Though there is enough credit on your SIM card but you are having a hard time sending text messages as you keep receiving a notification like ‘sending failed’ or ‘message sending error’. Though the issue might evolve from ‘bad network signal’ but more than not, it could also be due to wrong or incomplete message center number.

So, if you have been experiencing this problem time and again, you should just check [via the message setting] to see if there is no figure missing from the message center number or whether the one you have on your phone corresponds to that of your network service provider. In essence, you do not have to pay a dime to any technician or go through the ‘assiduous’ task of waiting on a customer care attendant to get this (problem) resolved.

It is in this regard that I wrap this short write-up with the correct message center number of different network providers:-

Airtel: +2348020000009
MTN: +2348030000000
GLO: +2348050001501
9Mobile: +2348090001518

Pakistans former cricket hero Imran Khan is on his way to becoming the countrys next prime minister, as results of Wednesdays election trickled in Thursday.

However, incumbent party has rejected the early election results and suggested blatant rigging.

Shahbaz Sharif, the leader of the Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), dismissed results as counting was still underway.

Today what they have done has pushed Pakistan back 30 years We reject this result, Sharif, the brother of Pakistans jailed ex-leader Nawaz Sharif, told a press conference in Lahore.

People will not bear it, he added.

The election has been marred by widespread allegations of pre-poll meddling by the powerful military in favour of Khan, which saw the process dubbed Pakistans dirtiest election.

As election workers sorted through massive piles of paper ballots, other major parties including the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) also alleged the count was being manipulated.

My candidates complaining polling agents have been thrown out of polling stations across the country, tweeted PPP leader Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, adding: Inexcusable

Facebook Incs shares lost as much as a quarter of their value on Wednesday after executives said that profit margins would plummet for several years due to the costs of improving privacy safeguards and slowing usage in the biggest advertising markets.

The second-quarter results were the first sign that a new European privacy law and a succession of privacy scandals involving Cambridge Analytica and other app developers have bit into Facebooks business.

The company further warned that the toll would not be offset by revenue growth from emerging markets and Facebooks Instagram app, which has been more immune from privacy concerns.

Facebooks fortunes shifted in under two hours as the company first reported revenue and user growth that missed expectations and then issued warnings about future growth and expenses.

Operating profit margin, which fell to 44 percent in the second quarter from 47 percent a year ago, will sink to the mid-30s for more than two years, Chief Financial Officer David Wehner said in investor guidance.

The plummeting stock price wiped out as much as $150 billion in market capitalization and erased the stocks gains since April when Facebook announced a surprisingly strong 63 percent rise in profit and an increase in users.

If the share drop holds on Thursday, it would be Facebooks largest single-day decline, topping a 12 percent decrease in July 2012.

Nasdaq futures dropped 0.85 percent late on Wednesday, suggesting the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite index would fall when trading opens on Thursday morning. Facebooks results prompted selling in other Nasdaq listings, including media and advertising rivals Amazon.com Inc, Netflix Inc and Alphabet Inc.

ENTERING A NEW PERIOD

Facebook had cautioned investors to expect a big jump in second-quarter costs because of efforts to address concerns about poor handling of users privacy and to better monitor what users post. Total expenses in the second quarter surged to $7.4 billion, up 50 percent compared with a year ago.

Facebook forecast similar increases for the second half of the year, also citing spending on video content and marketing.

Its gloomy forecast for revenue growth surprised investors, though, and prompted many questions from financial analysts on a conference call with company executives on Wednesday.

Sales in the second quarter grew 42 percent, its slowest pace in nearly three years, to $13.2 billion compared with $9.3 billion a year ago.

Wehner said quarterly revenue growth would be closer to 30 percent the rest of the year.

He cited currency fluctuations and a shift in usage to features where Facebook shows less advertising or charges less due to lower demand.

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the European Union also will cause a revenue drop. The new privacy law forced several changes to Facebooks privacy terms and sign-up process, leading a minority of users to opt for non-personalized ads, which tend to generate less revenue.

