Sahara Reporters Latest News Thursday 11th July 2019
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 11/07/19
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target=_blank>Nigeria Beat South Africa To Reach AFCON 2019 Semi-finals
William Troost-Ekong scored a dramatic late winner to send Nigeria into the Africa Cup of Nations semi-final at the expense of South Africa.
Samuel Chukwueze hit the opener as he controlled Alex Iwobi’s cross, before scoring at the second attempt.
Bongani Zungu equalised with a header initially ruled out for offside before VAR replays showed a free-kick hit a Nigerian player on the way to him.
But Udinese’s Troost-Ekong bundled home from close range late on to win it.
His finish was into an empty net after goalkeeper Ronwen Williams totally missed Moses Simon’s corner.
Nigeria face Ivory Coast or Algeria in Sunday’s second semi-final (20:00 BST).
The Super Eagles were deserved winners and led through Villarreal youngster Chukwueze’s first goal for his country. They should have been ahead by more when Williams pushed Peter Etebo’s free-kick onto the bar.
Zungu’s goal was the first in the Africa Cup of Nations given by the VAR, which has just been introduced for the quarter-finals. It looked offside initially but Percy Tau’s free-kick hit Nigeria’s Odion Ighalo on the way on to Amiens midfielder Zungu’s head.
The game looked set for extra time before Williams flapped at a cross to leave Troost-Ekong with a simple finish, BBC reports.
Senegal, who beat Benin 1-0 earlier on Wednesday, play either Madagascar or Tunisia in the other semi-final.
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target=_blank>Life Expectancy Of Nigerians To Fall Below 45 Years By 2030 Says Former Gubernatorial Candidate
Anietie Ukpong
Anietie Ukpong
The life expectancy or how long an average Nigerian is expected to live is expected to fall below 45 years within the next decade (2030).
The national leader and founder of Change Nigeria Party (CNP) and a former Gubernatorial Candidate in Akwa Ibom State Dr. Engr. Anietie Ukpong issued the stark warning during a telephone interview in Abuja recently.
Dr. Ukpong specifically mentioned the stress induced by poverty, high blood pressure or hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol level and the indiscriminate sexual activities as a purveyor for the impending drastic decline in life expectancy from the current 53 years.
Dr. Ukpong indicated that the continued use of fatty palm oil as opposed to cholesterol-free palm oil that is used in advanced countries is the main plaque causing factor that stiffened the blood vessel and ultimately result in cardiac infarction and arrest. He urges Nigerian investors to begin investing in the production of cholesterol free palm oil which forms the mainstay ingredient for cooking in the country.
Ukpong laments the overdependence of the population on Government and Politicians to create jobs and lift people out of poverty as a strategy that does not work and is not being used in other parts of the world.
We have a talent pool of rich Nigerians, We have talent pool of educated class, why can’t we get together, contribute money and open industries in the process hire many people. This is how it is done in the United States, China, and Europe.
He decried the sedentary lifestyle as the main culprit in the skyrocketed number of people with high blood pressure and diabetes. Majority of these victims go about their daily stressful business without even knowing the affliction only to drop dead one time. There is then the call for prayers and accusation of witchcraft being responsible.
Ukpong re-affirms his love for Nigerians especially his home state of Akwa Ibom that was recently declared the poverty capital of Nigeria. He calls on the Government to do more to attract private/group investments which could include reducing the percentage of imported manufactured goods to the state, thus freeing up the market for potential investors to step in. Necessity is the mother of invention.
He appeals to Governor Udom Emmanuel to revisit Amakpe Oil refinery and cement his legacy by breaking the ground for a new refinery. This would help assuage the poverty situation through massive job creation for the people besides the IGR that would be derived from such venture.
Dr. Ukpong on his part have so many projects amounting to over 20 million Naira under Venture Power (VP), upon completion of these project, he hoped to have demonstrated the power of grassroot contributions to the job bank that guarantees timely projects execution, fostering massive employment and lifting people out of poverty.
A stich in time saves nine. Do something or risk the increasing premature deaths at 45 years or below compared to 78 to 85 years in other countries within the next decade.
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target=_blank>Nigerian Woman Beats Security, Tries To Sneak Into US-bound Delta Flight
A Nigeria woman has been caught by security personnel of Delta Airline as she tried to sneak into the United States of America-bound plane at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos.
