The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), FCT command says it is poised to curb drug abuse and trafficking among youths in the territory through Surprise Raiding Strategy (SRS).

Mr Peter Adegbe, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the command, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja.

He explained that the SRS as the name implies involves surprise raids on the traffickers black spots and hideouts in the territory such as Zone 4, Bannex, Jabi and other areas in the outskirts of the FCT.

According to Adegbe, the strategy is part of the agencys efforts in tackling drug vendors and traffickers in the territory and environs.

He said the command would achieve the goal by ensuring that the demand and supply of both cocaine and cannabis sativa are reduced to the barest minimum.

Once people, especially the youths, are well informed about the dangers of drug abuse, the demand will drastically reduce and this will affect the supply.

The command has chosen to tackle the menace of drug abuse and ridding the territory with this new strategy, he said.

The spokesman said that the menace of drug abuse had become a global concern as citizens particularly young people in several countries were engaged in the act.

It is disheartening that children at tender age already have problem using drugs.

There should be deliberate and sustained efforts at educating the younger generation on drug prevention, Adegbe said.

The spokesman said the command would not relent in its efforts to rid the FCT of hard drugs, adding that several campaigns had been held in this regard.

He urged Nigerians especially parents and guardians to give listening ears to their children and youths who were the vulnerable groups against drug abuse.

Adegbe also appealed to residents of the FCT to join hands with the NDLEA in ensuring a responsible society void of social vices.

The public needs to understand that they should also support the NDLEA in tackling this drug menace, he said.

Source: NAN

(Reuters/NAN) Iran wants European powers to present it with measures by the end of May to compensate it for the U.S. decision to abandon the 2015 nuclear deal, a senior official said on Friday.

The official said Tehran would decide within weeks whether to quit the accord.

The 2015 agreement between Iran and world powers lifted international sanctions on Tehran.

In return, the middle east country agreed to curb its nuclear programme.

Since President Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out on May 8, European states have been trying to find a way to ensure Iran still gets the economic benefits to persuade it to stay in the deal.

But that has proven difficult, with European companies frightened away by U.S. sanctions.

Nations that remain in the agreement Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia began meetings on Friday for the first time since Trump left the pact, but diplomats see limited scope for salvaging it.

Their officials will try to flesh out with Irans deputy foreign minister a strategy to save the deal by keeping oil and investment flowing.

To be honest with you, we are not confident, a senior Iranian official told reporters on Friday before the talks.

EU leaders have united behind the accord, with Brussels working on measures, including banning EU-based companies from complying with re-imposed U.S. sanctions and urging governments to make money transfers to Irans central bank to avoid fines.

We expect the (economic) package to be given to us by the end of May, the Iranian official said. Im sorry to say that we havent (seen) the Plan B yet.

The Plan B has just started to be figured out.

He said European measures would need to ensure that oil exports did not halt, and that Iran would still have access to the SWIFT international bank payments messaging system.

Washington has not only re-imposed sanctions but started to make them even tighter. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday threatened Iran with the strongest sanctions in history if it did not change its behavior in the Middle East.

Pompeo was like taking a cold shower, said a European diplomat. Well try to cling to the deal, but were under no illusions.

Irans supreme leader set out conditions on Wednesday for Iran to stay in the deal: unless Europe guarantees Irans oil sales will not be hurt, Tehran would resume enrichment of nuclear material.

He also rejected any new negotiations over Irans missile program, which was not covered in the nuclear deal.

The official said time was running out and that if Iran was not satisfied by European efforts, Iran would seek a ministerial meeting before making its decision.

Iran has struggled to benefit from the accord so far, partly because of remaining unilateral U.S. sanctions that have deterred major Western investors from doing business with Tehran.

Some Western companies have already quit the country or said they may have to leave because of the new U.S. sanctions.

Trump denounced the accord, completed under his predecessor, Barack Obama, because it did not cover Irans ballistic missile program, its role in Middle East conflicts or what happens after the deal begins to expire in 2025.

French President Emmanuel Macron wants to complement the nuclear deal with negotiations between all sides over other issues, an idea cautiously received by Russian President Vladimir Putin during talks in St. Petersburg on Thursday.

Our position is very clear: make the JCPOA (Iran deal) a successful story, then come to us and ask for dialogue or discussion or negotiation on other subjects, the Iranian official said.

European nations share U.S. concerns, but they say that torpedoing the nuclear deal makes them far harder, not easier, to address.

They have said that as long as Tehran meets its commitments, they would remain in the deal.