Theyre talking about currency headwinds, but more we think its due to slower user growth given GDPR and more focus on privacy, Morningstar analyst Ali Mogharabi said.

Facebooks daily active users in Europe declined by 3 million amid the new regulation. Worldwide daily user growth for Facebooks namesake service slid for its sixth straight quarter, bringing it to nearly 1.5 billion users in the second quarter.

The company said for the first time that more than 2.5 billion users interact with at least one of its apps each month, but analysts have said many of them are spending more time with Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram. Commercialization of those apps is nascent.

Revenue from emerging markets has not picked up the slack either. Sales from United States, Canada and Europe fell $75 million in the second quarter compared with a year ago, while revenue from other markets rose $51 million.

Gene Munster, a venture capitalist at Loup Ventures, said in an email that Facebook is entering a new period where declining user growth will translate to slower revenue growth.

He added that Facebook has a track record of resetting revenue growth and expense expectations only to turn around and exceed those expectations the following quarter.

Facebook reported $5.1 billion in profit, or $1.74 per share, compared with the average estimates of $5.1 billion and $1.72 per share among research gathered by Thomson Reuters.

The threat of additional privacy regulatory setbacks remains a concern, according to analysts.

Facebook suffered a blow in China on Wednesday when regulators there withdrew their approval of a company innovation hub to support local startups, the New York Times reported on Wednesday, citing a person familiar with the matter.

Misinformation on WhatsApp contributing to mob killings in India have added to the pressure on Facebook to re-evaluate how its services maintain security and decorum.

Nearly all social media services have received greater scrutiny since U.S. intelligence agencies in January 2017 revealed that organizations tied to the Russian government had seeded content on the platform to shake up the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

Reuters

Source: NAN

Senator Dino Melaye was on Wednesday arraigned before the Abuja High Court sitting in Apo by the police and was granted bail in the sum of N5 million.

The lawmaker was arraigned on a six count charge of attempted suicide, escape from custody and damage of police property.

The prosecution counsel, Mr. Alex Izinyonu, said Melaye escaped from police custody on April 24, 2018, after he broke the glass on the second window of a bus belonging to the Police, using his left elbow.

The lawmaker was said to have jumped into a waiting vehicle, an action which the police say amounted to an offence punishable under section 327 of the Penal Code Law.

He explained that the defendant while being conveyed in a police vehicle to Lokoja, forced his way out of the bus and escaped.

Melaye, who represents Kogi West senatorial zone, denied committing the offences.

The trial judge, Justice Silvanus Oriji granted him bail in the sum of N5 million.

Oriji also ordered Melaye to produce two sureties in like sum, as part of the bail condition.

The judge also ordered that the sureties must be directors in the civil service, who are resident in the FCT, and depose to affidavits of means.

Senator Melaye is among the All Progressives Congress (APC) Senators that recently defected to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Source: NAN

U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein is in trouble as members of House of Representatives on Wednesday introduced five articles of impeachment against him.

Eleven House Republicans are spearheading the impeachment proceedings.

The impeachment articles accuse Rosenstein of intentionally withholding documents and information from Congress, failure to comply with congressional subpoenas and abuse of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

It was not immediately clear whether the House of Representatives would consider the resolution before lawmakers begin the August recess Thursday afternoon.

The House will reconvene Sept. 4.

The resolution states it will be referred to the Committee, meaning the Judiciary Committee, for further review.

That language suggests the full House will not immediately consider the articles of impeachment.

The articles were introduced by Reps. Mark Meadows of North Carolina and Jim Jordan of Ohio, the chairman and a prominent member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus.

I just filed a resolution with @Jim_Jordan and several colleagues to impeach Rod Rosenstein. The DOJ has continued to hide information from Congress and repeatedly obstructed oversighteven defying multiple Congressional subpoenas.

In an exclusive interview on Fox News The Ingraham Angle on Wednesday night, Meadows said it would be possible to effect a so-called privileged resolution on impeaching Rosenstein as early as Thursday morning, which would require a vote within two days, although the impending House recess would likely delay that vote unless it were held quickly.

Both Meadows and Jordan told host Laura Ingraham the effort was long overdue.

