Sahara Reporters Latest News Sunday 10th November 2019

Sahara Reporters Latest News Sunday 10th November 2019

Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 10/11/19

Sound Of Gunshots Disrupt Court Proceeding In Imo

Sound of gunshots and fear of being attacked led to the end of a court proceeding in Imo State on Friday.
Judges, lawyers, other court officials and everyone in the court premises all fled for safety to avoid being victims of gunshot.
While it was said that robbers were operating in a nearby bank, the police dispelled the claim as rumor, saying its men were responsible for the shooting.
Police spokesperson, Orlando Ikeokwu, on Saturday told our correspondent that they had responded to an intelligence report that some men were laying siege to a bank in the area to rob it.
He said, “Gunmen didn’t disrupt any court proceeding in Isiala Mbano.
“What happened was that the police got intelligence that three hefty men in a car parked near a bank in Umuelemai were waiting to rob the place.
“Policemen responded, cordoned off the area and arrested the men.
“It was in the process that people who were in a court near the scene ran away, apparently thinking that gunmen were attacking the bank.”

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E2%80%99s-election-victory Appeal Court Upholds Sanwo-Olu’s Election Victory

The Court of Appeal in Lagos has affirmed Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s election victory as governor of Lagos State by dismissing an appeal filed by the Labour Party and its candidate, Ifagbemi Awamaridi.
The Governorship Election Petition Tribunal had ruled in favour of Sanwo-Olu but unsatisfied with the ruling, Awamaridi proceeded to the appellate court.
He had claimed that Sanwo-Olu was not qualified to contest the election and that he also did not win the March 2019 election.
The Court of Appeal in a unanimous decision, held that the appeal lodged by Labour Party lacked merit.
The five-man panel held that the complainant failed to provide any evidence through witnesses and other channels to substantiate the position that Sanwo-Olu did not win the governorship election.
Reading the decision of the court, Justice Hannatu Sankey specifically affirmed the decisions reached by the tribunal, adding that the petitioner went on a “Columbian journey of making assertions with nothing to back it up.
“The appeal is lacking in merit and is hereby dismissed.
“I hereby uphold the judgment of the Lagos State Election Petition Tribunal.”

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Activists Commence Sit-out At DSS HQ Over Agency’s Refusal To Release Sowore, Mandate

Human rights activists on Saturday commenced a sit-out at the headquarters of Department of State Services in Abuja over the agency’s refusal to release Omoyele Sowore and Olawale Bakare.
The protesters, who were at the facility on Saturday morning to receive the activists, were denied access alongside one of Sowore’s lawyers, Marshal Abubakar, and some members of his family.
One of the coordinators of the sit-out, Lanre Legacy, described the action of DSS in flouting court orders and holding Sowore further as an invitation to anarchy.
He said, “It means we don’t have a country that is working because the government has failed to respect itself its own institution.
“That is anarchy, we are in the jungle.
“We are calling on the government to respect the rule of law.”
On his own, Convener of Concerned Nigerians, Deji Adeyanju, called on President Muhammadu Buhari to order the Director-General of the DSS to release Sowore in the interest of justice.
According to him, “We have spoken to some senior staff of the service but they are telling us that they are not around in the office.
“We know that is another plot to keep Sowore unlawfully beyond the time specified by the court.”
Adeyanju said the group would continue to carry out and sustain the sit-out on daily basis until Sowore was released.

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Ondo Governor Returns To State After 52 Days Away

Governor Rotimi Akeredolu

Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo has returned to the state after 52 days away.
Akeredolu returned on Friday at about 5:30pm in company with some federal lawmakers from the state.
His return sparked wild jubilation among members of his cabinet.
The event was also broadcast live on radio and television stations owned by the state government.
Akeredolu’s long absence from the state had forced many government activities to be paralysed.
Addressing journalists at Akure Airport, Akeredolu said that he decided to stay in the nation’s capital to rest while treating all files from the state.
He said, “I am back now – stronger and more refreshed. So, certainly I should be able to do better work for the people.
“I have been in Abuja because I needed to re-appraise and do my work.
“And at least, I have treated most of your (Ondo State) files in Abuja.
“I am here to serve the people of Ondo State with full vigour and that is all I would say.”

