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  • Ondo to revive Forest Reserves

    Ondo to revive Forest Reserves

    Ondo state government has reiterated its determination at making the forest reserves across the state viable and economically useful to the citizenry.

    The Special Adviser to the Governor on Natural Resources, Lawal Fatai Olusina said the Akeredolu led administration in the state have planted  over six million trees, ranging from teak,melania and other species an 3,000 hectares of land quarterly in the last 365 days of the present administration in the state.

    According to the Governor’s aide, this efforts were geared at replenishing the forest reserves that have been depleted in the past by encroachers.

    Read Also: SSG: Akeredolu’s govt will uplift Ondo

    He informed that investors have also been invited in this regard at making sure that forest reserves across the state are viable, preserved and protected from been collapsed.

    While appreciating the efforts of the Governor in the last one year in office as tremendous and people oriented administration in nearly all spheres of human endeavours, saying the people can attest to this in their judgment.

    He urged all forest users in the state to always follow the laid down forest rules and regulations procedures in their activities, in order not to see the wrath of the government.

    The SA noted that the state government would continue to guard its forest reserves across the state, to make them viable.

     

  • Quadri one step to ITTF Africa’s final

    Quadri one step to ITTF Africa’s final

    Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri and female compatriot Offiong Edem are into the semifinals of the 2018 ITTF-Africa Top 16 Cup, being decided in Nairobi.

    Both the semi-finals and finals will be played today.

    Places in the Liebherr 2018 Men’s World Cup and 2018 Women’s World Cup are at stake.

    In the Men’s Singles event Egypt is very much in evidence; in the penultimate round Omar Assar, the top seed, faces Congo Brazzaville’s Saheed Idowu, Ahmed Ali Saleh, the no.3 seed, opposes Nigeria’s Quadri Aruna.

    Similarly in the Women’s Singles competition there is a strong Egyptian presence; at the semi-final stage Dina Meshref, seeded no.1, plays Nigeria’s Offiong Edem, the no.4 seed, Cameroon’s Sarah Hanffou confronts Algeria’s Lynda Loghraibi.

    Listed at no.16 on the current Men’s World Rankings, Omar Assar starts as the clear favourite against Saheed Idowu, named at no.311 but the two have never met in recent times on the international stage and it would appear Omar Assar has some concerns.

    “I’m very happy to reach the semi-finals. I’m also very happy for each win because here the conditions are not normal. Some players are playing well because they are used to playing in high altitude but the players who play at normal altitude cannot even put two or three balls on the table. So this makes it a little bit interesting. I really don’t know, it’s very interesting that the organizers came here to play, the altitude is really very unique.” Omar Assar

    Read Also: Aruna Quadri shoots up to 27 in latest ITTF ranking

    A first meeting for Omar Assar and Saheed Idowu; not for Quadri Aruna and Ahmed Ali Saleh; they are no strangers. Notably, in world ranking events, Ahmed Ali Saleh won the five encounters starting with the success at the 2010 African Championships in Yaoundé.

    However, the most recent two engagements have gone the way of Quadri Aruna; he succeeded at the 2015 African Games in Congo Brazzaville and at the 2016 African Championships in Agadir.

    Meanwhile, when past results are taken into account both Dina Meshref and Sarah Hanffou start as favourites. At the African Games in 2011 in Maputo, Dina Meshref lost to Offiong Edem but one must remember she was only 16 years when she experienced the defeat. Ever since that date, eight meetings in succession, Dina Meshref has won on each occasion.

    It is not too dissimilar a situation for Sarah Hanffou; three contests against Lynda Loghraibi; she has won all three, the most recent being the 2016 Olympic Qualification tournament in Khartoum.

    Past results point in certain directions but could they key be the player who can adapt, the player who can succeed at high altitude and reach the heights.