For nine months, weve asked for documents, and thats all we want.

Not only have subpoenas been ignored, but information has been hidden, efforts have been stonewalled, Meadows said.

Weve caught the Department of Justice hiding information, redacting information that they should not have redacted, Jordan charged, adding that Rosenstein had attempted to intimidate House staffers with subpoenas.

Read more:

Source: NAN

The Makurdi High Court has sentenced two persons to death for kidnapping and killing a former Vicar-General of Otukpo Catholic Diocese, Rev. John Alexander Adeyi.

The convicts are Suleiman Goma and Haruna Idi who were slammed with a six count charges.

The court says the convicts conspired and kidnapped Adeiyi, on April 26th, 2016 and took him to Okungaga forest in Okpokwu area of the state where they demanded N2 million and eventually killed him after collecting a ransom of N1.5 million.

The trial judge, Justice Andover Kakaan, said three guns including two pistols and a Dane-gun as well as charms were recovered from the convicts in the forest where they committed the crime.

Justice Kakaan said that one of the two convicts in his statement which was tendered in court admitted that he bought the pistol for the purpose of committing armed robbery and kidnapping.

Justice Kakaan while delivering his judgement advised youths to desist from criminal act and engage in useful ventures.

Reports say that decayed body of the priests was found behind the local government council secretariat, Obu Otukpa.

Source: NAN

The Osun PDPs governorship candidate, Sen. Ademola Adeleke, has been dragged to court by some aggrieved members of the party for alleged non-possession of primary school certificate.

The members are seeking that the court grant an interim order to set aside results of the governorship election that produced Adeleke.

The plaintiffs are also asking the court to grant an order restraining the PDP from presenting Adelekes name to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the September 22nd governorship poll.

When the case came up for mention on Wednesday, July 25, the counsel for the applicants, Mr. Mathew Ayandokun, prayed the court for an interim order setting aside the election of Adeleke.

He also asked the court to stop the INEC from accepting his nomination as the partys flag bearer.

Ayandokun after the court hearing told journalists that his clients were challenging Adeleke in court because he does not possess and has not produced his school leaving certificate.

Adelekes lawyer, Mr. Edmond Biri-Omoni, however, debunked the allegations.

Biri-Omoni, while addressing journalists insisted that his client has a certificate.

He added that it will be proper for him and his client to be put on notice and served with the necessary papers before coming to court.

Justice David Oladimeji adjourned ruling on the application till Thursday, July 26.

Adeleke, a lawmaker representing Osun West district in the National Assembly during the primary held on Saturday, July 21 polled a total of 1,569 votes to beat his closest rival Dr Akin Ogunbiyi who scored 1,562 votes.

Source:

Source: NAN

For some weeks now, the dust over the power tussle in the Nigeria Football Federation has been unsettled as a ruling from a civil court was given preference over FIFA statutory regulation – one that has definitely not gone down well with the world’s football governing body. At the frontline of the struggle is Chris Giwa who is having the backing of the Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung – albeit under the guise of respecting court order. With the forceful removal of Amaju Pinnick – who is recognized as NFF president by the Federation of International Football Association – from office, Nigeria football administration has once again been brought under the scrutiny of the disciplinary committee of FIFA, and as such, there have been concerns about an impending ban on Nigeria [as it relates to football].

Chris Giwa is one who is not a stranger to controversies. Back in 2014, he was elected president of the Nigeria Football Federation in an election that was not acknowledged by FIFA but has since been defiant in assuming the position on the basis of that result. In 2016, he was banned by the NFF for seeking redress at a civil court, and the ban was ultimately extended by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and FIFA. So, the question goes that why should the Sports Minister be so much concern about having someone who is on a five-year ban at the helm of affairs? Well, the Minister will probably submit that he is acting in consonance with the orders of the Supreme Court and will not want to go to jail. But then how shall we lose consciousness of the fact the he (the Minister) is a friend to Chris Giwa and has not been in good terms with Amaju Pinnick? I would not know if Mr. Giwa really has any decorum in this respect considering that he is seeking to take charge of an office that is directly affiliated to a body that has frozen out [of football matters] prior to this moment. What sort of relationship is he hoping to enjoy with FIFA? And how will his administration drive the cause for credible development in the nation’s football with FIFA’s hammer hitting the head? It is quite clear to see Chris Giwa is fighting a lost cause – safe you wish to shame the truth.