The woman beat all security operatives at the airport including the Aviation Security of Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria, and personnel of the Nigeria Immigration Service at the airport.
One of the security operatives told SaharaReporters that the woman evaded various security agents from the main entrance of the departure wing of the airport before she was eventually apprehended at the foot of the plane.
At the airport, there are different security points all travelers must go through before they can get to the foot of the plane for boarding.
A source at the airport said, “The passenger beat all the airport securities to the boarding gate before she was caught at the foot of the airplane. She had no visa, travelling passport and boarding pass.”
A security expert said the airport has three security checks manned by Aviation Security personnel of FAAN, NIS, State Security Service, Nigeria Customs Service and operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.
“The first check is the main entrance to the departure wing of the airport and it is being mounted by the AVSEC officers. The officers are primarily tasked with checking boarding pass and data page of the passport to ensure the holder of the boarding pass is the same person carrying the passport.
“The main gate is the first point of detecting non-travelers and imposters at the airport and restrict them to waiting areas.
“The second check is manned by personnel of SSS and the Immigration service. They are to check if the traveler has a valid visa to the country they are traveling and also profile the passenger.
“The final stage is the central search. Their major duty is to conduct body check on passenger and bags. Here, the Customs and NDLEA also supervise to check if the traveler has any embargo on him or in his luggage.”
The security expert added: “In a saner clime, it is very hard for anyone to scale through the three security checks without detection except the individual has the support of security personnel on duty at the airport.”
A visit to the airport shows that the main gate of the departure wing of the airport is always crowded with non-travellers.
One of the security personnel at the main gate lamented that the overcrowding of the security gate poses a problem for officers on duty, giving them hard time to control the crowds.
The security personnel also said there were shops at the entrance of the main gate where travellers and those seeing them off wait.
Delta Airline representative confirmed the incident to SaharaReporters stating that the security of the airline was not compromised and remains effective.
“This was not a threat as the imposter was effectively detected due to the water tight security of the airline,” it said.
It was gathered that the woman is currently being confined to a restricted area within the airport known as “tango city”.
Tango city is a place where unruly persons are detained within the terminal before being transferred to a police station for further a possible interrogation.
“The woman is still with us at the tango city. She has availed to us some useful information we would use in contacting her family,” a security source confirmed to SaharaReporters.
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Air Pilots “Flying Blind” In Nigeria’s Airspace 200 Miles From Any Airport
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target=_blank>President Buhari Seeks Approval Of 15 Special Advisers
President Muhammadu Buhari has submitted names of 15 individuals to be appointed as his special advisers in his second term.
The President sent the names to the Nigerian Senate today for confirmation and subsequent appointment.
Charles Akpan, Deputy Director, Office of Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters said the President cited, “Section 151 of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended which confers on him the power to appoint Special Advisers to assist him in the performance of his functions, the President requested the kind consideration of the distinguished Senators to appoint 15 special advisers”.
President Buhari’s letter would be read tomorrow (Thursday) at plenary.
The President had recently sent a letter to the Senate asking the legislatures to confirm the appointment of Uba Maska, Abu Galadima to the Nigerian Senate for confirmation of appointment as the Executive Commissioner of the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) and Director-General National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), respectively.
The president has yet to send a list of his ministerial nominees to the Senate, weeks after being inaugurated for a second term in office.
However, at the plenary today, Ahmed Lawan, the President of the Senate said President Buhari will submit the list of ministerial nominees for the consideration and approval of the red chamber this week.
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target=_blank>Federal Lawmakers To Buhari: Obey Court Orders, Release El-Zakzaky
The House of Representatives has asked the Nigerian government to obey court orders mandating it to release Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), on bail.
According to Premium Times, the house made the call following a motion by Ndudi Elumelu, Minority Leader.
The IMN leader has been in detention since his arrest in 2015 for allegedly causing breach of peace.
IMN members had clashed with the Nigerian Army when the motor cascade of Tukur Buratai, the Cheif of Army Staff was allegedly blocked by the IMN protesters.
Not less than 347 members of the movement were killed in the clash.
The lawmakers said the IMN members who have been protesting their leader’s continued detention could wreak more havoc.
Since the December 2015 incident, El-Zakzaky and his wife, Zeenah, have been in detention; first without trial for about a year. They were eventually charged with murder for the death of a soldier during the December 2015 incident.
Despite several courts granting him bail, the government has insisted on detaining him, thereby agitating his followers to embark on several protests.