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E2%80%99-expectations-tick-2020-tokyo-olympics-approaches SPONSORED POST: Stakeholders’ Expectations Tick As 2020 Tokyo Olympics Approaches

As the 2020 Tokyo Olympics approaches, Tiger Woods, as reported by Reuters, is planning to add another golden chapter to his legendary career as he targets great victories in the Tokyo Olympics.
It was in 2016 that Golf returned to the Olympics Games after a 112-year absence but Woods, who dominated golf sport in the first decade of the 21st century, missed its return through injury.
For him, making the Olympic team is a big goal, the 15-time Major winner told Reuters in an emailed interview.
“I don’t see myself having too many opportunities other than next year.
“Four years from now, at the next Olympic Games, I’ll be 48-years-old. To be one of the top Americans at that age is going to be tough.
“I went to my first Olympic Games when it was in Los Angeles (1984). So now to have the opportunity to be a part of the Olympics, because golf in my lifetime wasn’t a part of the Olympics, is an important aspect for us and the growth of the game.
“The game has become so global, and so reaching, that I think the Olympic Games is a great extension of that and I’d like to be a part of it.”
Tiger Woods will get a taste of golf-crazy Japan when he competes in ‘The Challenge: Japan Skins’ on October 21.
Woods will take part in a high-stakes challenge at the Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club in Chiba alongside Rory McIlroy, Jason Day and Hideki Matsuyama.
The extravaganza, which will in part be floodlit, is being televised globally by GOLFTV and will be played under the ‘skins’ format.
The format, designed to encourage aggressive play from start to finish, forces players to win a hole outright to take a “skin” with tied holes resulting in a “push” of the skin to the next hole.
Woods, who won the Masters earlier this year to end an 11-year wait for his 15th Major, says he is thrilled to be back at the top of the sport after injuries caused four back surgeries between 2014 and 2017.
“To be able to have played the last couple of years after where I was (with injury) and to have two wins in my last two years – I definitely would not have foreseen that at the time, pre-surgery.
“So I’m just excited and ecstatic to be able to participate in golf at this level again. I missed it. I missed competing against these guys.
“The interesting thing about now is that when I was out, there was a whole generation of guys that I didn’t compete against.
“Whether it was Jordan (Spieth), JT (Justin Thomas), Bryson (Dechambeau) or Patrick (Reed) these guys were just coming out and I missed that.
“Now they’re established and I’m coming back into the game, so it’s been fun to compete against those guys, not to mention some of the older guys.”
Most of the Nigerian Olympic spectating youths, who use mobile betting services offered by NetBet Nigeria believe that if he is to realise his Olympic dreams, it seems likely Woods will be competing against players from this new generation to earn a spot in Tokyo.
In the same vein, on October 14, Roger Federer confirmed his participation in next year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo and said on Monday that he had listened to his heart before making the decision.
“At the end of the day, my heart decided I would love to play the Olympic Games again,” Federer told reporters during a promotional event for his sponsor, Uniqlo, in Tokyo.
“I’ve been debating with my team for a few weeks now, months, what I should do in the summer after Wimbledon and before the US Open (in 2020),” Federer, who will turn 39 during the Games, added.
“I carried the flag twice for Switzerland in Athens and Beijing. I’ve got a gold and a silver, and I would love to play again. So, I’m very excited.”
The Swiss, 38-year-old, competed in the first of four Olympic Games at Sydney in 2000 and won the doubles gold partnering Stan Wawrinka in 2008 and a silver in singles in 2012.
He missed the 2016 Olympics due to a knee injury.
Federer will attempt to win a singles gold medal at the July 24 to August 9 Games, the only major prize the 20-times Grand Slam winner has yet to win.

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E2%80%93expert Fuel Supply Ban: Government Should Address Fundamental Issues –Expert

