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Another aircraft skids off Lagos Airport

Ehime ALEX
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Another aircraft skids off Lagos Airport

AN aircraft belonging to XEJet Airlines skidded off runway 18L at the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Ikeja Lagos on Saturday, May 11.

The incident happened barely 16 days after Dana Air skidded off the MMA and its operations were suspended by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).

The 5N-BZZ Airbus, with 52 passengers and three crew members on board, departed Abuja and landed in Lagos at 11.29 am.

On landing at the Lagos airport, the aircraft veered off the runway into the grass verge at the point of landing.

The ICIR gathered that following this development, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has shut down the 18/Left runway of the airport.

It also gathered that airport fire and rescue teams were on the ground to help in the evacuation of the passengers.

The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) had confirmed the incident on its verified Instagram account.

It said the bureau’s ‘Go Team’ had been deployed to the scene for the evacuation of passengers and crew members

“NSIB confirms that an aircraft belonging to Xejet airlines skidded off the runway at the domestic wing of Murtala Muhammed Airport this morning. A go team has been deployed to the site of the incident.”

The ICIR reported that Dana Air airline skidded off the Lagos airport, had the aircraft grounded by its management, and the Nigerian aviation authorities subsequently suspended its operations pending the outcome of its investigative bureau.

Government begins six-month traffic diversion on Lagos Island roads

Ehime ALEX
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Government begins six-month traffic diversion on Lagos Island roads

THE Lagos State Government said it would begin a six-month traffic diversion on roads within Lagos Island from Monday, May 13.

The plan is to carry out major repairs of deteriorated asphaltic sections of the roads along Adeniji through Falomo, Bourdillon and Queens Drive on Lagos Island.

The Commissioner for Transportation, Oluwaseun Osiyemi, disclosed this in a statement on Friday, May 10.

He said the repair work was scheduled to begin on Monday, May 13, and to last until November 7.

To mitigate the inevitable traffic implications the closure would cause, Osiyemi said the repair works would be conducted in phases.

“Phase one will focus on the stretch from Glover Road Junction on Alfred Rewane Road to Falomo Roundabout, starting from Monday, 13th May 2024. During this phase, the portion of the road from Glover Junction to Falomo Roundabout will be closed to traffic.

“For the period of the 1st Phase repair works, motorists on Alfred Rewane Road heading towards Falomo Roundabout will turn left at Glover Road Junction onto Thompson Avenue to access Falomo Bridge through Bourdillon Road and continue their journeys.

“The other side of the road will be open to traffic (i.e. Falomo Roundabout heading towards Mainland).”

Osiyemi urged motorists to exercise patience as, according to him, the partial closure is an integral part of the traffic management strategy for rehabilitating the asphalt pavement on the affected road sections by the Federal Ministry of Works.

Lagos State has the worst road traffic among all cities, with at least 500,000 inhabitants around the world.

This is according to the Global Traffic Congestion Rankings 2023 by Traffic Index, putting Riga, the capital and largest city of Latvia, as second and Tehran, the capital and largest city of Iran, as third.

The ICIR reported recently that the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos was closed in November 2023 and reopened for public use in April, following comprehensive repairs that were carried out.

Two guards arrested for raping female student in Oyo varsity

Nurudeen AKEWUSHOLA
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Two guards arrested for raping female student in Oyo varsity

TWO members of the Ajayi Crowther University’s security guards have been arrested for allegedly raping a female student in the school.

Management of the institution, located in Oyo, Oyo State, disclosed this on Saturday, May 11, in a statement by its public relations officer, Olufemi Atoyebi.

Atoyebi said the university had set up its own internal panel of inquiry to investigate the allegation.

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He added that the suspects had been handed over to the police with a vow to ensure heavy penalty on anyone found culpable after a thorough investigation.

Part of the statement reads, “Management of Ajayi Crowther University, Oyo received with shock a report of alleged rape of one of our female students on Thursday, May 9, 2024, by two members of our vigilance group.

“The management promptly handed over to the police, the two people alleged to have committed the crime while the university has set up its own internal panel of inquiry to investigate the allegation.

“The management reiterated its intolerance for such misconduct and promised to meet heavy penalties on any culpable individuals.”

Sexual harassment has been a recurrent issue in Nigerian tertiary institutions, and female students are mostly the targets.

A survey carried out by the World Bank in 2018 showed that classmates and lecturers sexually harassed 70 per cent of Nigerian female graduates while in school.

