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Collapsed church building: Akwa Ibom spends N300m on victims

The Akwa Ibom government says it has spent a total of N300 million as medical bills for victims of the Reigners Bible Church building collapse that occurred December 2016.

The state Health Commissioner, Dr Dominic Ukpong, disclosed this on Thursday in Uyo while presenting cheques to the proprietors of the various hospitals that assisted in the treatment of the victims.

The church building collapsed during the bishopric consecration service of the founder of the church, Apostle Akan Weeks, with Gov. Udom Emmanuel in attendance.

Ukpong said that a total of 168 victims were evacuated from the scene of the unfortunate incident out of which 30 worshipers had been confirmed death at the last count.

“On Dec. 10, 2016, a tragedy befell this state, a clergyman was about to be ordained as a bishop, unfortunately the roof of the church caved in.

“The state governor, who was in attendance, escaped unhurt while 18 persons were crushed to death on the spot.

“Many injured people were moved to hospitals, majority of the injured were moved by kindhearted Nigerians; we had mobilised only four ambulances, we want to say thank you all Nigerians.

“I want to give credit to all Nigerians, I express my gratitude to you all on behalf the state governor, for standing with us at that moment of grief,” Ukpong said.

Ukpong said that a total of 14 hospitals were involved in the treatment and care of the victims, most of which were private hospitals.

The commissioner said that the state governor was impressed with the different hospitals that heeded his plea to treat the victims without any payment.

Ukpong said that the church collapse incident happened at the time the state was financially hard up.

“Thank you for being patient with the state government, standing with the state government at that critical time.

“The oath of medical practice requires that we make sacrifice, I thank you for the extra sacrifice you made at the time this state faced one of its greatest challenges,” Ukpong said.

Responding on behalf of the hospitals that received the cheques, the Medical Director of Uwakmfon Clinic, Uyo, Dr Emmanuel Effiong, thanked the state government for paying the bills.

Effiong said that the proprietors of the private hospitals were willing to cooperate with the government and save lives in the state.

“We thank the Health Commissioner for keeping faith with the private hospitals by the bills incurred during the church collapse incident,” Effiong said.

In his remark, the proprietor of Resurrection Clinic, Uyo, Dr Memfin Ekpo, a professor of Pathology, noted that the number of medical specialists in the state was too small.

Ekpo, who is the former provost, College of Health Science, University of Uyo, thanked the state government for paying the medical bills for the victims of the church collapse.

NAN

February 15, 2018
Human trafficking: NAPTIP rescues 14 victims at Nnamdi Azikiwe airport

The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons ( NAPTIP ) has rescued 14 victims at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

The Head of Press and Public Relations of NAPTIP, Mr Josiah Emerole, told our reporter in Abuja on Thursday that the operation followed a tip off.

Emerole explained that the victims, who were rescued around the mosque at the airport, comprised of 14 women and two men.

“Officers of NAPTIP, following a tip-off, intercepted a group of 14 women between the ages of 15-60 years travelling to Saudi Arabia via the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

“The two agents from Kano who accompanied them on the trip had been arrested and detained by the Nigeria Immigration Service and the Department of State Services as investigation is ongoing.

“The interception and arrest of two agents travelling with the women came as a result of a patriotic Nigerian’s observations of the women’s movement and activities at the airport.

“It is unclear yet as to the purpose of their trip to Saudi Arabia, though, in recent time, there have been increasing reports of exploitation being experienced by labour migrants in countries in the Middle East,” he said.

Emerole assured that NAPTIP would leave no stone unturned in ensuring that more Nigerians do not end up as victims of exploitative domestic servitude in foreign countries.

He said that the victims were being profiled at the NAPTIP headquarters to ascertain their proper and correct identities.

NAN checks revealed that that the suspects wanted to take the victims to their destination in Saudi Arabia through Abuja en-route Lagos before they were nabbed at the Abuja airport.

