kano state PDP, Rabiu Suleiman Bichi has just called for the cancellation of #KanoRerun due to widespread voters harassment.


Details Later

http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/03/breaking-news-pdp-calls-for.html

Some journalists covering the Supplementary Governorship election in Kano State on Saturday escaped lynching by some suspected thugs at Suntulma Primary School in Gama ward of Nasarawa Local Government Area of the state.
NAN reports that the journalists who were in the area to monitor the poll, were chased out of the place by the hoodlums.
Trouble began when some of the newsmen tried to interview some voters who were denied access into the classrooms where some of the polling units were stationed.
While trying to flee the troubled area, some of the journalists fell on ground and one of them (Name withheld), had to take refuge in a nearby Mosque in order to save his life.

NAN also reports that some of the reporters had their clothes torn by the thugs.
Speaking to newsmen, some voters alleged that they were not allowed to exercise their franchise as they were chased out of the area.
One of them, Comrade Aminu Tijjani, said he went to the primary school to cast his vote at his polling unit but had to return to escape the hoodlums’ attack.
“The situation is very bad and this is not how to conduct an election where people or voters are denied the opportunity to vote,” Tijjani said.
Another voter, Sani Abdullahi, said he came to vote as early as 8 a.m. but was scared away by the suspected thugs numbering about 10.
Meanwhile, voting has commenced in other affected polling units across the 28 local government areas of the state.
NAN reports that the re-run election is being conducted to decide the winner between two candidates – Abba Kabir-Yusuf of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled 1,014,477 votes, and incumbent Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who got 987,810 votes in the first poll conducted on March 9.
The margin between the candidates stood at 26,655 votes in favour of Kabir-Yusuf

http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/03/re-run-election-journalists-escape.html

A policeman who allegedly raped a woman at an ATM gallery at night in a bank in Awka, Anambra State, has been arrested.
Anambra State Police Commissioner, Rabiu Ladodo, confirmed this to newsmen in a telephone chat.

He said the suspect has been arrested and detained.

Ladodo added, “Soon after the Police received complaint of the alleged rape from the victim, operatives were dispatched and the suspect was quickly arrested and placed under detention,” Ladodo said.

He said preliminary investigation was yet to establish any case of rape

Ladodo said the matter had been transferred to the state’s Criminal Investigation Department for proper handling.

While promising that the findings of the investigation will be made public, Ladodo assured that the suspect will face necessary punishment if found guilty.

It was gathered that the policeman allegedly raped a 35-year-old woman in a commercial bank premises in Awka, the Anambra State capital.

The victim (name withheld), it was learnt, had gone to make some transactions at the ATM at night when the incident occurred.

It was gathered that the suspect, employed as security guard at the bank, had approached the lady, demanding to have sexual intercourse with her.

An eyewitness who pleaded anonymity told our correspondent that the victim refused the advances, until she was threatened with a gun by the suspect.

“The following day, the lady came to the bank with some policemen who arrested the suspect,” the witness stated.

http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/03/policeman-allegedly-rapes-woman-at-atm.html?m=1

David Adeleke, who is popularly called Davido, on Friday, hailed the judgement of the Osun State Election Petition Tribunal, which declared his uncle, Ademola Adeleke as the winner of the 2018 governorship election in the state.
Adeleke was the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the election, in which the current governor, Gboyega Isiaka was returned the winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
On his verified Instagram page, Davido shared the news and wrote, “God no dey sleep!!! Mandate returned!!! Imole ti de!! Osun I’m on my way!!”
And on his Twitter handle, he shared a photo from the 2018 campaign trail, and tweeted, “Imole ti de!!!!!! Congratulations to the great people of Osun State!”


http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/03/davido-hails-osun-election-tribunal.html

Osun Tribunal has declared PDP Adeleke winner of the Osun election.


Osun Tribunal says PDP/Adeleke proved that it was the state Returning Officer who cancelled the results in 7 PUs. It says the petitioners also proved that the Returning Officer has no power to cancel election results of a polling unit.



Details later


http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/03/breaking-osun-tribunal-has-declared-pdp.html

THE ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, and the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, were at the jugular of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, weekend, accusing the electoral umpire of bias and favouritism in recent elections and planned supplementary polls.

The APC, which expressed worry over the forthcoming supplementary elections, INEC’s decisions on Rivers and Bauchi states, accused INEC of favouring the PDP in its decision to continue collation of the governorship election in Bauchi, instead of holding a re-run in Tafawa Balewa Local Council as it earlier announced.

It alleged that Barr. Festus Okoye, chairman of INEC’s fact-finding committee sent to Bauchi, is a friend of Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, who hails from Tafawa Balewa Local Government.

In a quick respnse, Mr Okoye dismissed the APC’s allegations as laughable because, as he said, he has neither met nor worked for Dogara, adding that INEC was not interested in who emerged governor in any of the states other than carrying out its constitutional duties.

Also, the PDP accused the electoral umpire of denying its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar access to election materials as ordered by the tribunal, and was working with the APC and the Presidency to frustrate it at the courts, an accusation the INEC dismissed as balderdash because it is yet to receive the court order.

This is as Dr Umar Ardo, a former special assistant to both President Olusegun Obasanjo and Vice President Atiku Abubakar, advised the electorate in Adamawa State to boycott Saturday’s supplementary election in the state, faulting the decision of the INEC to proceed with the exercise in spite of a court order to the contrary.



How INEC is favouring PDP in Bauchi – APC

In a lengthy statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, the APC berated INEC as well as the PDP for what it described as an unholy alliance between both bodies regarding next Saturday’s supplementary elections as well as the commission’s decision on Bauchi and Rivers states.

“The electoral process was suspended in Rivers State in a very fraudulent circumstance,” the party also added.

