Society gazette reports that the national leader of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu had a nice time with the governor of Ogun state, Dapo Abiodun during his visit to him in London.
Governor Dapo Abiodun joined the long list of important personalities that have visited the ailing politician since he retired to London some months ago.
Tinubu is reportedly sick and went through a knee surgery which he is yet to fully recover from.
During Dapo Abiodun’s visit, both of them were seen having a nice time together.
Senate approves 112 as nationwide emergency number
Senate Southern senators back governors on prohibition of open grazing Institute for Border Studies 112
The Senate on Tuesday passed a bill seeking to establish the Nationwide Emergency Communications Service.
This was just as the upper chamber approved 112 as the toll-free number for emergencies.
The passage of the Nationwide Toll-Free Emergency Number (Establishment) Bill, 2021, followed the consideration of a report by the Committee on Communications.
The report was presented by Senator Biodun Olujimi on behalf of the chairman of the Committee, Senator Oluremi Tinubu.
In her presentation, Olujimi explained that Clause 2 of the bill seeks to establish the Nationwide Emergency Communications Service.
According to the lawmaker, the agency when established, would be charged with the responsibility of deployment and coordination of a seamless and reliable end-to-end infrastructure for emergency needs throughout Nigeria.
She added that Clause 5 of the bill was amended to vest the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) with the responsibility of formulating regulations and guidelines for the workings of the Nationwide Emergency Communications Service.
Olujimi explained that Clause 11 of the bill prohibits the use of telephone and mobile telecommunications services to place a false, frivolous or vexatious call to the emergency number 112.
Clause 12 of the bill provides that, “a person who violates any of the provisions of this bill or the regulations is guilty of an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a penalty of not more than fifty thousand naira or in default to a term imprisonment not exceeding six months, and for each subsequent offence is liable on summary conviction to a fine of not more than two hundred and fifty thousand naira or, in default, to a term of imprisonment not exceeding one year.”
In addition, new sub clauses (2), (3) and (4) were introduced in the bill to provide for the blacklisting of any person who violates Clause 11 for a period not more than eight weeks.
Police arrest 5 persons in Katsina suspected of supplying bandits with Breads, petrol
No fewer than six persons including a Nigerien who supply fuel and breads to bandits have been arrested by operatives of police in Katsina state.
Confirming the development, Spokesman, Katsina State Police Command, SP Gambo Isah said the persons were arrested at various points while on their way conveying the products to the bandits in the forest.
SP Isah said, “Based on credible intelligence, the command on the 18/9/2021 succeeded in arresting one Lawal Shu’aibu (32-year-old) of Maradi, Niger Republic, Sani Lawal (28-year-old), Abdulrashid Garba (50-year-old) and Tigal Haruna (57-year-old) all from Katsina State conveying fuel in their vehicles.
“Nemesis caught up with the suspects when they were arrested long Katsina – Jibia road while on their way into the forest.
“In the course of investigation suspects confessed to be selling the fuel at fringes of the forest, contrary to Executive order and other extant laws of the Federation.
“On same day, the command also succeeded in arresting one Shafi’u Haruna (25-year-old), a suspected supplier of fuel to bandits in the forest.
“The suspect was observed to have been frequently coming to buy fuel at a filling station in Dandume and after a while he will come back to buy again in his motorcycle Jincheng rubber, white in colour.
“Consequently, Police Detectives on surveillance patrol at the said filling station secretly followed after him which led them into an uncompleted building where he was arrested while transferring the fuel into a Jerrican in an uncompleted building.
“In the course of investigation, suspect confessed to the commission of the offense and further stated that he came all the way from Sabuwa Local Govt Area to buy the fuel and take to the forest.
“Similarly and on same day, the Command succeeded in arresting one Hamisu Sani (30-year-old), a notorious informer who specializes in supplying bread to bandits in the forest.
“After several warning by both community leaders and security agencies to stop supplying bread to bandits in the forest, nemesis caught up with the suspect when he was arrested with some quantity of bread concealed inside a sack while trying to enter into the forest and take it to bandits.