    NAN

  • Truck rams into building, kills security man

    Truck rams into building, kills security man

    A truck bearing granite on Saturday morning veered off its lane at the Obantoko stretch of the Abeokuta – Ibadan road and rammed into a building, killing a security man in the process.

    The truck marked LSD 308 XG was said to have ran into the security chalet, damaged it and also killed the security man inside.

    The Public Relations Officer of the Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency (TRACE), Babatunde Akinbiyi, who confirmed the accident, said the truck had a break failure and rammed into the security post of the  building, killing the security man.

    “There was a brake failure on the part of the Iveco truck loaded with granite having white head and blue bucket with registration number LSD 308 XG. It rammed into the security chalet of a building.

    “A security man of the said building died and his remains have been  taken to the morgue of the Federal Medical Centre(FMC), Abeokuta.”

  • Lions, tigers, leopards going into extinction – UN

    Lions, tigers, leopards going into extinction – UN

    The United Nations, UN, has called for the protection of big cats species such as lions, tigers and leopards, warning that they are fast going into extinction.

    The UN spoke against the backdrop of the 2018 World Wildlife Day, celebrated every March 3, with the theme: “Big cats: predators under threat’’.

    According to the UN, the big cats are under increasing threat, mostly caused by human activities.

    UN Secretary-General António Guterres in his message said “this year, the spotlight falls on the world’s big cats. These charismatic creatures are universally revered for their grace and power, yet they are increasingly in danger of extinction”.

    Guterres said just more than a century ago, some 100,000 wild tigers roamed Asia, while fewer than 4,000 remained today.

    According to him, all the big cats are collectively under threat from habitat loss, climate change, poaching, illicit trafficking, and human-wildlife conflict.

    “We are the cause of their decline, so we can also be their salvation. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) include specific targets to end the poaching and illegal trafficking of protected species of wild fauna and flora.

    “Ultimately, the solution to saving big cats and other threatened and endangered species is conservation policy based on sound science and the rule of law,” he noted.

    Guterres pointed out that by protecting big cats we also protect the landscapes they inhabit and the life they harbour, adding “it is a gateway to protecting entire ecosystems that are crucial to our planet’s health.

    “Wildlife conservation is a shared responsibility,” he said, calling on people around the world to “help raise awareness and to take personal action to help ensure the survival of the world’s big cats and all its precious and fragile biological diversity.”

    In his message, Yury Fedotov, Executive Director, UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), said that while “the cheetah is the world’s fastest land animal, like other big cat species, it cannot outrun the threat of extinction.”

    According to Fedetov, across the world, lions, tigers, leopards and jaguars, as well as many other big cat species, are under pressure due to poaching, lost habitats and disappearing prey.

    “UNODC is working to help countries criminalise wildlife poaching and trafficking as a means of protecting animals, including big cat species, and halting their tragic disappearance into history.

    “Our collective roar of defiance must be aimed at the poachers, traffickers and all those who would destroy our natural heritage. We must not let them succeed,” he urged.

    The Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed also lamented that “biodiversity is disappearing at a thousand times the natural rate’’, saying that the varied causes could be linked to the 17 SDGs of the 2030 Agenda.

    “Protecting ecosystems and ensuring access to ecosystem services by poor and vulnerable groups are therefore essential to eradicating extreme poverty and hunger,” she said.

    Mohammed said conservation, restoration and sustainable use of biological diversity was “an effective anti-poverty strategy,” and emphasised the need to better maintain the natural resources on which billions of people depend, especially the world’s rural poor.

    “They say cats have nine lives. Our big cats are on at least number eight,” she said, observing, however, that in many cases, poverty, hunger and biodiversity loss are intrinsically connected.

    NAN

  • Oyo LG Polls: OYSIEC assures on credibility, trains electoral officers

    Oyo LG Polls: OYSIEC assures on credibility, trains electoral officers

    Ahead of May 12, 2018, local government election in the state, the Chairman, Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC), Mr Jide Ajeigbe on Friday reiterated the commitment of the commission to conducting a free, fair and credible election.

