The President of the Senate Dr Bukola Saraki has dissociated himself from the Offa Robbery Suspects contrary to claims by the Nigerian Police Force.

Saraki in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media & Publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu, said that the allegation by the Police linking him with the suspects was baseless.

He called on the entire public to disregard the report trending online about his invitation over the robbery, stressing that “there is no way I could have been associated with armed robbery against my people”.

Below is the full text of the statement:

The attention of the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has been drawn to a story circulating online and apparently derived from a Press Conference addressed by the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Moshood Jimoh, linking him (Saraki) to the Offa robbery.

Dr. Saraki will want the entire public to disregard this claim as a baseless allegation and another ploy by the Police to implicate him by all means. Let it be known that there is no way I could have been associated with armed robbery against my people.

“When the Offa robbery incident happened, I was the first top public official to pay a visit to the place and right there in the palace of the traditional ruler, I put a call through to this same Mr. Ibrahim Idris, the IGP, requesting him to make certain specific security arrangements as demanded by the people.

“Members of the public will remember that on May 16, 2018, I alerted the Senate about the information passed on to me by my State Governor, Dr. Abdulfatai Ahmed, over a plot by the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, to frame me up by getting some suspected cultists arrested in Ilorin to implicate me.

It is believed that the timely leakage of the plot in that case aborted the use of the suspected cultists to implicate me. Now, it is the Offa bank robbery suspects that are about to be used.

“This plot is concocted to embarrass me and, in the mind of the IGP, it is his own response after his refusal to honour the invitation by the National Assembly, headed me, for him to come and offer explanations on the rampant killings and violence across the country.

“Like the earlier one, this frame-up will also fail as I hereby state categorically that I have no link with any band of criminals.

“As a person who has utmost respect for the rule of law and all constitutional institutions, when the invitation from the Police is formally extended to me, I will be ready to honour it without any delay.

“It is however sad that this abuse of the criminal investigation process aimed at intimidating and over-overawing the legislature, thereby obstructing it from doing its work, is a big threat to our democracy “, the Senate President stated.

Source: NAN

Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has urged Nigerians to disregard the allegation by the police linking him with the 5 April robbery in Offa, Kwara state.

Saraki, in a statement by his media adviser,Yusuph Olaniyonu, described the allegation as baseless and another ploy by the Police to implicate him by all means.

“Let it be known that there is no way I could have been associated with armed robbery against my people,” Saraki said.

“When the Offa robbery incident happened, I was the first top public official to pay a visit to the place and right there in the palace of the traditional ruler, I put a call through to this same Mr. Ibrahim Idris, the IGP, requesting him to make certain specific security arrangements as demanded by the people.

“Members of the public will remember that on May 16, 2018, I alerted the Senate about the information passed on to me by my State Governor, Dr. Abdulfatai Ahmed, over a plot by the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, to frame me up by getting some suspected cultists arrested in Ilorin to implicate me. It is believed that the timely leakage of the plot in that case aborted the use of the suspected cultists to implicate me. Now, it is the Offa bank robbery suspects that are about to be used.

“This plot is concocted to embarrass me and, in the mind of the IGP, it is his own response after his refusal to honour the invitation by the National Assembly, headed me, for him to come and offer explanations on the rampant killings and violence across the country.

“Like the earlier one, this frame-up will also fail as I hereby state categorically that I have no link with any band of criminals.

“As a person who has utmost respect for the rule of law and all constitutional institutions, when the invitation from the Police is formally extended to me, I will be ready to honour it without any delay.

“It is however sad that this abuse of the criminal investigation process aimed at intimidating and over-overawing the legislature, thereby obstructing it from doing its work, is a big threat to our democracy “, the Senate President stated.

The police in a statement earlier today alleged that five of the ringleaders of the Offa robbery attacks mentioned Saraki and Governor Abdulfatai Ahmed as their armourers and financiers.

Source: NAN

Many Kenyans have taken to the streets to celebrate as the country become one of the global oil producers.

The country on Sunday flagged off the transportation of the first oil barrels.

President Uhuru Kenyatta led a host of local leaders to celebrate the feat that enabled the country to join Uganda as the only two oil-producing nations in East Africa.

In a historic occasion held at Ngamia 8 oil fields in Lokichar, Turkana County in the north, the President flagged off four trucks ferrying crude oil to the Kenya Petroleum Refinery in Mombasa.

The crude oil is being ferried in an experimental programme Early Oil Pilot Scheme (EOPS).

The resource will be kept in Mombasa as the country looks for viable markets.

Each truck carried 156 barrels. Tullow Oil company targets producing at least 2,000 barrels per day.

Aware of the protracted disagreement on how the proceeds should be distributed, President Kenyatta warned of the curses that might come with the resource, but also promised that all concerns raised by local residents will be attended to.

The economies of countries that have failed to manage their resources have also suffered the ripple effect of a hungry and poor citizen. It is my hope and prayer that together we shall work so that such is not visited upon us, he said.

Without mentioning names, Mr Kenyatta said two countries have experienced the painful side of the mineral, saying the country would do everything possible to avoid similar situations.

The negative competition for oil and other natural resources has seen hitherto two peaceful countries go to war. It has seen brothers take up arms again each other as mothers bury their children with no hope for the future, he said.

Nigeria and Angola are countries where fights have erupted because of disagreements over oil proceeds.

I pray that we will view the discovery of oil and gas as a blessing that we will manage effectively and efficiently for the benefit of not just the present generation but importantly future generation.

I call upon our leaders to ensure peace and stability in the region to ensure any disagreements that might arise are resolved in an amicable and sustainable manner. I stand ready to work with all leaders to ensure that we achieve this.

Deputy President William Ruto said they would not turn away from the grievances raised by the locals.

You have a friend in us because we listen to you, Mr Ruto said.

He added that the government has scrapped the capping of the proceeds after listening to communitys concerns.

Petroleum and Mining Cabinet Secretary John Munyes said it is a momentous time for Kenya as it exports oil from East Africa; and that the economy will be emboldened by oil proceeds.

Turkana Governor Josphat Nanok emphasised the importance of putting in place a comprehensive law that would guide how money allocated to the county and the host community would be spent.

Read more:

Source: NAN

The All Progressives Congress (APC) is troubled over threat by Lagos chapter to sue the National Working Committee (NWC) for overruling the states congress conducted in the 57 council areas instead of 20.

Mr Abiodun Salami, the Assistant Publicity Secretary of the party, issued the threat during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) in Lagos.

He was reacting to the National Working Committees overruling of the main congress of APC held at ACME on May 19.

Another congress was convened at the same day by a chieftain, Mr Fouad Oki on the grounds that the ACME congress lacked legal basis as it was conducted based on wards in 57 council areas instead of 20 approved by INEC.