“The effects experienced by victims were depression and perceived insecurity on campus,” the report said.

Although the Minister of Education Tahir Mamman has threatened to deal decisively with lecturers and other members of tertiary institutions involved in sexual harassment, the Nigerian government failed to assent to a bill criminalising the act, which was passed by the National Assembly nearly four years ago.

The bill, titled “A Bill for an Act to Prevent, Prohibit and Redress Sexual Harassment of Students in Tertiary Institutions and for Matters Concerned Therewith 2019,” was sponsored by former Deputy Senate President Ovie Omo-Agege and 106 other senators.

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It proposed a 14-year jail term for offenders.

Former Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari did not assent to the bill till he left office in May 2023.

The ICIR reports that before the bill can be passed by the incumbent President Bola Tinubu, it has to be re-introduced to the National Assembly.

 

Fubara orders relocation of House of Assembly to Government House

Nurudeen AKEWUSHOLA
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Fubara orders relocation of House of Assembly to Government House

THE Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara has ordered the relocation of the state House of Assembly to the Government House in Port Harcourt.

The directive came about 24 hours after Victor Oko-Jumbo, a lawmaker loyal to the governor emerged as a new factional Speaker of the Assembly and a few hours after a High Court in the state barred the pro-Wike speaker and 24 other lawmakers from parading themselves as members of the Assembly.

In a gazette dated December 14, 2023, Fubara cited the burning of the chamber of the House of Assembly as the reason for the relocation.

He explained that the current state of the chamber was unsafe and constituted a threat to the lives of the legislators and their staff.

Part of the document reads, “Now, therefore, I, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, the Governor of Rivers State, this 30th Day of October 2023, pursuant to the powers vested in me under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria hereby issue, order and direct that all proceedings and business of the Rivers State House of Assembly shall temporarily take place at the auditorium, Admin Block, Government House, Port Harcourt, until the repairs, renovation and reconstruction of the chambers of Rivers State House of Assembly.”

The ICIR reported that the caretaker committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers, asked the lawmakers loyal to the state’s immediate former governor and Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, to impeach the governor.

Recall that Fubara had alleged that some of his commissioners were working against him.

The governor who claimed that the state House of Assembly had been working at variance with his government threatened that the House members could cease to exist as state lawmakers if he so wished.

Fubara said these when he received a group of Bayelsa State political and traditional leaders who were in Port Harcourt, the state capital, to seek a resolution to the political unrest in the state and better ties between the two states.

Fubara told the delegation, led by the former Governor of Bayelsa State and senator representing Bayelsa West, Henry Seriake Dickson, that he had shown restraint since the crisis escalated in the state.

He acknowledged the roles some political figures, particularly his predecessor and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, played in his ascent to the governorship but stated that such efforts wouldn’t cause him to idolise a man.

In addition, the governor bemoaned the way some of his commissioners were working against him.

The ICIR reports that many of Fubara’s commissioners, whom he claimed were working against him, are Wike’s loyalists. Some of them served in the former governor’s administration.

Wike and Fubara have been at loggerheads over who controls the state’s PDP structure and other issues.

Though a PDP member, Wike currently serves in the APC government.

Following the hostility between the two leaders, 26 members of the River State House of Assembly members decamped from the PDP to APC in 2023, shortly after assuming office.

The feud had degenerated into nearly physical combat between their loyalists, and the possible chaos was so palpable in the state that President Tinubu had to intervene twice before tempers were calmed.

However, the camps of both leaders have continued to threaten a showdown less than a year after the leaders were gamboling in the same political space.

Students strip Kogi university lecturer over sexual harassment

Itoro ETUKUDO
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Students strip Kogi university lecturer over sexual harassment

SOME students at the Federal University, Lokoja (FUL), Kogi State, on Friday, May 10, reportedly stripped naked a senior lecturer of the institution after he was accused of making sexual advances towards a female student. 

The lecturer, whose full name has not been disclosed, was reported to have angered female undergraduates from the institution’s English Department, where he teaches, upon learning of his alleged misconduct.

They insisted he must be “publicly disgraced” and claimed that “his cup is full.”

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He was stripped to his boxers but was saved from further humiliation by the combined efforts of the school security unit at the Adankolo mini campus of the institution.

Upon interrogation, the lecturer claimed that his colleagues had provided him with the names of some students to “pass or fail” following their relationships with such female students.

Speaking on the issue, the institution’s spokesperson, Mr Daniel Iyke, noted that the management was aware of the incident and had set up a team to investigate it.