NAN

February 15, 2018
Four men in court over possession of human parts

The Police on Thursday, arraigned four men in an Iyaganku Chief Magistrates’ court, for alleged unlawful possession of human parts.

The defendants, Suleiman Hammed, 35, an Islamic cleric, Olatunji Abiodun, 26, bricklayer, Olapade Saheed , 32, bus conductor and Akinyele Tope, 45, clergy all of Ibadan.

They were arraigned on a three -count charge of conspiracy and unlawful possession of human parts

The Police Prosecutor, Insp. Samad Aliu, told the court that on Feb. 3 the defendants and others now at large, allegedly conspired to commit the offence at Alapa street, Ayegun, Ibadan.

The prosecutor added that the defendants were alleged to have unlawful possession of one human head, legs and two hands

He said that Hammed, who was at the Funeral of the deceased, one Okunola Ashimiyu, when he was buried, conspired with the other defendants to remove the human parts from the grave.

The offence contravened sections 516 and 329 (A) of the Criminal Code Cap 38, Vol.II,Laws of Oyo state 2000.

Mr Joseph Adeoye, Counsel to Abiodun and Akinyele, prayed the court to grant his client bail in the most liberal terms.

The Magistrate, Mrs Kehinde Omotosho granted the four defendants bail of N500, 000 with two sureties each in like sum.

She said one of the sureties must be a blood relation, while the second surety must be a Civil servant not less than on grade level 10.

Omotosho ordered that the human parts tendered as exhibit should be released to the deceased family for re -burial.

She adjourned the case until April 3, for hearing.

NAN

February 15, 2018
PDP targets 1m new members in Lagos – Chairman

The Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP ) in Lagos State says it is targeting one million new members ahead of the 2019 gubernatorial election in the state.

The Lagos State Chairman, Mr Moshood Salvador, said this on Thursday at the state Secretariat of the party in Ikeja.

He was addressing the party’s councillorship and chairmanship aspirants in the last council polls in the state.

“Our target is to have one million new members ahead of the election and that can be done with commitment of existing members.

“We should go all out and get members into the party. We should embark on mobilisation of members,” he said.

Salvador said the All Progressives Congress ( APC ) defeated the party with less than 200,000 votes in the last election, which meant that the PDP was very relevant in the state.

He said his ultimate ambition as the leader of the party was to unseat the APC, for the PDP to take over.

The party chairman said the commitment of all members was needed to realise that ambition.

“We need to be more committed, we need to be more dedicated, we need to be strong to take the PDP to where it should be in the state,” he said.

He said the PDP would have won the state in the 2015 elections if members had worked harder.

Salvador, therefore, charged members not to take chances this time around, but to embark on aggressive membership drive in their localities.

“We should encourage people to obtain their Permanent Voter Cards and vote for the PDP.

“We should also secure and protect our votes during elections. This is how PDP can realise its potential in the state “he said.

The chairman said the essence of the meeting with aspirants was to carry everyone along and give them a sense of belonging.

Salvador said that the power of every political party lay in the grassroots, as that is the foundation.

He asked the aspirants who contested in the last election to support his efforts to reposition the party.

Salvador said he was building a new party where the common people matter most.

He dismissed speculations in some quarters that there was a crack in the state chapter of the party.

The chairman urged party members to remain one and strong for PDP’s progress.

Mr Wale Olaleye, a member of the party, commended the new spirit in the Lagos PDP.

He commended Salvador for his efforts at promoting peace and unity in the party.

Olaleye called on all members to give him the desired support.

NAN

February 15, 2018
Federal University Lafia spends N84m annually on diesel – VC

Prof. Muhammed Sanusi-Liman, Vice-Chancellor, Federal University Lafia, says the institution spends not less than N84 million annually on diesel.

Sanusi-Liman said this during an interactive session with newsmen shortly after the 7th matriculation of new students on Thursday at the university campus.