The National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mallam Bolaji Abdullah, had said that the party had begun work on Friday on the reports from the various appeal panels on the conduct of state congresses.

He said a meeting to resolve the issues had been held and that the Lagos APC faction loyal to Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu which conducted its wards and local government congresses in 57 local council development areas had been overruled by the national leadership.

He said the state structure was, however, not handed over to Oki, who he said conducted his congress in accordance with the party laws.

He added that a five-man panel had been set up to dissect the constitutionality of the two congresses and that the panel, headed by the partys Deputy National Chairman, would begin sitting on Sunday.

Yes, we set up a panel to look at the issues in the Lagos chapter. Of course, we overruled those who conducted their congresses in 57councils because the Constitution only recognises 20 councils.

We could not have discountenanced those who conducted in 20 councils because that is constitutional .The issue in Lagos is about legality and constitutionality, he said.

Reacting, Salami described the NWCs decision on the main congress as mischievous, saying it was meant to scuttle things at the states chapter.

The spokesman said the chapter would challenge the decision in the court of law.

We will challenge their decision at the court because there is a Supreme Court judgement in favour of Lagos State on 57 councils.

We have been operating with 20 LGs and 37 LCDAs in Lagos before the formation of APC.

The decision is not only mischievous but a deliberate way to scuttle the party in Lagos State, he said.

Salami said the real congress was the one held at ACME in the presence of INEC and party officials.

He said the other congress lacked legal basis as no monitoring officer was present.

Salami accused Oki of double standards, saying the same person who was partys Vice Chairman (Central) when the party conducted council elections in 57 , councils was now complaining of illegality

Speaking to NAN, Oki said the decision of the partys NWC to overrule the ACME congress vindicated him and his group.

I have always said you cannot build something on nothing. What is wrong us wrong.

I will continue to say that the constitutionally known local governments in Lagos is 20.

And INEC recognises 245 wards. Therefore you cannot put up any illegality and expect it to hold.

And if you look at their own congresses, you will see that they were full of contradictions and illegalities.

The reaction of the NWC cannot be clearer. That is what we are seeing.

We have a NWC that is committed to the Constitution, to the rule of law and the electoral act and that is why they are trying to put things right, he said.

Oki said he had been briefed that a committee was in the state to resolve the issues once and for all.

He, however, said he had not been invited, but hoped to be invited on Monday to defend his own congress. (NAN,)

Source: NAN

Lawyers acting for Donald Trump say the US president has the power to pardon himself if charges arise from the investigation into Russian collusion, but has no plans to do so.

The claim, made by Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, came soon afterpublished a confidential memo from two other White House lawyers to special counsel Robert Mueller.

In it, Trumps legal team say the president could not be acting illegally to obstruct the investigation because the US constitution empowers him to, if he wished, terminate the inquiry, or even exercise his power to pardon.

Part of Muellers investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election is looking at whether Mr Trump sought to criminally obstruct it, in particular with the sacking of ex-National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and former FBI director James Comey, says the.

Giuliani made several TV appearances yesterday, trying to distance Trump from plans to use his presidential pardoning powers to clear himself.

I think the political ramifications of that would be tough, Giuliani said. Pardoning other people is one thing. Pardoning yourself is another.

Former US attorney and CNN analyst Preet Bahara said it would be outrageous for a sitting president to pardon himself. I think if the President decided he was going to pardon himself, I think thats almost self-executing impeachment, he told.

Source:

Source: NAN

For several years, the world over, youths have been consistently referred to as the Leaders of tomorrow, giving hope to young people that one day, they would be at the helms of affairs of their various countries.

Truly, in most countries of the world, the youths are gradually becoming presidents, members of legislative houses and cabinet ministers, among others.

However, in Nigeria, prior to the signing into law of the Not Too Young to Run (NTYR) Act, the hope of any young man aspiring to the leadership position in the countrys polity was a herculean task.

Of the few young persons who managed to grab political positions, majority of them were either children of renowned politicians, sponsored by a god-father, who is an elder or very loyal to an older politician.

This, however, does not include the few that genuinely got the position because of their qualification, professional expertise and character.

In Nigeria presently, the least average age of people in political positions is 50 years.

Today, not content anymore with the way things are going, many young people appear to have become tired, realizing that they have only been tools to attain power, many young Nigerians are readying to challenge the older politicians at the poll.

Tired of waiting for a future that never comes, they have decided to seek elective office in 2019.

There are those whose only claim to seeking office is their age. Entitled, they feel since they are young and having been promised leadership positions for many years, then they should be given the chance to run for office freely.

However, oneman, Chinedu Onyeizu, does not feel he belong to the above category and is determied that even without the NTYR, he can join the race.

I know it will not be easy, he said. As a matter of fact, I do not expect it to be easy, but the time to act is now. The older politicians have failed us; we cannot keep sitting on the sidelines and be tools for their continuous hold on power.

But then, when you follow his lifes trajectory from such tough beginnings; how he finished secondary school with distinctions and graduated from the Federal University of Technology in Owerri, where he studied Petroleum Engineering, it becomes clearer the kind of person Chinedu is the kind that can surmount such modest beginnings and turn it into one great success story.

When Nigeria holds its next national election in 2019, Chinedu Onyeizu is hoping to represent the people of Abia South at the Senate.

Since his NYSC years in Bayelsa State in 2003, where his empathy for the poor and less privileged led to a humanitarian work that helped restore the sight of over 67 cataract-blind Bayelsans, its been one success story to another.

His desire to help the over 67 blind Bayelsans began with a relationship with a 75-year-old blind man. Normally many NYSC members before him would take the easier paths and do projects that didnt require much effort, but not Chinedu.

To restore the sight of the people of his host community meant he had to invite specialists from foreign countries.

Luckily he found an organization that does it free in the UK. But, he needed the state governments involvement; to help out with their transportation within the state and to ensure their safety in a region where militants are known to kidnap foreign nationals for ransom.

From this point, it became a slippery slope of challenges. Government officials that normally should be excited became stumbling blocks; with almost everyone wanting something in return before they could offer any assistance.

Helping to restore the sight of those blind Bayelsans taught me something very important. I learned doggedness and that when you want something, if you persevere, you will eventually get what you want, Chinedu said.

Having been stonewalled by difficult government officials and feeling frustrated, Chinedu kept pushing. His persistence eventually paid off on the last day when the specialists arrived at the Port Harcourt International airport and were on their way to Bayelsa.

Someone linked him with former Nigerias president, Goodluck Jonathan, who was at the time the deputy governor of Bayelsa. Jonathan granted his request for transportation and security. The rest is history.

After NYSC, in 2004, Chinedu joined the Petroleum Trust Development Fund (PTDF) gas research group as a research associate, and for three years worked on innovative ways to harness Nigerias Deepwater stranded gas resources.