“In the course of investigation, suspect confessed to the commission of the offense,” the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Isah however stated.
Tragedy In Oyo As Cows Kill Father Of Newborn Baby, Herders Flee
A30-year-old man and father of a newborn baby, Benjamin Oyelade, has been killed by cows, which ran into him in Atapa area in the Surulere Local Government Area of Oyo State.
According To Sahara Reporters, the deceased was enroute Atapa/Iresa Adu Road on Sunday evening when a suspected herdsman bumped into the road with his cows and the victim was knocked off his motorcycle.
It was learnt that the cows’ horns hit him on the head and broke his skull.
The deceased sister who identified herself as Olawunmi said his child christening ceremony and house warming were slated for Monday, September 20, 2021.
She added that the herders fled the scene immediately after the incident.
“Today (Monday) ought to be his day, he is meant to name his child and dedicate his new house, but instead of these we are mourning him. We have buried him.
“He saw his child but didn’t wait to name the child,” Olawunmi said.
She expressed regret that security agencies including the Amotekun Corps could not apprehend the herdsman or impound any of the cows.
Olawunmi added that some youths traced the herd to a herders’ settlement in annoyance and destroyed part of the settlement by burning down a hut.
The Oyo Police Public Relations Officer, Adewale Osifeso, promised to get back to SaharaReporters with full details when contacted but he failed to pick his calls hours after.
Breaking: king Sunny Ade’s Wife And Ex-Lagos Lawmaker Risikat Adegeye Is Dead
One of the wives of King Sunny Ade and ex-member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Honourable (Mrs) Risikat Adegeye is dead.
Society gazette understands that the ex-lawmaker died early today, Tuesday, 21 September, 2021. Although, circumstances surrounding her death were still sketchy. But Rumour has it that she died of Cancer.
She was a former member of the Lagos State House of Assembly and was a two time member of the Assembly Service Commission.
Kano govt bans Sales Of movies featuring kidnapping, stealing, drug abuse
The Kano Film Censorship Board, has banned the sale of movies that depict kidnappings, drug abuse and snatching of mobile phones in the State.
Defending the prohibition by the board, the executive secretary, Ismaila Naaba Afakallah, explained that the ban was necessitated by the notoriety of such activities amongst Kano state citizens.
“Henceforth, we will not allow films displaying Kidnappings, drug addiction and GSM phones snatching which has now taken toll on Kano residents”.
Afakallah stated that the ban was to ensure that young people do not engage in criminal activities, adding that they are most likely to adopt the mannerisms of actors in movies.
“Not every young man has the tenacity of understanding fictitious films actions. Somebody might mistaken it as a reality and may go ahead to practice it, therefore, we must act now before it is too late,” he added.
BREAKING: Lagos Gov Sanwo-Olu signs anti-open grazing bill into law
Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has approved the bill which will outlaw open-grazing in the state.
The bill was signed on Monday following its passage by the Lagos State House of Assembly on September 9, 2021.
Lagos state is the latest of the growing number of southern states that have incriminated the archaic practice of open-grazing which has caused untold hardship for indigenous farmers and residents.
The speaker of the Lagos state House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, lauded his comrades for their zeal towards the actualization of the bill.
The call for the ban on open-grazing came as a result of the wanton killings and kidnappings perpetrated by Fulani herdsmen who use their cattle as an excuse to wreak havoc on innocent citizens and their property.
Akwa Ibom Gov Emmanuel signs anti-open grazing bill into law
As part of their plans to end the menace of the herdsmen, the southern governors met in Lagos on July 5 and had far-reaching conclusions on open grazing, restructuring Nigeria, and calls for state policing.
After the meeting, the Chairman of the Southern Governors Forum, Rotimi Akeredolu, announced that the governors have agreed on a deadline for the establishment of the anti-open grazing law in the region.
To this effect, four southern states have signed the bill into law.
The states include: Lagos, Akwa Ibom, Enugu and Ondo states.