According to him, the institution depends solely on diesel and spends about N7 million monthly to procure the commodity.

He expressed concern that the amount spent on diesel was not sustainable as the Federal Government budgeted only N3million monthly as overhead for the institution.

“We have been practically living on diesel since the inception of this university. In a month, we spend about 7 million on diesel yet in the same month, our overhead from the Federal Government is just N3million.”

He said that the Federal Government had advised managements of all government-owned tertiary institutions to look inwards and enhance their Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).

“What do we do? We had to look inwards. We established consultancy services and remedial programmes; that one is helping us to solve the issue of diesel and some problems here and there.”

He, however, gave an assurance that once the institution was connected to the newly installed 33 KVA electricity transformer near the institution, the problem of lack of electricity would be over.

The vice chancellor also told newsmen that the institution was no longer owing backlog of salaries.

he said that all salary arrears owed staff had been paid to sustain the industrial harmony enjoyed in the institution since its inception.

“We moved around to the Federal Ministry of Finance and pleaded. They listened to us and assisted us.

“After pleading, they gave us part of our shortfall which we used to pay all outstanding arrears.

“So, at the Federal University, Lafia, today, nobody is talking of outstanding salaries,” he said.

NAN

February 15, 2018
Unemployed man seeks divorce from drunken wife

A 54-year-old divorce seeking man, Mr Sheyi Imoohi, on Thursday asked an Ikorodu Customary Court in Lagos State to dissolve his marriage because his wife was a drunk.

Imoohi, presently unemployed, told the court that he was no longer interested in the four-year-old marriage which is blessed with one child.

The husband, who lives at Agbede Transformer, Agric Road in Ikorodu, described his fifth wife as a drunk and a trouble maker.

“My wife drinks a lot; I mean she drinks to stupor. She usually fights me and threatens to kill me.

“I am no longer in love with her; please separate us,” the petitioner pleaded with the court.

Responding, the 35-year-old wife, Sarah, who is also unemployed, denied the claims and accused her husband of taking her to the beer parlour where she drinks.

“My husband is not saying the truth; I don’t drink the way he described me; I drink only when I follow him to beer parlour.

“My husband is a flirt and any money he has will be spent on other women. He sometimes asks me if he can still marry his ex-wife.

“He wants to divorce me so he can marry another wife; please I pray for settlement, “she said.

The Court President, Mrs Funmi Adeola ordered the couple to remain at peace while the court investigates the matter.

She also ordered the husband to pay N3,000 feeding allowance for their child through the court.

Areola adjourned the case until Feb. 20 for continued hearing or judgment.

NAN

February 15, 2018
Police apprehend suspect with fake N1m currency notes in Gombe

The Police Command in Gombe have arrested one, Abbas Abdullahi, 32, in possession of fake N1,000 currency notes totaling N1 million.

The Police Commissioner in the state, Mr Shina Olukolu, disclosed this while briefing newsmen in Gombe on Thursday.

“The man was arrested with about N1 million fake currency notes and I advise members of the public, market men and women to be careful in the way they deal with customers.

“Before you embark on any transaction, you should cross check the currency and ensure it is genuine,” Olukolu said.

He also called on residents of the state to cooperate with the security agencies to ensure protection of lives and property.

The suspect, Abbas Abdullahi, said he was a spiritualist and that he hailed from Taraba.

Abdullahi said he obtained the fake currency notes from a friend in Abuja with the intention of using his spiritual powers to change them to genuine ones, but that he could not succeed as luck ran out on him.

He said that he was arrested while trying to buy a cell phone in Gombe.

NAN

February 15, 2018
Reps to probe NEMA over N17bn allocation

House of Representatives, says it will probe the financial operations of National Emergency Management Agency ( NEMA ).

The resolution followed a motion under matters of urgent public importance by Rep. Benjamin Wayo (Benue-APC) on “the alleged violation of public trust at the agency.”

Wayo, who moved the motion, said that NEMA has been unable to account for the more than N17 billion it had received so far.