    Speaking at the opening ceremony of a day orientation training programme for the electoral officers to be deployed in the forthcoming council polls, the Chairman who noted that conducting elections is a serious business guided by relevant provisions in the country’s constitution said embarking on an open training for electoral officers is parts of measure by the OYSIEC to show its political neutrality and non-partisanship in the forthcoming elections.

    The orientation training was attended by the Executive Secretary of the Commission, Mr Paul Ogunola, OYSIEC Commissioners, other management team and the 139 electoral officers to be deployed for elections into the 33LGs and 35 Local Council Development Areas.

    Assuring the political parties ahead of the election, the chairman said organizing the workshop is an indication that the electoral body will not compromise in the conduct of free, fair and credible elections in the state.

    He said, “This is an orientation programme for the newly engaged electoral officers who will man the pools in the forthcoming local government elections. The trainings will be in different levels and INEC will be involved in the trainings to teach the electoral officers how to conduct election, conduct themselves and the roles they are to play in the election.

    “We are getting prepared and doing all that is needful to achieve a better. We don’t have any serious at the moment and we are coping with our preparations. We are set and by my assessment of the electoral team, we are doing all within our powers to deliver a credible election.”

    He pointed out that the presence of seasoned and experience resource persons in electoral matters to educate, orientate the electoral officers, Ajeigbe said the electoral body is committed to reducing the often emanating flaws that is associated with conduct of elections.

    Tracing the political history of LG elections in the state, the Chief Executive Officer, Ameye Valour Ventures Limited noted that efforts at ensuring credible LG elections have always been like “smirching of eggs on the rock due to improper planning.”

    He pointed out that the orientation LG electoral officers, which is the first in the political history of the state is an indication that the better days are ahead for the conduct of LG polls in the state.

    Charging the ad-hoc electoral officers to take advantage of the trainings and help the state electoral umpire build a good name for itself, the electoral consultant enjoined other stakeholders in the state to do everything within their power to contribute to the success of the present electoral process in Oyo.

    He added that the synergy of the stakeholders, particularly the political class, with the electoral body will no doubt uplift the state by ensuring it moves forward democratically at the grass root, through the well thought out electoral process in the state.

    The participants were drawn from all the 33 LGs across the state.

  • NDLEA nab two Drug Traffickers with Nacotics

    NDLEA nab two Drug Traffickers with Nacotics

     

    The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA at the Malam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) command, on Friday paraded two suspected drug traffickers in possession of hard drugs valued at over N50 million.

    Speaking to Reporters on the arrest, the Makia NDLEA Commander, Mr. Ambrose Umoru, said that the suspected drug traffickers were apprehended on February 17 by anti-narcotic agents attached to the airport.

    He explained that the suspects were apprehended during routine inward screening of passengers onboard Ethiopian Airlines flight number ET 941.

    Read Also: NDLEA arrests drug suspects

    According to him, one of the suspects, Nweke Emmanuel, (49) who hails from Ire in Idenmili South Local Government Area of Anambra state, was in possession of 2.180kg of ingested heroine which was detected during the screening exercise. .

    Ambrose Umoru said, ”the suspect is a businessman and barber who is based in Kinshasha, Democratic Republic of Congo,  traveled to Bujumbura, Burundi where he ingested a total of 127 wraps of heroin.”

    He identified the second suspect as Miss Olunwabusola Gloria Dumebi, (32), from Ibusa in Oshimili Local Government Area of Delta State, a stylist by profession, who was billed to board same flight with the first suspect, noting that   three kg of a whitish powdery substance suspected to be cocaine was also discovered in her possession.

  • Amuneke takes Al-Khartoum to second place

    Amuneke takes Al-Khartoum to second place

    Al-Khartoum, the Sudan Premier League (SPL) side under former Nigerian international Emmanuel Amuneke on Friday recorded victory away from home with a 1-0 defeat of Merreikh Kosti.