Rwandan court finds ‘Hotel Rwanda’ film hero Paul Rusesabagina guilty of terrorism
A Rwandan court on Monday found Paul Rusesabagina, a one-time hotel manager portrayed as a hero in a Hollywood film about the 1994 genocide, guilty of being part of a group responsible for terrorist attacks.
“They should be found guilty for being part of this terror group – MRCD-FLN,” judge Beatrice Mukamurenzi said of 20 defendants including Rusesabagina. “They attacked people in their homes, or even in their cars on the road traveling.”
The case has had a high profile since Rusesabagina, 67, was arrested last year on arrival from Dubai after what he described as a kidnapping by Rwandan authorities.
Since being portrayed by actor Don Cheadle as the hero of the 2004 film “Hotel Rwanda”, Rusesabagina emerged as a prominent critic of President Paul Kagame, based in the United States. He had denied all the charges against him, while his supporters called the trial a sham and proof of Kagame’s ruthless treatment of political opponents.
Prosecutors had sought a life sentence on nine charges, including terrorism, arson, taking hostages and forming an armed rebel group which he directed from abroad. After the announcement of the initial verdict, one of the defendants became ill, causing a short recess which delayed verdicts on other charges and sentencing.
Rusesabagina became a global celebrity after the film, which depicted him risking his life to shelter hundreds as the boss of a luxury hotel in the Rwandan capital Kigali during the 100-day genocide when Hutu ethnic extremists killed more than 800,000 people, mostly from the Tutsi minority.
Cheadle was nominated for an Oscar for the role. Rusesabagina used his fame to highlight what he described as rights violations by the government of Kagame, a Tutsi rebel commander who took power after his forces captured Kigali and halted the genocide.
Rusesabagina’s trial began in February, six months after he arrived in Kigali on a flight from Dubai. His supporters say he was kidnapped; the Rwandan government suggested he was tricked into boarding a private plane. Human Rights Watch said at the time that his arrest amounted to an enforced disappearance, which it called a serious violation of international law.
PEN FOR HIRE, CASH FOR NEWS! WASHINGTON POST’S WHORISKEY FINGERED
…CONSORTIUM OF LAWYERS, ETHNIC YOUTH LEADERS, CSO CHIDE THE WASHINGTON POST
… ALLEGE GLOBAL SMEAR CAMPAIGN AGAINST AITEO AND ITS FOUNDER BENEDICT PETERS
… INSIST THAT MATTERS ALREADY SETTLED IN COURT REMAIN SETTLED
… CALL ON BUSINESSES OWNERS TO ONLY ENGAGE IN HEALTHY COMPETITION
There is no downplaying the trend of media corruption gaining traction in recent times. What is fast gaining notoriety is the rate at which foreign journalists are contracted by some unscrupulous entities to do damage to national growth through indigenous players.
Like the colour and literal meaning of crude, the petroleum industry in Nigeria has always been one in which some companies and individuals have played their hand in the crudest manners.
For this group of people who have held sway for decades, every entity perceived as competition must be crushed for them to have a field day while fleecing the country of billions of dollars and stashing them in offshore accounts.
To the faceless, grief-stricken and rent seeking saboteurs, playing in the petroleum industry is a war; and no one can be trusted in the ferocious survival battle.
While competition is a welcome development in a capitalist economy like Nigeria’s, healthy rivalry is not an expression one would find in the lexicon of these corporate hyenas who only feed on the flesh and blood of competitors.
Beyond the boardroom now, major players have taken their bitter rivalry to the newsrooms. They even go as far as contracting foreign journalists especially those renowned for their expertise and experience in paid media warfare.
One of such mercenaries is Peter Whoriskey, a staff of the Washington Post who focuses on investigations of economic and financial issues.
Interestingly, Whoriskey has not been found to do any work in or on Nigeria. There are not known published works of his that dwell on Nigeria, her politics, business or culture.
However, perhaps because of his predilection for the seamy side of journalism, he was the go-to guy for international oil companies when they want to roughen up their competitors.
By deploying scandalous mails to his targets, Whoriskey’s subtle threat is unmistakable. His veiled reference to unfounded scandals readily gives him out as a paid fifth columnist waiting to bear his fangs. Many are waiting with bated breath to see how he intends to publish the supposed dirts he has on the Nigerian businessmen. Whatever report he comes with eventually may not pass the ethical test.
