prescribes a 15-year jail term for offence of obtaining items under false pretences.

    The senior magistrate, Mr M. A. Etti granted the accused bail in the sum of N100, 000, with one surety in like sum.

    Etti said the surety must be gainfully employed and must also show evidence of two years’ tax payment to the

    He adjourned the case until Dec.29 for mention.

    NAN

  • NYSC DG tasks corps members to adopt entrepreneurship mentality

    NYSC DG tasks corps members to adopt entrepreneurship mentality

    Brig.-Gen. Suleiman Kazaure, Director-General, National Youth Service Corps ( NYSC ) has urged corps members to adopt entrepreneurship mentality to be self reliant after service and to attain financial independence.

    Kazaure made the call while addressing the 2017 Batch ‘B’ Stream 1 corps members deployed to Ogun at the NYSC Permanent Orientation Camp in Sagamu on Thursday.

    The director-general, who was represented by Mrs Adetokunbo Idowu, a director in the NYSC, said the scheme had adopted some innovations to ensure that corps members were better engaged after their service.

    Kazaure also advised corps members to develop their potential for entrepreneurship excellence rather than seeking for scarce white-collar jobs.

    Kazaure also called on them to utilise the opportunity provided by the NYSC Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development ( SAED ) programme to acquire additional skills for self-employment.

    Read also: Corps members urged to embrace entrepreneurial skills

    “The NYSC has provided all the tools and support you need to develop your capacity to the fullest, it depends on you, there is no short cut to success but hard work.

    “Of all the programmes outlined for you during the orientation, there is none more important that you must fully participate in than the SAED programme.

    “I want you to create your own jobs by being creative and innovative, you must strive to be labour employers rather than labour seekers.

    “Please don’t look for white-collar jobs, your skills and potential can serve you better in the way of realising your dreams,” he said.

    Kazaure said that SAED programme was packaged through a partnership with public and private sector organisations toward building an entrepreneurial capacity.

    He also urged corps members to remain in their states of deployment and contribute toward the promotion of national unity rather than seeking redeployment back home.

    Also speaking, Mr John Okpo, the Ogun NYSC Coordinator, thanked Kazaure for the visit.

    “We will continue to deploy corps members to all identified areas of needs, especially the rural communities where we shall implement advocacy programmes of interest,” Okpo said.

    About 2,442 corps members, comprising 1,270 males and 1,172 females, are participating in the orientation programme in the state.

    NAN

  • Jigawa LG partners CPC to end food adulteration

    Jigawa LG partners CPC to end food adulteration

    The Suletankarkar Local Government Council of Jigawa said it would partner with the Consumer Protection Council ( CPC ) to end adulteration of foodstuff in the area.

    The Information Officer of the council, Alhaji Dudau Sulaiman, disclosed this on Thursday.

    Sulaiman said the Chairman of the council, Malam Jafaru Muhammad, made the announcement when he received the CPC’s Chairman in his office.

    Read also: Jigawa Assembly to investigates death of 50 children, increase in child mortality

    He said Muhammad, who expressed concerned over alleged reports of adulteration of commodities in markets in the area, pledged to measures to tackle the menace.

    The council’s boss also commended the CPC for its efforts at ridding the state’s markets of adulterated products.

    The CPC chairman, Alhaji Faruq Abdallah, said the council’s officials were in the area as part of their routine visit to markets.

    Abdallah called on the local council to revive its Consumer Protection Subcommittee to help check adulteration of goods in the area.

    NAN

  • Customs impound contraband valued N1.59bn

    Customs impound contraband valued N1.59bn

    The Federal Operations Unit of the Nigeria Customs Service ( NCS ) intercepted various contraband with a Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N1.59 billion between the 1st to 30th of November.

    The Customs Area Controller ( CAC ) of the unit, Comptroller Garba Mohammed, said this when he conducted newsmen round Customs’ warehouses in Lagos on Wednesday.

    According to Mohammed, a total of 185 items were intercepted within the period under review.

    “The command intercepted 64 units of various types of vehicles under detention; 13,333 bags of 50kg parboiled rice; 15 parcels of Indian hemp; 205 bales of second-hand clothing and 1,390 cartons of frozen poultry products.

    “We intercepted 1,101 pieces of used tyres; 835 jerry cans of vegetable oil; 17 no. of 20ft containers suspected to be carrying wood under detention and 385 cartons of Tiffany cream biscuits.

    “Also intercepted were: 2,300 cartons of Tiffany chocolate cream fudge and toffee sweet as well as 137 cartons of block engine cylinder,’’ he said.

    The controller said five suspects were apprehended along with the seizures, while one of the suspects had been released on administrative bail.

    Mohammed said some 50kg bags of rice were intercepted and discovered to have been locally-produced.

    He said the bags of rice were intercepted while being re-bagged to deceive Nigerians that the commodity was imported.

    According to him, three bullet-proof jeeps were among the vehicles seized through Customs Intelligence.

    Read also: Customs destroys 700 cartons of seized poultry products – Official

    Report said one of the suspects, Mr Adams Oghenegare, a driver with GPC Truck Transport Company, said he was apprehended by Customs at Otta, along Agbara area of Lagos.