    The  from four matches result takes the club to the second position  of the table with eight points  behind Merreikh Al-Fasher with 11 points from five matches in the competitive Group A section of the league.

    The 18-team SPL is divided equally into two sections and each of the groups is expected to produce four teams for a play-off to produce the country’s flag bearers for CAF-organised competitions and Amuneke is confident of his wards after the latest victory.

    “Our team is getting stronger and the experience has been good so far,” Amuneke said in an interview.

    “We could have won the match against Merreikh Kosti with a wider margin because we missed glaring opportunities; but we are getting used to the rigours of playing against some equally good teams.’

    “It is our desire to be part of the four teams that would qualify from our group to qualify for play-off at the end of the first phase of the SPL,” noted he former Barcelona winger.

    It would be recalled that Amuneke took over at Al Khartoum in January after agreeing a two-year deal as replacement for Ghanaian Kwesi Appiah in November. He is being assisted by two of his compatriots, Emeka Amadi and Taiwo Enegwa.

     

  • NERC Establishes 25 Offices Across the Country

    NERC Establishes 25 Offices Across the Country

     

    The National Electricity Regulatory Commission, (NERC) has established 25 forum offices across the country designed to address consumers’ complaints so as to ensure their satisfaction.

    Speaking during an Electricity consumers town hall meeting held in Kano yesterday. The vice chairman of the commission Sanusi Garba said that the EPSR  ACT of 2005 empowers NERC, as a regulatory agent in the electricity sector to protect consumer’s interest, deal with consumers complaints, educate consumers on their right as well as involve consumers in the regulatory process for efficiency.

    Garba who was represented by the commissioner, consumer affairs Dr. Moses Arigu said, “for nearly 11 years of existence as a commission, we have set abou these objectives with vigour and today’s event is part of the fruitful outcome of our unrelenting efforts”

    The town hall meeting theme: promoting electricity consumers awareness in the power sector is a platform designed to educate electricity consumers on their right and obligations, health and safety consumers’ complaints, redress mechanism, energy conservation and other lingering issues that consumers might be facing.

    Read Also: Govt urges enumeration of electricity consumers

    The Chairman noted that the basic satisfaction for electricity consumers in the country, is quality and reliability of services, prompt complaint handling, accuracy of bills, and easy lament mechanism, adding that if these are perceived by the customers to be unsatisfactory, customers needs a clear and affective path to seek and find redress.

    “An important pillar of this mechanism is the forum office whose primary responsibility is to hear appeals of cases not resolved by the Disco’s CCU or Customer not happy with the resolution of the Disco’s CCU. So far, the commission has established 25 forum offices across the country”

    The commission also seeks to build and maintain cordial relationships with other agencies in an effort to enlighten consumers. Through collaboration with some agencies such as National Orientation Agency (NOA) and Consumer Protection Council (CPC) the commission hopes to continue to reach out to sensitize customers and the general public on electricity regulatory issues that concerns them.

    In his remarks, the Chairman on house committee on power represented by Honorable Iboro Ekanem decried the high rate of vandalization of electricity equipments in the country which has posed great danger in regular electricity supply in the country.

    Ekanem advised electricity consumers to use the forum officees established to lay their complaints in order to address such issues rather than engaging in sharp practices.

    He called on the Discos to ensure stable Power supply with affordable and clear bills for a better understanding for the development of the sector.

     

  • Physically challenged persons will benefit from N217m housing project – FG

    Physically challenged persons will benefit from N217m housing project – FG

    The Federal Government has said physically challenged persons interested in the 2016 National Housing Programme (NHP) will benefit from the scheme as soon as it is completed in six months.

    Zonal Director, North Central, Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing, Julius Olurinola, disclosed this during an inspection of 72 units housing project, at the weekend in Abuja.

