By Tukur Muntari

The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) in Kano State has called on its members to ignore the story being circulated through the social media that the Federal Government is Planning to reduce fuel pump price from N145 per litre to N95 per litre.

The IPMAN Chairman in the state, Alhaji Bashir Dan-Malam, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kano on Tuesday.

He said, There is no plan to either reduce or increase the fuel pump price as we had a meeting with the Managing Director of the NNPC/PPMC, Mr Umar Ajiya and confirmed to us that there is no plan to reduce or increase the fuel pump price.

I am calling on our members in Kano Zone comprising Kano, Katsina, Bauchi, Yobe and Jigawa states to ignore the rumour because it is not true.

He said the association found it necessary to speak on the issue so as to disabuse the minds of the marketers on the rumour in order not to discourage them from the business.

He alleged that some politicians were trying to use the social media to discourage marketers from buying the commodity from the depots to cause fuel scarcity in the country.

The intention is to stop marketers from buying the product from depots across the country in view of the fact that they dont want to sell at a loss.

This rumour is politically motivated because election is around the corner. So our members should not listen to the rumour because there is no iota of truth in it.

Anybody who thinks there will be fuel scarcity for now is deceiving himself because at the moment all depots have enough fuel, Dan-Malam said.

He, however, called on the Federal Government to rehabilitate the major roads linking the various depots to ease the transportation of the commodity across the country.

The Federal Government should rehabilitate the Lagos-Kano, Port Harcourt-Kano, Calabar-Kano and Warri-Kano roads, he said. (NAN)

Source: NAN

The senatorial ambition of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate for Cross River Central, Commander Solomon Esor (rtd.) received a boost at the weekend as scores of women rallied for his candidacy.

The women who are politicians in the district pledged to organize other women and groups to support the candidacy to represent them at the Senate in 2019.

Leader of the women politicians, Mrs Ikwo Ibiang explained that their decision to back Esotr was due to his public endorsement by former governor of the state now SDP presidential candidate, Donald Duke.

Duke according to them, had expressed absolute confidence in the ability of the businessman and international consultant to make a good senator for Cross River Central.

According to the women group, the time had come for someone from the old Obubra area of the senatorial district, who has what it takes to represent them at the National Assembly, to be given the opportunity.

The leader stressed that such was the fair and just thing to do for the sake of posterity as the Senate seat belongs to everyone in the Central district of Cross River.

The women politicians explained that their pledge of support for Esor was not only guided by the need to respect the zoning arrangement but was based principally on their unflinching faith in the ability of the retired Navy commander.

Donald Duke is our leader. His two-term as governor of the state was a golden-era for Cross River. We believe he has seen something great in Esor to be backing his senatorial ambition and we will join Duke in making sure that Commander Esor becomes our senator.

It is not common to see His Excellency Donald Duke publicly identify with the ambition of politicians.

There must be something special about Esor for him to have gotten our former governors support and that is one of the reasons we will vote for SDP all the way.

They are fielding great presidential and senatorial candidates and were delighted about that.

She said that the women were happy that the people of old Obubra have put forward someone as qualified as Commander Esor to represent us at the Senate.

She noted that Esor always goes out of his way to promote the welfare of everyone in this district and had empowered many with his personal resources.

She argued that if the SDP candidate could do all of those with personal resources, then there was no doubt that he would perform better as a federal representative of the people.

All of us here are grassroots politicians, we feel the pulse of the people on a regular basis and can assure you that those from old Ikom who are bent on retaining the Senate seat after having it for over 20 years are just wasting their time.

We cannot have an ably qualified Obubra person throw his hat in the ring and still vote for the same persons who have been there before with nothing to show.

Old Ikom and old Obubra are sisters and brothers; our people believe that now is the turn of the Obubra people so we dont cultivate feeling of bad-blood in the Central district of Cross River.

It is in view of our desire to preserve the unity of our people that we have now taken it upon ourselves to ensure that an Obubra man, Solomon Esor of SDP wins in next years senatorial election.

Not just because he is an Obubra man but because he is qualified and accessible. He has the interest of the masses at heart which obviously explains why he pitched his tent with the Social Democratic Party which is pro-masses.

