Vehicles plying Lagos road

By Yemi Adeleye

The Lagos State Government has announced a six-week partial closure of the service lane inbound Maryland from the end of Gani Fawehinmi Park to the end of the 2nd pedestrian bridge, Ojota from Tuesday.

The state Commissioner for Transportation, Dr Frederic Oladeinde, in a statement on Monday in Lagos said that the step was part of the ongoing reconstruction of Ikorodu Road.

Oladeinde said that the partial closure was to allow the contractor handling the stretch of the project from Ojota to Maryland bound to continue with the next phase of the construction.

The commissioner said: By the new arrangement, motorists coming from Ikeja axis are advised to use 7UP road through Billings way to link Oregun/Kudirat Abiola Way inbound Ikorodu road by Ojota bus stop.

Traffic inward Ojota Bus stop/Maryland from the Ibadan-Lagos Expressway could either proceed to Oworonshoki/Gbagada or descend the loop by Abiola Garden to connect Ikorodu road (inbound Ketu), and ascend the loop back to the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway through the loop beside LAMATA Office to access Ikorodu road to Ojota.

He assured that adequate road signs had been provided to guide motorists movement.

According to him, the state government effort is aimed at ensuring thorough repair works within the stipulated time of the construction works.

Oladeinde added that the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) would be fully on ground towards ensuring smooth and steady traffic flow.

Motorists plying the corridor are advised to endure any likely inconvenience.

The project is aimed at finding a lasting solution to traffic congestion on that axis in line with efficient traffic management and transportation policy of the state government, he said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

NYSC members

By Chimezie Anaso

The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in Anambra says one prospective corps member in the state has been diagnosed of possible case of COVID-19.

Mr Kehinde Aremu, Coordinator of the scheme said this on Monday during the swearing in of 800 members of 2020 Batch B stream 1A corps members at the permanent orientation camp, Umuawulu/Mbaukwu.

Aremu said the suspect had been handed over to the government through the disease management team.

He said NYSC was working with the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to enable it manage the corps members as well as ensure operations of the scheme were not interrupted.

All our activities are arranged sequentially and in agreement with the Presidential Task Force (PTF) and NCDC guidelines whose officials are also resident here to administer COVID-19 test on both camp officials and corps members.

We had a single case which the state government had already taken care of through the state disease management team, he said.

The Coordinator said that the number of corps members was reduced to ensure strict compliance to the NCDC guidelines.

He said the batch would be admitted to camp in batch 200 adding that the left overs would be captured in the next batch.

We are only 800 corps members in the state, and even that number was segmented into four batches of 200.

This measure will enable us manage the crowd; this camp has the capability for 3,000 corps members but we staggered it so that each corps member is entitled to a double bunk bed, he said.

Aremu said there were enough hand wash facilities, soap, sanitizers and steady water supply.

Prof. Solo Chukwulobelu, Secretary to the State Government, who represented the governor, Chief Willie Obiano, commended the corps members contributions to bridging the manpower gap in educational and health sectors of the state.

He pledged the governors commitment to continue support to the NYSC amidst COVID-19 scourge challenge. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Nigerias delegation arrive in Freetown ahead Super Eagles 2021 AFCON Qualifying match against Sierra Leone

By Victor Okoye

Nigerias delegation to Tuesdays 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying match against Sierra Leone have arrived in Freetown.

Ademola Olajire, Director of Communications at the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), in a statement on Monday said the team arrived in the afternoon afternoon from Benin City.

He said the team had then proceeded on a 30-minute ferry ride on the Atlantic from the International Airport in Lungi to the Sierra Leonean capital.

The chartered aircraft touched down at the airport in Lungi at 12:15 p.m. local time.

Players and officials were received by the Charge dAffaires of the Nigeria High Commission, Sona Charles, the Consular, Paul Alabi, and some members of the Sierra Leone Football Association, Olajire said.

He however disclosed that there was a hiccup at the airport as Sierra Leonean immigration officials insisted that the Nigerian players and officials must undergo COVID-19 tests right at the airport.

This was even after evidence was provided by the Nigeria team that all delegation members did the tests and all returned negative just hours before boarding their flight in Benin City.

Top officials from the Nigeria High Commission and the Leader of Delegation, Ibrahim Gusau, tried to convince the Sierra Leonean immigration officials.