The International Atomic Energy Agency, which polices the pact, said on Thursday that Iran continued to comply with its terms, but could be faster in allowing snap inspections. Its chief, Yukiya Amano, briefed participants before Fridays meeting.

Source: NAN

Australia and the Netherlands have decided to officially hold Russia accountable for its role in downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in 2014, paving the way for the two countries to possibly take legal action against Moscow.

MH17, en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was shot down over eastern Ukraine on July 17, 2014, killing all 298 people on board. In a report from the Dutch-led Joint Investigation Team (JIT) issued Thursday, international investigators said the Buk anti-aircraft system used to bring down the jet belonged to the Russian military.

The Netherlands and Australia are now convinced that Russia is responsible for the deployment of the Buk installation that was used to down MH17, Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Stef Blok said in a statement on Friday.

The government is now taking the next step by formally holding Russia accountable, Blok said.

Australia and the Netherlands have informed the Russian Federation that we hold it responsible under international law for its role in the downing of MH17, Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said.

Bishop and Blok said their governments asked Russia on Friday to enter talks about its role in the disaster in order to find a solution that would do justice to the tremendous suffering and damage caused by the downing.

The case could next be presented to an international court or organization for judgement, the Dutch and Australian governments said.

The son of an Australian couple killed in the disaster said earlier Friday the international community should pressure Russia to take responsibility after investigators found its military missile brought down the flight.

Its good to see some strong evidence that Russia was involved, Paul Guard, who lost his parents Jill and Roger in the disaster, told Australian broadcaster ABC.

Clearly, Russia has a lot of questions to answer as to what its missile launcher was doing there and why it was involved in this war in the first place.

He said governments have a problem in acknowledging their involvement in these sorts of things.

The US, I think, took over 10 years to acknowledge the shooting down of an Iranian jet. Im not expecting anything anytime soon.(dpa/NAN)

Source: NAN

President of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Mr. Babatunde Paul Ruwase has lauded the passage of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) Act amendment Bill by the Senate.

This is even as he said that CAMA will greatly boost and increase the viability of small businesses in the country.

Ruwasegave the commendation when he led other executive members of the Chamber on a courtesy visit to the President of the Senate, according to a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the President of the Senate, Sanni Onogu, in in Abuja.

The LCCI boss noted that the passage of the CAMA amendment Bill is a major step towards enhancing the business environment in the country.

He said that the Bill when signed into law would reduce the burden of reporting obligations for small businesses, reduce time and cost of of setting up a company and also facilitate the transition of many informal sector players to the formal sector of the economy.

He said that the amendment is timely in view of present economic realities as the country cannot afford a static legislation in a dynamic business and economic environment.

Ruwase further stated that the beauty of legislation lies in how well it is aligned with contemporary realities and thanked the President of the Senate for the efforts of the Red Chamber in promoting private sector development and for collaboration.

The fact that your Excellency has a private sector background has brought a lot of value to the content and processes of legislation, he added.

In his remarks, the President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, thanked the LCCI and its members for their contributions to the nations economic growth.

He noted that the 8th Senate has been keen on working with the private sector to improve the nations economy and business environment right from its inception in 2015.

He said that the Senate with the collaboration of major players in the private sector had identified a number of critical laws that required urgent review to improve the ease of doing business in the country, most of which have now been passed and signed into law.

This is a Senate that is very pro-business. We believe that our role as a government is to create enabling environment that will allow businesses to thrive.

Even in the area of infrastructure, our focus has been on how we can pass laws to enable private sector participation. With our reforms in railways, ports and road construction and maintenance, we hope that the private sector will play a bigger role with the bills we have passed.

There are some bills that are still pending like the the Investment and Securities bill where there is a major amendment that we hope to pass very soon. We are also looking into the reform of the Stock Exchange to make it more attractive and also in line with global best practice, he said.

Saraki said the aim of the Senate is to strengthen the economy and be able to provide jobs for the youth through legislation.

Source: NAN

U.S. President Donald Trump has blamed Democrats of frustrating talks between him and North Korea leader Kim Jong Un, earlier scheduled to hold in Singapore on June 12.

Though Trump said on Friday that he was happy with North Korea for leaving the door open for potential U.S.-North Korea talks, he maintained that Democrats were against negotiations with the rogue regime.

Democrats are so obviously rooting against us in our negotiations with North Korea.

Just like they are coming to the defense of MS 13 thugs, saying that they are individuals

By Ifeanyi Nwoko

The Senate has intervened in the ongoing industrial action embarked upon by the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU), in a bid to end the strike and make the nations hospitals functional once again.

