Gist Arena

Kaduna state Governor Nasir El Rufai announced yesterday through a press statement that he has sacked 20 permanent secretaries from Kaduna State civil service and has appointed new officials to fill some positions in his government. “In line with its resolve to cut the cost of running government, the Kaduna State Government has announced the retirement of 20 permanent secretaries. This decision follows the streamlining of ministries in the state from 19 to a leaner 13, as part of efforts to free up resources to be used for providing schools, hospitals, roads and other public goods.   The government, which had at inception declared its determination to cut costs, drive efficiency and improve service delivery, is continuing the restructuring of its agencies. To ensure that the number of permanent secretaries is properly aligned with the new structure, there will be only 13 permanent secretaries for the 13 ministries." the statement read

The publisher of Ovation magazine met with President Buhari today. Another photo BELOW

The governor took to his twitter handle to congratulate the new Chief of Defence staff, Maj Gen Abayomi G. Olonishakin pictured above and also thank President Buhari for appointing an Ekiti state indigene as the new CDS. See his tweets BELOW Read from bottom up...

An Ogun State High Court in Abeokuta has sentenced a 26-year-old houseboy, David Idah, to death for the murder of a retired Senior Magistrate, Mrs Olufunmilayo Timeyin. Justice Abiodun Akinyemi on Wednesday sentenced the accused, who hails from Benue State and worked as a domestic aide for the late senior magistrate, to death by hanging. The convict had on March 28, 2014, killed the 65-year-old Timeyin at her residence in Laderin Housing Estate, Abeokuta, by hacking her with machete  before slaughtering her about 3pm. Idah had been sacked by Timeyin after he was caught stealing. He, however, returned to the house, scaled the fence before killing the retired magistrate. The convict was arraigned on April 4, 2014, in Abeokuta Chief Magistrates’ Court on  one count of unlawful killing. The offence contravened Sections 316 and 319 of the Criminal Code Laws of Ogun State, 2006. Punch

Student-athlete, Oluwatoni Onikeku, 20, a student of the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, died on Sunday July 12th while swimming with friends in the Deerfield River in Deerfield, Massachusetts.   Toni, who was an active member of the campus community, was a high jumper and sprinter for the track and field team, the River Hawks, at the university, where he earned several medals. His family left Nigeria when Toni was 7 and have been living in Fitchburg for 13 years. He has been described as a well liked teammate, outstanding athlete, strong student, and an active member of Student-Athlete Advisory Council. May his soul resr in peace...  This was his last instagram post. Same day he died. May his soul rest in peace, amen.

Lagos State Police Command has arrested a suspected member of a two-man robbery gang, who specialize in drugging victims before dispossessing them of cash and valuables. The suspect, Ifeanyi Chizoba, confessed to have used the means on over 100 victims, including commercial sex workers and traders. He had reportedly gone to a shop in Festac town, weekend, in the company of his gang member, one Aloysius. He was said to have blown a powdery substance wrapped in a handkerchief into the air, which put the shop owner to sleep. Thereafter, they reportedly made for where the safe was and looted it. But as they made to carry one of the machines in the shop, the shop owner woke up and raised alarm, which attracted residents. Aloysius managed to escape, leaving Chizoba at the mercy of a mob that almost lynched him, but for the timely arrival of a team of policemen from Festac Division, led by the Divisional Police Officer, Mr. Ifeanyin Owo. The 29-year-old Anambr...

Barely 48 hours after they attacked Mainok town in Borno state, which left over 30 persons dead and most part of the village burnt, Boko Haram terrorists on Wednesday returned to attack villagers returning to count their losses. Commuting along the Maiduguri-Damaturu highway was halted again for the fourth ‎time in a week, as security operatives battle to prevent Eidel Fitri holiday travelers from driving into an ambush by the insurgents. Villagers reported 15 persons killed on Tuesday night as Boko Haram fighters carried on days of attacks on the only safe route linking other parts of the country with Maiduguri, the birth place of the Boko Haram insurgency. Warsala, a village located on the boundary between Borno and Yobe states, in northeast Nigeria, was the latest community along the Kano-Maiduguri highway, that is being attacked by Boko Haram extremists. The agrarian community is not more than 5km from Ngamdu, another village along the highway that buried 10 persons...

While hosting the Prelate of the Anglican Communion of Nigeria, Archbishop Nicholas Okoh, in Makurdi yesterday, Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State asked homosexuals to stay away from the state, warning that his administration would not spare anyone caught practicing it in the state. “Gay lifestyle is alien to the customs, lifestyles, and the belief of Africans and the church, even though it is being promoted in the Western world. I sincerely pray that a revival would spring from Benue State and produce evangelists that would drive evangelization in Africa and the Western world because the personal knowledge of the Lord Jesus is the solution to the decadence sweeping across many nations today.” Ortom said (Vanguard)

27 year old Nigerian man, Tosin Olasemo has been sentenced to 4 and a half years in prison by a UK court after he was found guilty of using the photo of a US soldier fighting in Afghanistan to dupe two white women he met on a dating site of £250,000. Tosin, who lives in Cardiff, UK, set up a profile on match.com using the photo of an unidentified US soldier in uniform, to trick his victims into believing he was serving in Afghanistan. He called himself Captain Morgan Travis to his first victim, and Michael Travis to his second victim and claimed to be based at Camp Joyce but he was actually living in Moira Street in the Adamsdown area of Cardiff. During online conversations with his first victim, 47-year-old widow Tine Jorgensen, Tosin could see her via her webcam but he refused to show his own face, saying he was not allowed to show his own face because of security issues in Afghanistan, an explanation which looked genuine and acceptable. Tosin then demanded various...