They tried to make them understand that the results obtained few hours earlier were sufficient for the delegation members to enter into Freetown, prosecute the match and return to Nigeria.

But this failed to sway the officials.

Further pleas to allow the players and officials leave the airport and for Sierra Leone to send medical officials to conduct the tests at the team hotel fell on deaf ears.

After the tests, the players and officials boarded the ferry and eventually arrived at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Freetown just before 3 p.m. local time (4 p.m. in Nigeria), Olajire said.

The NFF spokesman added that team head coach Gernot Rohr and his technical team led a total of 22 players and backroom staff.

The Eagles were due to have their official training at the Siaka Stevens Stadium (venue of Tuesdays match) on Monday evening.

The delegation also included Emmanuel Ikpeme (NFF Deputy General Secretary); Bola Oyeyode (Director of Competitions); Augustine Eguavoen (Technical Director); and Olajire (Director of Media and Communications).

Others are Nasiru Jibril (Chief Technical Officer); Emmanuel Ayanbunmi (Protocol Officer); Mohammed Ameenu (SA to General Secretary) and Ayo Olu-Ibidapo (Media Officer), he said.

Olajire also disclosed that the Confederation of African Football (CAF) had appointed Guinean officials led by Tawel Camara Younoussa for the match.

Younoussa was appointed as Centre Referee and with his compatriots, namely Sidiki Sidibe (Assistant Referee 1), Abdoulaye Sylla (Assistant Referee 2) and Bangaly Konate (Fourth Official).

The match commissioner is Silvestre Cantussan from Guinea Bissau, he said.

NAN reports that Tuesdays match will kick off at 4 p.m. local time (5 p.m. Nigeria time). (NAN)

Source: NAN News

File Photo: Oil spill in Niger Delta Region

By Edith Ike-Eboh

Stakeholder in the oil and gas sector have stressed the need for contract transparency in the extractive industry to ensure growth and development in the country.

Some of the stakeholders spoke at a capacity building workshop on implementation of contract transparency in the extractive sector in Owerri on Monday.

Mr Nduka Ikeyi, a lead partner with Ikeyi-Shitu and company, a law firm said the opacity of contracts engagement in the sector had affected development of the country.

He said that government had engaged in various contracts in the oil and gas sector that had not translated to expected value to the growth of the nation.

He named some of the contracts to include joint venture and operational agreement,production sharing contracts, Service contracts,among others.

According to him,most of the contracts involves allocation and sharing risks which requires a lot ofmonitoring.

He said that with transparency in the contract,monitoringimplementation process and holding parties involved accountable would be easy.

Citizens needs to know what governmentis doing and also their spending in such contracts to ensure value for the money,

Government needs to be transparentenough by making the contract portal accessible to ordinary people to understandthe terms and conditions of the contract, he said.

Mrs Charity Odili, the immediate past PresidentNational Council of Women Society said that contracttransparencywas key to development of oil host communities in the country.

She said that the need forcontract transparency in the extractive industry cannot be over emphasised.

Most host communities do not know what is happening,most of the contracts are done in secrecy and memorandum of understanding are not signed by the communities.

In my community Ndukwa in Delta, the local governmentis complaining that most international oil companies operating are no longer paying tenements rate, royalties as required, she said.

She said that it was unfortunatethat the communities was up to date still suffer the hazzards associated with exploration in the area. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva

By Ismaila Chafe

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr Timipre Sylva, says Federal Governments earnings, from oil and non-oil sectors coupled with low revenue receipts from the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), have dropped by 60 per cent, putting the nations economy under serious pressure.

Sylva stated this after a closed door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House, Abuja, on Monday.

He particularly noted that the revenue being generated by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) had also reduced drastically due to the negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

The minister, who spoke to State House correspondents after his routine briefing of the president, acknowledged that the current socio-economic challenges had made life more difficult for Nigerians, while appealing for more understanding as government was determined to uplift the quality of life of the people.

The minister also assured that Nigerians would get used to the recent deregulation of the pump price of PMS, just as they did with kerosene and diesel which are more important to the ordinary citizens than petrol, that is mostly used by the elite.

According to him, trucks that move food items from one part of the country to another use diesel, while kerosene also used by most of the Nigerian masses, has since been deregulated.