The President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, after a meeting with the leadership of JOHESU yesterday () where he listened to their grievances and demands, today () met with the Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole and the Minister of Labour, Dr. Chris Ngige, to hear their own side of the issue.

While meeting with the JOHESU leadership led by its Chairman, Comrade Biobelemonye Joseph, the President of the Senate, had pledged that the Senate would ensure that the right thing is done to end the strike.

Chief Press Secretary to the President of the Senate, Sanni Onogu, in a statement in Abuja, said Sarakis meeting with Adewole and Ngige was meant to hear their side of the issue and to forge a way forward, not only to end the strike but to ensure that there is lasting peace and industrial harmony in the nations health institutions.

During his meeting with the leadership of JOHESU, Saraki said the Senate and indeed the National Assembly, would ensure that the right thing is done to end the strike.

He noted that it is not in the interest of the country to have its hospitals closed while he pledged that the Senate would work with all stakeholders to ensure that the strike is called off.

Saraki said: Our interest here in the Senate and the National Assembly in general, is to find a solution to this problem. It is not in the interest of the country for us to have our hospitals closed and we must work to ensure they are reopened promptly.

I have heard your remarks, I will spend sometimes to discuss with you and get more details to see how we can put an end to this strike.

On our own part, we will bring all parties involved together to ensure that where commitments have been made, those who made the commitments honour them.

The only thing I can assure you is that we will make sure that the right thing is done and that this matter is resolved, he said.

Source: NAN

Barcelona legend Andres Iniesta joined Japan’s Vissel Kobe on Thursday, calling his J-League move an “important career challenge”.

“This is a very special day for me,” the 34-year-old World Cup winner said after signing his contract at a glitzy unveiling in Tokyo.

“I had a lot of offers, other clubs showed an interest in me,” added Iniesta, who is reported to have agreed a three-year deal with an annual salary of $30 million, comfortably a J-League record.

“But I chose Vissel Kobe because it was an interesting project. There was also a lot of trust and confidence in me as a person and also as a player — that was a big reason.”

Iniesta, who lifted 32 major trophies and made 674 appearances for Catalan giants Barca, was handed his trademark number eight shirt by Vissel owner Hiroshi Mikitani.

“I am confident that Iniesta’s leadership philosophy and his DNA will be a terrific inspiration for not only Vissel Kobe but Japanese football,” said Mikitani.

“His arrival in Japan will raise the profile of Japanese football globally. Iniesta will inspire and empower us to reach new heights in football in Japan. We are very proud to see this day come.”

The Spain icon’s decision to choose Kobe arguably represents Japanese football’s biggest transfer coup, with many top players now moving to cash-rich Chinese clubs in the twilight of their careers.

It also comes as a timely boost to the J-League, which used to attract luminaries such as Brazilian great Zico and former England star Gary Lineker when it began in 1993 but has struggled to attract marquee players in recent years.

Iniesta will join former Arsenal striker Lukas Podolski in the western port city of Kobe after he completed a move from Galatasaray last summer. Podolski was quick to send a “welcome” tweet to Iniesta on Thursday.

“I’d like to help take this club forward and help the J-League grow in Asia,” said Iniesta, who is set to join his new team mates after the World Cup in Russia.

“I’m looking forward to getting to know the Kobe players as quickly as possible to be able to help with that process.”

Danish star Michael Laudrup, himself a former Barcelona fan favourite and one of Iniesta’s boyhood heroes, also played for Vissel in 1996-97.

Source: NAN

Contrary to reports, northern groups have denied asking President Muhammadu Buhari against seeking a re-election in 2019.

The Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) on Wednesday also denied asking former Vice President Atiku Abubakar not to contest presidential election.

The group described the report as misrepresentation.

Mr Abdul-Azeez Suleiman, spokesman of CNG, said in a statement issued in Lagos on Wednesday that the CNG did not discuss individual aspiration at its two-day summit in Kaduna as reported in the media.

According to him, the communiqu only highlighted its support for structural reforms with condition that only youths between ages 18 and 60 should represent the North.

The attention of the Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) has been drawn to certain misrepresentations of parts of its communiqu of May 21, 2018 by a section of the media.

While we do not want to believe that the misrepresentations, though very fundamental, were maliciously made, we nevertheless owe the public a duty to straighten the records.

At the end of our two-day summit at Arewa House, Kaduna, a five-page communiqu was read by our spokesperson, Abdul-Azeez Suleiman, in which we categorically stated that the North fully supports the restructuring of the country and shall be prepared to represent itself in any debate thereon.