Come 2019, we are sending retired Navy commander Solomon Esor to represent us in the Senate, the women said.

Source: NAN

Angela Merkel has announced she will quit as German chancellor when her mandate ends in 2021.

Merkels decision may not be unconnected to series of political crises that have rocked her fragile coalition.

Taking a decisive step towards the end of her political career, the veteran leader who has led Germany for 13 years said she hoped her planned departure would end bitter fighting in her coalition and finally focus it on its task of governing Europes biggest economy.

Today, it is time to begin a new chapter, she told reporters at her party headquarters.

Referring to the quibbling within her coalition that has sent it from crisis from crisis, Merkel noted that the picture that the government is sending out is unacceptable.

Electoral drubbings like the latest on Sunday in the state of Hessen were a watershed, but in them could lie a chance, Merkel said, for Germanys mainstream political parties including her own to find a way forward.

The 64-year-old Merkel is expected to stagger her political exit by first giving up the leadership job of her Christian Democratic Union in December, which comes up for reelection during a party congress in December.

She added that she would not stand in Germanys next elections nor seek to renew her mandate as chancellor when her fourth term ends in 2021.

At least four candidates declared their interest to seek Merkels job after she made her stunning announcement.

But she said she would not name a successor.

I will accept any democratic decision taken by my party, she said.

Often hailed as the worlds most powerful woman and Europes de facto leader, Merkels power has been on the wane since her 2015 decision to keep Germanys borders open at the height of Europes migrant crisis, ultimately allowing in more than one million asylum seekers.

The mass arrivals deeply polarised Germany and are credited with fuelling the rise of the far-right.

Railing against the newcomers, the anti-immigrant AfD is now the biggest opposition party in the Bundestag, and after a strong showing in Hesse now has seats in all German state parliaments.

At the same time, the AfDs rise has prompted her conservative Bavarian allies CSU to champion hardline immigration policies, something that in turn sent moderate voters drifting to the centre-left Greens.

AfD leader Joerg Meuthen hailed Merkels planned departure as good news.

Die Welt reporter Robin Alexander said the path could now be clear for CDU general secretary Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, nicknamed AKK, to take the reins.

The two women have taken back the momentum, because none of their opponents were ready for this, he tweeted.

But other contenders are waiting in the wings, including ambitious health minister Jens Spahn, a frequent Merkel critic.

The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung said Sunday it would be a mistake for Merkel to cling to power.

By passing the baton of her own free will she would show that she knows the same thing everyone knows: the end of her chancellorship is approaching.

Merkels first step towards the exit is likely to send ripples across the European Union, where she has served a beacon of stability as the bloc grapples with multiple global crises, Brexit and an unpredictable ally in the White House.

While still widely respected abroad, her recent domestic woes have kept Merkel away from the European stage, thwarting French Presidents Emmanuel Macrons push to reform the eurozone with Merkel by his side.

Despite her global standing, Merkel has no plans to seek a post in the European Commission after bowing out of German politics, a CDU source told AFP, quashing speculation to that effect in Brussels.

But the woman dubbed the eternal chancellor may not get to choose her own timetable and her departure could be hastened if her junior coalition partner brings down the government before 2021.

SPD chief Andrea Nahles said her centre-left party, Germanys oldest, had failed to break free from the government and carve out a clear profile of its own after serving in multiple, compromise-laden grand coalitions.

She said the SPD would now lay out a roadmap in Berlin demanding concrete progress on key issues by next October, including pension rights and better childcare, before deciding whether to remain in the coalition.

Increasing numbers of SPD members have been calling for the party to quit the government and lick its wounds in opposition, as it is presently polling below AfD nationwide, at 15 percent to the far-rights 16 percent.

Source: NAN

No governing board of a Federal agency or parastatal has the power to remove the chief executive appointed by the President, the secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha declared today.

The declaration came amidst controversy over the suspension of the executive secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme(NHIS).

The board may however articulate infractions, investigate wrong doing and make recommendations to government through the supervisory ministry, Mustapha further clarified.

He made the clarification at an induction programme for governing board members of federal parastatals, universities and medical centres at the Transcorp Hilton. The CEOs were also in attendance.