According to him, the core mandate of NEMA is to coordinate the management of disaster across the country and to assist victims of such disasters.

“In spite of this core mandate, several cases of disasters across the country have been given necessary attention which is the hunger issue in IDP camps in the Northeast, the farmers and herdsmen conflicts, fire disaster victims and many other such cases that have been neglected.

He said the house was “Concerned that the agency has received more than N10 billion from 20 per cent from the National Ecological Fund in the last one year, five billion naira for hunger intervention in the Northeast, about two billion Naira for flood intervention across the country.”

Wayo expressed concern that these funds were illegally siphoned by officials of the agency through dubious award of contracts without delivering relief items to the victims.

According to him, the Director General of the agency also awards contracts to companies he has personal interest in and has violated his approval limits by awarding contracts to single firm without due process.

He further expressed concerns that the agency is the only federal agency that has an Air Ambulance but has turned it into financial venture without remitting the financial proceeds to government coffers and the agency could not account for their assets.

Contributing to the motion, Rep. Obinna Chidoka (Anambra-PDP), said that the house should investigate NEMA’s activities thoroughly to know how much was appropriated and spent.

Similarly, Rep. Sunday Adepoju, (Oyo-APC), said that tax payers money must be accounted for as there were no way these monies could be spent unaccounted for.

The motion was unanimously adopted by members when it was put to a voice vote by the Speaker, Mr Yakubu Dogara.

Consequently, the House mandated its Committee on Emergency and Disaster Preparedness to investigate the allegations in six weeks.

NAN

February 15, 2018
Blue chips record price rally on NSE, indices up by 1.03%

Some blue chips maintained upward movement on the Nigerian Stock Exchange ( NSE ) on Thursday with Nigerian Breweries leading the gainers’ chart.

Nigerian Breweries led gainers’ table with a gain of N2.40 to close at N131.40 per share.

Dangote Cement followed with a gain of N1.50 to close at N259.90, while Lafarge Africa gained N1 to close at N52 per share.

Stanbic IBTC also grew by N1 to close at N46, while Dangote Sugar Refinery added N1 to close at N22 per share.

Consequently, the All-Share Index appreciated further by N156 billion or 1.03 per cent to close at 42,604.40 against 42,171.80 achieved on Wednesday.

In the same vein, the market capitalization, which opened at N15.133 trillion rose by N156 billion or 1.03 per cent to close at N15.289 trillion.

On the other hand, CAP posted the highest price loss to lead the laggards’ table, shedding N1.90 to close at N36.95 per share.

NASCON trailed with a loss of 75k to close at N20, while Union Bank of Nigeria was down by 30k to close at N7.55 per share.

Etranzact depreciated by 25k to close at N4.75, while Caverton also declined by 25k to close at N2.60 per share.

Also, the volume of shares traded closed higher by 18.14 per cent as investors bought and sold 615.18 million shares worth N6.28 billion in 5,904 deals.

This was lower than 520.74 million shares valued at N4.72 billion exchanged in 5,694 deals on Wednesday.

Multiverse was the most active with a turnover of 87.10 million shares worth N31.36 million.

Skye Bank followed with an account of 65.57 million shares valued at N73.79 million, while Access Bank traded 59.03 million shares worth N766.38 million.

FCMB Group sold 56.14 million shares valued at N158.29 million, while FBN Holdings traded 39.41 million shares worth N499.04 million.

NAN

February 15, 2018
Buhari inaugurates locally made drone, restates commitment to security

President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday in Kaduna inaugurated a new drone developed by the Nigeria Air Force ( NAF ) for intelligence gathering, surveillance and reconnaissance.

The Unmarked Areal Vehicle, named Tsaigumi, was to boost the capacity of the military.

“From the military perspective, the added capacity for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance provided by the TSAIGUMI will boost ongoing and future security operations.