    Oghenegare said he loaded some 50kg bags of rice and used some cartons of Maggi to cover the consignment in order to deceive security agents.

    The controller said that some owners of the 57 vehicles intercepted in Omole Estate, Lagos by officers of the unit had not come forward for identification in order to pay the duty and to release their vehicles.

    Mohammed said smuggled vehicles and rice through the land borders would attract outright seizure following the Federal Government’s directives.

    He said importation of groundnut oil was prohibited through land or sea.

    Mohammed commended the Comptroller-General of customs, Retired Col. Hameed Ali and the entire management team for providing the necessary logistics that brought about this feat.

    He also commended the media for their continued support and for using their medium in sensitising the public on the effects of smuggling on the nation’s economy.

    NAN

  • OPS decries effects of bad Apapa roads on businesses

    OPS decries effects of bad Apapa roads on businesses

    The Organised Private Sector ( OPS )  has urged the Federal Government to find a lasting solution to the problem of bad access roads to Apapa ports in Lagos which is affecting the cost of businesses.

    The OPS spoke on Wednesday at a conference in Lagos on the Petroleum Industry Bill and the impact of bad roads in Apapa on businesses.

    The OPS comprises Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association ( NECA ), Manufacturers Association of Nigeria ( MAN ) and the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture ( NACCIMA ).

    The others are the National Association of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises ( NASME ) and the National Association of Small Scale Industries ( NASSI ).

    Mr Segun Oshinowo, Director-General of NECA, said many companies would close shop if Apapa roads remained bad.

    “The OPS is concerned about access roads to the Apapa ports. It is affecting overhead costs of businesses of  our members.

    “Preventable accidents as a result of the bad roads lead to huge loss of revenues; loss of jobs and closure of businesses. This will further worsen trade facilitation,’’ Oshinowo said.

    He advised the government to create alternative roads, put measures in place to free traffic and proffer lasting solutions to gridlocks in Apapa.

    On the Petroleum Industry Bill, Mr Segun Ajayi-Kadiri, Director-General of MAN, advocated creation of two regulatory bodies for the petroleum industry as against one body recommended in the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill ( PIGB ) before the National Assembly.

    Ajayi-Kadiri said that there was the need to avoid “costly mistakes’’ that could work against reforming the sector.

    Read also: Fed Govt to shut depots over Apapa gridlock

    According to him, one of such mistakes is a provision in the PIGB for a single regulator for the industry.

    He said that two regulatory bodies – one for the upstream and another for the downstream – would serve the sector better.

    “A cursory look at some of the provisions of the PIGB revealed the likely emergence of the Petroleum Regulatory Commission (PRC) – an omnibus commission that will be empowered to regulate the entire petroleum sector.

    “We do not share the view of the Assembly on creation of a regulator for a sector that is not homogenous in its activities and deliverables.

    “The idea of a single regulator for the whole sector runs contrary to industry standards which by default already provides for an upstream and downstream regulator, ‘’ Ajayi-Kadiri said.

    The director-general of MAN said that the responsibilities of the proposed commission was too wide as it cut across various value chains in a key sector of the economy.

    He commended the National Assembly for taking steps to reform the petroleum industry through the PIGB, and called for accelerated actions.

    NAN

  • Coca-Cola advises Nigerians to reduce sugar intake

    Coca-Cola advises Nigerians to reduce sugar intake

    The Coca-Cola Nigeria Ltd. has advised Nigerians to choose a healthy lifestyle by reducing their sugar intake and eat more fruits.

    Mr Gbolahan Sanni, the company Marketing Manager, Stills and Flavours, gave the advice at the launching of three new variants of Five Alive juice in Lagos on Tuesday.

    The new variants are Tropical, Apple and Family size of pulpy orange in Lagos.

    Sanni said that taking more of fruits daily, either by eating or drinking, makes one healthy.

    According to him, this made our company to introduce more natural content drinks into the market.

    “The new variants contain natural and local fruits such as pineapple, apple, mango, passion fruit and orange.

    “There is no limit to the number of bottles that can be consumed by an individual because it contains vitamins and minerals that are beneficial to health.

    Read also: Coca-Cola to launch ‘safe birth initiative’

    “It is made from natural fruits, vitamin and minerals unlike carbonated drinks which were made from chemical compounds and sugar.

    “It does not contain artificial flavours, colours and preservatives,” Sanni said.

    He said the company had realised that consumers’ taste were changing which made them to introduce new products.

    “I can assure you that we will continue to innovate, introduce and produce new variants of natural fruits drink tirelessly.

    “Five Alive drinks is a product of Coca-Cola Company and the most sought after drinks because of its uniqueness and quality.

    “People should always take breakfast with five alive because it is fresh and contains natural products,” Sanni said.

    NAN

  • CBN tasks investors on job, wealth creation

    CBN tasks investors on job, wealth creation

    The Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele, has urged the private sector to support the Federal Government’s efforts at increating jobs and stimulating growth of the Nigerian economy.