Deputy Managing Director of Afrinvest West Africa, Victor Ndukauba, has advised the Nigerian Government and Nigeria Customs Service to address the fundamental issue of fuel price differential.
Ndukauba gave this advice while speaking with SaharaReporters on Friday in reaction to the recent announcement made by the Director-General of NCS, Hameed Ali, ordering the stoppage of supply of petroleum products to communities within 20kilometers to the nation’s international borders.
Ndukauba described the move by the customs DG as “a very strange way to fight the problem.”
He said, “Government should address the fundamental issue which is pricing differential.
“There is a huge price difference in the rate at which fuel is sold in Nigeria and the countries we share borders with which makes them always come into Nigeria to get fuel and smuggle it into their country.
“In Ghana, fuel is sold at N353, in Cameroon it is sold at N388, and in Benin republic N330.
“So getting the fuel in Nigeria is cheaper and that is why they come here to smuggle fuel out.
“With the price difference between Nigeria and other countries, the money the smugglers will get is enough to settle the custom officials and still have a lot, if you stop him, he is happy to pay.”
Ndukauba further said that it is almost impossible to stop the smugglers from taking out fuel as customs cannot claim to have all the borders manned.
He added, “You cannot close all routes, when you close one route, another will be open.”
He advised government to take the decisions needed as it is normal for people to complain at the initial stage.
The government had in October come up with a strategy called Operation White to track every drop of Premium Motor Spirit sold in the country.
The team of 89 persons was drawn from various agencies of government.
One of the functions of the large panel, which includes the Department of State Services, is the curbing of smuggling.
The corporation also created an automated Downstream Operations and Financial Monitoring Centre to do pretty much the same thing with the 89 persons.
The NCS has now layered this by restricting the supply of petrol to Nigerian citizens as well.

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Immigration Intercepts 16 Suspected Illegal Migrants At Lagos Airport

No fewer than 16 Nigerians suspected to be migrating to Lebanon illegally were ON Friday morning intercepted by the Nigeria Immigration Services at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
The young Nigerians, who were described as potential illegal workers in the Middle East country, were intercepted at the immigration control post at the airport while attempting to board a 10:00am flight after the airline officials had issued them boarding passes.
A reliable source in immigration, who confirmed the development to our correspondent, said, “It is true that about 16 young Nigerians who wanted to migrate illegally to Lebanon were denied departures because they didn’t have the required documents for their travelling.”
The source however, declined to make further comments on the development because he didn’t have the permission to speak on the issue.
Some of the relations of the affected passengers were seen by our correspondent lamenting their losses.
Some of them were heard making calls to some people suspected to be the agents to the would-be immigrants in Lebanon.
While many of them didn’t have return tickets and or hotel reservations, some were without required Basic Travelling Allowances.
Further investigations by SaharaReporters revealed that the insistence of the NIS to deny the illegal immigrants departures, may cause a lot of disaffections between the agents and would-be employers in Lebanon.
Recall that recently some young ladies from some ECOWAS countries, who attempted to use Nigerian airports as routes to migrate illegally to Arab countries, were intercepted and denied departures and later handed over to officials of their countries in Nigeria.

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Nigerian Airlines Lose Revenue To Bad Weather

Nigerian airlines are stacking millions of naira into the loss column of their balance sheets as a result of bad weather.
Torrential rainfalls and thunderstorm clouds have led to flight cancellations and delays.
According to airlines, this year’s rain has lasted relatively longer than past years and has been accompanied by thunderstorm and low level wind shear.
This has forced operators to suspend some flights and delay others.
The Nigeria Meteorological Agency had early in the year predicted that this year’s rains would be longer.
It predicted that the weather would be accompanied by heavy flooding and thunderstorm.
According to information gathered from economic confidential, one of the major operators had an aircraft damaged by lightening, forcing the management to ground it.
In another instance, a large body aircraft narrowly escaped damage when lightning struck at the international wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, creating a crater on the tarmac near the aircraft’s position.
Corporate Affairs Manager of Dana Air, Kingsley Ezenwa, who spoke with journalists, blamed bad weather for affecting the smooth operations of airlines in the country.
He further said that the management of the airline accurately followed weather’s idiosyncrasies to ensure the right decisions are made at any time.
He said, “Weather sometimes affects on-time-performance and as a safety conscious airline, we rely on a good weather report to fly and also ensure the passengers are comfortable and do not experience discomfort in case of meeting the bad weather en-route.
“Sometimes, flights are delayed till the weather gets better and some passengers also get agitated.
“We try our best to also enlighten them and most are beginning to understand these issues. Irrespective, our on-time performance record has been good and we hope to maintain it.”
A major operator told journalists that aircrafts are fortified against lightening but not equally.
He counselled other operators to take cognisance of peculiar issues of weather and ensure the aircraft is built with the ability to resist such natural phenomenon.
“We live in the tropical region where there is heavy lightening because we are very close to the equator.
“There is lightning and thunder resistant instrument installed in every aircraft called lightning rods and lightening arrester.
“There are about three whiskers in Bombardier CRJ 900 but we requested the manufacturer to add two more.
“Bombardier has a net of thunder arresters on its whole body, which helps it to resist lightening.
“One day, one of the Bombardier aircrafts was struck while airborne and the pilot communicated the incident but because of the fortification, nothing happened to the aircraft.
“So for us operating in the tropical zone we have to take extra measure to fortify our aircraft against lightning and thunderstorm.
“This is the advantage when you order your own aircraft some of these things can be custom made to suit your operational environment,” the operator said.
Poor weather conditions are expected to continue in November, leading up to the low visibility brought on by Harmattan at the end of December.