The event (that is, the NFF crisis) has certainly shown the ugly side of some individuals as well as the judiciary system. There is no denying the fact that the Minister of Sports deserves some stick for the role he has played thus far but the judiciary cannot be left out of this mess either. Should the civil court not have known that the case involving football administration is not her responsibility? The case ought to have been referred to the Court of Arbitration for Sports in the first instance. Moreover, by hearing from one side and passing judgment [and ruling in its favor] thereby, the court showed biasness even as it did
not serve any paper on the Amaju Pinnick’s camp.

Again, it is really disappointing to see Chief Festus Adegboye Onigbinde being nonchalant about what the impending ban could spell for the nation’s football teams and players. It is hard to imagine that the Falconets could have their dream of playing at the U-20 world cup truncated should FIFA eventually ban Nigeria from football activities. Likewise, the Flying Eagles’ participation at the African U-20 Nations Cup, intercontinental club competitions for Nigerian clubs as well as the transfer of Nigerian players abroad will also be jeopardized. But all this seems not to matter an administrator in the caliber of Chief Onigbinde – not good enough, I must say. And while erstwhile Enugu state commissioner for sports, Barrister Ray Nnaji may not see FIFA banning Nigeria, it is important to remind ourselves that FIFA is not governed by Nigerian laws and will not watch things done in a way that contradicts the statutory order without taking punitive measures sooner or later.

It is just as simple as it is; if the Sports Minister along with Chris Giwa are not ready to abide by the rule as stipulated by the governing body [of football administration] then Nigeria definitely has no business competing among the comity of nations. It is however not right for a couple of individuals to ground football development in the country just because of their own self ambition. It is not possible for progress to be made in a state of illegality and/or disorderliness and the sooner the Barrister Dalung realizes this, the better for our football.

The BBC has published a video showing Nigerias top football coach, Salisu Yusuf, caught on camera taking cash from men posing as football agents to two Nigerian players.

The footage was captured by controversial Ghanaian journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas in September 2017 and is being broadcast for the first time by BBC Africa Eye.

Yusuf was the first assistant to Super Eagles coach Gernot Rohr during the Russian World Cup. And he is due to lead the national team to the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.

(watch the video: )

Nigerias top football coach, Salisu Yusuf, has been caught on camera taking cash. The footage, exposed here for the first time, was captured by controversial Ghanaian investigative journalist and recently handed to .

BBC News Africa (@BBCAfrica)

According to the video, Yusuf accepted $1,000 from the men posing as football agents to field some unidentified two players.

In his response, Yusuf denied any wrongdoing. He said he did not demand any money and that what he was given, $750 and not $1000, was a gift.

Yusuf also said his selection of players for the African Nations Championship(CHAN) 2018 was based on merit.

Source: NAN

Thirty seven members of the House of Representatives formerly in the fold of the All Progressive Congress (APC), has dumped the party and moved to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and African Democratic Congress (ADC)

The Representatives in a letter to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara officially announced their defection during plenary on Tuesday.

Top on the list of the defectors is the Chairman Committee on Rules and Business Rep. Emmanuel Orker-Jev (Benue).

Of the 37 defectors, 33 went to the PDP while four others from Oyo state moved to ADC.

Other prominent members who dumped the APC include:Sani Rano, Barry Mpigi, Ali madaki, Dickson Tackighir, Hassan Saleh, Danburam Nuhu, Mark Gbilah, Razak Atunwa, Ahmed Garba Bichi, Abdulsamad Dasuk and Zakari Mohammed.

This is coming after 15 senators in the Senate dumped the APC for PDP.

The defection in the house of representatives threw the chamber into a rowdy session as the remaining members of the APC in the House staged a walkout from plenary to address newsmen.