On the supplementary elections, APC listed its concerns about the various states where the exercise would hold.

On Benue, the APC claimed that its candidate, Emmanuel Jime, obtained the highest number of votes via the usage of the card reader but noted that “INEC declared the governorship election in Benue State inconclusive, citing an insufficient margin in votes obtained by the APC candidate, Barr. Emmanuel Jime, and the PDP candidate, Governor Samuel Ortom.

“Even though the PDP claims a bogus lead of over 81,000 votes, reports strongly established that this dodgy figure is an aggregate of ‘votes’ obtained by subterfuge, not from the numbers recorded by the card reader.



Read Full gist via http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/03/apc-pdp-attack-inec-over-bauchi-adamawa.html?m=1

When Abdulfatah Ayoola laid his hands on and prayed for Fawad, his son, he never knew that would be his last time of doing so. In the six years that the deceased spent on earth, the father prayed for him regularly but hardly had the request come from the boy.


Fawad got to school, cheered his classmates and settled down for the day’s teaching without knowing it was his last day on earth. By 2pm, his corpse was retrieved from the rubble of the building that collapsed in the Ita-Faaji area of Lagos Island.

The three-storey building had a school inside it. When Akinwunmi Ambode, the governor, visited the scene, he said the school operated illegally. Residents also said the collapsed building had been marked for demolition and the occupants given notice to quit.




But all these mean nothing to the families of Ayoola and all those who lost loved ones in the incident.

“He woke up late for school today. After taking his breakfast, he requested for money but I told him there’s no need for money since he has his lunch with him. Then he said, ‘daddy, pray for me before I go’, and I did exactly as he requested. He walked to school which is just few metres from the house,” Ayoola said fighting back tears.

Neighbours had assembled in his two-room apartment. As the men in the living room consoled him, the voice of women crying in the inner room echoed into the living room. It was an atmosphere of gloom.


“I don’t think I can sleep tonight. My late son and I did almost everything together; we ate together, prayed together, spent time discussing. I was introducing him to life because he was my eldest child,” Ayoola said.

The man of the house broke down in tears, narrating how he contemplated enrolling Fawad in another school but did not go ahead with the plan because his late son was rounding off his primary education.

“I visited Kings’ College not too long and liked the academic atmosphere. and I was assured that an interview date will be communicated to me soon but now I can’t take him there anymore because Fawad is gone.





LASEMA rescue team at the scene”God gives and take, we cannot question Him. All I need to do now is pray for him, console the mother, I know of a family who lost four of their children in the building, what will be their fate? Praise be to Allah for everything.”

Fawad has been buried at the Ikoyi cemetery in accordance with Islamic rites.

TheCable gathered that the school had over 120 pupils. Of this figure, nine have been confirmed dead, some rescued and taken to the hospital while many are still trapped.

Officials of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) and other rescue agency were still at the scene when TheCable left the place at 8pm on Wednesday.

Ambode has promised that a full-scale investigation would be carried out but for now many are counting their losses.




http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/03/my-son-asked-me-to-pray-for-him-before.html

The Coalition of United Political Parties on Wednesday said it had obtained documents showing strange payments of money by some state governments to local government areas where supplementary elections would hold on March 23.
It said the “financial bazar” was meant for vote-buying and for compromising electoral officials and security agencies in the affected local government areas.
The coalition’s national spokesman, Imo Ugochinyere, disclosed this in a statement made available to journalists in Abuja.
Ugochinyere attached documents showing the Kano State Government disbursing N223.5m to 13 local governments in the state.
The document showed that money ranging from N12m to N24m was allocated to each of the local governments.
The benefiting local governments include Bichi, Doguwa, Nassarawa, Rimin-Gado, Gwarzo, Sumaila and Wudil.
Others are Dawakin Kudu, Kabo, Dawakin Tofa, Tsanywa, Kumbotso and Kura.
Ugochinyere claimed that the coalition had also intercepted information on “strange withdrawals running into hundreds of millions” from the local government and state accounts in Bauchi and Adamawa states and some Federal Government agencies.
He said the withdrawals were being done with a bid to engage in massive vote-buying and compromise electoral and security officials .
He added, “The refusal of the Buhari regime and his the EFCC to stop the ongoing reckless looting of resources of the poor masses in those areas where supplementary elections will hold has shown that the administration’s war against corruption is turning into a child’s play which only becomes serious when being used to blackmail opposition leaders.
“CUPP wishes to call on voters in those areas where supplementary elections will hold in Kano, Bauchi, Benue, Sokoto, Adamawa and Plateau states to start mobilising for ‘operation defend the polling unit’ and keep vigilance like the people of Ondo State did in 1983 to resist the rampaging federal forces that attempted to subvert the will of the people.
“Let the independent fearless spirit of the people of Kano, Bauchi, Benue and Sokoto states be guided by the actions of their forefathers.
“The people’s power, when combined, is the greatest force on earth. We urge you to defend your votes with the last energy in you and do not retreat nor surrender till the final announcement.”



http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/03/supplementary-election-cupp-accuses.html

An International Election Observer Group, Pan African Women Project (PAWP), has called on the Federal Government to establish election tribunal to prosecute electoral offences and punish offenders of electoral process in the country.

The group stated this in a report signed by Head of Mission, PAWP, South Africa, Mrs. Eben Udensi and Publicity Secretary of the group, Mphoentle Keitseng, yesterday, during a press conference to give account of their observation during the just-concluded elections in Nigeria and Akwa Ibom State in particular.

They recommended prompt, immediate, total and holistic review of the nation’s electoral laws.Also, the group opined that signing the electoral bill into law would facilitate and regulate proper conduct of subsequent elections in the country.

