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Prominent Ogoni politicians in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, have endorsed Governor Nyesom Wike for a second term in office. The PDP in Ogoni-land made known its position after a stakeholders’ meeting, which was called a day after the Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja affirmed the election of Senator Magnus Abe of the All Progressives Congress. The prominent Ogoni politicians comprises serving government officials, former political appointees, elected political office holders and former public office holders from Khana, Gokana, Tai and Eleme local government areas. The PDP Stakeholders in a communiqué read by Senator Lee Maeba unanimously urged Governor Wike to present himself for re-election in 2019. He said their decision was base on the excellent performance of the governor within two years of his first term in office. The PDP stakeholders in the communiqué said never again will they allow the military, the police and other security agencies ...

Suspected billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, a.k.a. Evans, on Wednesday filed a fundamental rights enforcement action before the Lagos Federal High Court in Lagos, urging the court to order the police to charge him to court or release him immediately. Joined as respondents in the said suit marked FHC/L/CS/1012/2017 are the Nigeria Police Force, Commissioner of Police, Lagos State and the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, Lagos State Police Command,      in the suit filed on his behalf by a Lagos-based lawyer, Olukoya Ogungbeje, the suspected kidnapper is seeking a court order directing the respondents to immediately charge him to court if they had any case against him in accordance with sections 35 (1) (c) (3) (4) (5) (a) (b) and 36 of the Constitution. He is on the alternative seeking for an order compelling the respondents to immediately release him unconditionally in the absence of any offence that will warrant his being charged to court....

Dickson dissolves eight council caretaker chairmen     YENAGOA – GOVERNOR Seriake Dickson has approved the immediate dissolution of the Caretaker committees of the eight oral government council areas in the state. To this end, all the Local Government Area Care-taker committee Chairmen and their members have been directed to handover to the Head of Administration of their various councils. Dickson in a statement issued Wednesday night by his Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Iworiso-Markson, thanked all the chairmen and their members for their selfless services to the state, especially at this difficult times. The governor in the statement wished them well in all their future endeavours. Similarly, Governor Dickson has approved the the immediate dissolution of all the statutory commissions in the state, whose tenure of office have virtually elapsed, with the exception of the Local Government Service Commission. He thanked them for their services...

…Condemns Amaechi for Failing To Attract A Single Project To The State The Rivers State Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bro. Felix Obuah has lauded the decision of the State Governor, Chief (Barr) Nyesom Ezenwo Wike to repair the East-West Road, stretching from Eleme Junction to the Port Harcourt Refinery and the Oyigbo axis of the Port Harcourt-Aba Express Road in the State. Bro. Obuah, in a statement, commended Governor Wike for nipping the planned strike by the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG) in the bud, saying such action is a demonstration of his sensitivity to the plight of the people of the State, Niger Delta and indeed, all Nigerians. The PDP Chairman, while thanking the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG) for suspending the proposed strike action on the deplorable state of the two important Federal Roads in the area, described the action of the Governor as a welcome development, given the fact that the roads ...

  A sociopolitical pressure group of professionals in Nigeria, The Nigerian Professionals for Progress (NPfP),  has commended former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, over what the group termed his "very principled, patriotic and nationalist stand on the issue of restructuring the Nigerian federation and enthroning fiscal federalism in the country".  The group in a letter, signed by its National Secretary, Karl Chinedu Uchegbu, said, " we are honoured to write this letter of commendation, to you in recognition of your very principled, patriotic and nationalist stand on the issue of restructuring the Nigerian federation and enthroning fiscal federalism". The Nigerian Professionals disclosed that by Alhaji Atiku Abubakar's open endorsement and strident advocacy for restructuring of the country, he has brought the issue to the front burner of political discuss thereby offering hope to a country that has been living in denial. Continuing the group noted...

The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has disclosed he once rejected a one billion naira bribe while he was governor of Rivers State. Speaking in Lagos, Amaechi explained that he rejected the bribe because of his principled stance on corruption. Stressing that Nigeria needs to go back to its value system, Amaechi said, “My first confrontation with bribe was with a big contractor in Rivers State. After awarding the contract, he brought a billion naira. I screamed. “I asked, where did you get the money? and he said from what he got (from the contract) and I said ‘look, that means you over quoted the contract’. “I said the only reason you are giving me N1 billion was because if the contract was N32 billion, you made it N37 billion. “I have been special assistant to the governor for two years; speaker, eight years; governor, eight years, minister nearly two years, that’s nearly twenty years.  “So I know Nigerian politics well. Very, very well.” ...

…Says govt is determined to ensure unity of Nigeria  ACTING President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, yesterday, warned that the Federal Government would deal with individuals or groups spreading hate speeches capable of affecting the unity of the country. Osinbajo, who stressed the determination of government to foster the unity of Nigeria, said the Federal Government would not allow such persons get away with their action. The Acting President, who gave the warning when he met with Northern Elders, including Arewa Consultative Forum, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, appealed to all Nigerians to come together. According to him, the Federal Government is capable of resolving all misunderstandings in the polity. He said there would always be frustrations and misunderstandings when people live together, as some would always want to get the best, adding that getting the best deal would only be possible in an atmosphere of peace Stating that the present crop of leaders in the count...

The Code of Conduct Tribunal in Abuja on Wednesday discharged and acquitted the Senate President, Dr. Bulola Saraki, of all the 18 charges of false asset declaration and other related offences preferred against him. The two-man panel of the CCT led by its Chairman, Danladi Umar, unanimously upheld the no-case submission which Saraki filed after the prosecution closed its case with  48 exhibits tendered and the fourth and the last prosecution witness testified on May 4, 2017. Umar, in his lead ruling, exonerated Saraki of all the charges on, among other grounds, the failure of the prosecution to obtain Saraki’s statement and make it part of the proof of evidence was fatal to the case. He described as “absurd” that neither Saraki’s statement nor the report of investigation said to have been carried out was produced before the tribunal. He agreed with the defence team led by Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN),  that the prosecution’s evidence had been manifestly di...