During this period, he developed a method to convert flared natural gas to hydrate balls and also proposed an innovative means of transporting the gas balls to shore for re-gasification and electricity generation.

It is no surprise that in 2006 he went on to win the Best Young Engineer in West Africa Award for developing a geospatial model for oil spill tracking in Nigerias oil-rich Niger-Delta region.

The award was given by UK based PennWell petroleum group, organizers of the Offshore West Africa Conference.

In 2007, Chinedu joined Chevron Nigeria as a Petroleum Engineer, and during his time there, he worked in eight upstream petroleum asset development units, and led many multi-functional teams across the globe.

He was also assigned to manage several multi-million dollar projects for the organization; and in 2012, he was selected to represent Chevrons mid-Africa business units in Louisiana USA, Gulf of Mexico, to lead her upstream workflow transformation project.

Nine years after joining Chevron, in 2016, and in an act of selfless service to Nigeria, Chinedu left the high paying job to search for a permanent solution to Nigerias frequent fuel scarcity and distribution problem.

This drive to help solve one of the countrys pertinent economic challenges led him to MIT where he was selected as a Sloan Fellow and in his research, again, suggested actionable recommendations that could solve Nigerias fuel distribution problems.

His recommendations was published on the July 2017 edition of MITs expert blog, and passed on to the government for consideration.

The next year, in 2017, Chinedu co-founded an Africa focused think tank and strategy consulting group called Afri-PERA. The company works with national and regional governments in Africa to solve their policy and development challenges.

These days he spends his time on the board of Rhino Group of Companies and the Chinedu Onyeizu Foundation, COF, while remaining an active member of the International Society of Petroleum Engineers and represents Chevron on the Global Production and Operations Award committee of the organization.

You will agree that all these are no easy feat for a small-town Aba boy whose early education was under mango trees.

Onyeizu is not only young; more importantly, he is vibrant, and a good replacement to the current old, recycled politician whose track record at the Senate has been poor, selfish representation.

From his humble beginnings in the village of Abayi Umuocham, Chinedu Onyeizu has shown that with persistence and an understanding of urgency, anyone can be anything they set their mind to.

He said, There is no greater achievement to giving back to an Aba that made me what I am today. I am proudly an Aba boy. Aba has given me so much and it is only proper that I give back.

Also, his campaign Manager and long-time friend, Mr. Ojo Maduekwe, maintained that listening to Onyeizu, one gets the feeling of a man whos had to surmount challenges in all that hes achieved in life; beginning from his early school years in Nigeria.

According to Maduekwe, this culminated in him going abroad to further his education in some of the best higher institutions in the world, such as the Harvard Kennedy School, Heriot-Watt University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

He said, Born and raised in Aba, Abia state, Chinedu began his education in a village primary school at Abayi Umuocham. When he told me during our conversation that they were taught only Mathematics and English and that classes were held under mango trees, it sounded like something made out of folklore.

Absolutely not; this is not those tales by moonlight kind of stories; this is real. I schooled in the village and we had our classes under mango trees. This is the kind of humble beginning that was my childhood, he assured me, chuckling.

As we rounded up the meeting, Chinedu seemed to remember something vital.

Before I forget, Bayelsa also taught me something about urgency. The future might be tomorrow, but the time to act is always now.

One must persist in the present; only then will what we seek to achieve tomorrow happen.

Source: NAN

Nobel Prize winning anti-nuclear campaign group ICAN has offered to pay for the cost of the historic summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump, including the hotel bill for the North Korean leader.

The offer comes after a media report that the cash-strapped North may have trouble bearing the cost of its leaders stay in Singapore and the large delegation of security and support staff for the meeting scheduled for June 12.

The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), which won last years Nobel Peace Prize, said it was willing to use its prize money to pay for any accommodation or meeting space needed to make the summit a success.

The Nobel Peace Prize included a cash prize and we are offering funds from the prize to cover the costs for the summit, in order to support peace in the Korean Peninsula and a nuclear-weapon-free world, ICAN official Akira Kawasaki said.

This is a historic meeting, and once in a generation opportunity to help establish a world free of the threat of nuclear weapons, Kawasaki told Reuters by telephone from Tokyo.

Kawasaki heads the Tokyo-based Peace Boat, one of ICANs 10 international steering groups.

The intention to spend the prize money is in line with the work the group has done to lobby for the U.N. Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which was adopted by 122 nations but not any of the nuclear weapons states or North Korea.

Its not about paying for luxury rooms for the leader of the DPRK or anyone, thats not our intention, Kawasaki said. DPRK is short for the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, the formal name of North Korea.

Kim Chang Son, the de facto chief of staff for the North Korean government, was seen at The Fullerton five-star hotel in Singapore last week during a visit to meet U.S officials to work out the logistics for the summit.

The Fullerton was North Koreas lodging of choice, the Washington Post has reported. The presidential suite may set the government back by at least 8,000 Singapore dollars ($6,000) a night, it said.

Kims trip to Singapore, which would be the furthest he will have traveled as leader, poses logistical challenges such as the likely use of Soviet-era aircraft to carry him and his limousine, as well as dozens of security and other staff.

Singapore, a small but wealthy Southeast Asian city-state, has said it would bear the cost of the summit to do its part to ensure a successful meeting.

The Nobel Prize award differs from year to year, and in 2017, the prestigious prize was set at 9 million Swedish crown ($1.02 million).

Source: NAN

Kwara State Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed has refuted police allegations of sponsoring, funding, arming or otherwise supporting political thuggery.

In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Dr. Muyideen Akorede in response to a Nigeria Police statement accusing him of sponsoring political thugs allegedly linked to the Offa Armed Robbery incident, Ahmed described the allegations as false.

Ahmed affirmed that while the state has empowered several youth groups under its acclaimed Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) scheme, the state government could not be held liable for how beneficiaries utilize the credit.

He urged the police to complete their investigations and charge the suspects to court soon in line with the dictates of the rule of law.

Below is the full text of the statement:

“Kwara State Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed denies the allegations of supporting political thuggery or any other acts of criminality as alleged by the Nigeria Police or the suspects allegedly arrested in connection with the tragic Offa robbery. Neither has he at any time funded or provided arms to any individual or group in the state or anywhere in the country.

“To set the records straight, the Kwara State Government has a well known empowerment scheme under the Small And Medium Enterprises platform which is used to move women and youths groups into entrepreneurship. Consequently, several youth and women groups have benefitted from the scheme to date. However, at no point did the Kwara State government directly provide funds to any group known as Good Boys for any purpose.

“Similarly, if any of the beneficiaries chose to use the SME credit secured from the government to purchase a vehicle which was then alleged to have been used for an act of criminality, the Kwara State Governor and indeed the state government cannot be held liable for such actions since neither had prior knowledge of such intentions on beneficiaries’ part.