The foreign election observers, therefore, called for the provision of sufficient funds for mass sensitisation and security education for security agencies on electoral duties.“We appeal to the Federal Government of Nigeria to effect prompt release of the requisite fund to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at least 12 months before the general elections,” the group stated.

The group, which lauded INEC for improvement on arrival of materials and kick-off of the gubernatorial/state Houses of Assembly elections, said: “We commend the transparent and credibility exhibited by INEC in Akwa Ibom State in conducting a free and fair presidential/National Assembly and gubernatorial/state House of Assembly elections.”

It recommended that INEC must recruit ad-hoc members of staff who are above 30 years of age for the sensitive positions such as polling officers, noting that many of the polling officers were young and lacked the maturity to take decisions on time, especially where violence erupted.

The observer group, which asked the electoral body to organise more workshops for security agencies to define their role of engagement at elections, alleged that security agencies constituted a major cause of violence, intimidation and unrest at the just-concluded elections in the country.


http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/03/observer-group-seeks-election-tribunal.html?m=1

A pregnant woman, the proprietor of Ohen Nursery & Primary school and 19 others, including no fewer than 12 pupils died in the collapsed building at Massey Street , Itafaji on Lagos Island on Wednesday, witnesses and hospital sources said .
However , the National Emergency Management Agency , said eight persons died , while 34 others were rescued in the wreckage of the building that collapsed at about 10 am .

Lagos State Emergency Management Agency said it rescued 10 persons out of the wreckage . The agency said its rescue team and other agencies brought out 10 people alive, made up of 3 adult females , 1 adult male , 2 teenage boys , 1 young boy and 3 teenage girls.

The South - West Zonal Head of Public Affairs of the Agency , Mr Ibrahim Farinloye said the rescue operation was ongoing as at 8 pm .

NAN gathered that about 10 different families occupied the first and the ground floors , while the school occupied the second and fourth floors .

The building at 63 Massey Street , it was learnt had been marked for demolition by officials of the Lagos State Building Control Agency .

However , the occupants of the building frustrated the demolition.

NAN further learnt that 17 of the rescued students and occupants of the building were taken to Massey Children Hospital , very close to the scene , while others were taken to the Lagos Island General Hospital on Broad Street .

A worker at the Massey Children Hospital , who spoke with NAN on condition of anonymity said that four out of those brought in, died few minutes after.

The medical staff said that six of those who were rushed to the Lagos General Hospital also died .

Governor Akinwunmi Ambode , who visited the scene said the government would ensure that the trapped victims were rescued

The school moved to the collapsed building some years ago .

Distraught parents of pupils and residents of the building jammed the scene of the rescue operation hoping that their children and relatives would come out alive.

A resident of the collapsed building, who simply gave his name as Akin said that the building was marked for demolition but that the developer found a way to stop the demolition .

Akin said he had gone to work , when he received the news of the incident . He also stated that the owner did some renovation two years ago .

A neighbour , Mr Adewale Owoso likened the moment the building collapsed to a bomb explosion.

“ We were just sitting down in front of the school , when we heard a loud sound .

“ We all ran into different directions but after the dust had settled , we realised that it was the building that collapsed .

“ We quickly mobilised and began some rescue operation and we had rescued more than twenty people, before the emergency workers arrived ,” he said .

Mrs Aishat Onilenla said , three of her sister’s three children were trapped in the collapsed building . ‘My friend has seven children also trapped in the rubble ” , she said .

“ I don ’t know how she is going to survive it . It is too big for her to bear ,” she said .

http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/03/pregnant-woman-proprietor-pupils-die-in.html?m=1

No fewer than 12 people have been killed, as armed bandits attacked Layin Maigwari village along Funtua road in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area, Kaduna State.

The Nation gathered from a source in Dogo Dawa, Alhaji Ahmed Rufai, that the first attack happened on Monday, when the armed bandits ambushed and opened fire on some people travelling from Zamfara to Niger State.

Rufai said two persons were killed and nine others injured in the attack.

According to him, another set of bandits, numbering about 80, also stormed Hayin Gada village Tuesday night and started shooting sporadically, leaving 10 persons dead.

“As I speak with you, residents of the village have fled to a neighbouring community for fear of further attack, because the attackers were so many. They were up to 80,” he said.

Kaduna State Police Command could not confirm the incident as at the time of filing this report.

The command’s spokesman, DSP Yakubu Sabo, said he was on board a helicopter and promised to get back to The Nation


http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/03/12-feared-killed-nine-injured-as-armed.html?m=1

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has called for the immediate release of Daily Trust staff arrested in Maiduguri by armed soldiers and urged the Nigerian military to end its siege on the newspaper’s offices in Borno, Lagos, and Abuja.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has called for the immediate release of Daily Trust staff arrested in Maiduguri by armed soldiers and urged the Nigerian military to end its siege on the newspaper’s offices in Borno, Lagos, and Abuja.
In a statement signed by the NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, on Sunday night, the labour union condemned the military siege, saying “no explanation is good enough for this extreme action. It is bizarre and represents repression and violation of press freedom.”
The statement reads in part: “We are in a democracy and the media constitute one of the strong institutions in our democracy.
“The Daily Trust Group represents some of the best traditions in journalism practice. They are neither associated with sensationalism nor some of the darker side of journalism.
“The arrest of its personnel and shutdown of its offices portend evil and represent a throwback to the dark days of the military.
“If the military authorities have issues with the newspaper; even if those issues pertain to national security, there are established channels for dealing with them.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has called for the immediate release of Daily Trust staff arrested in Maiduguri by armed soldiers and urged the Nigerian military to end its siege on the newspaper’s offices in Borno, Lagos, and Abuja.
In a statement signed by the NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, on Sunday night, the labour union condemned the military siege, saying “no explanation is good enough for this extreme action. It is bizarre and represents repression and violation of press freedom.”
The statement reads in part: “We are in a democracy and the media constitute one of the strong institutions in our democracy.
“The Daily Trust Group represents some of the best traditions in journalism practice. They are neither associated with sensationalism nor some of the darker side of journalism.
“The arrest of its personnel and shutdown of its offices portend evil and represent a throwback to the dark days of the military.
“If the military authorities have issues with the newspaper; even if those issues pertain to national security, there are established channels for dealing with them.
“Accordingly, we urge the military to order the immediate release of the detained staff and reopening of the newspaper office.
“In these frighteningly difficult times, the military need more friends than self-made enemies.”