    He said every Nigerian is eligible to purchase the flats at a cost to be unveiled by the ministry.

    Speaking at the phase one of the project site in Gwagwalada, Abuja, Olurinola who is the ministry’s Director of Engineering, said the project implementation which already commenced in 33 states including the Federal Capital Territory have created both direct and indirect jobs across the chain.

    He said the three apartment houses have 72 units of flats to be occupied by interested individuals at an affordable cost, adding that the project is a reality of campaign promises of the present administration.

    The FCT Condominium Type A Project is a block building consisting of 4 units of 1 bedroom, 16 units of 2 bedroom and 4 units of 3 bedroom with a parking space available to occupy 50 cars.

    The Project Manager, Mr. Liu Chao, said the needed infrastructures for the project such as access road, water, power among others are 95 per cent completed while the building is 40 per cent completed.

    He said about 200 workers have been engaged apart from suppliers and food vendors, who on daily basis provides meal for the workers.

    Chao, representing the contracting firm, City International Dimension assured that the project will be delivered in six months.

    Ministry Project Team Leader, Architect Toyin Faturoti added that, “Ramp was constructed mainly for the physically challenged and there is high rail for protection of the occupants. There are 2 bedroom flats and 3 bedroom flats where each bedroom has its toilets and kitchen good enough to make them comfortable.

    “The doors of the physically challenged are wider and the kitchen bigger, while the building allows every strata of the society to live together under a roof.”

    In his remarks, the contractor in charge of potable water, Mr. Adeleke Seyi said the property was provided with water treatment facility good enough to serve the occupants all year round.

    He said a 75, 000 cubic meter lower tank has been provided as well as 45, 000 upper tank which is being pumped by 7.5 horse power vertical power machine after the treatment.

    One of the workers, Ukaba Joseph, lauded the federal government for the project stressing that it has empowered him and served as a reliable source of livelihood.

     

  • BBNaija: Bambam ‘s parents dismiss social media claims

    BBNaija: Bambam ‘s parents dismiss social media claims

    The family of Big Brother Naija “Double Wahala’’ housemate Bambam has dismissed suggestions on social media claiming her parents want her withdrawn from the show.

    This is due to the recent social media frenzy surrounding her escapade in the toilet with fellow housemate Teddy A.

    Video images of what looked like the two housemates copulating have been circulating on the Internet over the past week.

    The actions of these two housemates have caused a resurgence of a wide debate among Nigerians that focused on the immorality of the show.

    BBNaija followers have emphasised on Bambam’s claim to be a religious and dedicated member of her church at the beginning of the show.

    An alleged member of her church Stephanie Amaty took to social media to express her disappointment in Bambam, who she claimed is a chorister in her parish.

    She said “I am personally disappointed in Bamike “Bambam” she is a choir member in my parish’’.

    Followers of the show on social media have claimed the parents of the BBNaija housemate have requested to have their daughter withdrawn from the show as a consequence for her wrongdoings in the BBNaija house.

    Contrary to those reports, the family of Bambam has released an official statement through Bambams Instagram page appreciating her fans and reinforcing their support for their daughter.

    The statement reads “there’s been a false news circulating on social media about BamBam’s parents requesting for her to leave the big brother house to return home.

    “This news is very false as the supposed person is not family, friend or even supporter of BamBam, I repeat it is completely false and as such should be disregarded.’’
    ‎
    The family completely disregarded the source of information of the alleged claims and appealed to viewers to continue showing support toward Bambam.

    “We do not know the said user from anywhere and have no affiliations with her. Its the work of unscrupulous elements and it is what it is. Thank you for those who stuck out for us and brought it to our notice.

    “We crave your indulgence to please spread this news and continue to show your support as we stand together to ensure victory is ours by Gods grace.”

    Bambam’s initial game strategic partner Teddy A, had earlier proclaimed in the show to respect Bambams’s religious background by abstaining from any form of sexual intercourse with her.

    NAN