“The thing is that the university has its own internal mechanism for taking care of it. The report has been brought to the attention of the Vice-Chancellor, and he has set up a body to look into it.

“This was done immediately, and the report or outcome will be made known as soon as it comes out. At this point, this is all I can volunteer,”  Iyke said.

Efforts by newsmen to speak to the said female victim or her father, who is reported to be a serving policeman, were unsuccessful.

Sexual harassment has been a recurring issue in most Nigerian universities. There have been reports and instances of sexual harassment which have prompted increased awareness and efforts to address the issue.

In April, a video of a lecturer suspected to be a professor at the University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) in Enugu State went viral after he attempted to sexually harass a female student.

Oga Lecturer reported that at least 43 lecturers were accused or indicted for sexual harassment between 2018 and 2023.

Dana Air sacks workers amid operational audit

Ehime ALEX
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Dana Air sacks workers amid operational audit

DANA Air has temporarily laid off some of its workers amid an operational audit being conducted on it by the Nigerian regulatory authorities.

The airline’s head of corporate communications, Kingsley Ezenwa, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday, May 11.

The audit is to ensure the airline complies with necessary standards and regulations.

“In light of the ongoing audit, Dana Air has made the decision to temporarily disengage some staff members pending the conclusion of the audit.

“This decision has been made to ensure efficient management of resources and to facilitate a thorough review of operational procedures,” Ezenwa stated.

He said the management appreciated the sacked workers’ resilience and dedication and recognised the difficulties they had faced.

Ezenwa also said that the airline pledged to provide updates and support to its staff throughout the audit process, noting that the airline had commenced talks with lessors and was engaging stakeholders on the progress made so far.

“Dana Air therefore urges for calm and understanding from our very dedicated staff for their altruism,” he added.

The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) recently suspended the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) of Dana Air after one of its aircraft skidded off the runway at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos State.

The ICIR reported that 5N BKI aircraft belonging to Dana Air, which was carrying 83 passengers from Abuja, suffered a runway excursion at the Lagos Airport.

Dana Air suffered a similar suspension in July 2022 by the regulatory authority that halted its operations on account of a financial and economic health audit carried out on the airline by the regulatory authority.

In the statement on Saturday, the management said it was working to address any concerns and was preparing a restart plan that would ensure the safe and efficient resumption of operations.

“Dana Air is confident that with the continued support of its staff and stakeholders, it will overcome these challenges and emerge stronger than ever,” the statement added.

Return of fuel, electricity subsidies will widen 2024 budget deficit – IMF

Harrison EDEH
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Return of fuel, electricity subsidies will widen 2024 budget deficit – IMF

THE  International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that Nigeria’s 2024 budget deficit would widen beyond the projected figure due to the restoration of fuel and electricity subsidy payments and increased interest costs on debt.

This is contained in the IMF’s Staff report on Nigeria, where it stated that the suspension of excise duties in the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and lower revenues from oil and gas sales were part of the drivers of the projected increase in the budget deficit.

The report noted that the federal government would require a supplementary budget to meet its plans for a minimum wage increase later in the year which would most likely exceed the figure projected in the 2024 budget.

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Nigeria currently struggles with meeting its Organisation of Oil Exporting Countries (OPEC) quota of 1.7 million barrels per day due to oil theft, which would affect its budget funding and further widen the budget deficit financing.

In addition, the implicit return of oil subsidy will cost Africa’s largest crude producer an estimated 8.43 trillion naira ($5.9 billion) of its projected 17.7 trillion naira of oil revenue, the IMF said in the the report.

The deficit is expected to widen as the federal government in the 2024 appropriation projected a budget deficit of N9.18 trillion, representing a 33.5 per cent decline in the fiscal deficit compared with the N13.78 trillion recorded in 2023.

Contrary to previous years, the federal government did not make any appropriation for fuel subsidies in 2024, however, the subsidy has been returned without appropriation.

“Fuel subsidies were reformed in June 2023, however, adequate compensatory measures for the poor were not scaled up promptly and subsequently paused over corruption concerns,” the IMF said in the report.

It added, “Staff projects a higher fiscal deficit than anticipated in the 2024 budget, but broadly unchanged from 2023. The drivers are (i) lower oil/gas revenue projections, reflecting IMF oil price forecasts but incorporating recent production gains; (ii) higher implicit fuel and electricity subsidies; (iii) continued suspension of excise measures included in the MTEF; and (iv) higher interest costs.