The most recent of the clashes was at the National Assembly on Tuesday where the protesters clashed with security operatives while trying to gain access to the parliament.
Two policemen were shot while several cars were damaged during the clash.
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BREAKING: Two Feared Dead As Police, Shiites Clash At National Assembly Complex
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This action prompted the motion by Elumelu in which he called on his colleagues to probe the attempted invasion of the National Assembly and ensure adequate security measures are in place at the legislative chamber.
While some of his colleagues agreed with the need for improved security, others emphasised that they should instead address “the root cause” of the protests which they identified as the continued detention of Mr El-Zakzaky.
They argued that the circumstances surrounding the matter are similar to what led to the emergence of the Boko Haram insurgent group.
Onofiok Luke (PDP, Akwa-Ibom) said it is unfortunate that while the lawmakers are empowered to make laws, the federal government is going against the rule of law in disobedience to the court orders for the release of the IMN leader.
“If the court has given an order for the release of the man, we should call on the government to release him. The discourse should not be on the invasion of the National Assembly alone,” he said.
Bamidele Salam from Osun State said El-Zakzaky’s continued detention was injustice and “injustice to one is an injustice to all”.
He added, “I want to urge the federal government to look into the matter of the leader of this movement and allow the rule of law to take its course … to ensure that Boko Haram is not replicated in Shiites movement,” he said.
“If we are able to secure the national assembly, what happens to the man and woman in the market elsewhere?“
Simon Davou (Plateau, PDP) said rather than detain El-Zakzaky against court orders, the government should release him “and ensure surveillance, with enough security operatives to monitor his activities”.
Last year, Lai Mohammed, former minister of information, in defence of the Islamic leader’s continued detention said that no one wanted to accept him as a neighbour.
Dozens of other Shiites have been killed in different protests mainly in Abuja and Kaduna since the December 2015 incident.
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BREAKING NEWS: Again, Shiites Hold Massive Protest In Abuja, Say They Are Ready To Die
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The security agencies often accuse the Shiites of instigating the violence by using various weapons including petrol bombs; allegations the Shiites have denied.
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target=_blank>Issue Travel Alert Against Travelling To South Africa, Senate Tells Buhari’s Government
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa speaks to Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari (R) at the State House in Abuja, Nigeria
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa speaks to Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari (R) at the State House in Abuja, Nigeria
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The Nigerian Senate has called on the President Muhammadu Buhari administration to issue travel alerts to Nigerians travelling to South Africa in the light of several questionable killings of Nigerians living in the country.
The senate made the call on Wednesday, while asking the South African government to investigate the death of Nigerians who have been killed in questionable situation in the country, according to a Premium Times report.
Elizabeth Ndibuisi-Chukwu, the Deputy Director-General of the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN), was allegedly murdered at Emperor’s Palace Hotel and Convention Centre, South Africa on June 13 where she lodged.
She was attending the conference of the African Insurance Organisation (AIO). Initially, it was suspected that she died of cardiac arrest.
In his lead, Mr Abaribe said the insinuation that she died of cardiac arrest was proved wrong following the autopsy report released on June 20 by the South African Department of Home Affairs which indicated in a death certificate that the death was unnatural and suspected to be murder.
He said the suspicion that she could have been murdered was further confirmed in a separate document issued by the South Africa, Department of Health on June 27 where it corroborated the autopsy report and revealed that she was strangled.
“In a curious twist, the hotel allegedly was reluctant to cooperate with the law enforcement agencies to unravel the circumstances surrounding her death. This is not the first time Nigerians have died in suspicious circumstances in South Africa,” he said.
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Lawmakers who took turns to condemn the incident stressed the need for prompt investigation. Some senators also suggested that the South African Ambassador and the Nigerian Consulate be summoned for an explanation.
Ifeanyi Ubah (YPP, Anambra) urged the Senate to invite representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to explain how much investigation has been done. He also asked the Senate to send a “strongly-worded” letter to the South African government seeking details of Nigerians that have been killed in the country.
On his part, the Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, recalled that a similar issue was debated in the eight Senate and an ad-hoc committee sent to visit South Africa with a message that Nigeria as a country was tired of the killings.“We believe that the relationship between the two countries must be better. There must be respect for each other.