The only explanation to everything we have said is that the country just could not afford subsidy anymore. It is unfortunate we are experiencing some of these things now. We will get by, I am sure when things stabilize, our earnings begin to improve, we will begin to see the benefits of what this government has done, he said.

On the sudden increase in the price of petrol, he said: Let us first agree, that these are not the best of times not only for Nigeria but for the global community.

What we have said over and over again as a government is that government is no longer in the business of fixing pump price, that is the meaning of deregulation and stepping back on subsidy.

Yes, we are very aware that this will result to some increase, but why do we have to do this, because it is clearly impossible for government to continue to subsidize, the minister further said.

He added: I was just discussing with someone today that we just have to make a choice. If government were to continue with subsidy, it means, for example, that at some point we may not even have money, after subsidizing petrol, to pay salaries. You have to choose. It is very clear that today things are not as they were before.

Sylva reiterated that the governments earnings have reduced by 60 percent, our FIRS collection has also reduced because less oil is being produced, there is less activity in the oil industry which is driving the economy. So you find out it is a double whammy from all sides.

Source: NAN News

Elias Mbam,

Chief Elias Mbam, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ebonyi, has urged Gov. Dave Umahi to move ahead with his plans to defect to the APC.

Mbam, also Chairman, Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), said this while speaking with newsmen on Monday in Abakaliki.

He was reacting to a meeting held between the governor and some APC stakeholders on Sunday, in Uburu, in Ohaozara Local Government Area (LGA) of the state preparatory to his defection to the party.

Mbam said that the decision was a welcome development saying that the state, as well as the South East would benefit from the defection.

He said that the South East had nothing to show for its numerous support for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) since the return to civil rule in 1999.

Mbam said that the APC-led Federal Government has shown commitment towards developing infrastructure in the South-East, adding that it was time politicians in the zone moved to APC en-masse.

The major stakeholders in our party met with the governor and he told us why he wanted to leave his party for the APC; part of the reasons was the need for South East to be part of the government at the centre.

He stressed the need for the zone to collaborate with the North and that if we do that; we will be able to get what we have not been able to get since 1999.

Since 1999, PDP has been in control in Ebonyi and other states in South East, yet the party has not found one person worthy of flying its flag and we dont even have any hope that it would happen soon, Mbam said.

He said that the APC led federal government does bot accord much recognition to the South East, hence the need for the zone to join the ruling party in order to become relevant to the government.

He said that Ebonyi needed to join the ruling party in order to be present where major decisions were being taken.

We want to lead a campaign where the South East will become more relevant at the centre; Umahis move is a commendable decision, its good for our state and Igbo people.

The best way to be represented in a meeting is to be present where major decisions are taken and if Ebonyi is not present at the centre, certainly it will affect what we get from there, he said.

The RMAFC chairman said that Umahis defection to APC would further strengthen the unity of the party in the state and reposition it towards capturing the governors seat in 2023. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Rivers United players

By Omuboye Sukubo

Rivers United Football Club on Sunday defeated Bayelsa United FC 6-5 after penalty kicks to win the Gov. Nyesom Wike Pre-Season Football Tournament in Port Harcourt.

The encounter which was played at the Sharks FC stadium ended 1-1 after regulation time before the Port Harcourt-based Rivers United won 5-4 in the deciding penalty kicks shootout.

Speaking during the closing ceremony, Wike, represented by Desmond Akawor, Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers, said the standard of play during the tournament was satisfactory.

I can say that the standard of play was high and officiating very good. I congratulate the Ministry of Sports for the success in organising the competition, he said.

Rivers Commissioner for Sports, Boma Iyaye, on his part commended Wike for his support for sports in the state

I thank Gov. Wike for his support for sports in Rivers. God has used him to ensure the state succeeds in sports, he said.

Iyaye urged Rivers United players and officials to work hard so as to succeed in their upcoming continental competition matches.

You have a lot to do when playing on the continent, if you really want to make impact, the Commissioner said.

He thanked clubs which were in Port Harcourt for the competition for participating in the tournament.

The competition was not about the winners but an opportunity for clubs to assess themselves and appreciate their weaknesses, added.

Source: NAN News

The following are the results of all Day 4, 2021, Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying matches played on Sunday, and all Day 4 matches to be played on Monday.

The finals will now be played in Cameroon in 2022 because of COVID-19.