http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/01/nlc-condemns-armys-attact-on-dailytrust.html?m=1

The Peoples Democratic Party on Sunday raised the alarm over what it described as the desperation of President Muhammadu Buhari for self -succession .
It said the issue had become a major threat to national unity , stability and a peaceful electoral process .
It, therefore , urged the National Peace Committee, the United Nations and world leaders to save Nigeria from what it called imminent collapse by cautioning Buhari over alleged resort to undemocratic practices.
The PDP National Publicity Secretary , Kola Ologbondiyan , stated these during a media briefing in Abuja .
Ologbondiyan said Buhari should be called to order if Nigeria must have peaceful , free , fair and credible general elections in February , adding that Nigeria was in a perilous time.
He claimed that having realised that Nigerians were rallying behind the PDP’ s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar , as their next President , the Buhari Presidency was seeking ways to enmesh the electoral process in a crisis .
“ The Buhari Presidency has been overheating the polity with its unending manipulations of INEC , muzzling of free speech and escalated clampdown on opposition and civil society organisations and we insist that such must stop if we must have a peaceful election , ” he said .
Ologbondiyan, who is also the Director, Media and Publicity of the PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation, said there was no way peace could be guaranteed without free and fair elections .
He stated that already , Nigerians were angry over what he called the foisting of Mrs Amina Zakari as the Chairman of the National Collation Centre Committee of the Independent National Electoral Commission.
According to him , Buhari ’ s insistence on having Zakari in charge of the collation of presidential election results was provocative, “ a direct affront to the sensibilities of Nigerians and an express invitation to a crisis of epic proportion. ”
This, he said , was capable of truncating the electoral process and derailing the nation ’ s democracy.
Ologbondiyan said , “ The world is aware that majority of Nigerians have rejected Zakari . Over 90 per cent of the political parties in the election , as well as major political and socio -cultural groups across the country have also called for her resignation from INEC, yet President Buhari is insisting on her stay in the commission.
“ Our party is aware of plots by the Buhari Presidency to use Zakari , who has been mentioned as part of those involved in the rigging of the 2018 governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states , to plunge the 2019 general elections into controversies , truncate the flow of results and even render elections in some critical states inconclusive, to pave way for allocation of fictitious votes to President Buhari and the All Progressives Congress. ”



http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/01/pdp-petitions-un-peace-committee-over.html?m=1

The Federal Government has directed the military to vacate the premises of @daily_trust and the order has been complied with. Issues between the military and the newspaper as they affect the coverage of the war in the Northeast will be resolved through dialogue.


http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/01/nigeria-military-vacates-daily-tryst.html?m=1

Ambode no longer interested in work since losing APC guber ticket – Jimi Agbaje
January 06, 2019


The governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, believes Governor Akinwunmi Ambode is now aloof and uninterested in the affairs of the state since he was denied a second term ticket by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, believes Governor Akinwunmi Ambode is now aloof and uninterested in the affairs of the state since he was denied a second term ticket by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
In a statement issued by the Jimi Agbaje Campaign Organisation (JACO) during the weekend, Agbaje called on the Lagos state legislature and executive to bury the hatchet and attend to the 2019 budget to save the state from socio-economic crisis.
According to him, the two institutions must put the state first and resolve their issues amicably.
In his words: “This state is bigger than any one person and any single interest. We cannot grind the state to a halt because chieftains within the ruling APC cannot see eye to eye.
“They must put their differences aside and move the state forward. This begins with the immediate passing of the budget.
“Clearly, Lagos has been on auto-pilot since Governor Akinwunmi Ambode failed to pick the ticket at the All Progressives Congress (APC) primaries.
“Things as routine as allowances, bonuses and road maintenance have suffered. And now, the prevailing apathy has spread to the 2019 budget that has been reported missing somewhere between the Executive at the Alausa Roundhouse and the hallowed chambers of the Legislature.”
While the Executive, through the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Mr. Olusegun Banjo, had insisted that the document containing the budgetary estimates had been forwarded to the Assembly, legislators insist they were yet to receive the document for deliberation.
Agbaje stated: “The unfolding drama between members of the Lagos State House of Assembly and the State Executive Council over 2019 budget has further confirmed my assertion that all is not well within the ruling APC. The bad blood generated through the outcome of the last round party primaries is still visible for all to see and our people are the worse for it.”
Lamenting the toll the wrangling within APC had taken on the life and wellbeing of the people of the state, Agbaje urged all well-meaning Lagosians to urgently intervene on behalf of the people of the state whom he said are bearing the brunt of the “needless schism.”
“After having drawn the attention of the whole world to the prevailing needless war of attrition between the two arms of government without any of the two combatants sheathing their sword, I am therefore compelled to call on well-meaning Lagosians to prevail on the two to see the need to act in the interest of the people who they preside over,” Agbaje said.

http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/01/ambode-no-longer-interested-in-work.html