“The Kwara State Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed also rejects the police allegation of arming and funding the suspects for political thuggery or for any other activity as false and unfounded as thuggery or any other form of criminality is neither encouraged nor supported by the state government or its agents.

“While refuting the alleged indictment, therefore, Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed expresses the hope that the police will soon complete its investigations and charge the suspects to court in line with rule of law”.

Source: Daily Post NG

The Nigeria Police Force has made known the reason it summoned Senate President Bukola Saraki to answer to allegations surrounding his links to the armed robbers who raided banks in Offa in April.

It said five principal suspects, among 15 others paraded in Abuja in connection to the Offa robbery, indicted the senate president in their statements.

According to police spokesperson Jimoh Moshood, one Ayoade Akinnibosun among the suspects and acclaimed leader of the robbery gang said they were political thugs of Saraki and Kwara state governor Abdulfatah Ahmed.

Moshood said at a press briefing in Sbujs on Sunday: “The Five (5) gang leaders namely; Ayoade Akinnibosun, Ibukunle Ogunleye, Adeola Abraham, Salawudeen Azeez, Niyi Ogundiran and some of the other Seventeen (17) suspects arrested for direct involvement and active participation in the Offa Bank Robbery and the gruesome killing of THIRTY THREE (33) innocent persons which includes (some pregnant women and nine (9) Police personnel) admitted, confessed and volunteered statements that they were political thugs of the Senate President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Sen. Bukola Saraki and the Executive Governor of Kwara State, Alh. Abdulfatah Ahmed.

“The Five (5) gang leaders further confessed during investigation that they are political thugs under the name Youth Liberation Movement a.k.a “Good Boys” admitted and confessed to have been sponsored with firearms, money and operational vehicles by the Senate President, Sen. Bukola Saraki and the Governor of Kwara State, Alh. Abdulfatah Ahmed.”

Source: Daily Post NG

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has said that the administration was on the right path in improving Nigerias business environment and diversifying the economy.

Osinbajo made the submission in an interview with the Financial Timess, where he also said that the federal governments investment in infrastructure would improve local manufacturing capacity, according to a script of the interview released by Mr. Laolu Akande, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity.

Osinbajo said that there had been a lot of damage to the environment in terms of business and others, but effecting the correction would take a while.

He said that the administration is barely three years old, but is focused on doing the right thing.

The moment you have the right people and you put the right structures in place, you can do a lot, and I think we have been blessed with an incredibly good team.

We wanted us to be much farther ahead in terms of manufacturing. But a lot of these things are also infrastructure constraints that cannot be developed overnight, which explains why we are investing heavily in infrastructure.

We focus a great deal on diversifying; agriculture, manufacturing; weve focused on trying to diversify as much as possible, and we think that that is the path to go. There is no other way of doing this.

And if you look at the figures, there has been tremendous improvement, even export of raw materials, agriculture produce, even manufacturing has improved. I think that we are on the right path. I am convinced that we are going to stay the course.

Akande reproduced the interview conducted by Mr David Pilling, the Africa Editor of Financial Times on Thursday, May 31 at Eko Hotels and Suites.

Below is the transcript

: First, the nature of the crisis, of course, even beyond low oil prices, we were also experiencing considerably reduced oil production. At some point, we were producing less than a million barrels of oil per day, that being the major source of revenue at the time. But I think that what we did during that period was also very important in bringing the strong outcome that we are seeing today.

In terms of corruption, I think that we were able to deal with grand corruption. By that, I mean the sort of corruption where you found huge sums of money missing from the treasury and all of that. And because we were able to control grand corruption, we were able to do more with far less. So, for example, we invested N1.3 trillion in 2016 on capital for the very first time in almost 10 years of the countrys economic history.

So, if we were able to invest more when oil prices at some point, were $50 or $60, than when oil prices were at $110, $114; especially on infrastructure and capital; Im sure anyone could say that there is something wrong with that. I think we managed to do far more with less.

: If you look at the different sectors, lets take agriculture, for example, we have recorded very significant growth in agriculture. We are looking to gain at least 3.6 per cent growth in agriculture. That is particularly important to us, because in thinking of diversification of our economy, agriculture is, of course, a fitting point, and we closed that gap. Take rice for example, we were importing rice in the order of about $1.6 billion a year, which is about $5 million every day. Today, we are down to importing just about two per cent of the rice that we consume. So we have at least, ramped up rice production, we are practically self-sufficient.

No, it is creating the right environment. For example, the Anchors Borrowers Programme was an important programme in getting people back to the farms, and also, which is one very part of this whole process, we supported the big millers in being able to increase a lot of the paddy rice that was being produced.

So there was a genuine effort to ensure that we are able to not just ramp up the production of rice, but also milling, and we found that the private sector responded to that, and we found the big millers, WACOT and others. Dangote is now investing about a million metric tonnes of milling capacity. I think that at this stage, agriculture has recorded significant improvement.

Also mining, because of the focus on mining, growth continued through the recession and growth has continued even now

: We are trying to create the right environment for manufacturing, and for business generally. And we took time to focus on the business environment with our Ease of Doing Business initiative, and we worked on various areas, including access to credit, access to registration of title, company registration, taxation and all of those things.

We looked at all of the different areas in our Ease of Doing Business, with a view to making life easier, to creating the right environment for manufacturing and for business generally. And weve recorded significant growth and this we are seeing in the growth that we are seeing today.

Im sure you are familiar with how our World Bank rating went up and we were also considered one of the best reforming countries in the world.
Of course, there has been a lot of damage to the environment in terms of business and all that, but correcting that would take a while, dont forget that we (this administration) are barely three years old. And we are focused on doing the right thing.

: I think the one thing we wanted was for us to be much farther ahead in terms of manufacturing. But a lot of these things are also infrastructure constraints that cannot be developed overnight; which explains why we are investing heavily in infrastructure; rail, road and power, especially rail. This is the significant part of the investment that we are doing; concessioning the Lagos-Kano to General Electric, the narrow gauge, developing the standard gauge is important in terms of just movement of goods and all that. A lot of these initiatives would be a great help in moving goods.

: Nigeria has one of the most vibrant private sectors. Manufacturers associations, in particular, and several others felt that we shouldnt go into this without further consultations, and we wanted to know exactly what specifically in terms of negotiations that will follow the signing of the framework. And it was the Presidents opinion that it would be much wiser for us to suspend the signing until all of those engagements had been done to the satisfaction of the private sector. We work very closely with the private sector in practically everything that we have done.

For us, it is important to sit back, take a look at those negotiations first before heading into the framework, which is really what we are doing at the moment. So, where we are is that we are looking at the nitty gritty and we are trying to be sure how it is going to play for our private sector people, for industry, for trade, etc. We are not saying we are going to renegotiate the framework; the framework is already there. Our greater concern is for the specifics. And we are at a point where before we go into that, we will certainly make sure that we are happy with the terms and conditions.