Group A
Chad 1-1 Guinea

Group E
Burundi 3-1 Mauritania

Group G
Comoros 2-1 Kenya

Group I
Guinea Bissau 0-1 Senegal

Group J
Equatorial Guinea 1-0 Libya

And here are fixtures for all Day 4 matches on Monday

Group B
Malawi v Burkina Faso
South Sudan v Uganda

Group C
Sao Tome

Captain of Rubicon, Jamilu Mohammed receives the Presidents Cup trophy from Boss Mustapha, the SGF (Rep of President Muhammadu Buhari) at the just concluded 2020 Nigeria National Carnival Polo tournament held at the Guards Polo Club, Abuja. Photo credit: NAN

By Victor Okoye

Hadi Sirika-led Rubicon overpowered Lintex 9 goals to 6 and a half to emerge winners of the Presidents Cup at the Nigeria National Carnival Polo tournament on Sunday in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Rubicon came into the final game with six points, having won all their previous matches and only needed to avoid defeat to become champions.

Lintex on their part, had three points and needed a win in their final game to stand a chance of snatching the tournaments highest prize.

The quartet of Lintex included the Dantata brothers; Sadiq ( 1), Abba ( 2) and Bashir ( 3) combined with Chis Mckenzie, a 7-goaler from South Africa for a total team handicap of 13.

Rubicon, the current champions of the Georgian Cup, had a total team handicap of 15 with the likes of the Badamasi brothers; Abdulmalik and Idris combining well with Jamilu Mohammed and their teammate from Argentina, Gonzalo Bourdieu, a 6-goaler.

Two and half a goal was awarded to Lintex to even the goal difference between the teams before the start of the game.

Rubicon had the advantage of the best and fastest ponnies in its arsenal.

However, it was Lintex who drew the first blood through Mckenzie who also went ahead to grab his brace for a 4 and a half to 0 goal at the end of first chukka.

Rubicon came alive in the second chukka and scored four unreplied goals to cut Lintexs lead to half for a 4 and a half to 4 scoreline.

From then on, it was Rubicon all the way as the teams experience and quality began to show and the champions added five more unreplied goals for a 9 to 4 goals scoreline.

Lintex, however, mounted a late comeback but could only manage to score two more goals in the fifth and final chukka to make it 9 goals to 6 goals at the end of the gruelling encounter.

Malcomines of Jos finished with six points after defeating Keffi Ponnies 8-6 to settle for the runners up position.

In the Legislative Shield, Fas Agro edged Casiva by 7 and a half goals to 7 to emerge winners, while Casiva finished as runners up

Rubicon 2 thrashed Golden Alchemy by 5 goals to 2 and a half to emerge winners of the FCT Ministers Cup.

Also, the Guards Challenge saw Dee-bee Farms edge Dokaji Farms by 5-4 to emerge winners.

The tournament which was in its 11th edition began on Monday and came to an end on Sunday.

Source: NAN News

COVID-19 updates by NCDC

By Abujah Racheal

Nigeria Centre For Disease Control (NCDC) has confirmed 152 new infections of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the country.

The NCDC made this known via its verified website on Sunday.

The centre noted that the country had so far tested 705,809 persons since the first confirmed case relating to the COVID-19 pandemic was announced on Feb. 27, 2020.

The public health agency said that the new infections brings the countrys total number of infections to 65,148.

It added that the new infections were reported from seven states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), with no Coronavirus-related deaths in the last 24 hours in the country.

It stated that 44 new patients were successfully treated and discharged, taking total number of people discharged to 61,073 in the country.

It stated that it had activated a multi-sectoral national Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) at Level III to coordinate the national response activities in the country.

The health agency said the 152 cases were from Lagos-136, Kano-4, Niger-3, Ekiti-2, Kaduna-2, Ogun-2, Taraba-2, and FCT-1.

The NCDC stated that till date, 65,148 cases have been confirmed, 61,073 patients discharged and 1,163 deaths recorded in 36 states and the FCT.

It, however, disclosed that there were 2,912 active cases across the country.

The agency, therefore, advised Nigerians to continue to observe the COVID-19 protocols to stay safe, stressing that the Coronavirus pandemic was not over yet.

Wear a face mask properly; avoid large gatherings, maintain physical distance from others.

Lets work together to protect ourselves and our country, the centre advised. (NAN)

Source: NAN News