Nigeria’s transport minister, Rotimi Amaechi, has been heard in an audio recording to be expressing shocking pessimistic views about Nigeria and the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, whose re-election bid he leads.
The recording was shared with PREMIUM TIMES by Phrank Shaibu, a spokesperson for the Atiku Abubakar campaign.
Mr Abubakar, billionaire former vice-president, of the Peoples Democratic Party, is the main challenger of Mr Buhari, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, in next month’s presidential election.
The recording contains a portrayal of Mr Buhari as a dismal failure who has been unable to meet the expectations of various segments of the society, ending with a dismissal of Nigeria as a never-going-to-change hopeless nation.
The transcript of the recording reads: “These are not things you publish ooo. If you publish them, you will never sit with me any day.
“Three years of Buhari oo, everybody is crying, crying…pressmen are crying, farmers are crying, workers are crying, politicians are crying, students are crying, three years oo!
“The rate of poverty is very high. The people are hungry. Nigeria will never change!”
PREMIUM TIMES has not independently verified the recording.
The claims, particularly regarding expectations, expressed in the recording may be correct.
Government’s own official information shows Mr Buhari has presided over a worsening national job situation, with the unemployment rate standing at 23.1 per cent by the third quarter of 2018 up from 18.8 per cent per cent by the end of 2017.
However, government officials argue jobs are not dropping but that it is the number of people entering the working age bracket that is outpacing the existing opportunities in the labour market.
Invariably, poverty, under Mr Buhari, also continues to soar, a crisis Nigeria has experienced for decades.
According to the World Bank 2017 Atlas of Sustainable Development Goals, between 1990 and 2013, Nigeria added 35 million people to its poverty population, jumping from 51 million to 86 million (and now over 100 million). Of the 10 populous countries surveyed, Nigeria is the only country that failed to reduce poverty.
By 2018, Nigeria has overtaken China and is only behind India, arguably, with the highest number of extremely poor people within one national territory.
In an earlier recording also shared by the Atiku campaign, Mr Amaechi appeared to be describing Mr Buhari as a leader that does not listen and care.
According to the recording: “The president does not listen to anybody. He doesn’t care. You can write what you want to write. The president doesn’t care. Does he read? He will read, he will laugh. He will say ‘come, come and see, they are abusing me here’.
“In fact, there was one case of somebody in Onitsha, a trader in Onitsha who couldn’t sell his goats during Sallah. And I was with Oga on the plane and the man was busy abusing Buhari. He said, ‘Amaechi, come, what is my business with Onitsha goat seller?’”
When contacted, David Iyofor, the spokesperson for Mr Amaechi, said the minister’s team was still reviewing the recording and needed more time to do so before commenting on the matter.
Meanwhile, Mr Shaibu said the leaked tape has shown that even the president’s appointees lacked confidence in his ability to transform the country.
He said, “The President should just quit honourably instead of wasting taxpayers monies on a failed reelection bid.
“The truth is that the other day, the President confessed that the economy had collapsed under his watch.
“On another occasion, the wife confessed to the fact that, the canal and not her dearest husband, President Buhari was in-charge of the country and now, the Director General Of his re-election campaign has confessed to the lack of capacity of President Buhari and the dismal failure of his administration.
“Truth is, the President has established a record of failures which probably no other President would ever equal or erase. Mrs Aishat Buhari was partially correct when she stated that two people are preventing her husband from performing well. With this audio tape, if the two don’t include her husband then she is not completely being truthful.”
It is not the first time a minister would appear to be expressing no confidence in the leadership of Mr Buhari in a leaked recording.
Former minister for women affairs, Aisha Alhassan, was in a recording – which he admitted – saying she preferred Mr Abubakar to Mr Buhari as president from 2019.



http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/01/rotimi-amaechi.html?m=1

"The car that was following ours doubled-crossed us at Ossisa town and one of the men jumped out from the car, and entered the passenger's seat of the car I was driving. He brought out a pistol and asked me questions such as 'where is your boss?'; 'where are his children?' All this time, a gun was pointed at my head. I was then ordered to drive straight to Kwale and from there, I was ordered to face Ogume road," the driver told SaharaReporters.
Lucky Okperi, the former Delta State House of Assembly member representing Isoko South constituency 1 and leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Isoko South Local Government Area of the state, his children and driver narrowly escaped assassination along Asaba-Kwale road.


click here to read full story: http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/01/delta-apc-leader-children-driver-escape.html?m=1

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has declared January 10 as a national day of prayers for the success of the forthcoming general elections.
In a statement on Saturday, the association said the praise and worship session is also to ask God for the release of Leah Sharibu and others in the captivity of the Boko Haram terrorists.
Although the statement was signed by Adebayo Oladeji, the special assistant to the CAN President, Samson Ayokunle, the CAN statement indicated the directive was given by its acting general secretary, Joseph Daramola.
The association, in the statement, called on all churches and Christians across the country to participate in the programme.
“The leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has declared January 10 as a National Day of Prayers for peaceful, free, fair and credible election and freedom for Leah Sharibu and others in the captivity of the Boko Haram terrorists.
“The prayer meeting is to be organised in Abuja and all the State capitals nationwide between 11:00am and 2:00pm prompt with a view to asking God to prevent violence, manipulation, intimidation of voters and other electoral crimes with a view to having credible election.
“Christian politicians especially those contesting for elective offices or their representatives are also invited as they will be prayed for to be good Ambassadors of Christ before, during and after the election,” it said.
“We are to pray for all Christians contesting for one post or the other for the will of God to be done concerning their ambition. That the powerful in our nation will not be able to manipulate the election and edge them out,” the statement added.
CAN also asked all bloc leaders and their secretaries, all zonal chairmen, state chairmen and all denominational leaders to organise their church members to assemble at the National Christian Centre, Abuja.
“All churches in the country are urged to participate in the programme to usher the country into a new era of peace, unity, safety and all round prosperity.”