    The CBN’s Acting Director, Corporate Communications, Mr Isaac Okorafor, in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja, said that Emefiele made the call at the Blueband Factory launch organised by the Unilever in Agbara, Ogun.

    Emefiele also pledged the CBN’s continued support for companies committed to the objective of job-creation.

    He said that there were many Nigerian youths whose potential could be harnessed to strengthen the industrial base of the country.

    The CBN governor recalled the practice in time past when companies tested and offered jobs to the brightest among fresh graduates of different disciplines before they proceeded for their national youth service.

    He said that a vast number of Nigerian youths was hardworking and willing to contribute their quota to the development of the country.

    The CBN governor also commended the management of Unilever Nigeria Plc for heeding the bank’s call to return to Nigeria and build a world class plant after the foreign exchange restrictions on some 41 items, including margarine.

    Emefiele said the policies of the apex bank and its aggressive intervention in the inter-bank foreign exchange market management had ensured transparency in the foreign exchange market.

    Read also: CBN, Dickson, others laud Mosilo Bayelsa Rice Outgrowers Scheme

    With a population estimated at about 180 million people, the CBN governor said Nigeria was a ready market for investors and was indeed ready and open for business.

    He, therefore, reiterated his call to investors to take advantage of the opportunities in Nigeria by bringing more investments  into the country.

    Emefiele, however, cautioned that Nigeria, with the population growing at an average of three per cent per annum, had to focus on growth and prosperity if it would transform its population into assets.

    “We must plan to feed our growing population so it does not become a disadvantage,” he said.

    Earlier, the Executive Vice President of Unilever Ghana and Nigeria, Mr Yaw Nsarkoh, lauded the CBN for supporting the company to achieve its goal of setting up the plant in Nigeria and boosting capacity in Africa.

    While urging investors to disregard negative stories about Nigeria, Nsarkoh noted that businesses must be part of the solution to thriving communities.

    According to Okorafor, the high point of the event was an inspection of the new Blueband factory by the CBN governor and other guests.

    NAN

  • Government belongs to us all – Hon. Rasak Ajala

    Government belongs to us all – Hon. Rasak Ajala

    Accountability is the true litmus and indication of any progressive government saddled with the overwhelming responsibility and sacred obligations to delivering the dividends of democracy to its people.

    On Monday, the Executive Chairman of Odi-Olowo/Ojuwoye Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Hon. Rasaq Olushola Ajala gave a lucid account of his four months helmsmanship of the LCDA.

    According to him, “the business of governance is indeed challenging, especially in this period when the country is coming out of recession, hence, the abundance of limitless demands from our constituents has been very daunting.

    “Despite this, I make bold to state, with all sense of humility that we have a robust testimonial of activities driven by the demands and needs of our people with empirical evidence dotting the nooks and crannies of our LCDA.”

    Hon. Rasak wasted no time in enlightening the people of the community about his administration’s strides in Health, Works and infrastructure, Education, Sanitation, etc.

    “We left no stone unturned in the health sector as we engaged in massive sensitization and advocacy, especially during the outbreak of the dreadful diseases such as Lassa Fever, Monkey pox etc.

    “We also introduced a community based health insurance scheme in partnership with the state government.

    “We partnered several well-meaning organisations to bring some health benefits like immunization, eye screening, ante-natal delivery, post-natal, free medical treatments, free blood pressure check and the treatment of hypertension amongst others to our people.

    “In infrastructural development, we completed four major drainage projects in Ago-Owu, Alhaji-Otta, Anuoluwapo and Opeloyeru streets, covering a total distance of 727 meters.

    “Also, we focused heavily on roads. We re-constructed three major roads in the LCDA, namely, Araba, Ogunji and Ibukunolu streets; we covered a total of 3,269 square meters. Rehabilitation of three roads namely: Abiodun, Kumuyi and Fafolu streets; we covered a total of 1,901 square meters.

    “Also, we have commissioned 135 boreholes in the community, with high powered generators to power the constant supply of water.

    “These are a few of our efforts in infrastructure in tandem with our promises to our people,” he said.

    In waste and sanitation, he said that his administration had invested heavily on regular mopping up of refuse around the LCDA, sensitization programmes, desilting of drains, purchase of sanitary equipment etc.

    Concerning Education, the Chairman stressed that there is an urgent need to get objective and up-to-date data on the number of schools, pupils and students, and teachers; this will in turn help the decision making process in meeting the academic and structural needs of the schools in the LCDA.

    To this end, the Chairman has set up a committee whose organic function is to come up with developmental proposals and plans to meet the academic, structural and training needs of schools based on data obtained by the committee.

    He further said, “part of the projects and programmes to be delivered before the end of the year are: health week, workers forum, Christian fellowship programme, Jumat service, commissioning of roads and drainages, donation of food items to widows, aged and indigents people, launching of feedback and public complaint boxes to all wards etc.

    “Government belongs to all. Citizens should play their complementary roles in terms of meeting civic duties and responsibilities like the payment of taxes, rates, levies etc.”