The induction, the second in the series, was organised by the Bureau of Public Service Reforms, in conjunction with the DFID.

On 18 October, the chairman of the NHIS board, Ifenne Enyanatu announced the indefinite suspension of the executive secretary, Prof. Usman Yusuf, eight months after a similar suspension by the minister was annulled by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Enyanatu said the governing council resolved to suspend Yusuf because it had received several petitions against the NHIS boss. She said the board had the permission of the minister of health to suspend Yusuf, pending investigation.

We consulted and got the approval of the Minister of Health before this suspension, she said.

However, Yusuf ignored the order.

Mustapha certainly had the NHIS in mind when he gave the clear-cut clarification today.

He said government was concerned that most governing boards have not understood their roles in the corporate governance of the agencies they superintend.

He then went on to list some of the recurring infractions being committed by the boards.

Some of them are undue interference by board chairmen in the day-to-day activities of their parastatals and agencies, blatant disregard for extant regulations guiding the conduct of board meetings.

Others are alleged interference in the function of the CEOs, issuing directives to staff, without recourse to the CEOs, imposing disciplinary measures against the CEOs, in flagrant violation of the laid down rules and using labour unions as agents of distractions in the agencies.

The government secretary also gave further clarifications about the roles of the boards and ministers.

The role of the boards, he said, are limited to setting operational and administrative policies for their agencies in consonance with government policy directives.

A Board shall not be involved directly in the day-to-day management of a parastatal or an agency. A Minister exercises control of parastatals at policy level through the board of the parastatal only.

The board must only operate as a part time board, in accordance with extant rules that forbids allocation of official quarters to members on a permanent basis and payment of estacode allowances for only overseas travels approved by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and their part-time Ministry.

Source: NAN

The Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) is to hold an emergency meeting on Oct. 30, to discuss the national minimum wage and come up with a position, Gov. Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara has said.

Yari spoke with State House correspondents on the matter after an expanded Economic Management Team meeting at the Presidential Villa on Monday in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that organised labour has been at odds with the Federal Government over demands to increase the remunerations of public sector workers.

Nigerian public sector workers are classified as earning some of the lowest wages in the world, although political office holders in the country, including the nations bicameral legislature earn some of the highest wages in the world.

On Oct. 24, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), issued another strike notice over a stalemate, arising from the Federal Governments inability to accept the N30,000 minimum wage demanded by labour.

A communique issued at the end of its emergency meeting and signed by the NLC President, Mr Ayuba Wabba, and the General-Secretary, Mr Peter Ozo-Eson, directed labour to commence an indefinite nationwide strike from Nov.6.

The labour movement had earlier on Sept. 26, embarked on a warning strike, which was suspended on Sept. 30.

Yari said: the position of the governors is not very clear to some of you that we are willing to pay the amount but the issue is the capacity the muscle to pay.

We discussed that government has some numbers and eventually the committee has given some proposals but the governors have not come out with any amount.

So, tomorrow, we are going to discuss with governors and say: look at what labour is sending.

Look at the bill that was directed by the minister of labour and employment to be sent to the NGFs secretariat so that we can digest the content of the bill; discuss it and come up with our position as governors because we are critical partners on this, Yari said.

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, announced recently that the Federal Government proposed N24, 000 while the state governors proposed N20, 000.

Source: NAN

The Presidency warned Monday that the Peoples Democratic Party,(PDP) facing an imminent defeat in the February polls, has embarked on various moves to sow division and chaos, in the country.

They are attacking the courts and the police, they are molesting INEC commissioners. They are theatrical in spreading falsehoods against persons including the President, said Garba Shehu, SSA to the President.

What provoked the latest reaction from the Presidency was PDPs decision to ask the court make a declaration on President Buharis West African School Certificate.

Garba Shehu said the move was unwarranted and a waste of time as the Presidency has the record of this and of higher qualifications obtained by hard work and truly merited by Mr President.

Beside, he said the effort would amount to nothing.

This certificate story is an old one. As Femi Adesina stated clearly, it is a settled issue in the courts. To approach the court to pursue a matter long settled by the temple of justice is an abuse of the judicial system. It is shameful, disgusting and disgraceful.