“As this project moves into the next stage, which is mass production, it would create employment and possibly generate revenue as Nigeria’s first military export product,’’ the President said.

According to him, the technological feat is an indication that there is potential to apply the same innovative mindset to addressing other areas of indigenous technological needs.

“While I commend the Nigerian Air Force for this accomplishment, I enjoin you not to rest on this achievement but to strive harder in your research and development efforts for greater innovation.

“Be assured of this administration’s support towards the attainment of greater technological milestones for our nation.’’

Buhari reiterated the commitment and firm resolve of his administration to take Nigeria to the next level of growth and development.

“We remain determined to overcome all challenges to our security and development as a nation. I enjoin all well-meaning Nigerians to join hands with us to make our collective dreams of greatness a reality.’’

He added: “Government remains determined, despite numerous challenges to bring about the much-needed CHANGE that will lift our beloved nation to its rightful place as a major economic and political force on the world stage.

“Part of our drive to achieve this goal is to enable enterprise and the improvement of the quality of life through massive improvement of national infrastructure.

“Accordingly, as I outlined in my New Year Day broadcast to the nation, this Administration has designed series of key projects to dramatically overhaul national infrastructure and overcome the deficit in that vital area.

“The role of the military as an enabler of national development cannot be overemphasized, as efforts would be futile if national security is not first guaranteed.

“In this regard, let me once more commend the gallant men and women of the Nigerian Armed Forces and other security agencies, for their tireless efforts towards defeating Boko Haram and all other threats to our nation’s security, thus ensuring that the government can proceed with its developmental activity without hindrance.

“Let me again commend the Nigerian Air Force leadership for the unprecedented feat it has attained on Research and Development.

“I am aware that the Air Force was the overall best in the recently concluded 2017 National Technology and Innovation Exposition under Research Institute category.

“Accordingly, its drive, determination and unwavering support brought about numerous significant innovations, not least of which is the TSAIGUMI which I am inducting today.

“It is indeed most gratifying that the Nigerian Air Force has gone a step further than simply acquiring them, to developing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle capabilities with indigenous technology.

“This outstanding accomplishment, which we are gathered today, holds promise of both military and economic benefit to the nation.’’

Earlier, the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadiq Abubakar, said the unmanned vehicle has a “mission range of 100 km, a service ceiling at 15,000 feet and operational endurance of about 10 hours.’’

He pledged NAF support “to harness, promote, commercialise and diffuse locally developed technologies for the production of globally competitive goods and services that intensively utilise Nigeria’s raw materials for national development.

“ This is necessary because it is through R&D that nations technologically advance and enhance their productivity, spur economic growth and address societal concerns such as health, energy, environment, defence and security.

“Besides, to be effective and efficient in dealing with contemporary security challenges posed by non-state actors, there is the need to build capacity to develop smarter and highly sophisticated indigenous platforms as well as compact and mobile forces that use information technology to get real time intelligence necessary for military operations.”

Sadiq added that the NAF Research and Development Centre established in 2015, “has so far successfully repaired the CH-3A Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV) that had been grounded for over four months due to the lack of spares.

“Since its reactivation on 2nd January 2018, the UCAV has conducted several missions which have positively impacted on our Operations in the North East. As I speak, the UCAV is engaged in combat missions in the North East.

“Only last week it acquired and destroyed Boko Haram Terrorists and their equipment in the Sambisa general area.

“We have also tasked the centre to address gaps in specific areas of operational needs of the Service.

“One such area of need has been that of enhancing NAF’s Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities to meet national security imperatives.

“In this regard, AFRDC has been charged to build capacity to maintain all ISR platforms that are currently in the Service.

“Similarly, the AFRDC was tasked to operationalise the Gulma UAV prototype taking into cognisance the peculiar challenges associated with our operating environment.

“It is gratifying to state that the efforts in this direction have, yielded positive results which include among others, the production of the TSEGUMI UAV.’’

NAN

February 15, 2018