Source: NAN

The National Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr Uche Secondus, has condemned Tuesday morning security siege on the Abuja residences of Senate President, Bukola Saraki and his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu.

Secondus in a statement issued on Tuesday in Abuja described the development as attack on democracy, using state security apparatus.

He said that Directorate of State Services (DSS), Army and the Police had attacked the National Assembly with the aim of forcibly overthrowing its leadership and rendering it comatose.

The Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu and other distinguished senators are currently under severe assault from security agencies.

It is now a known fact that democracy have now collapsed in Nigeria and we are now under a totalitarian and fascist government with no appetite for opposition, Secondus said.

He called on all Nigerians, home and abroad, to immediately speak up against the act he described as gross violation of the Constitution of Nigeria.

The chairman also called on all traditional rulers in Nigeria, the international community and all well-meaning Nigerians to rise against the antics to forestall possible derailment of democracy, saying, the time to act is now.

Similarly, a former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, in a statement by his Media Office also called for stop to the persecution of national assembly leadership.

The news of the siege on the residences of the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu, is both troubling and unsettling.

No democratic nation ought to treat the leadership of its parliament like common criminals in the course of a political disagreement.

I remind the powers that be that on Aug. 31, 2013, when Sen. Bukola Saraki walked out of the PDP and began the process of joining the All Progressives Congress, there was celebration in their camps.

I also remind them that their electoral victory, which they have so badly mismanaged today, would not have been possible without the Senate President.

Power is transient and is also a trust that should only be used for the good and advancement of the people one leads and not for the persecution of real and imagined political opponents.

I therefore call for the lifting of the sieges on the persons and homes of Saraki and his deputy, Ekweremadu, by security forces.

Abubakar urged President Muhammadu Buhari to live up to his words after Sarakis ordeal which was brought to a halt by the Supreme Court.

Source: NAN

A coalition of civil societies led by the Youth Alive Foundation (YAF) in collaboration and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on Tuesday in Abuja hosted a Stakeholders Summit on Corruption in Nigeria. Dr Udy Okon, YAFs Executive Director, who spoke with newsmen at the sidelines of the event, said that foreign partners such as Department for International Development (DFID) participated in the summit. The theme of the summit is Towards Evidence Based Intervention for Collective Impact. Okon said that questions such what the stakeholders knew about corruption; what was the current state of corruption in Nigeria and what civil societies, government and stakeholders were doing about it would be asked. The summit is convened by ICPC and YAF; the purpose is to review evidence and status of corruption in Nigeria by multiple stakeholders, actors from civil societies, law enforcement agencies, research institutions and international agencies. Everybody is working on corruption but there is no coordination of what we are doing; the idea of the summit is for us to come together, review evidence and actually discuss the implication of the all the evidence. More so, to direct our interventions in a way that addresses some of the recommendations and findings. We hope that there will be a more coordinated action in the fight against corruption, synergy between government agencies and civil societies, a more strengthened and deeper partnership to win the fight against corruption. On his part, Mr Mohammed Baba, Commissioner for Education, ICPC, said that the summit was aimed at strengthening the participation of the youths in governance particularly in the fight against corruption. According to him, it is geared at inculcating moral values in the youth right from their formative age and engage them actively and efficiently in the fight against corruption. By the time we carry our youth outreaches to a logical conclusion, which constitutes 75 percent of the population, we would have achieved zero tolerance for corruption, he said. On his part, Mr Mohammed Baba, Commissioner Education, ICPC, said that ICPCs functions transcended beyond investigating people, arresting them and prosecuting them. He said that ICPCs functions encompassed prevention of corruption, public education and enlightenment. Baba said that the law establishing ICPC emphasised more on educating the people and preventing corruption. In her presentation, Mrs Azuka Ogugua, Assistant Director, Education Department, ICPC, said that it was unfortunate that corruption existed among the youths who were the most affected by corruption. She listed some corrupt practices among youths as falsification of certificates, examination malpractice, lack of honesty among others. Oguguo said that the commission laid much emphasis on the education sector where cases of forged Olevel certificates, forged admission letters, connivance with staff, sexual harassment and inducement were rampart. An activist, Charles Oputa, popularly called Charly Boy, said there was need for the youths to realise that their future was at stake. He said that the fight against corruption was not a fight for the people in government but for the electorate. According to him, something drastic must be done to sanitise the system.