Our coalition said the North supported structural reforms, with certain conditions, he said.

According to him, one of the terms is that those who will carry the banner to any future discussion with regards to Nigerian federal arrangement should be within the 18 to 60 years bracket.

We said this out of a patriotic conviction that the older men who have been speaking and running the country since independence should cease to take the front seats at such national discourses.

The coalition was, however, quite surprised by some reports by a section of the media, tending to suggest that we have asked certain aspirants to the 2019 presidency to shelve their ambition.

We wish to respond here that at no time did the individual aspiration of any politician ever came up at our two-day summit nor was it mentioned anywhere in the communiqu we read.

Our summit and subsequent communiqu essentially concentrated on the issue of restructuring. Nowhere, and at no time, did we discuss such matters as the 2019 presidency, Suleiman said.

He said that the summit was sequel to calls from several quarters in the last six months asking for our position on the issue of restructuring.

Suleiman said the group answered those calls by mandating a committee to sample the pulse of Northern Nigeria in that respect.

He said that the committee, after contacting stakeholders across all shades of interest in the region, reported that the North favoured restructuring of the country.

Consequently, we called for the summit at which participants unanimously confirmed Norths support for total and holistic structural reform.

A communiqu was issued to that effect, devoid of the slightest hint at partisanship or 2019 elections, nor did we discuss the individual aspiration of any politician, he added.

He advised media practitioners in the country to stick to their professional ethics of accurate reporting of events and avoid unnecessary sensational overkill.

NAN reports that a section of the media on Monday reported that CNG asked Buhari and Abubakar not to contest for president in 2019.

CNGs position was reported to be contained in a communiqu issued after at the end of its two-day summit in Kaduna. (NAN)

Source: NAN

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said no fewer than 131, 687 Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) were still uncollected in Sokoto state.

The commissions Spokesman in the state, Malam Muhammad Musa, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Sokoto that the unclaimed PVCs comprised 69, 685 not claimed between 2011 and 2014.

Musa said that another set of 62, 002 PVCs were recently received from INEC National Headquarters for distribution to owners, adding that the distribution of the cards commenced on Monday.

He said the Continues Voters Registration (CVR) that started on April 27, 2017 was in progress across the 39 collection and registration centres in the state.

He advised eligible persons to forward their Temporary Voter Cards (TVCs) for the collection of PVCs at designated centres.

Musa said that ongoing issuance of PVCs was to persons who applied for transfers, lost, defaced or destroyed cards.

The commission is assuring those who registered in 2018 that their PVCs will be ready for collection in good time before the 2019 general elections, he said.

He, however, appealed to public to use the opportunity to collect their PVCs for use in the 2019 elections. (NAN)

Source: NAN

The Voters Union, a programme of Be-The-Change Organisation (BCO), a civic advocacy organisation, says it is committed to increasing the chances of peaceful, credible elections and protection of voters voices.

Voters Union Chairman, Ms Diana Olabisi, who briefed newsmen on Wednesday in Abuja, said that the group envisioned a well-informed passionate voters that were hard to be compromised.

She said the decision to create Voters Union came after a rigorous research for solution to boosting voters mood and increasing political participation.

According to her, Voters Union is a voter advocacy platform where voters connect to achieve common goals.

Olabisi listed the goals of the group to include: increasing voters access to information

To educate voters on voters rights, duties and responsibilities; to minimize oppression and suppression of voters voices, to reduce the toxicity in political atmosphere; to maintain and improve relationship between the voters and the voted.

With Voters Union, protecting constituency integrity, protecting our votes, and election follow ups becomes easy.

This will check the right of citizens to participate in public affairs without intimidation or favour, she said.

She said that the widespread development of non-partisan election monitoring around the world was a tangible evidence of citizens desire for responsive, transparent, and democratic governance achievable through voter education.

The chairman said that by providing voter education, election monitoring, vote protection, and constituency integrity, the group was working to advance democratic goals and strengthening democratic institutions.

She said that Voters Union had made conscious decision for monitoring efforts that would safeguard electoral integrity and create governmental and political accountability.

On his part, Mr Emeka Ejezie, National President, Actors Guild of Nigeria, said he came to lend support to Voters Union.

He said that the most important persons in politics are the voters not the voted.

We need to protect our votes so that our voice will count, before, during and after election.

That is only the way we can effect a change and get the people we want into offices.

We have 150 members in 32 states; as role models, we want to join our voices with Voters Union, he said.

He said the guild always made meaningful impact in any sector it identified with.

Source: NAN