http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/01/can-fixes-prayer-day-for-2019-election.html?m=1

The leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students has distanced itself from the purported allegations by the Academic Staff Union of Universities claiming it received N 150 million from the presidency.
The students union body disclosed this in a statement signed by Mr Adeyemi Amoo , it’ s National Public Relations Officer, and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Saturday.
Amoo called on Nigerian students to discountenance the allegations by ASUU, saying that the association was ready to protect the interest of all the students .
He said President Muhammadu Buhari, who is a known person in character and style to virtually all Nigerians , would never dole out such amount of money for any reason, which would not be of any national benefits or developments.
NAN reports that President Buhari on January 3, met with the leadership of NANS to resolve issues with ASUU.
“ Our attention has been drawn to the purported and sponsored allegation , that NANS had been bribed by President Muhammadu Buhari with a whooping sum of N 150million to protest against ASUU.
“ We commend the well -meaning , intellectual and genuine civil society groups for not falling for this blackmail , as we ’ ve been informed that they’ ve also been lobbied by ASUU to join them in pushing this blackmail .
“ We are not surprised that this blackmail isn’ t flying beyond the pseudo groups they’ ve been able to arrange and mobilise with cash .
“ President Muhammadu Buhari, is a known person in character and style to virtually all Nigerians , even the oppositions know that Buhari will never give out such amount of money for any reason( s ) that is not of national benefits or developments. ”
Amoo explained that NANS had earlier declared November 17, 2018 as a nationwide day of mass action tagged: “ SAVE EDUCATION RALLY ” held simultaneously across the states of the federation, to protest the incessant strikes across universities , polytechnics and colleges of Education .
He added that in October 2018, NANS national leadership, met with the Minister for Education , to fine -tune ways of finding a long -term solution to the regular strikes in the educational sector .
“ We demanded as the major stakeholders in the sector, to always have representatives at the meeting of ASUU with Federal Government , as this was targeted towards adding to the strength and voice of ASUU , so as to make government yield to their demands speedily .
“ The Federal Government on her own side sees the request of been an observer at the negotiation table with ASUU as a welcome development.



http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/01/we-didnt-collect-n150m-from-presidency.html?m=1

China's population is set to reach a peak of 1.442 billion in 2029 and start a long period of "unstoppable" decline in 2030, government scholars said in a research report published on Friday.
The world's most populous country must now draw up policies to try to cope with a declining labor force and a rapidly aging population, according to the summary of the latest edition of the "Green Book of Population and Labor" published by the China Academy of Social Sciences (CASS).
Growth in the working population had now stagnated, the report said, and the rising number of elderly people will have a far-reaching impact on the social and economic development in the country, especially if fertility rates remain low.
"From a theoretical point of view, the long-term population decline, especially when it is accompanied by a continuously aging population, is bound to cause very unfavorable social and economic consequences," it said.
China's population is expected to fall back to 1.36 billion by the middle of the century, it said, which could mean a decline in the workforce of as much as 200 million. If fertility rates remain unchanged, the population could fall to 1.17 billion by 2065, it said.
China decided in 2016 to relax a controversial "one-child policy" aimed at curbing population growth and allow all couples to have two children. However, the country's birthrate still fell 3.5 percent in 2017 and is expected to have fallen again last year.
China's "dependency rate" -- or the proportion of nonworking people, including children and the elderly, in the total population -- rose for the first time in more than 30 years in 2011, and is widely predicted to increase further for at least the next few decades.
The proportion of retirees is projected to rise until 2060, the CASS report said, and while the decision to relax "one-child" rules was designed to rebalance China's age structure, in the short term it will also lead to a greater dependency rate.
According to previous forecasts, China's elderly population is expected to reach 400 million by the end of 2035, up from around 240 million last year.


http://www.thengtimes.com/2019/01/chinas-population-set-to-peak-at-144.html

Otunba (Mrs.) Grace Titilayo Laoye-Tomori, MPA, BA, P.G.D.E, the Deputy Governor of the State of Osun and the Honourable Commissioner for Education has reportedly dumps APC, Joins SSG Adeoti Osun State governorship candidate in ADP


http://www.thengtimes.com/2018/07/breaking-aregbesolas-deputy-governor.html?m=1

that took place on April 5, 2018 in Offa, Kwara State.



According to a tweet from Olu Onemola, his Special Assistant on New Media, Saraki who met a team of investigators on Thursday in his office said that he had nothing to do with any criminal activity.

“Further to the invitation to the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, by the Police on July 23, 2018, and his written response to them on July 24, 2018 on why he could not see them that day — today at about 1:40pm, the Senate President met with a team of investigators on the Offa Robbery case in his office




http://www.thengtimes.com/2018/07/offa-robbery-what-saraki-told-team-of.html?m=1

The people of Umuokahia in Obingwa local government Area of Abia State have been thrown to mourning as a 16 year old teenage boy identified as Izuchi Uduma was electrocuted to death.

Suleja Student Turns His Last ₦1000 Into...

Suleja Student Turns His Last ₦1000 Into ₦12,100,379

Information gathered has it that the incident happened while the deceased identified to be an indigene of Ohafia local government area of the state but resident in the community and his mates were playing football within the community before the ugly incident happened.

It was learnt that residents of the community and neighbouring communities The incident which occurred around 5PM on Wednesday at Umuokahia, along Umuafor, a suburb town in Aba drew sympathizers from the ever busy Ururuka Road down to the area.

An eyewitness who gave his name simply as Tochukwu disclosed that the incident happened in a flash that help couldn’t come the victim’s way that reportedly died on the spot.

According to the eyewitness, Izuchi had gone into a nearby bush to retrieve their football only to be electrocuted when he unknowingly stepped into a waterlogged part of the bush with an energized naked wire lying underneath.