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EXCLUSIVE: Members Of House Of Representatives Divided Over Gbajabiamila’s Leadership Style

SaharaReporters has obtained exclusive conversations between members of the House of Representatives indicating a rift between Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, and Abdulmumin Jibrin, a member of the house.
The disagreement stems from what some members described as sycophancy around the Speaker while others in the conversation attributed it to his inability to run the lower legislative arm of Nigeria’s parliament effectively.
The warring parties called for the destabilisation of the house due to personal differences.
The internal rancour within the All Progressives Congress fold in the House of Representatives comes at a time Nigerians are criticising lawmakers for their anti-people policies and actions laced with greed.
Recall that In June 2011, SaharaReporters had exclusively reported how Gbajabiamila gave members of the House of Reps vouchers and credit cards with a view to influencing and inducing them for votes.

LEAKED CHATS: Internal Conflict Rocks Speaker Gbajabiamila’s Camp Over Mismanagement Of National Assembly by Sahara Reporters on Scribd

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Nigeria Promises West Africa Power Pool Three Projects

Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, has disclosed government’s plan to complete Zungeru and Mambilla hydropower facilities as well as the 330 kilovolt Nigeria, Niger, Benin, Togo, Burkina interconnection power network as part of its move to meet the Economic Community of West African States West African Power Pool demand.
Mamman disclosed this in Abuja while speaking at the power pool’s General Assembly.
“Several of WAPP priority projects involving Nigeria are already under implementation,” he said.
While WAPP had recognised that power consumers in Nigeria and other West African countries pay the highest for electricity supply in the world, the ECOWAS Master Plan for the Development of Regional Generation and Transmission Infrastructure has an investment requirement of about $36.4bn.
Represented by the Minister of State for Power, Goddy Jedy Agba, Mamman disclosed that procurement has started for some key projects in pursuant to preparation of the WAPP Median Backbone involving Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, and Cote d’Ivoire.
It is expected that the second transmission line from Nigeria to Benin/Togo would be ready for financing next year.
“The development of the 330 kilovolt WAPP Eastern Backbone in Nigeria that shall be from Calabar to Jogana through Kashimbila shall commence soon.
“We shall therefore, look forward to the usual solidarity and engagement with the partners in the realisation of these projects,” Mamman stated.
WAPP’s Executive Board Chairman, Usman Mohammed, who also spoke at the general assembly, said that the bloc is steadily approaching the full operationalisation of a regional electricity market within the ECOWAS sub-region that would yield socio-economic benefits and uplift the well-being of the ECOWAS citizenry.
He said the directive on the securitisation of cross-border power trade in the regional electricity market that was adopted by the ECOWAS Council of Ministers in December 2018 must be deployed to address imminent challenges.
To ensure the realisation of the body’s aspirations, Mohammed said it was critical to reinforce collaboration with financial partners in order to make certain the key underlying issues, which could affect the group are addressed.
According to him, the region must ensure the realisation of a seamless and efficient power grid, attain market functionality and the existence of the right knowhow to manage both technical as well as market-related issues.
Mohammed disclosed that the construction of the WAPP Information and Coordination Center in Benin continues to progress and its completion will fundamentally change the landscape of the electricity business within ECOWAS given that significantly more options shall be available to meet the power supply needs of the member states.
Nigeria has continued to tolerate losses from the supply of electricity to Benin, Togo and Niger republic.
It had also incurred debt from its supply of gas to several West African states on the sub-region’s gas pipeline company.

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