: First of all, let me say that the nature of the security threats is asymmetric coping with it. And this is the same with countries all over the world; coping with terrorism is the sort of thing that most countries are grappling with.

I think that we are dealing with that as well. And my take is that the way we are going about it is the right way, in other words, we are working with partners in the sub-region to ensure that we are able to stem the flow of small arms for example.

We are also working on developing our local capacity. One of the strong initiatives that we are pushing is community policing; because a lot of the terrorism that you see are the sorts of opportunistic attacks that require local policing. And one of the strong initiatives that we are pushing is the whole question of the state police; more local and community policing, and we are working on those initiatives with the governors, like in the National Economic Council, which I have the privilege of chairing. We are trying to see how we can do more in terms of local policing, intelligence gathering, in order to be able to respond much more quickly to some of the threats that we see.

For example, in Benue State, we have deployed Special Forces now to several of the places where we have the disturbances. So, it is an ongoing engagement, and, as I said, asymmetric threat of this nature means that we just have to keep planning ahead as much as we can.

: If you look at the herdsmen/farmers clashes, it is a different type of problem (to the issue of Boko Haram) and it has to be dealt with differently. Note that this crisis did not start with the Buhari government. These clashes have been going on for years. I think we are at a point that we believe that the right response; our response, has to be robust to ensuring that we are able to keep communities safe, which is what is going on. We are doing that in various parts of the North central.

: I think that what we are doing is that we are managing our finances far better. Today oil prices are about $80 a barrel. Our reserves are at $47 billion, which is the highest in about 10 years, comparable to 2013 when oil prices were higher. So beside the Sovereign Wealth Fund, we have invested far more; weve almost tripled our investment in the Sovereign Wealth Fund.

I think the question about whether you spend or you dont spend is really more a question of how you manage the resources in the first place. For us, I think that the management of resources has been a strong point. I think we have managed our resources well. Which explains why we focus a great deal on diversifying; agriculture, manufacturing. Weve focused on trying to diversify as much as possible, and we think that it is the path to go. There is no other way of doing this.

And if you look at the figures, there has been tremendous improvement, in the export of raw materials, agriculture produce, even manufacturing has improved. I think that we are on the right path. I am convinced that we are going to stay the course.

Source: NAN

By Shehu Danjuma

The Katsina State Government is to establish an orphans protection desk in the state Ministry of Justice to protect the rights of orphans, the Chief Judge, Justice Musa Danladi, says.

The desk will serve as a complaint point for orphans that their relations seize their wealth after the demise of their parents, he said in Katsina.

Danladi spoke during an orphans and needy endowment fund raising ceremony, organised by the Izalah Islamic Sect, Katsina Branch, on Sunday..

He said the unit would be called Orphans Care Desk for orphans and their mothers to lodge complaints against those who cheated them.

It has come to the knowledge of the state government and the Ministry of Justice that some people have formed the habit of cheating orphans of their wealth after the death of the parents.

The Ministry of Justice is ready to deal with such greedy relatives who had been cheating orphans in the state, Danladi said.

In his remark, The National Chairman of Muslims Orphans protection committee, Alhaji Abdullahi Aminchi, appealed to wealthy individuals and organisations to support orphans financially through donations to the fund.

Aminchi, a former Deputy Governor of Katsina State, said that the committee spent huge sums in providing succour for orphans during Ramadan in 2017.

He said the committee had established scholarship schemes to enable orphans to further their studies after the death of their parents.

In his contribution, the Chairman of Izalah Islamic Sect in Katsina State, Sheikh Yakubu Musa, advised Muslims to be their brothers keeper by assisting orphans and the needy.

Musa said that orphans deserved the support of well-meaning Muslims.

Source: NAN

The police said today they have invited Senate President, Bukola Saraki over 5 April multiple bank robbery in Offa Kwara state, during which 33 persons, including nine policemen, were killed.

Police spokesman, Jimoh Moshood also announced the arrest of Mr. Yusuf Abdulwahab, the chief of staff to Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed and Alabi Olalekan, his Personal Assistant, Political, as investigations over the gruesome robbery deepened.

The police claimed five of the bandits arrested and who have made confessions during interrogations indicted the senate president.

The police therefore wanted to interrogate the senator, who is Number 3 person, in the order of protocol in the country. The police did not give a specific time they wanted Saraki to report.

The Senate President, Sen. Bukola Saraki is being invited by the Nigeria Police Force to report to the Force Intelligence Response Team office at Guzape, Abuja to answer to the allegations levelled against him from the confessions of the Five (5) Gang Leaders, namely; Ayoade Akinnibosun, Ibukunle Ogunleye, Adeola Abraham, Salawudeen Azeez, Niyi Ogundiran and some of the other Seventeen (17) suspects arrested for direct involvement and active participation in the Offa Bank Robbery and the gruesome killing of 33 innocent persons which include some pregnant women and nine Police personnel, Moshood said.

The police in the statement appeared to have dropped hints on what they wanted to ask Saraki about, as they claimed that the five men, who were the leaders of the bandits `admitted, confessed and volunteered statements that they were political thugs of the Senate President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Sen. Bukola Saraki and the Executive Governor of Kwara State, Alh. Abdulfatah Ahmed.

The other hints dropped were the recovery of one Toyota Prado Jeep with Reg. No. 19KWGH belonging to the Personal Assistant, Political to the Governor of Kwara State and a Sticker plate number with inscription SARAKI Kwara, State of Harmony.

According to the police, the Five gang leaders further confessed during investigation that they are political thugs under the name Youth Liberation Movement a.k.a Good Boys admitted and confessed to have been sponsored with firearms, money and operational vehicles by the Senate President, Sen. Bukola Saraki and the Governor of Kwara State, Alh. Abdulfatah Ahmed.

Police explained why the Chief of Staff and the Personal Assistant to Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed were also arrested:

A Lexus jeep GX-300 (Ash Colour) with a sticker plate number with inscription SARAKI Kwara, State of Harmony used by the gang leader (Ayoade Akinnibosun, during the bank robbery and the killing of the 33 innocent persons was taken to Government House, Ilorin on 16th May, 2018 where the sticker plate number with inscription SARAKI Kwara, State of Harmony was removed before another plate number (Reg. No. Kwara, KMA 143 RM) registered in the name of Ayoade AKinnibosun the Overall Commander of the Offa Bank Robbery was then attached to the vehicle to cover up the identity of the said vehicle.

The exhibit vehicle was subsequently recovered from the premises of the Min. of Environmental and Forestry in Ilorin, Kwara State. While the sticker plate number with inscription SARAKI Kwara, State of Harmony removed from the vehicle was recovered from one Adeola Omiyale who drove the said Lexus Jeep to Government House, Ilorin immediately after the Bank Robbery.