“South African businesses flourish more than most Nigerian businesses. South Africans are safe and are protected in Nigeria. There is no need for any South African to take the life of a Nigerian or any citizen. Nigeria is a frontline state. We deserve respect and understanding.
“Our next set of contingents in the Pan-African Parliament must ensure that this issue is brought to the fore. We don’t take the law into our hands in the word of retaliation but we should not be taken for granted. We have taken these killings for too long and we are not going to take it anymore,” he said.
The senate commended the federal government for its prompt action in seeking South Africa’s explanation of the death of Mrs Ndubuisi and urged the government not to relent in its efforts to unravel the circumstances of her unfortunate demise.
The senate also resolved to send a “high-powered delegation to the parliament of South Africa and express displeasure as well as ask their government to do something to stop the killing”.
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C2%A0-abuja-say-they-are-ready-die target=_blank>BREAKING NEWS: Again, Shiites Hold Massive Protest In Abuja, Say They Are Ready To Die
Scores of Shiites on Wednesday in Abuja made good their threat as they embarked on another protest, vowing to die for the cause of their religion.
The protesters marched from the National Human Rights Commission at Maitama through Transcorp Hilton to Gana Street chanting anti-government songs to call for the release of their spiritual leader, Ibraheem El-Zakzaky.
The mob, however, defied the presence of the armed security agents who are patrolling the city in search of the group.
The leader of the protesters, Abdullahi Musa, said the level of lead poison in the blood of El-Zakzaky as detected by the doctors was 201.7 milligrams which is abnormal and thereby posed a serious threat to his life.
“His life is in danger and there is no reason for us to go back and sit down at home. The oppressors always brutalise, oppress and instill fears in the mind of the people. We are ready to die in this cause and we have said it that we must come and they should get ready. If they like they should come and kill us,” Musa stated.
He denied allegations that members of the movement shot two policemen and vandalised 50 vehicles at the National Assembly complex.
He explained that policemen in mufti should be held responsible for the destruction.
“We have been protesting. Even yesterday the protest took more than two hours peacefully before the police attacked the protesters. So we will never surrender and we will not stop what we are doing. This is our constitutional rights. It is the right of Sheik El-zakzaky to go for medical treatment and the court has granted him freedom and they should allow him to go,” Musa noted.
FACTS ABOUT LEAD POISON
* Lead Poison: Lead is a cumulative toxicant that affects multiple body systems.
* It enters our bodies from many sources including defective glazes (pottery), drinking water, contaminated soil, airborne particulate, leaded gasoline, paint and several other sources.
* Symptoms of lead poisoning are stomach pains, constipation, diarrhea, aggressiveness, anxiousness, hyperactivity, muscle pain, weakness, weight loss, learning disabilities, convulsions and eventual death with chronic lead poisoning.
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target=_blank>Yahaya Bello Pays N22.5 Million, Picks Up Kogi Governorship Form As Civil Servants, Pensioners Lament Unpaid Salaries
Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State has purchased the APC governorship nomination and expression of interest form for the forthcoming 2019 election.
Bello is the first aspirant to pick the form after paying N22.5 million.
The form was presented to the governor by Alhaji Abubakar Kari on behalf of the national organising secretary.
Bello is said to have fallen out with stakeholders and civil servants in the state.
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He owes civil servants and pensioners many months’ arrears.
Civil servants on Tuesday staged a protest to demand the immediate payment of their salaries.
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target=_blank>Over $40 Billion In Trade Deals, Participants From 55 Countries Expected At IATF2020, Says Afreximbank President
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The organisers of the Second Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2020) expect it to surpass the achievements of the inaugural trade fair held in Cairo in 2018 by attracting 10,000 participants and generating intra-African trade and investment deals worth more than $40 billion, Prof. Benedict Oramah, President of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), has said.
Prof. Oramah was speaking on Saturday at the formal launch of IATF2020 during the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Business Forum 2019 held on the sidelines of the 12th Extraordinary Summit of African Union (AU) Heads of State in Niamey. He told guests that the trade fair, scheduled for Kigali from 1 to 7 September 2020, would attract more than 1,100 exhibitors from over 55 countries.
“Working with our esteemed partners, we will exceed the achievements of 2018,” he said, describing IATF2018 as a resounding success, not in the colourful displays exhibited, but in the showcasing of diversity of tradable goods by about 1,100 exhibitors from 45 countries and in the execution of deals worth about $32 billion.