Source: NAN

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has told its members and supporters not to be flustered by the loss of some elected representatives and senators to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

In a statement by Malam Bolaji Abdullahi, its National Publicity Secretary on Tuesday in Abuja, the party said it would continue to consolidate on its majority status both in the House of Representatives and 25 states, ahead of the 2019 general elections.

Abdullahi said the Buhari administration would continue to work harder to deliver on its campaign promises to Nigerians.

The APC notes the development in the National Assembly with the defection of some of our members from the party.

In the last couple of weeks our party leaders have worked to stave off this situation as responsible party leaders would do.

It would appear however, that the individuals involved have different considerations beyond the grievances that they were willing to discuss and which our leaders were willing to address,it said.

The APC said as a truly democratic party, it respects the right of every citizen to political association.

It therefore, urged its members to remain calm as it continues to work hard to position the party strongly for the next general elections.

The statement added that the APC remains in firm control of 25 states of the 36 states of the federation and maintains a clear majority in the Federal House of Representatives and State Assemblies.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Senate President Bukola Saraki earlier today, announced the defection of 15 APC Senators from the party. In the House of Representatives, 33 APC members also switched allegiance to PDP, while 4 left for the ADP.

Senate President Saraki is believed to be part of the senators already in PDP.

Source: NAN

A House of Representatives member, Rep. Abdulrazak Atunwa, who with 36 others defected from All Progressives Congress (APC) on Tuesday, said more members would leave the party in the coming weeks.

Briefing newsmen in company of some of the members who moved to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atunwa said that Tuesdays defection was just the first batch of members that would leave the APC.

He said that the public should expect more as many members had indicated interest to defect from the party.

Atunwa said that the APC was a party they all laboured for as people came from various parties, campaigned and formed a government in 2015.

According to him, we came together because of what was being proposed to the people of Nigeria as we believed in change and a better Nigeria.

The legislator said that they believed in respect for the rule of law, improved education, social welfare of the people as the men, women and youth of the country deserved better among other ideals.

Sadly, no sooner we formed government in May, 2015, the party put itself on course to be derailed and that derailment has continued to today.

Some of us have been agitating that we should go back to the ideals that brought us together, but the party was not listening.

The party rather embarked on victimization and criminalisation of its members, those perceived as opponents and have divergent views, he said.

He said that the party set itself on the line of destruction when the aggrieved members brought up their concerns but were castigated and referred to as inconsequential and as nobody.

Putting all that together and the interest of the country, particularly as the APC has derailed from the ideals that will propel Nigeria to advance, we felt we have to take this step we took today, he said.

Atunwa said the defectors were interested in economic development, respect for parliament and rule of law, while the APC was concerned about membership to form majority.

He, however, said that the PDP in the past three years had learnt its lesson.

The lawmaker added that they had monitored and had seen that the PDP had taken corrective measures.

He said that having been beaten at the polls in 2015, the PDP had got its acts together and was now a reformed party, adding that it was the reason they felt confident to return to the party.

Also, Rep. Hassan Saleh, who also defected, said that from the ward congress up to the national convention of the APC, no fewer than 25 states in the country had parallel congresses.

He questioned the process that brought about the national convention given the issues at ward levels, saying that the foundation was faulty.

According to him, we cannot continue to hide our faces like nothing is wrong when the problem is there.

Rep. Alliyu Madaki said some of the defectors joined the APC because it campaigned and promised to ensure security of lives and properties.

He said section 14 of the Constitution said that the primary responsibility of government is the protection of lives and properties of Nigerians.

According to him, nobody is safe today in Nigeria; under the PDP administration, l could drive from Abuja to Kano with myb eyes closed but now, I depend on consistent prayer to arrive safely.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 33 lawmakers in the lower chambers defected from the APC to PDP, four others to African Democratic Party (ADC) while one resigned.