“It was so tragic; Izuchi was playing footballwith his friends as I was returning from work. I just crossed over from the area and suddenly I heard disturbing screams. The next thing I saw was his body shaking and he suddenly went cold dead.

“Everyone was afraid to do anything. It was so sudden. It was later that we discovered that a plantain leave in the bush covered a naked wire that fell into the bush and part of the wire was touching the waterlogged area close the football pitch,” an eyewitness narrated

At the time of filing the report, efforts to reach the parents of the victim proved abortive.

http://www.thengtimes.com/2018/07/abia-community-in-shock-after-electric.html?m=1

The Ekiti State House of Assembly has been shut indefinitely over alleged invasion by strange policemen.
The Speaker, Kola Oluwawole, announced this at a press conference in Ado Ekiti on Thursday .
He said the shutting down of the Assembly became necessary because two units of heavily armed riot -policemen stormed the premises on Wednesday without an official request .
When our correspondent visited the Assembly on Thursday , there was no policeman in sight.
Oluwawole, who addressed journalists in company with 17 other lawmakers , said members of the All Progressives Congress in the Assembly were the brains behind the alleged strange Police deployment .
He said the Police were acting on a letter forged by the three APC members using the name of the Clerk , Mr. Tola Esan, and addressed to the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Bello Ahmed, calling for deployment .
He said the letter and the request were “unwarranted. ”
Recently , three PDP House members had defected to the APC . They are Gboyega Aribisogan, Sunday Akinniyi and Ebenezer Alagbada , who left the PDP after a disagreement with Governor Ayodele Fayose.
Oluwawole said the Assembly would remain shut until security of lives of lawmakers and staff of the hallowed chamber could be guaranteed.
The Speaker said the Assembly had petitioned the CP to raise allegation of forgery against Aribisogan, Akinniyi and Alagbada .
He recalled that the Clerk had , on July 25, written a similar letter dissociating himself from the letter purportedly written by him requesting Police cover at the Assembly .
He urged the Police authority to conduct unfettered investigations into the issue and bring the culprits to justice .
The Speaker said , “This is strange in democracy , for lawmakers to wake up and see unauthorised Police deployment in the legislative arm of government.
“On Wednesday at about 9 pm , Police authority deployed two detachments of heavily armed policemen to the premises of the Assembly . This came to us as a shock because we are in a recess and such action was unwarranted .
“Before now, we had it on good authority that Police were planning to provide cover for the three defecting lawmakers to perpetrate violence in the Assembly and cause confusion and also to endanger the lives of our staff.
“As we speak, the lives of our people are no longer safe , because the Police and APC thugs have laid siege to Ekiti Assembly and under this circumstance , our staff are no longer safe and we declare indefinite closure of the Assembly pending the time security can be guaranteed .
“We have not recovered from the harassment and abduction of our members by Police during the July 14 election. But let me say expressly that such strange police deployment was unsolicited, unwarranted and ultra vires ,” he said .
The Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Caleb Ikechukwu , could not be reached , as his phone was switched off.

http://www.thengtimes.com/2018/07/ekiti-assembly-shut-down-indefinitely.html?m=1

The Peoples Democratic Party has warned the All Progressives Congress to stop its alleged nefarious plot to impeach Ekiti State Governor , Mr. Ayo Fayose or attract dire consequences.

PDP further alleged that the impeachment plot, which it said was being arranged in connivance with the police , would be a recipe for crisis in the state.

National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr. kola Ologbondiyan, said in a statement in Abuja on Thursday , that the PDP was aware that the alleged plot “is a desperate bid by the APC to rush into the Ekiti Government House to remove and tamper with documents and evidence confirming the rigging of the July 14 governorship election , ahead of the sitting of the election tribunal. ”

It will be recalled that the Independent National Electoral Commission declared the candidate of the All Progressives Congress , Dr. Kayode Fayemi as the winner of the recently conducted governorship election in Ekiti State .

Fayemi, who was a former governor of the state , defeated his closest rival, who was the candidate of the PDP in the election, Prof. Olusola Eleka .

Eleka, who is the deputy governor of the state, has signified his intention to contest the outcome of the election in court.

Ologbondiyan, in his statement , alleged that having realised that there “is no way their daylight robbery at the poll can stand in the court, the APC is now employing all desperate means to subvert the course of Justice .”

He added, “This explains why a detachment of the Police can be hurriedly deployed to besiege the Ekiti State Assembly Complex last night ( Wednesday) without a formal request by the Speaker , the Clerk or the Sergeant - at - Arms, who is the chief security officer of the complex .

“The PDP states that any resort to underhand measures to impeach Fayose , without the constitutionally required 2 /3 of the members of the House, particularly at this time, when the lawmakers are currently on their annual recess , will surely be resisted by our members .”

While accusing the APC of plotting crisis all over the nation and resorting to the use of harassment , intimidation and brute force against the people and our democratic institutions , Ologbondiyan warned that the alleged dispositions of APC and its Federal Government portend grave danger for our nation .

“Now that the political and parliamentary establishment of the Ekiti House of Assembly has loudly declared that they do not require the services of the detachment of policemen , PDP charges the APC to immediately withdraw their armed agents from the premises of the House of Assembly ,” he said 


http://www.thengtimes.com/2018/07/ekiti-pdp-raises-alarm-over-alleged.html?m=1

The Senate President in a statement by his Media Adviser, Yusuph Olaniyonu, said his response to the Police invitation which was despatched on Tuesday was duly acknowledged.
According to him, all the issues and questions raised in the police invitation letter were answered, and sent to the police authorities on Tuesday.

He noted that after answering all the questions raised by the police in his letter, he did not think there was any need for him to go to the police personally.