That trade fair resulted in a Nigerian technology company winning a $100-million contract to provide technology-based solutions to the South Sudanese government; an Egyptian company winning contracts in many African countries to supply and install energy generation and distribution equipment worth close to $1 billion; Egyptian and Tunisian companies signing a $50-million partnership deal to create a joint venture for assembling home appliances; and the signing of a $3-billion energy generation project between an Egyptian company and an African government, the largest-ever intra-African project executed exclusively by African entities, including financial institutions, he noted.
“The momentum created by the maiden IATF and the historic launch of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will sustain the growth of cross-border trade and investments,” he affirmed.
Also speaking, Amb. Albert Muchanga, the AU Commissioner for Trade and Industry, said that the IATF was one of a set of activities planned by the African Union Commission to support implementation of the AfCFTA. The others included the African Trade Observatory, a portal for real-time information on business opportunities.
Soraya Hakuziyaremye, Minister of Trade and Industry of Rwanda, said that it was important for the African private sector to take advantage of IATF2020 to present and exchange their products and for entrepreneurs to use it to boost their visibility.
The Second Intra-Africa Trade Fair (IATF2020), which will take place in Kigali from 1-7 September 2020, is expected to attract more than 1,100 exhibitors from 55 countries and to provide a platform for sharing trade, investment and market information. It will enable buyers and sellers, investors and countries to meet, discuss and conclude business deals as well as provide an opportunity for exhibitors to showcase their goods and services and to engage in business-to-business exchanges.
The key features include an IATF2020 Conference, a Creative Africa initiative, which will showcase Africa’s creative economy, Country Days dedicated to specific African countries, and an interactive online Virtual Trade Fair.
IATF2020 is being organized by Afreximbank, in collaboration with the African Union, and is hosted by the Government of Rwanda.
The event partners are the African Development Bank, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa represented by the Africa Trade Policy Centre; Afrochampions Initiative; Pan African Chamber of Commerce and Industry; World Trade Centre Miami; Export Development Authority of Egypt; and International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation.
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Osinbajo, Malami’s Stance on Special Investigation Panel Not In Public Interest – HEDA Boss
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Olanrewaju Suraju, Chairman Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA), says the directives by the offices of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and Abubakar Malami, Attorney General of the Federation, regarding the Special Presidential Investigation Panel on the Recovery of Public Property (SPIP), are against public interest.
Since Osinbajo set up the panel during his stint as acting president in August 2017, the VP has sent at list three letters in response to petitions which his office and that of the AGF have received.
These appeals have bordered on the power of the panel to carryout arrests and investigate cases not authorised by the presidency.
On the sideline of a press breifing to increase attention on SPIP’s latest discovery, Suraju told SaharaReporters that it appeared there were internal contradictions which the presidency will need to resolve.
“I don’t believe that such directive from the office of the Vice-President and the Attorney General, can be seen in the public interest. I think there must be some measure of internal contradictions that need to be resolved by the government. As far as it is seen, the panel is still working in the public interest until we see otherwise,” Suraju maintained.
The contention of the two government officials and the SPIP, which is headed by Okoi Obono-Obla, is Section 1 (1) of the Recovery of Public Property Act 2004.
The section confers the right of the presidency to determine what cases SPIP goes after. The correspondence convened by both officials to SPIP, directed the agency to put the breaks on its investigations pending clear directives to do so.
Suraju said, “It can get a generic or blanket fiat from the president to say, ‘go ahead and recover public properties that are in private hands in whatever guise.’ Once the president gives a singular directive or fiat to the effect that It has authorised the SPIP to go after the recovery of public assets, I doubt if the president will give individual fiat for every action that will be taken.”
He added that the body could not act on the whims and caprices of the Presidency
The briefing was on the opening of an investigation into the finances and assets of the entire management team of the Petroleum Equalisation Fund Management Board (PEF-MB).
Goddy Nnadi, the board’s General Manager Corporate Services, is said to have been taken into custody last Monday.
Nnadi was accused of operating a hotel— Greatwood, in Oweri, the Imo State capital, in breach of public service rules.
A total of 49 companies are said to be paying monies into accounts operated by him. The official, who has been in agency since 1998, is also said to have received up to N2 billion through the 49 companies.
When contacted, Nnadi stated that the case was under investigation at the office and he could only speak when investigations have been concluded.
Nnadi, who said he was on a training at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, in Plateau state, claimed that politicking had been at play since his absence.
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