Author: statereporter

The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) have issued a fresh strike threat, giving the federal government a final three-week ultimatum to meet their demands. In a joint statement signed by SSANU President Mohammed Ibrahim and NASU General Secretary Peters Adeyemi, the university unions warned that they would embark on an indefinite strike if their demands, including the payment of withheld salaries, are not met within the stipulated timeframe. The unions noted that an initial 10-day grace period, which ended on 26th July 2024, expired without any action…

Dauda Lawal, the governor of Zamfara, alleged that his predecessor, Bello Matawalle, who is the minister of state for defence, was fully involved in banditry during his tenure as governor of the state. Lawal made these allegations during his recent appearance on TVC NEWS, stating that information he got so far indicted the minister of involvement in some banditry issues in Zamfara. “From all the information we’re getting, my Predecessor was fully involved in some of these banditry issues,” the governor said, urging Matawalle to resign from his position as the minister of state for defence. Insecurity has worsened in…

The Bauchi State Police Command has apprehended a dismissed military officer, Lance Corporal Aliyu Adamu, for allegedly defrauding three job applicants. According to the Spokesman of the Command, SP Ahmed Wakili, in a statement issued on Wednesday, the suspect, who hails from Obi Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, was arrested for impersonation, cheating, criminal misappropriation, and criminal breach of trust. Wakili explained that the arrest was made by officers attached to the ‘B’ Divisional Police Headquarters after complaints were lodged by three victims who claimed that Adamu had collected N200,000 from them, promising to secure employment for them in…

The Federal Government has called on agencies recruiting for the private sector to adhere to the N70,000 minimum wage, warning that any deviation would not be tolerated. According to the FG, the new minimum wage is necessary to address the current economic reality, emphasising that no Nigerian worker, whether in government or private employment, should be paid less than the minimum wage. The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Kachollom Daju, stated this on Wednesday while speaking at the 13th Annual General Meeting of the Employers Association for Private Employment Agencies of Nigeria, held in Ikeja, Lagos. Daju, who…

About 1.6 million Nigerians have been recorded as working under forced labour, as the International Labour Organisation, ILO, said freeing people from forced labour and reintegrating them into the mainstream workforce could lead to a $611 billion demand-driven rise in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) globally including Nigeria. ILO in a report titled “Acting against Forced Labour: an Assessment of Investment Requirements and Economic Benefits”, said freeing people from forced labour and bringing them into formal employment could generate US$611 billion in additional GDP. This would represent a transfer from the perpetrators and the illicit economy to the freed workers and…

The Presidency has announced the take-off of the $550m upstream gas project between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited and TotalEnergies on the development of the Ubeta field. The Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Olu Verheijen, disclosed this at an inaugural US-Nigeria Strategic Energy Dialogue, hosted by the US State Department, in Washington, DC. Speaking at a luncheon organised as part of the inaugural dialogue, Verheijen said the upstream gas project would deliver 350 million standard cubic feet of gas per day when operational. A statement on the event signed by the Stakeholder Manager, Office of the Special…

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has clarified that former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello is not in its custody, contrary to recent media reports. In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Commission’s spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, the EFCC reaffirmed that Bello remains wanted, with a subsisting warrant for his arrest in connection to alleged N80.2 billion money laundering charges. “Media reports today that a former Governor of Kogi State, Mr. Yahaya Bello, is in the holding facility of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, are incorrect,” the statement read. “The Commission wishes to state that Bello is…

The United States (U.S.) Ambassador to Nigeria, Richard Mills Jr., has said that a total of 17,600 Nigerian students secured admission into various U.S. institutions in year 2023. Mills Jr. disclosed that the Nigerian students were studying in over 970 institutions across the United States. He made this known at the 23rd Annual College Fair in Abuja on Tuesday, September 17. According to him, the majority of them studied in Texas, stressing that its annual college fairs have created financial and scholarship opportunities for Nigerian students in the U.S. “Your presence here represents the strong people-to-people ties between the United…

Against the scheming of some fifth columnists, the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, has provided clarity on the issue of the tenure of the current Governing Board of the Commission, stating that the members were appointed for a four-year tenure. Addressing a Press Conference at the NDDC headquarters in Port Harcourt, on Tuesday, Ogbuku said the insinuations in some quarters that his tenure as the Managing Director would end this year, was false and without any foundation. He stated that subject to the provision of section 4 of the NDDC Establishment Act, “a…

Former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello is currently in custody at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) headquarters in Abuja. According to reliable sources at the Commission’s headquarters, Bello was arrested in a midnight sting operation. A source familiar with the development stated that Bello, who had initially claimed to have voluntarily honoured the commission’s invitation, was trailed and arrested by EFCC operatives in Lokoja at midnight. “Former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, is currently at the headquarters of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in Abuja. He was arrested in Lokoja, with operatives trailing and apprehending him…