IN demonstration of his readiness to do closer business with Nigeria, United States President Barrack Obama will be breaking his administration’s tradition when President Muhammadu Buhari arrives in Washington D.C. on a state visit on Monday next week. The American leader will host President Buhari as his personal guest at the Blair House, right opposite the White House. When President Muhammadu Buhari arrives in the United States of America on Monday next week, he will be hosted at the Blair House, the official guest house of the American President, the Daily Times has learnt. This is in clear departure from the American government’s attitude to visiting Heads of State, particularly Nigerian leaders. It is also in demonstration of US President Barrack Obama’s admiration of President Buhari and to support the Nigerian leader’s acclaimed frugal lifestyle and disdain for ostentatious lifestyle. The decision to host President Buhari in the official Guest Hous...

Former President Goodluck Jonathan, who has been holidaying outside the country has dashed into Abuja to launch a protest against Buhari’s plan to probe the $2.1 billion said o have been deducted from the Excess Crude Account. Former Minister of Finance, Okonjo-Iweala had admitted last week the former president ordered her to withdraw $2.1bn from the Excess Crude Account (ECA), to “pay” fuel subsidy. This was despite her initial denial of the withdrawal of such fund without the approval of the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC). But while President Buhari is said to have concluded plans to probe into the fund, Jonathan, according to a source who pleaded not to be named “because of the sensitivity of the matter” is disturbed by the determination of the president to initiate the probe. Jonathan is said to be planning a protest to the Gen. Abubakar Abdulsalami National Peace Committee for 2015 General Elections that: •the Buhari administration is trying t...

Borno State governor, Kashim Shettima, yesterday revealed that a family member of the newly appointed National Security Adviser (NSA) Maj.-Gen. Babagana Monguno, is being held by Boko Haram insurgents. Munguno was one of the appointments made by President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday to replace Col. Sambo Dasuki. To Shettima, the change of guards at the military hierarchy has offered a unique opportunity to defeat Boko Haram. Reacting to the appointment of Gen. Monguno and Maj-Gen Tukur Buratai as the NSA and the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), the governor said Nigeria cannot afford to lose the anti-Boko Haram battle with the new appointments. Shettima, who described the appointment of the duo of Gen. Monguno and Gen. Buratai as “one of the happiest moments in his lifetime”, said: “The fight to overcome insurgents ‘is now or never’ because with the duo, Nigeria now has the best of chances to overcome the challenges of insurgency facing it since 2009.” The gover...

The Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Umuahia has dismissed the Petition filed by the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last election, Chinenye Nyerere Anyim against the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party and governor of Abia state, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu for negligence in prosecution on the part of the petitioners. Counsels to the respondents to the petition including Okezie Ikpeazu , the PDP and Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had told the tribunal that neither the petitioner nor their counsels were in court even as there was no letter from either explaining their absence. Citing relevant provisions of the electoral act, Livy Uzoukwu, the INEC counsel prayed the tribunal to apply the mandatory provisions of the relevant section of the law which he said mandated the tribunal to dismiss the petition because the petitioners failed to appear for the matter. In his contribution, counsel to PDP, Henry Balogu...

According to a report by  Vanguard , FG confirmed yesterday that they have succeeded in jamming the transmission signals of Radio Biafra, which they say have been operating illegally from an unknown location. Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Information, Yemi Folasade-Esan, told State House correspondents "Right now, the signals from Radio Biafra have been jammed. The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has successfully jammed that. The NBC is also working with security operatives to get those behind that radio because it is an illegal radio. It is not licensed by anybody to be on Nigeria’s airwaves."

Indications emerged yesterday in Abuja, that President Muhammadu Buhari’s forthcoming trip to the United States of America for extensive bilateral, economic and financial discussions with President Barrack Obama and the need to answer certain questions about the terrorism challenges as well as Nigeria’s military capability to tackle the menace conclusively, necessitated the sack of the service chiefs. Very reliable security sources, told Vanguard that the Buhari administration got wind of the fact that the Obama administration will want to know why after so much money was devoted to the war on insurgency, including foreign contributions, the Boko Haram terrorists were still holding sway. “America will ask President Buhari why the Military Commanders (Sacked Service Chiefs) were still in place, when after several months of being in control and getting huge financial support from the Jonathan administration, Boko Haram is still biting hard. “They will present Buhari...

President Buhari says he was scared of contesting in the 2015 presidential election after his failures in past elections. He said this while addressing APC leaders during the breaking of the Ramadan fast at the presidential villa yesterday July 14th "No matter the level you are, drop your influence so that we can help achieve the manifesto – security, economy, employment and corruption- because if we don’t kill corruption, corruption will kill Nigeria. We have to ensure that people we bring forward are those that will move the society forward.   I always like to go down the memory lane to show how lucky we are as a political group. At no stage was the decision taken by chance, it was all deliberate. The leaders of the parties felt the only way to wrest power from the PDP was for us to come together. I, in particular, was scared after previous failures of the elections of 2003, 2007 and 2011. We dissolved our various parties to form APC, then we applied to INEC, ...

Yesterday NBC came out to say they have been able to jam signals from Radio Biafra which tuned out to be a false claim, Abike Dabiri took to her twitter handle to caution NBC to quit deception and do the needful 

He signed the contract moments ago. Congrats to him. More photos below