The Personal Assistant (Political) to the Executive Governor of Kwara State, Mr. Alabi Olalekan, who is privy to information that the Police is looking for the Lexus Jeep as an exhibit used in the Offa Bank Robbery directed one Adeola Omiyale to relocate the Lexus Jeep to Government House, Ilorin. The PA (Political) is currently in Police custody and has made useful statement assisting the Police in further investigation into the case.

A revolver pistol and pump action gun were recovered by the Police Investigation Team from the Personal Assistant (Political) to the Executive Governor of Kwara State, Mr. Alabi Olalekans Farm where he directed his brother to hide them after his arrest by the Police.

In order to conceal evidence, the Chief of Staff to the Executive Governor of Kwara State, Mr. Yusuf Abdulwahab who has been arrested and taken into Police custody, arranged the removal of the sticker plate number with inscription SARAKI Kwara, State of Harmony from the exhibit vehicle.

The police gave an assurance that they will continue to ensure that the rule of law prevails in every case under investigation and every offender is brought to justice.

*Ayoade Akinnibosun a.k.a AY M 37Yrs Gang Leader (Coordinated the Killings) From Oro, Irepodun LGA, Kwara State.

• Ibikunle Ogunleye M 36Yrs Gang Leader, Killed Two (2) Persons. From Oro, Irepodun LGA, Kwara State

• Adeola Abraham M 35Yrs Gang Leader, Killed Five (5) Persons. From Oro, Irepodun LGA, Kwara State.

*Salaudeen Azeez M 49Yrs Gang Leader, Killed Two (2) Persons. From Oro, Irepodun LGA, Kwara State.

*Niyi Ogundiran M 37Yrs Gang Leader, Killed Two (2) Persons (Latest Confession). From Oro, Irepodun LGA, Kwara State.

• Michael Adikwu M 30Yrs Sectional Gang Leader, Killed Twenty Two (22) Persons, mostly at the Police Station.

• Kabiru Afolabi M 26Yrs Principal Suspect

• Omoseni Kassim M 28Yrs Principal Suspect

• Kayode Opadokun M 35Yrs Principal Suspect

• Kazeem Abdulrasheed M 36Yrs Principal Suspect

• Azeez Abdullahi M 27Yrs Principal Suspect

• Adewale Popoola M 22Yrs Principal Suspect

• Adetoyese Muftau M 23Yrs Principal Suspect

*Alexander Reuben M 39Yrs Principal Suspect

*Richard Buba Terry M 23Yrs Principal Suspect

*Peter Jasper Kuunfa M 23Yrs Principal Suspect

*Ikechukwu Ebuka Nnaji M 29Yrs Principal Suspect

• Moses Godwin M 28Yrs Principal Suspect

*Adeola omiyale M 38Yrs. From Isanlu Isin Town, Isin LGA, Kwara State.

*Femi Idowu M 34Yrs

*Alabi Olalekan M 49Yrs-PA Political to Executive Governor, Kwara State

• Yusuf Abdulwahab M 58Yrs Chief of Staff to Executive Governor, Kwara State

All the exhibits recovered

*Two (2) AK47 Rifles

• Two (2) Barrette Pistols

• One (1) Pump Action Rifle

  *One (1) Revolver Pistol In Police Custody in Ilorin

• Lexus RX300 Jeep with Reg. No. Kwara, KMA 143 RM belonging to Ayoade Akinnibosun (Gang Leader) Used for the Bank Robbery

• Mercedes Benz Compressor with Reg. No. Lagos LT496 KJA belonging to Ayoade Akinnibosun (Gang Leader) Used for the Bank Robbery

• One (1) Toyota Prado Jeep with Reg. No. 19KWGH belonging to the PA Political to the Executive Governor, Kwara State In Police Custody in Ilorin

*One (1) Toyota Camry Saloon Car with Reg. No. LRN 481 FE In Police Custody in Ilorin

*The Cash Sum of Six Hundred Thousand Naira (N600,000.00) In Police Custody in Ilorin

*Four (4) Phones of victims recovered

*One (1) Sticker plate number with inscription SARAKI Kwara, State of Harmony

First Bank Offa (ii) Guaranty Trust Bank Offa (iii) ECO Bank Offa (iv) Zenith Bank Offa (v) Union Bank Offa (vi) Ibolo Micro Finance Bank Offa and (vii) the Divisional Police Headquarters, Offa.

Source: NAN

By Bukola Adetoye

The Lagos State Pension Commission (LASPEC) said Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State, has paid a total of N37, 546 billion to pensioners since 2015.

According to a statement signed by the Director-General of LASPEC, Mrs Folashade Onanuga, on Sunday in Lagos, the figure represented the total pension paid to 9,045 retirees of the state.

The LASPEC Director-General said the governor released N859, 059 million to offset the Accrued Pension Rights of 158 retirees under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) in May.

She said earlier N859, 059 million was paid to 158 Public Service retirees, bringing the total pension paid by the governor since assumption of office to N37, 546 billion.

She explained the governor had been releasing funds every month to off-set the backlog of pension to Lagos retirees.

She said despite the high funding obligations of the current pension scheme, the government was committed to offsetting the backlog of pension, and would soon commence payment to 2016 retirees.

Onanuga said the government was fine-tuning the process of rolling out benefits that would make life easier for retirees.

I, however, implore the retirees to study leaflets distributed by the state government on Annuity and Programmed Withdrawal for receipt of monthly pension entitlements, before picking their choice, she said.

Source: NAN

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has called for a collective action against plastic pollution in Africa.

The Communication Officer, Climate Change and Green Growth Department, of the bank, Mrs Sonia Borrini, said on Sunday in Abuja, that plastic pollution is alarming and dangerous to the environment.
.
Her call is coming on the heels of the 2018 World Environment Day slated for June 5, with the theme: Beat Plastic Pollution.

Every year, 500 billion plastic bags are used around the world, 13 million tonnes of plastic leak into the ocean and 17 million barrels of oil are used on plastic production.

About100,000 marine animals are killed by plastics and 83 per cent of tap water are found to contain plastic particles.

In particular, it is impacting the ocean, which is the lungs of our planet, providing most of the oxygen we breathe, major source of food and medicines and a critical part of the biosphere, AfDB said.

AfDB said it would join the rest of the world to celebrate the World Environment Day on June 5, as well as the World Ocean Day on June 8, with focus on Preventing Plastic Pollution and Encouraging Solutions for a Healthy Ocean.

It said through this initiative, the bank was reconfirming its commitment to playing a leadership role in ensuring environmental sustainability while supporting economic prosperity and social inclusion in Africa.

According to the Bank, World Environmental Day (WED) 2018, is a call to action for Africa to come together to combat plastic pollution, one of the greatest environmental challenges of our time.