“In addition, the authorities noted that a supplementary budget may be needed to accommodate the outcome of the ongoing wage structure negotiations which may exceed what they had included in the 2024 budget.”

Furthermore, based on past results, the IMF projected capital spending to be lower than planned, leading to a projected federal government deficit of 4.5 per cent of GDP in 2024, compared to the budget target of 3.4 per cent of GDP.

Beyond that, the federal government partly returned to cost-reflective pricing for electricity tariffs in April with the over 200 per cent hike in electricity tariff for Band A customers who comprise about 15 per cent of the total electricity customers across the country.

The IMF had earlier warned that non-cost reflective prices in electricity tariffs and fuel could cost Nigeria around three per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2024.

Niger Speaker to marry off 100 female orphans as empowerment project

Nurudeen AKEWUSHOLA
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Niger Speaker to marry off 100 female orphans as empowerment project

THE Speaker of the Niger State House of Assembly, Abdulmalik Sarkindaji, has announced plans to marry off 100 female orphans as part of his empowerment project. 

According to Punch, the speaker who represents the Mariga Constituency disclosed this to journalists in Minna, the state capital on Friday, May 10.

The female orphans whose age were not disclosed were said to have lost their parents to banditry attacks in Mariga Local Government Area.

Sarkindaji promised to pay their bride price and claimed to have procured all necessary materials for the mass marriage ceremony.

Accordingly, the ‘beneficiaries’ were ‘carefully’ selected from the 170 girls whose names were submitted.

The marriage is slated for May 24 at Bangi, the headquarters of Mariga Local Government Area.

The Speaker described the ‘initiative’ as part of his constituency empowerment project, “aimed at alleviating the suffering of the impoverished.”

He explained that the Niger State Governor, Mohammed Umar Bago, and the Emir of Kontagora, Mohammed Barau, would serve as guardians to the female orphans during the mass marriage ceremony.

The Kano State Commander-General of the Hisbah Board, Sheikh Aminu Daurawa, is expected to attend the event.

In 2023, The ICIR reported rampant practice of forced child marriage in Niger State. The report covered the Bida Emirate of the state.

It detailed how young girls in the Emirate were tortured while resisting marriage. The girls were hypnotised by a prominent herbal doctor, scolded by relations, forced to marry in court, fled to the bush and allegedly lived in the mountains for days in order to escape being compelled to wed.

The girls’ parents also shared their views in the report. While some regretted the actions, others condemned their girls for rejecting their decision and going against tradition and the prevalent Islamic religion in the state.

Stakeholders, including community and religious leaders, lawyers, and health officials, said child marriage was rife in the state and condemned the practice.

The sources who are Muslims said forced marriage was against Islam. They also spoke on the need for children to receive education, at least until they complete secondary school, before marriage.

In 2021, a report by Save the Children International revealed that about 78 per cent of girls in Northern Nigeria were victims of forced child marriage.

The report showed that Nigeria had one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world.

Even though the Niger State Speaker admitted that the brides were carefully selected for the planned wedding, it remains unclear whether they consent to it.

Tinubu commissions lithium processing factory in Nasarawa

Harrison EDEH
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Tinubu commissions lithium processing factory in Nasarawa

PRESIDENT Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Friday, May 10, commissioned a lithium processing factory built in Nasarawa State by a Chinese firm, Avatar New Energy Materials Company Limited.

The commissioning, which took place at Kama Otto in Nasarawa Local Government Area, was in collaboration with the state government.

Tinubu was represented at the occasion by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

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In attendance were the Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, his Kogi State counterpart, Usman Ododo, Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, some federal lawmakers, former leaders of the state, and traditional rulers.

In his address, Tinubu said the company’s commissioning was an example of a good partnership between the federal government, states and investors.

The President said establishing the lithium company would create employment opportunities for the youth and position Nigeria as a key player in the global lithium market.

This, he said, was in line with his government’s Renewed Hope Agenda of diversifying the nation’s economy by leveraging on the mining sector to expand the country’s sources of revenue for socio-economic development.

“Realising the benefits of lithium and other mineral resources, our administration will continue to pay particular attention to the maximum utilisation of the product for the benefit of our people.

“While we appreciate this investment in the first phase, processing of lithium, our goal is for investors to establish factories for the complete value chain processing of lithium and all other minerals,” the President said.

Tinubu called on all Nigerians to support his government’s policies and urged local and international companies to patronise Avatar Company for the growth and prosperity of Nigeria.