Meanwhile, a consortium of lawyers for human rights and justice and the Council of Ethnic Youth Leaders of Nigeria (CEYLN) in conjunction with some Civil Society organizations have alleged that there is an ongoing plot global media campaign against Aiteo Group of Companies and its founder, Mr. Benedict Peters using the Washington Post.
In a joint press conference by the different groups, they allege that the allegations being peddled against Mr. Peters and Aiteo are the same issues which have already been conclusively determined by courts of competent jurisdiction or pending in court and the purpose of the publication could only be to impugn the integrity of Mr. Peters and the company.
“Out of the five questions Mr. Whoriskey inquired about, question 1 has been resolved by a competent court of law in Nigeria and the decision widely publicized. A simple internet search would have availed Mr. Whoriskey of the judgment of the case and the present state of affairs. Further, questions 2-5 were directly extracted from untested allegations contained in a first amended verified complaint filed before the United States District Court, Southern District of Texas, Houston Division” the groups alleged.
They called on media houses not to yield their platforms to people whose objectives were not noble as such would encourage unhealthy business rivalry. “There is a plethora of questions which The Washington Post rather has to answer and which directly calls to question its genuineness in permitting this to happen. It will be damning to the long-held image of The Washington Post that its staff have yielded the platform of the medium to the use for a global smear campaign and unhealthy business rivalry” Mr. Tochukwu Ohazuruike who addressed the press was quoted as saying.
In answering the allegations against Mr. Peters, the groups claimed that “Mr. Peters has stated severally that he has never received any favour by way of facilitation or otherwise from Dieziani Alison-Madueke, and there was therefore nothing to be grateful for. He has severally denounced any such attempt to link the purchase of his property with Dieziani under such premises. His purchase of the furniture was in furtherance of his desire to furnish a property that belonged to him, and those furniture can be found, even today, at his said property at 58 Harley House. No furniture that belonged to him can be found at any other place other than in his property. The furniture found at the UK address of Dieziani Alison-Madueke does not belong to him, and certainly could not have been the same found in his said property at 58 Harley House.”
They insist that the answers they provided should discourage future smear campaigns as this is not the first time it was happening saying “we hope that with these answers we would have satisfied Mr. Whoriskey and got him to alert his sponsors that the plot is dead on arrival and cannot be revived. We also say to all such persons who would in the future want to regurgitate these issues that the answers are already available in the public space as there is nothing hidden and there is nothing any media house can unearth again so no need taking any jobs from the sponsors of this smear campaign.”
‘Reconsider your position’ — Ngige begs resident doctors to resume work
Chris Ngige, minister of labour and productivity, has appealed to striking resident doctors to resume work.
Speaking on Sunday during an interview on Channels Television, Ngige said the resident doctors should come for discussions after they return to work.
On August 2, the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) embarked on strike over “irregular payment of salaries”, among other issues.
Efforts of different stakeholders, including President Muhammadu Buhari and the house of representatives, to ensure the resident doctors shelve the strike did not yield the desired result.
On Friday, the National Industrial Court, in a ruling by Bashir Alkali, had asked the resident doctors to return to work.
But the striking doctors faulted the court’s ruling, vowing to appeal the order.
Reacting to the development, Ngige described the decision of the resident doctors to continue the strike despite the court order as “contemptuous”.
The labour minister said he is determined to protect the profession from being “vandalised”.
“I want to appeal to NARD for them to reconsider their position, get back to work tomorrow or next and then come back again for discussions. We have so many things to discuss,” the minister said.
“I have nephews who are resident doctors. I have three of them in the east — at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Teaching hospital, UNTH Enugu, Orthopaedic Hospital, Enugu. I have so many of them.
“I have my son — a house officer. I have my daughter who is joining housemanship in October. I have a son, God willing, who is going to graduate again in October. I cannot destroy the profession but I have to protect the profession too if it is going to be vandalised.”
