Nasarawa gov reduces ministries to 13

Musa yahaya

Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, has reduced the 18 ministries in the state to 13.

Sule made the announcement during a stakeholders’ meeting in Lafia.

The five affected ministries, which were scrapped and merged with re-established ones, are Special Education, Science and Technology, Higher Education, Housing and Urban Development, and Community Development and Water Resources.

The 13 remaining ministries include Education, Health, Land and Urban Development, Environment and Natural Resources, Youths and Sports Development, Justice, Finance, and Economic Planning.

Others are Local Government, Community and Chieftaincy Affairs; Women and Social Development; Works, Housing and Transport; Agriculture and Water Resources; and Trade Industries and Investment and Information, Culture and Tourism.

 

SPORTS

Reactions trail sale of Kano player for N5,000

Mixed reactions have trailed the sale of a Kano State-based player, Ibrahim Iriyos, for N5, 000.

A report had surfaced online on Tuesday, stating that the player in a division two club in the Kano FA league, was signed by Super Stars Club from Aston Villa Gano.

BBC Pidgin reports that the transfer is the most expensive in Dawakin Kudu Local Government Area, where both clubs are based.

Striker Iriyos’ goal scoring prowess was said to have attracted the management of Super Stars to him.

Though Chairman of Kano Football Association, Sharif Inuwa, said both clubs were not registered, he explained that there was no offence in selling a player for such an amount.

According to him, the amount a player could be sold or bought is negotiable among the two clubs involved in the transfer.

He said, “We don’t have any club like Super Stars or Aston Villa Gano. In Kano, we have our own rules that you should not use foreign names for clubs. We use local names for clubs.

“If the player decides to leave a club and he meets the requirement and breaches no rule, he can leave the club. The player must fulfil the law and conditions for transfer.

“The fee is negotiable between the two clubs involved. There is no offence in price. No fixed price at all. But it must be properly agreed upon among the two clubs to avoid any problem.

However, the sale of the player for N5,000 has caused division among football fans.

While some argued that monetising the transfer was a form of advancement, others said the price should have been more than N5,000.

One of the fans, Kunle Alabi, said, “That’s awesome. The passion for the game supersedes  that of money. Humble beginners become great.”

Olusegun Taiwo encouraged the player not to be embarrassed, saying, “Don’t worry, Nigerians will refer to this picture and this amount by the time you will be sold and bought for billions of dollars.”

 “At least he was purchased; many could not worth that much on a pitch. One day, Barcelona would buy you up,” Adamu Bello added.

But Olalekan Adetule disagreed with the amount the player was sold.

He said, “Whether amateur or pro, how can you sell a player for N5,000 and you calling it ‘days of little beginning’. It’s another form of slave trade – and a very cheap one.

“Nigerians would just be turning everything to a sermon of hope and prayer points rather than address the real issue.”

 “While this may be a legitimate transfer, the fee makes it look like human trafficking,” Ubani added.

 

Buhari vs Atiku: Tribunal rules today, APC, PDP confident of victory

The Presidential Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja will on Wednesday (today) deliver judgment in the case instituted by the Peoples Democratic Party and its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, challenging the outcome of the February 23, 2019 presidential election.

The petitioners asked the five-man tribunal, led by Justice Mohammed Garba, to nullify President Muhammadu Buhari’s victory at the poll and either declare them the winner or order the Independent National Electoral Commission to conduct a rerun.

A senior member of the petitioners’ legal team, Mike Ozekhome (SAN), confirmed to one of  our correspondents that the hearing notice for the judgment was served on lawyers representing the parties to the case on Tuesday.

“I can confirm to you that the judgment will be delivered 9am tomorrow (Wednesday),” he said.

Ozekhome (SAN) expressed hope that his clients’ case would succeed.

He said, “My expectation, like the majority of Nigerians and international observers, is that the petition will succeed. This is because the petitioners have proved their case. The evidence was overwhelming and it was clear to everyone that the respondents had no defence. The judiciary will be courageous and bold to deliver justice.”

We expect victory, says APC

When contacted, the APC National Publicity Secretary, Lanre Issa-Onilu, said the party was expecting victory because the PDP’s petition lacked substance.

He said, “We are expecting nothing short of victory. The PDP only helped us to prove our case beyond reasonable doubt. Their petition turned out to be a noise and lacks substance.

“We presented certificate from Cambridge and WAEC which they could not fault. They couldn’t bring anything from Cambridge and WAEC to say what we presented was fake.