The house, however, adjourned to proceed on eight weeks break and will resume plenary on Sept. 25.

Source: NAN

Buhari is undaunted with the Tuesdays defection of at least 52 lawmakers from his ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) on Tuesday.

Instead, the APC leader wished all the defectors well in their future endeavour.

No fewer than 15 senators and 37 members of House of Representative defected from APC to other political parties in an alignment ahead of the 2019 general elections.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Garba Shehu, said on Tuesday that the president was committed to the values of democracy, freedom of choice.

The President is also totally willing to work with all members of the National Assembly, irrespective of their political party in the interest of the nation.

As the saying goes, all politics is local. We understand that some of the distinguished and honourable lawmakers have issues with their home states, especially on zoning which bars some of them from seeking another term in their constituencies, he said.
He explained that none of the lawmakers who defected had any specific grievances against him or the government he leads and that the APC had done its utmost to stop the defections.

Also, the President commended the leadership of the party for relentlessly working for its unity and ensuring success in the upcoming elections and assured members of the APC of his total support.

Despite the defection, the President urged party members not to despair but to see the development as a seasonal occurrence that happens on election eve.

He expressed confidence that no harm or injury will be done to the party and its aspirations by the movements.

In his reaction to the developments Tuesday morning at the National Assembly, the President noted that none of the defecting federal lawmakers of the All Progressives Congress (APC) had any specific grievances against him or the government he leads; neither did he harbour anything against any of them.

President Buhari wished all the decamped members the best in their future undertakings.

Source: NAN

Rescuers have recovered 17 bodies after the flash floods caused by a dam breach in Southern Laos in Thailand.

A wall of water was unleashed on Monday after parts of the dam were washed away, sending floods surging downstream, sweeping away homes and leaving an unknown number of people missing.

There are 17 bodies recovered so far, but we cannot estimate the number of missing yet, Chana Miencharoen, Thai official said.

He adding roof-level flood waters have submerged several villages near the Xe-Namnoy dam.

All the dead are Laotian more than 6,000 are affected from eight villages near the dam, he said, from the relief centre in Attepeu province, where the disaster occurred on Monday.

The remote area is only accessible by helicopter and flat-bottomed boats, with roads badly damaged by the flash flooding or completely washed away.

Communist Laos is criss-crossed by a vast network of rivers and scores of dams are being built or planned in the impoverished and landlocked country, which exports most of its hydropower energy to neighbouring countries like Thailand.

The South Korean partner in the hydropower project said Wednesday it discovered the upper part of the structure had washed away 24 hours before it collapsed.

SK Engineering

Islamic State claimed responsibility for an explosion near a polling station in Quetta, Pakistan, on Wednesday, according to the groups AMAQ news agency.

At least 24 people were killed and 35 injured in the blast in the western city of Quetta, which happened as Pakistanis vote in a knife-edge national election.

The group said the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber, but did not provide further detail or evidence for its claim.

The bomber targeted a senior police officer and his guards when he came to examine the security arrangements at the polling station.

There were imminent threats of violence during Wednesdays voting after a deadly campaign in which more than 180 people were killed in a series of bombings.

Authorities have ordered the deployment of more than 800,000 troops and police to guard polling stations across the country.

Militant Islamic State and Taliban militants have threatened to target the voting, saying they considered democracy as a system followed by Western infidels.

No fewer 100 million people are registered to vote in the Muslim-majority country that has alternated between democracy and military rule.

No fewer than 11,000 candidates are running in the national legislature and its provincial counterparts, according to election authorities.

Source: NAN

By Gami Tadanyigbe

The Institute of Disaster Management and Safety Science (IDMSS) has called on Nigerians to be more safety conscious in order to prevent and reduce the risk of disasters in the country.

Mr Ochagwuba Edwin, the Registrar of the Institute, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

According to him, specialised education was required by Nigerians to effect meaningful improvement in the global response to disaster and management.

Every year, thousands of people and property worth billions of Naira are affected by disaster, often receiving aid after a long delay and suffering.