The Sole Administrator, Rivers State Waste Management Agency, Bro Felix Obuah, will on Thursday, June 15, 2017 at 12noon prompt, at the Conference Hall of RIWAMA, meet with all Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of Service Providing Companies doing business with the Agency. The meeting which is at the instance of the Sole Administrator of RIWAMA, Bro Felix Obuah is crucial and mandatory for all the concerned companies and officers to attend. The meeting among other things is to discuss issues pertaining the resurgence of wastes and dirt in some locations within and around the State capital which has become a source of concern not only to the agency but also the State government. Besides finding out the cause of the unfortunate relapse in the activities of the Service Providers, the meeting also intends to address other related issues with a view to lending weight to the various efforts of Governor Nyesom Wike to ensure that Port Harcourt recovers and retains its Garden...

The Niger Delta Renaissance Organisation NDRO has raised the alarm that Nigeria’s democracy is under threat with the various calls on Nigerians to leave where they reside because they are not from that region. The group made this alarm known as a result of the recent threat by militants in the region that northerners should leave the Niger Delta. The NDRO said the statement was reckless and does not represent the view of the generality of Niger Delta people. The statement which was signed by the Secretary General of the group Kingsley Frank said Niger Delta people still believe in the unity of the country but needs restructuring which it says will address all inadequacies being experienced in the country today. The statement hailed the position of the former Vice President that the country needs restructuring.  “We commend the position of the former Vice president of the country that Nigeria needs restructuring. This is not a farfetched position because it is onl...

In response to the October  1 ultimatum quit notice given to the Igbo by Coalition of Northern Youth Groups the Niger Delta militants have also asked the northerners to leave their region before October 1. In a joint statement released on Friday, the coalition of Niger Delta militants said they will declare the independence of the region on October 1. The communiqué signed to this effect by ‘General’ John Duku (Niger Delta Watchdogs and Convener: Coalition of Niger Delta Agitators), ‘General’ Ekpo Ekpo (Niger Delta Volunteers), ‘General’ Osarolor Nedam (Niger Delta Warriors), and ‘Major-Gen.’ Henry Okon Etete (Niger Delta Peoples Fighters), ‘Major-Gen.’ Asukwo Henshaw (Bakassi Freedom Fighters), ‘Major-Gen.’ Ibinabo Horsfall (Niger Delta Movement for Justice), ‘Major-Gen.’ Duke Emmanson (Niger Delta Fighters Network), and ‘Major-Gen.’ Inibeghe Adams (Niger Delta Freedom Mandate). “A coalition of the Niger Delta militants met today in Port Harcourt to review the r...

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has said Nigerians are desperate to know more about his regime. Jonathan was speaking in reaction to a new book by his former aide, Reno Omokri. Omokri captured important events in the last administration in ‘Facts versus fiction: The true story of the Jonathan years, Chibok, 2015 and the conspiracies’. The book is already an Amazon bestseller. In a Facebook post on Sunday, Jonathan said the book has emerged a bestseller on the global platform because “Nigerians are hungry for the truth”. “In a mere 24 hours, a book on my administration, Facts Versus Fiction: The True Story of the Jonathan Years, Chibok, 2015 and the Conspiracies, became a worldwide #9 bestseller and the #1 trending topic in Lagos, Abuja and the entire nation of Nigeria,” he wrote.

President Muhammadu Buhari will not return to Nigeria from his medical leave in the UK anytime soon, according to Reuters Africa. Presidency sources initially said their principal will return last Saturday, but that was not the case. The report claims Buhari’s doctors have to carry out a test on him on Monday and the results will determine when he will return to Nigeria. His wife, Aisha, travelled to the UK on May 30 to see the President, who has been out of the country since May 7 for further medical check-ups. “My husband is recovering fast. And very soon, he will return to the country to resume his official duties,” she said on arrival. Credit: Daily Post

…Declares June 12 as public holiday  The Ekiti State Governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose, has described the ultimatum given to Igbos living in the North as a recipe for anarchy, calling on the Federal Government to put those behind the pronouncement in check. Ayodele Fayose ‎According to him, the statements credited to some elements in the North has not only put the unity of the country in total jeopardy but a clear indication that Nigeria is no longer one. Fayose said this while reacting to a quit notice served on the Igbo in the north by the Coalition of Northern Groups, and which was recently backed by some northern elders, including a former Vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Prof. Ango Abdullahi. ‎”The gap has widened beyond measure because of the body language of President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration. We are more divided than ever. The elements are emboldened because they believe their person is in office and nothing would happen. “This is not sur...

A Pan Yoruba group, O’odua Nationalist Coalition, (ONAC) has called on Yoruba people to prepare for their own sovereign nation, “Oodua” Republic, following the lingering agitation for the breakup of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It will be recalled that a Coalition of Northern Youth Groups, last Tuesday, at a press conference, warned the Igbo to leave the North within three months. In response to the warning, Indigenous People of Biafra (IPoB), one of the groups spearheading the agitation for the separation of the South-East from Nigeria, has asked Igbo and other southerners resident in the North to start packing to leave the region A statement issued by a Yoruba group at the weekend and signed by Oluwole Suleimann, Michael Popoola, and Mrs. Aduke Fadahunsi, and made available to Vanguard, stressed the need for the creation of Yoruba sovereign nation, Oduduwa Republic. The group stressed that it became necessary in the face of the lingering problems and co...