It said the celebration would afford stakeholders the opportunity to consider how they could make changes in their everyday lives to reduce the heavy burden of plastic pollution on the natural and human environment.

The bank said that the use of plastic had severe environmental and health consequences.

Source: NAN

The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) has declared tourism as the future of Nigeria as the nation hosts the 61st UNWTO Commission for Africa (CAF) conference.

The organisation has promised to support the country in developing the sector.

Mr Zurab Pololikashvili, UNWTO Secretary-General, made the declaration in Abuja at a pre-conference media briefing he jointly addressed with the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports Pololikashvili and other executives of the organisation arrived in Nigeria early Sunday morning for the 61st UNWTO Commission for Africa (CAF) conference holding from June 4 to June 6 in Abuja.

Nigeria, last year, won the right to host UNWTO-CAF conference, which is the gathering of all African Ministers of Tourism, principal executives of the global tourism body and other stakeholders in the tourism sector.

Pololikashvili said Nigeria has lots of tourism potential to show to the world and the meeting would serve as a platform to showcase the country as continental tourism hub.

He commended the President Muhammadu Buharis administration for identifying tourism as one of the sectors for economic diversification.

He said that tourism is gaining weight as a development opportunity for the whole continent, with its vast diversity of nature, culture and its greatest vehicle for development.

Pololikashvili said that tourism has huge potential to generate lasting development opportunities in Africa and Nigeria in particular, if managed in the right ways.

He said that Africa is UNWTOs top priority in the area of tourism and investment promotion.

He mentioned some of the UNWTOs agenda for Africa to include; poverty alleviation, climate change, education and skills development and financing.

There are broad impact of tourism for the benefit of societies and its people, and promoting tourism as a priority in national agendas, he said.

The secretary-general said that UNWTO is planning to restore the training of journalists across African continent for better reportage.

The minister welcomed Pololikashvili and his team to the country, noting that Nigeria is the first the secretary-general would be attending his first UNWTO-CAF meeting since assumption of office in January 2018.

Mohammed said Nigeria is all set to host the best UNWTO-CAF Meeting ever, adding that all necessary preparations had been made to ensure a successful meeting.

We also expect an impressive attendance. As at today, we have confirmation from 166 foreign delegates, 26 Ministers and 332 Nigerian delegates, excluding the gentlemen of the press.

Several delegates have arrived and many more are expected in today, he said.

The minister said that the theme of the meeting Tourism Statistics: A Catalyst for Development fitted very well into our quest to improve on the nations tourism statistics for planning purposes and the ultimate development of tourism sector. (NAN)

Source: NAN

England's World Cup build-up continued with a friendly win over Nigeria at Wembley.

Chelsea defender Gary Cahill celebrated his return to England's squad and stepped up his claims for a starting place against Tunisia in Volgograd on 18 June by opening the scoring with a powerful header after only seven minutes.

England's total first-half domination was emphasised when captain Harry Kane scored his eighth goal in his last seven appearances six minutes before the interval when Nigeria keeper Francis Uzoho allowed his 18-yard shot to slip in.

Arsenal's Alex Iwobi gave Nigeria's thousands of fans inside Wembley hope two minutes after the break with a crisp finish but England - who had Raheem Sterling booked for diving - closed out the victory in relatively untroubled fashion.

England's preparations continue with another friendly against Costa Rica at Elland Road on Thursday.

Sterling has dominated the headlines and the build-up to this friendly after he was pictured sporting a tattoo of a gun on his leg and revelations about his late arrival for England's pre-World Cup training camp when they assembled earlier this month.

And he was a central figure again here at Wembley as manager Gareth Southgate puts the finishing touches to his plans for the World Cup in Russia.

Sterling, whose name was warmly greeted by England's fans when it was announced, formed a lively partnership with captain Kane - but it was also a day of frustration for the Manchester City attacker.

Southgate, who admitted he briefly considered dropping Sterling after that late arrival to join up with England, will have relished some aspects and the signs of promise in that link with Kane but will demand much greater end product.

Sterling never stopped running and probing but was too wasteful, chipping a good chance wide of the far post in the first half and failing to find the final delivery on occasions.

He was also rightly booked for diving in the second half as he tumbled theatrically when confronted by Nigeria keeper Francis Uzoho as he raced into the area.

Sterling's energy and application, however, could not be doubted and he will play a key role in Southgate's line-up when their World Cup campaign opens against Tunisia in Volgograd on 18 June.

Source: BBC

The Hindu newspaper has reported the death of three Nigerians in a rented accommodation in Uttam Nagar area of New Delhi.

The Nigerians were found dead on Friday, with the police recovering bottles of alcohol and soft drinks from the spot. The Times of India said all the three men were found frothing in the mouth.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka) Shibesh Singh said the deceased have been identified as David Christopher, Greece Ben, and David (I), all in their 30s.

While Greece used to live on the third floor of the rented accommodation, David used to reside on the second. David (I) had rented a house nearby but used to visit the two often.

The bodies were found on the third floor of the rented accommodation.

“Greece and David were here on a business visa. Greece had come in March and David had come in April,” Mr. Singh said.

The police received a PCR call around 12.30 p.m. from the landlord of the deceased stating that a foul smell was emanating from the house.

“The whole building is inhabited by people from African countries. There is a common kitchen near floor three. A resident of the building passed by and knocked on the door because of the smell, but no one opened. He then called the landlord, who called the police,” the DCP said.

When the police broke open the door, they found the bodies of David and Greece in one room and David (I)’s body in another room.

“One of the three bodies was in a state of decomposition. There were no strangulation marks or any other external injuries on the bodies,” Mr. Singh said.

The police have shifted the bodies to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital for post-mortem to ascertain the cause of death.

Source: NAN

Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has said that he will not be re-contesting the national chairmanship position in the forthcoming National Convention slated for June 23, in the partys interest.

He stated this on Friday night in Abuja while speaking with newsmen, adding that his decision was taken after wide consultation with close political associates and family members and not because of intimidation.

However, he said that the tenure extension that was hitherto agreed by the partys National Executive Committee (NEC) suffered a set-back following President Muhammadu Buharis opposition.

According to him, the tenure extension would have helped to stabilise the party in the face of some of its challenges and may have prevented the crisis that followed its recent congresses in some states of the federation.

He said that some of the party leaders ought to have considered the tenure extension to be in the best interest of the party.

This, he said, would have ensured that the party go into the 2019 elections as a united fighting force, rather than one that was potentially weakened by internal conflicts arising from competitive congresses and convention.

Odigie-Oyegun urged party leaders to close ranks and to make the party a strong fighting force ahead of the 2019 general elections.

Now that the Convention Committee has invited interested aspirants to obtain forms to contest various national positions in our party, it has become necessary for me to state my position.