He also appreciated the Nasarawa state’s people for accommodating the firm.

He said: “Today, we are here to thank you, not just in words. We are thanking you for a massive project, the commissioning of the state-of-the-art lithium processing factory, the first in this state and one of the best in Africa.

“What does this mean to our people? Lithium is a critical component in the production of batteries for electric commodities. Our people have been using phones, vehicles and other appliances powered by lithium batteries as consumers.

“For the first time in the history of our technology, we are becoming partners and partakers in the production value chain of these minerals. It is a historic leap because we now have opportunities to know how it is done, to own and hone the skills,” he added.

Earlier, the Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule appreciated the security agencies because, according to him, the factory site used to be a “no-go area” because of banditry activities.

In his remarks, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, said what Avatar New Energy Materials Company did, with the commissioning of the factory, was to show that the business was not only possible but profitable.

“The feedback from our investment promotion and the increasing number of companies seeking to set up similar lithium battery factories like this in our country are already multiplying. And this is encouraging us to make a case for strong protection of these lithium battery companies from foreign competition,” Alake said.

FIJ reporter Daniel Ojukwu has case to answer in court – Police

Mustapha USMAN
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FIJ reporter Daniel Ojukwu has case to answer in court – Police

THE Nigeria Police Force on Friday, May 10, said it would arraign Daniel Ojukwu, a reporter with the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ) before a Federal High Court.

A statement by the Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, claimed that Ojukwu’s arrest and arbitrary detention were justifiable under the law.

Ojukwu was arrested by the police in Lagos on May 1 by officials of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Kayode Egbetokun.

He was subsequently moved to the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), Abuja, after spending four days in police custody in Lagos State.

He was detained for 10 days before he was released on Friday, May 10.

The ICIR reported that his release followed the protest of civil society organisations and journalists, demanding his release at the Force Headquarters on Thursday, May 9.

However, Adejobi, in a statement said the reporter had a case to answer in the court of law.

The statement was titled, “FIJ’S Case: Ojukwu’s arrest, investigation justifiable under the law – FPRO. He has a case to answer.”

According to him, he was lawfully apprehended and detained pursuant to a remand warrant issued by a competent court of justice on May 2, a day after his arrest.

The ICIR reports that while the police claimed it secured a court’s remand warrant on the journalist on May 2, his arrest only became known on Friday, May 3, after his family, employers and colleagues had been looking for him.

Ojukwu was initially held at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, in Lagos, and was denied access to legal representation.

“Mr. Ojukwu was lawfully apprehended and detained pursuant to a valid remand warrant issued by a competent court of justice on May 2, 2024. His initial detention in Lagos and subsequent transfer to Abuja by the FCID-National Cybercrime Centre aligns with standard investigative procedures undertaken by police,” Adejobi said in his statement.

The FPRO further conceded that Ojukwu’s abduction was in connection with his story concerning financial transactions and contract execution.

He noted that his detention was linked to allegations of violating provisions of the Cybercrime Act and other extant laws about cyber-related crimes.

The ICIR reported that Ojukwu, in his investigation, revealed how Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, former senior special assistant on sustainable development goals (SSAP-SDGs) to former President Muhammadu Buhari, paid N147.1 million to an account traced to Enseno Global Ventures (Enseno GV), an Abuja-based restaurant, for constructing a classroom.

“These allegations stem from a report concerning financial transactions and contract execution upon which he was petitioned to the Nigeria Police for investigations.

“With our preliminary forensic investigation and recovery of some contents generated by the suspect, Mr Ojukwu has a case to answer and as such will be arraigned in court upon conclusion of investigations,” the statement read. 

Adejobi further said that the police did not deny Ojukwu bail, adding that his release was predicated on him meeting the conditions set for the bail.

This was, however, in contrast with the claim made by Ojukwu’s legal representatives and negotiators, led by Omoyele Sowore, who noted that the police changed the bail conditions after initially confirming the properties of the sureties.

They also said the police later imposed stringent bail conditions on the reporter.

While Adejobi stated that the journalist’s freedom from police detention would be followed by the commencement of his prosecution at the Federal High Court, he added that his release had no correlation with the “unwarranted protest” held at the police headquarters on Thursday, May 9.

“He has, however, been released upon providing a reliable surety today Friday, May 10, 2024, pending the commencement of prosecution at the Federal High Court which has jurisdiction over cyber-related crimes.

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