Gist Arena

W elcome to a new Legislative Day in the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Senate President, Bukola Saraki took the official Prayer and led the Chambers into today’s proceedings at 11:03am. Senator Rabiu Kwankwanzo moved for the approval of votes and proceedings of Wednesday, 25th of October 2017, Senator Osinakachukwu Ideozu seconded. PETITIONS 1. Senator Nelson Effiong raised a Petition from his constituency for compensation as a form of host community entitlement. Senate President, Bukola Saraki referred the Petition to the Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions to report back in 2weeks. CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS 1. Report of the Joint Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters and Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes by Senator Chukwuka Utazi (Enugu North). -That the Senate do consider the report of the Joint Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters and Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes on the Pr...

T he EFCC, Kaduna Zonal Office, today, Thursday, 26th October, 2017 arraigned one Hussaini Baba before Justice S.M Shuaibu of the Federal High Court Kaduna on a one count charge bordering on currency counterfeiting.  Hussaini Baba, 65, farmer and a native of Jahun Local Government Area Jigawa State, was referred to the EFCC from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, Kaduna, where operatives of the Corps arrested him while on surveillance duty around Rigachikun Area, Kaduna North.  He was in possession of fresh crispy 303 pieces of five hundred and 32 pieces of one thousand naira notes, totalling One Hundred and Eighty Three Thousand Five hundred Naira (N183, 500) only suspected to be counterfeited Nigerian currency.  Investigation into the case further revealed that the accused, Hussaini has been involved in this crime for sometime as he stated that he usually sells a bundle of fake currencies for about fifteen thousand naira to unsuspecting...

A ccording to the Finance Minister, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, who made this known, that the Federal Executive Council approved a tax relief scheme to attract private sector involvement in the provision of Federal road infrastructure across the entire country. The approval was the outcome of a Memorandum for the setting up of a Road Trust Fund (RTF) that she presented to the council at our Meeting today. The Road Trust Fund concept was jointly developed by the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing. The RTF will mobilise significant capital into road construction, unlocking socio-economic development as well as facilitating investment and inclusive economic growth across all parts of Nigeria. CONCEPT NOTE / FAQS ON THE ROAD TRUST FUND 1. What is the Road Trust Fund? The Road Trust Fund (RTF) is being set up to facilitate and incentivise private sector involvement in the provision of Nigeria’s Federal road infrastructure...

F reeze's ex-wife has commented on the back and forth between her former husband and singer Timi Dakolo. Opeyemi Olarinde sent a comment to Timi Dakolo, telling the singer to ignore her ex-husband. "Kindly ignore the myopic man....I was married to him for few years. I will reveal all that transpired soon." ." Freeze and Timi Dakolo have been involved in an Instagram back and forth for some days now. The singer had disagreed when the OAP's idea about the union between a husband and wife which he feels should be a lifetime commitment but the OAP felt insulted by his comment.

T he National Assembly on Tuesday, granted full financial and administrative autonomy to all the 774 local council authorities across Nigeria by amending section 124 of the nation’s constitution. The section provides a consequential provision for the making of the local councils, a full third tier government without undue interference from the state governments. The ammendment was one of the 22 others approved by the House of Representatives last week and ratified by the Senate on Tuesday. Both chambers had through a conference committee harmonised versions of the ammendments into the constitution carried out by each of them last month. By the development, the National Assembly had ratified all the 23 clauses and sections that had been ammended by both chambers. The newly ammended document which would be sent to States Houses of Assembly, for approval, also approved the creation of the Office of Auditor – General of the Local Government as well as the Stat...

F ormer Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode on Thursday reacted to claim by the Presidency that ex-President Goodluck Jonathan’s loyalists were responsible for the reinstatement of embattled ex-Chairman of the defunct Presidential Task Force on Pension Reforms, Abdulrasheed Maina, into the Federal civil service. Fani-Kayode described the statement credited to President Muhammadu Buhari’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu as “asinine and childish.” The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chieftain also faulted the decision of the Buhari-led government to borrow $5.5m to service debt by Jonathan. In a tweet via his twitter handle, Fani-Kayode wrote: “The assertion that @GEJonathan’s loyalists influenced the return of Maina to Nigeria and that the reason that @MBuhari needs to borrow $5.5 million USD is to service @GEJonathan’s debts are asinine and childish. @GarShehu and @HMKemiAdeosun are almost as bad as Liar Muhammed.” Shehu had on Wedn...

A former President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Ayo Salami has reportedly rejected his appointment as the Chairman of the Corruption and Financial Crime Cases Trial Monitoring Committee, COTRIMCO, based on principle and conscience. According to the Nation Newspaper, Salami is convinced that the committee may not work as “efficiently expected” because of the businesses of some members. He was named the chair of COTRIMCO, which was set up by the National Judicial Council, NJC, on September 27 by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen. His appointment was based on the decision of the NJC at its 82nd meeting in Abuja and the Justice is said to be uncomfortable with the composition of the 15-man committee. The panel is said to include some members who had been implicated in some conflicting challenges between the bench and the bar. Although, Salami was out of the country when he was appointed, he sought audience with the CJN upon his return. ...

P resident Muhammadu Buhari’s aides on Wednesday engaged loyalists of former President Goodluck Jonathan in fierce war of words over who was responsible for the reinstatement of the wanted ex-chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Pension Reforms, Abdulrasheed Maina, into the Ministry of Interior Affairs. The argument raged even as the family of the embattled Maina, also on Wednesday, said the ex-pension boss was never a fraudster but a messiah whose efforts had put smiles on the faces of pensioners in the FCT and other parts of the country. Maina, who was declared wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over alleged N2bn fraud, appeared in the country last month and was reinstated into the civil service with promotion. But following the public outcry against the reinstatement, Buhari on Monday ordered the termination of Maina’s appointment; and on Tuesday, the operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission sealed off some of his ho...

T he lawmaker representing the Bauchi Central Senatorial District, Isa Misau, on Wednesday open a can of worms on the crisis between him and the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, saying the IG gave two Sports Utility Vehicles to the wife of the President, Aisha Buhari. Misau made more allegations when he appeared before the Senate Ad Hoc Committee on Investigation of Various Allegations Levelled Against the Police, the Inspector General of Police and the Police Service Commission. According to Misau, details of how Idris gave Mrs. Buhari the two SUV were contained in the documents the police boss submitted to court in the suit instituted against him by the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Mr. Abubakar Malami, on behalf of the Federal Government. He said, “I still have some contract papers that the IG himself submitted to the court, where the First Lady through her aide-de-camp requested a Toyota Hiace and a Sienna jeep. The sa...

U nlike you, I haven’t waited all my life to respond to you, why should I? Who are you and where’s the sense in what you write or what you stand for? You are a product of this same shallow doctrine yourself, the churches you perform at, where do you think they get the money to pay from? You speak about marriage, how long you been married for? What do you know? You say I don’t have the right to comment on marriage, who gave you the license to comment? I was married for ten whole years, you dingbat! If I can’t comment on marriage, WHO CAN? You call my teachings ‘demonic’, why don’t you back yours up with the Bible? My demonic teachings have full biblical support, how would you know? Do you read your bible? You follow pastors like sheep up and down, is it now paining you that they could be giving more gigs to younger artists, and you are now crying on the internet? Do you think I’m so stupid as not to know what that forlorn dirge you pasted on the internet ab...