I have consulted widely with my family, friends and associates, even though, I had the desire to re-contest as the national chairman of the party.

I have decided that it is ultimately in the best interest of the party for me to withdraw from the race, he said.

I believe that the party faces difficult days ahead, and all critical stakeholders in its leadership would be required to bind together for a common purpose.

He advised that a less-contentious convention would be better for the party adding that he had always sought to be part of solving the partys problems.

I do not intend to be part of the problem for APC to solve. It is for this reason that I hereby declare that I will not be seeking re-election as the national chairman.

However, I will continue to perform my functions as the national chairman of the party, till my tenure officially ends on Monday, June 25 when a new set of party executives will be inaugurated, Odigie-Oyegun said.

Source: NAN

NAN reporting

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress(APC), Mr Opeyemi Bamidele, and an unidentified person were shot on Friday in Ado-Ekiti at a reception for the candidate of the party, Dr Kayode Fayemi.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the reception which held at the APC secretariat in the Ekiti capital had attracted a large crowd of party supporters.

Gov. Rotimi Akeredolu, Fayemi and a former Minister of Works, Dayo Adeyeye , were descending the stairs case at the secretariat when a policeman was said to have suddenly shot into the air to scare the surging crowd.

Bamidele was said to have been shot on the hand in the ensuing melee while the other victim was also hit.

The two victims were hurriedly conveyed to a hospital where they are said to be under treatment.

The APC spokesperson in the state, Taiwo Olatunbosun, in a statement described the incident as a clear case of assassination attempt.

He claimed that the gunman had aimed his gun at Fayemi and missed, with the bullet hitting Bamidele and the other victim.

He also claimed that the policeman was fake and an assassin.

But the police spokesman in the state, Caleb Chukwuemeka, said the command was still awaiting the report of the incident from its officers deployed to provide security at the reception.

Fayemi and his entourage had earlier been received in Ikere Ekiti by a long convoy of vehicles and large crowd of party supporters, resulting in a traffic snarl on the Ado-Ekiti Akure road.

Addressing the crowd, Akeredolu applauded the party members for putting behind them the post-primary crisis.

He said the huge crowd was indicative that the state had remained a stronghold of the APC.

Fayemi has returned with full force to reclaim the land. He needs your support and this task shall be achieved in the mighty name of God, he said.

Fayemi, in his response, said we are here to work for Ekiti and our party leaders and this we are going to do together because it is a collective responsibility.

We are going to work with everybody, including those who just decamped to our party, because we are one big family in APC.

We shall win by the grace of God. Our case was like the case of a ram who moved backwards to garner more strength. We are here to rescue Ekiti and it is a task we must achieve.

Adeyeye, who returned to the party on Tuesday after 12 years in the PDP, also said: I have returned home and my mission is to ensure that we kill (Gov. Ayo) Fayose politically by burying him.

We shall mobilise well to achieve this task and by the grace of God this is a must-win and must accomplished task for all of us.

NAN reports that Fayemis choice for deputy governor, Chief Bisi Egbeyemi, was also in the entourage.

*Olatunbosuns Statement:

Fayemi Survives Assassination, As Ex-Lawmaker, Others Sustain Gunshot Wounds
Bloody politicking returned to Ekiti State yesterday(Friday), as former Governor Kayode Fayemi survived assassination in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State capital.

Fayemi resigned his appointment on Wednesday as the Minister of Mines and Steel Development and was returning to Ekiti State on Friday in a welcome party planned by his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).

It was a smooth ride from Akure Airport to Ikere-Ekiti where thousands of supporters came out to give him a rousing welcome.

Ikere-Ekiti journey to Ado-Ekiti, a distance of about nine kilometres, lasted two hours in a heavy traffic that was punctuated by four gunmen suspected to be agents of the state government who strategically positioned themselves at the partys secretariat in Ado-Ekiti for the attack.

One of the assailants dressed in mobile police uniform was apprehended and he is now helping the police in their investigation.

They fired gunshots aimed at Fayemi but hit a former lawmaker, Opeyemi Bamidele, after the former minister had taken a few steps forward before the bullets hit the target.

Bamidele and other victims were immediately rushed to the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado-Ekiti, where doctors are responding to his treatment.

Bamidele was fatally wounded in the attack while others also sustained various degrees of injuries.

Other victims in the hospital included Olabode Joshua, Olanrewaju Gbenga, Adebayo Ogunjemilehin, Ogunmodede Oluwole and Alex Adeleye.

Taiwo Olatunbosun

Publicity Secretary

June 1, 2018

Source: NAN

=====Australias Catholic Church has committed to join the governments redress scheme of 3.8 billion Australian dollars (2.2 billion) for victims of child sexual abuse.

The move paves the way for compensation to be paid to people who were sexually abused as children by church figures and puts pressure on other institutions to follow suit.

The church is the first non-government institution to opt into the plan and estimates it will itself be liable for about one billion dollars (568 million) in compensation.

===The UN Conference on Trade and Development says no fewer than 17 million Africans left the continent in 2017 in search of greener pastures.

In its Economic Development in Africa report, the agency also said 5.5 million people moved to Africa from other continents while some 19 million international migrants moved within Africa, boosting economic growth in the continent.

It urged the world to dispel misconceptions and harmful narratives targeting migration in Africa.

Catholic Church commits $1billion to child sexual abuse compensation – 02:44
— News Agency of Nigeria

===Americas Chamber of Commerce has predicted that President Donald Trumps strict stance on trade could put 2.6 million jobs at risk and possible US withdrawal from NAFTA, the trade agreement with Canada and Mexico.

Mr Tom Donohue, President of the business organisation of the Chamber, in a memo to the board of directors, said a NAFTA withdrawal would kill as many as 1.8 million American jobs in the first year.

===The World Health Organisation says it commenced campaign to eliminate Yellow Fever in the country in February, with the vaccination of two million people in Internally Displaced Persons camps in Borno and surrounding communities.

The organisations Communications Officer, Ms Charity Warigon, said the campaign aimed to vaccinate 25 million Nigerians in different parts of the country would continue to the end of the year and in the coming years.

=====The International Organisation for Migration and the European Union have evacuated 186 more Nigerians from Libya.

Mr Ibrahim Farinloye, spokesperson for the National Emergency Management Agency, South-West Zone, said the returnees arrived in two batches at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

=====The UN Security Council has extended by 45 days sanctions against South Sudan.

The resolution passed 9 yes votes and six abstentions from the 15 member Security Council, giving just enough votes for the draft to be adopted as Resolution 2418.

The resolution, which threatens an arms embargo on South Sudan, would place a travel ban and asset freeze on six individuals, high-ranking government officials and prominent rebel leaders, unless the parties stop fighting and agree on a viable political agreement.

Source: NAN