Gist Arena

P resident Muhammadu Buhari on Monday was all smiles as he received the National leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu in Aso Rock. See more photos below..

A bout 47 years after the Nigeria civil war ended on a ‘No victor, no vanquish’ terms, the federal government on Monday agreed to pay victims of the war N88 billion compensation for their loses. A breakdown of the compensation adopted by the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice as consent judgment for government and the victims showed that N50 billion will go direct to the victims of the war in eleven affected states in the South-east, South-south and part of North-central regions, while the remaining N38 billion will go for the evacuation of abandoned bombs and other lethal weapons and construction of schools, courts, churches and mosques among others in the affected areas. In the consent judgment read by Justice Friday Nwoke, the federal government is expected to pay the N50 billion into the United Bank of Africa, UBA, account with number 1018230076 belonging to Noel Chukwukadibia, the nominated counsel for the war victims, and another N38 billion to be paid into another

T his is according to Sahara Reporters...

I n the fight against human trafficking, NAPTIP, Benin Zonal Command have enlisted the support of chief priests in Ayelala shrines, Edo State, in order to combat the crime.  "It is no secret that one of the control mechanisms employed by traffickers over their victims is the use of voodoo and oath-taking, usually at Ayelala shrines in Edo State. This voodoo is meant to instill fear into them and keep them loyal at all costs," the command said on NAPTIP official Facebook page. "In light of the above, NAPTIP Benin Zonal Command felt the need to sensitize the priests at the shrines, with the aim of enlisting their support to stop this menace. This effort is already yielding fruits as some of the chief priests have turned to anti human trafficking ambassadors."

T he ECOWAS Court of Justice has awarded N88 billion damages against the Federal Government for its failure to clear landmines and remains of explosives after the 1966-1970 civil war in the South Eastern region. In a consent judgment delivered by Justice Chijioke Nwoke today, the court ordered the Federal Government to commence clearing and evacuation of the aftermath of the civil war within 45 days. Hundreds of landmine victims had dragged the Federal Government before the ECOWAS Court in 2012, asking for an order for the removal of remnants of war instruments stockpiled in 11 states of the South East, South South and NorthCentral. The landmine victims had alleged that the failure of the government to clear the landmines and abandoned explosives at the civil war sites amounted to negligence and a breach of their fundamental rights. The plaintiffs had claimed N100bn as compensatory and general damages from the Federal Government. The court in its ruling today granted

T he Nigerian Government has reinstated Folashade Kolawole, a retired civil servant, as Director and Acting Secretary of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) despite a court order restraining her reinstatement. The former Acting Secretary, Agom Tor Ngusha, was forced to hand over the affairs of the bureau to Mrs. Kolawole on Friday after he was put under duress with the threat of arrest through a telephone call from the Department of State Service (DSS). It was gathered that the new Acting Secretary stormed the office of the CCB at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja with police and DSS officers wielding guns and teargas canisters. When SaharaReporters visited the Bureau, several armed policemen were stationed in front of Mrs. Kolawole’s office. “Today we just saw armed policemen with guns and teargas at the office premises,” a source, who requested to remain anonymous, told SaharaReporters. “The staff cannot work because the office environment is not conducive for anyb

A Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, group in South West, on Sunday rejected the candidacy of Bode George and other aspirants vying for the party’s chairmanship stool. The group known as Oodua PDP Alliance, while expressing its support for Uche Secondus, said the geopolitical zone should seek for another position in the party because the zone was not the base of the PDP. In a statement signed by the leader of the group, Hakeem Ogunsola, who is one of the party leaders in Osun State, said it would support Secondus, who served as the chairman of the PDP National Working Committee between 2015 and 2016. Ogunsola stated, “We want to note that rebuilding the PDP and winning power back in 2019 demand a chairman with solid home base, deep experience and capacity to face the power of incumbency, we need Secondus to lead these electoral and political battles to rescue Nigeria and change the fake change. “How can you be going for chairmanship when there are better bargains t

P resident Muhammadu Buhari has studied the report of the panel headed by the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, which investigated allegations against the suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Babachir David Lawal, and the Director General, National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ambassador Ayo Oke. The President accepted the recommendation of the panel to terminate the appointment of Mr Lawal, and has appointed Mr Boss Mustapha as the new Secretary to the Government of the Federation. The appointment takes immediate effect. President Buhari also approved the recommendation to terminate the appointment of Ambassador Oke, and has further approved the setting up of a three-member panel to, among other things, look into the operational, technical and administrative structure of the Agency and make appropriate recommendations. FEMI ADESINA Special Adviser to the President (Media and Publicity) October 30, 2017

T he embattled former Chairman of the Presidential Taskforce on Pension Reforms, Abdulrasheed Maina, has finally broken his silence. Maina in a video already trending on social media, said he has not left Nigeria. The former pension boss said there’s no money missing anywhere, adding that he went into hiding because some people were trying to assassinate him. Maina said he was not a thief and has not stolen anything rather, he has documents that would expose the real thieves. According to him, “We know where these monies are.” He called on Nigerians not to believe the rumours about him, saying that he never stole N195 billion and alleged that N300 million was being stolen every day. He thanked the TV station that granted him the interview. See video…

A tiku Abubakar says the agitation for secession spearheaded by the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, and hate speeches have made present day Nigeria more divided than ever. The former Vice President made the observation at the 40th anniversary of the Federal Government College, Okigwe, Imo State, over the weekend. Represented by his media aide, Paul Ibe, Abubakar stated that all tribes of the country needed one another to achieve their desired goals. Abubakar emphasised the need for unity among the various groups in the country. He said, “This celebration is coming at a critical time in our country’s history. “All of you must be aware of the recent agitations from different parts of the country, with some groups threatening violence and, in some cases, secession. These agitations are the result of a number of factors which I will not bother going into at this time, although since you are all enlightened men and women, I have no doubt that you are well and

I gbo leaders and governors in the region met on Sunday in Enugu. They charged the federal government to expedite action on all the federal roads in the region. The leaders also approved for a regional economic summit with support from the United Kingdom Department for International Development, DFID, slated to take place between 11 to 13 November 2017. Arising from the meeting, the Igbo leaders frowned at the deplorable state of Akanu Ibiam International Airport, particularly the runway, the terminal buildings and the cargo shelter. Present in the Sunday meeting were Governors of Enugu State Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, Ebonyi State, David Umuahi and Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu. Anambra and Imo states were represented by their Deputy governors, Eze Madumere and Nkem Okeke, respectively. The Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu and other members of the National Assembly from the zone, President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo, Speakers of the five sta