Nigeria is prone to multiple disasters like floods, erosion, droughts, desertification, terrorism, conflicts, and communal clashes.

Many die or are injured needlessly as a result of inadequate social preparation, untrained and ill-prepared leadership for disaster response.

We call on all Nigerians to be safety conscious by avoiding any form of carelessness both at home and the office for disaster risk reduction in the country, he said.

Edwin said the Institute aimed at positioning Nigeria and Africa for disaster risk reduction, capacity building, security management, peace building and partnership through collaboration and empowerment.

The registrar disclosed that the Institute conducted training programmes, class room and online professional courses for various levels of stakeholders and members of the society.

The Institute is a research body for human resource development, capacity building, professional competency certification and policy advocacy in the field of disaster risk management and Safety science.

We give policy support for organisations and advice on disaster risk reduction and Safety strategies for safe living, Edwin said.

He, therefore, enjoined Nigerians to be safety conscious and pro-active in order to reduce risks of disaster in the country.

Source: NAN

Donald Trump can be heard discussing with his personal lawyer how to buy the rights to the story of a Playboy model, who says she had an affair with the now president, on a tape released Tuesday night by CNN.

The existence of the tape, secretly recorded by his former longtime attorney Michael Cohen two months before the 2016 election, was reported last week by the New York Times, which said the FBI seized it during a raid on Cohens office this year.

Now, the recording is available for the world to listen to.

It involves Karen McDougal, a former Playboy model who says she had a months-long fling with Trump after they met in 2006, shortly after Trumps wife Melania gave birth to their son, Barron.

In the tape, Trump and Cohen talk about buying the rights to McDougals story, which she had sold a month earlier to the National Enquirer for $150,000. The tabloid never published the story.

In the at-times muddled recording, Cohen says he wants to set up a company to acquire the rights off American Media, the company that owns the Enquirer.

During the campaign, the Trump team denied any knowledge of the deal between McDougal and American Media.

But in the tape, candidate Trump expresses no surprise when the issue comes up and Cohen talks about essentially reimbursing the company for what it paid McDougal.

I need to open up a company for the transfer of all that info regarding our friend David, Cohen says, apparently referring to David Pecker, the head of American Media.

When it comes time for the financing, which will be , Cohen says, at which point Trump interrupts and says what financing?

Well have to pay , Cohen says, according to a CNN transcript of the conversation, which also addressed other business issues between the two men.

We wont pay with cash? Trump asks, according to the CNN transcript of a segment that is particularly hard to hear.

Cohen is then heard saying no, no and it is not clear what is said next.

The tape, made in September 2016, two months before the election, was provided to CNN by Cohens attorney, Lanny Davis.

Cohen, who has fallen out with Trump, is under federal investigation in New York for his business dealings and reportedly whether hush payments violated campaign finance laws.

*AFP

Source: NAN

By Mabel Yakubu

A Kaduna Chief Magistrates Court on Wednesday sentenced two tilers to three months imprisonment each for stealing wrappers worth N150,000.

The Magistrate, Mr Ibrahim Emmanuel, however, gave the convicts, Abdullahi Bala, 17, and Fahad Ibrahim, 20, an option of N5, 000 fine each.

Emmanuel warned them to desist from committing crimes, and ordered that the wrappers should be returned to the owner.

The convicts, both residents of Liberia Road, Malali, Kaduna, had pleaded guilty to a three-count charge of conspiracy, break-in and stealing.

Following the guilty plea, the prosecutor, Sgt. Chris Leo, urged the court to try them summarily under Section 286 sub 2 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.

Earlier, Leo told the court that the convicts committed the offences on July 18 at Ungwan Rimi Road, Kaduna.

He said that the convicts broke into a shop belonging to Mr Abdulmalik Rabiu and stole the wrappers.
They ran to an unknown destination until they were seen and arrested on July 20 with the said wrappers, he said.

The prosecutor noted that the offences contravened Sections 117, 174 and 347 of the Penal Code, Law of Kaduna State, 2017.

Source: NAN