“The results they submitted upon which they wanted the court to award them victory were contradictory. They simply don’t have a case.”

We are hopeful Atiku’ll be winner – PDP

The Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr Diran Odeyemi, on Tuesday said the party members were of high hopes that the tribunal would declare Atiku as the winner of the election.

Odeyemi said, “We expect the judiciary as the last hope of the common man to dispense justice more so as Atiku has proved his case beyond any reasonable doubt and declare  him the winner of the election.

NEWS

Police, Shi’ites clash in Bauchi, many injury

There was tension in Bauchi State as many scampered to safety when the Nigeria Police Force in the state clashed with members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria popularly known as Shi’ites.

The incident was said to have occurred about 10am on Tuesday at the Central Market Roundabout and Tashan Babiye area of Bauchi, the state capital.

The Police reportedly fired teargas and gunshots to disperse the protesters causing people to scamper to safety.

Most shops in the popular Central Market were shut as traders immediately closed their shops and ran for their lives.

Although there has not been any detail of deaths from the incident, eyewitnesses say that several people were injured.

An eyewitness who refused to be mentioned told PUNCH that many of the Shi’ites were arrested and by the police.

He said: “Early in the morning, the Shi’ites gathered to embark on their usual procession, but the Police blocked the road and fired teargas to disperse them.

“They (Police) also fired gunshots and many were injured. Several others were arrested and taken away in Police vehicles to the hospital. I heard that the Shi’ites also threw stones at the police,  although I didn’t witness that part, I was only told.

Another eyewitness, the Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists in Bauchi State, Alhaji Ibrahim Mallam-Goje, was also caught in the incident.

He told our Correspondent that he also suffered from the teargas that was fired by the police around Tashan Babiye around Bakin Kura area.

“Actually, I came out of my house and was on my way to the office this morning when I ran into the Members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria who were carrying out their procession.

“You know they were protesting today being the 10th day of Muharam, the new month of the Islamic Calendar. Without my knowledge that the Police were there and as I arrived there, the Police teargassed the entire area and all the people there were affected including myself, we were affected by the teargas,” he said.

Business 

FCCPC, SEC sign MoU on merger review -SINL NIGERIA

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to simplify the process of company merger.

In separate statements on Monday, both agencies said the MoU would foster “a mutually beneficial engagement and seamless operation of the mandates of both organisations.”

The MoU, according to FCCPC, came four months after the two organisations established a joint merger review desk as an interim measure to ensure continuing processing of pending and emerging transactions.

A key role of FCCPC is merger review, which was, prior to the MoU, a statutory role of SEC, it said.

Speaking at the ceremony, the Acting Director-General of SEC, Ms Mary Uduk, said the agreement would ultimately strengthen the nation’s economy.

On his part, the Chief Executive Officer of FCCPC, Mr Babatunde Irukera, said the interim arrangement had been acclaimed in the industry as exemplary of how to proffer solutions, promote confidence in the regulatory ecosystem and enable businesses.

The parties agreed to cooperate and collaborate in performing their individual duties, particularly in information sharing, consumer complaints in the capital market, investigation, enforcement and compliance, including capacity building.

 

Kalu’s Seat: Tribunal Orders Supplementary Election Within 90 Day

Umuahia (chidimma Ihenacho) – The National and State Assemblies Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Umuahia, the Abia State capital, on Monday ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to organise a supplementary election in Abia North Senatorial District within three months.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in this year’s National Assembly election, Senator Mao Ohuabunwa, had approached the tribunal, headed by Justice Akintoye Cornelius, to challenge the victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu.

The PDP candidate alleged over-voting among other contentious issues raised in the February poll.

INEC returned Kalu elected in the poll.

The supplementary election, which will be conducted within 90 days, will take place in eight wards within Arochukwu Local Government Area and among other polling units in Ohafia and Isukwuato local government areas where votes were cancelled in Abia North Senatorial District.

Kalu was declared winner of the election by the Returning Officer, Dr. Charles Anumudu.

Ohuabunwa described Kalu’s victory as excess electoral fraud and daylight robbery.

He prayed the tribunal to overturn the INEC result.

Ohuabunwa’s lawyers told the tribunal that 38,526 votes were cancelled during collation of the result declared by the Returning Officer, Dr. who declared Kalu winner by polling 31,201 votes against Ohuabunwa who polled 20,80