The Senate President added that his letter to the police was self explanatory hence there was no need for him to go personally to the police for the same issue.

The Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, had on Monday invited Saraki to appear before the Police Special Anti-Robbery Unit in Guzape police station to answer questions over his alleged involvement in the Offa robbery incident.

Saraki had stated in an earlier response on Monday that the invitation by the Police to report to a station in Guzape over the Offa robbery investigation was “a mere afterthought which is designed to achieve political purpose. “

He had stated then that he had it on good authority that the Police had already decided on the suspects to arraign in court in Ilorin, Kwara State on Wednesday based on the advice of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Mohammed U.E., and that the turn around to invite him was a ploy aimed at scoring cheap political points


http://www.thengtimes.com/2018/07/saraki-why-i-didnt-honour-police.html?m=1

SEN. Dino Melaye was on Wednesday arraigned in an FCT High Court, Apo, on a six-count charge, bordering on attempted suicide, attempt to escape from custody and damage of police property.
Melaye who represents Kogi West senatorial zone, denied committing the offences, while Justice Silvanus Oriji granted him bail in the sum of N5 million
Oriji also ordered him to produce two sureties in like sum, as part of the bail condition.
The judge ordered that the sureties must be directors in the civil service, reside in the FCT, and depose to affidavits of means.
The prosecuting counsel, Dr Alex Izinyon (SAN), had told the court that the defendant committed the alleged offences on April 24.
He said the defendant while being conveyed in a police vehicle to Lokoja, forced his way out and escaped.
Izinyon further said that the defendant sat on the ground, holding a substance in one hand threatening to drink it to kill himself so that he can put the police officers in trouble.
The prosecutor also said that the defendant broke the glass of the vehicle with his elbow and caused damage to police property.
He said the offences contravened the provisions of Sections 148,153,173,231, 326 and 327 of the Penal Code.
The counsel to the defendant, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), had prayed the court to allow the bail granted to the defendant at the Magistrates’ Court Wuse on the same charges to continue.
The prosecution opposed the application, adding that bail is at the discretion of the court.
The judge upheld the submission of the prosecution and gave the new bail conditions.
He said that the case would be assigned to another judge by the chief judge after the vacation.



http://www.thengtimes.com/2018/07/attempted-suicide-melaye-docked-granted.html?m=1

Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has announced his defection from All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The governor made the announcement at a meeting with elected local government chairmen and councillors on Wednesday at the Government House Makurdi, hours after protesting youths barred him from traveling to Abuja to attend the APC reconciliation meeting.

The announcement brings to an end months of speculation that the governor will return to the PDP as a result of his disagreement with leaders of the party in Benue and at the national level.

His defection follows major politicaldecisions in the state over the last three weeks.

The governor recently sacked over 80 percent of his cabinet members and, on Tuesday the Benue House of Assembly impeached Mr. Terkimbi Ikyange, as its Speaker.

http://www.thengtimes.com/2018/07/breaking-benue-governor-ortom-announces.html?m=1

A Minna herdsman, Juli Umar, has been arrested alongside two other robbers, operating in the Zaragi Maito Fulani Camp in the Wushishi Local Government Area of Niger state.
The suspects, Juli Umar, 19; Adamu Amudu, 19; and Aliyu Isah, 19 who attacked and inflicted injuries on one Samaila Usman of Fulani Camp for refusing to surrender the money he made from sales of his cows, were arrested by the police operatives attached to the Wushishi division on Tuesday.

Umar had, before his arrest, been paid off by his former Master with a cow as agreed after working for six months.

However, he connived with Amudu and Isah to attack Usman, and knocked off two of his teeth during the robbery.

It was gathered that the hoodlums attacked their victim with machetes and a single barrel gun, and robbed him of N87,000, two sets of wrapper and a Tecno handset.

Confessing to the crime while being interviewed by newsmen, the lead suspect, Juli Umar who blamed an evil spirit for his alleged misdeed, said; “I shouldn’t have done what I did after all he did for me, Allah will punish me severely. My master did not in any way offended me and as such did not deserve this kind of treatment from his servant.
I have made the biggest mistake in my life, I am even sorry to have deceived Amudu into participating in this heinouscrime that has ruined our lives,” Umar added.

Confirming the arrest of the armed bandits, the Police Public Relations Officer, Muhammad Abubakar, disclosed that the operatives recovered from the suspects one single-barreled gun and two cutlasses. He added that Umar confessed to have conspired with Amudu and Isah to attack his former boss.

Abubakar further told newsmen that the suspects will be charged to court after investigation was completed



http://www.thengtimes.com/2018/07/minna-herdsman-arrested-for-attacking.html?m=1

Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, AdamsOshiomhole and some other party members.

The youths are asking the governor to resign his membership from the APC.

Leader of the protesting youths, Dave Ogbole, dared the governor to crush them and embark on his trip.

Mr. Ogbole said, “If the governor insists on travelling to Abuja for the APC meeting, he will risk losing the support of the people”.

Despite the governors’ plea to allow him attend the meeting as agreed by party members in the state, the youths stood their grounds until the governor’s convoy made a U-turn.

The youths have however continued to stay guard to ensure the governor does not travel.





http://www.thengtimes.com/2018/07/breaking-benue-youths-prevent-ortom.html?m=1

President Muhammadu Buhari is currently having a closed door meeting with the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris.
Reports have it that the meeting would not be unconnected to security issues especially the recent invasion by police, EFCC and DSS to the homes of the senate president, Dr. Bukola Saraki and his deputy Dr. Ike Ekweremmadu.
Recall that Saraki was invited by the police over allegation in a controversial Offa robbery that took many innocent Nigerians lives.
Details later:

http://www.thengtimes.com/2018/07/breaking-buhari-igp-in-closed-door.html?m=1