It is clear to all at this time that the PDP, facing an imminent humiliating defeat wants to sow division and chaos by seeking the destruction of the institutional structures that support our young democracy.

By doing these, they assume that they can take away attention from the discussions on issues gaining momentum in the country; the issue of internal security which has been jeopardised by years of near-zero investment under 16 years of the PDP; the provision of long-delayed infrastructure which the President is pioneering; corruption to which the PDP is incurably tied and the sustenance of the prevailing good days in the economy, a business-friendly government working day and night, creating more jobs and affordable life for the poor.

This election isnt about the settled issues of certification.

No matter how honeyed their sweet words, dont believe them.

Their evil record can never be washed away. The PDP set a record of murdering opponents of government and corruption on a scale never seen anywhere before.

They put the national security at stake by diverting huge budgetary allocations to service their greed. Dont believe their honeyed promises, Garba Shehu said.

Source: NAN

Brazil president-elect Jair Bolsonaro appears to have an agenda like US President Donald Trump, quickly picking on Brazils critical media and tagging them lying media.

In an interview with Globo TV, he said he would withdraw government advertising from media outlets he deemed to be lying.

In an interview on Globo TVs national evening news, Bolsonaro also said he would like crusading anti-graft judge Sergio Moro to become his justice minister and eventually, take a seat on the Supreme Court when an opening arose.

The press is not the only target of Jair Bolsonaro, the far-right former Army captain.

He also said he would press ahead with loosening gun laws this year and plans to visit Washington D.C. after a friendly call with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Bolsonaro, who early in his legislative career declared he was in favour of dictatorships and demanded that Congress be disbanded, has vowed to adhere to democratic principles while holding up a copy of the countrys constitution.

Trump said he had an excellent call congratulating Bolsonaro and tweeted about their plans to work closely together on trade, military and everything else!

Markets had surged on Bolsonaros ascent in opinion polls, as he pledged to quickly close Brazils gaping budget deficit and privatize state firms. Investors said further gains will hinge on clearer signs he can deliver on a market-friendly agenda.

His election alarmed critics around the globe, however, given his defense of Brazils 1964-1985 military dictatorship, vows to sweep away leftist political opponents, and a track record of denigrating comments about gays, women and minorities.

Bolsonaros victory brings Brazils military back into the political limelight after it spent three decades in the barracks following the countrys return to civilian rule. Several retired generals will serve as ministers and close advisers.

You are all my witnesses that this government will defend the constitution, of liberty and of God, Bolsonaro said in a Facebook live video in his first comments after his victory.

The president-elects future chief of staff told Reuters his first international trip would be to Chile, another South American nation that swung to the political right in recent elections, and soon after that he hoped to visit the United States.

An outspoken Trump admirer, Bolsonaro also vowed to realign Brazil with more advanced economies, such as the United States, overhauling diplomatic priorities after nearly a decade and a half of leftist party rule.

Bolsonaro won the presidential race handily despite scarce campaign resources and no support from major parties as he tapped into Brazilians anger over corruption and crime.

Source: NAN

South Koreas top court ruled on Tuesday that Japans Nippon Steel

The Danish government has hit back after Donald Trumps White House listed Denmark as an example of a failing socialist nation in its recently released report The Opportunity Costs of Socialism.

To be sure, Denmark is not a socialist state, but a social welfare state like United Kingdom.

Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen on Facebook wrote that he would participate at any time in a competition with the Americans on who has the best social model, as first reported by CBS News.

Yes, we pay a lot in tax but we get so much, Rasmussen wrote. Our children can get an education no matter who you are and where you come from. We can get to the hospital and get help if we get sick. Whether we have a special insurance or a lot of money in the bank. And if you become unemployed, run into problems or otherwise need a helping hand, then the community is ready to seize and help one back on the right track.

The report from the White House Council of Economic Advisers criticises Denmark over its living conditions, claiming that standards in Nordic countries are at least 15 percent lower than in the United States.

A foreign policy spokesman for Denmarks Social Democratic party called the White House report a scare tactic and fake news ahead of the U.S. midterms.

An article in The Copenhagen Post on Monday touted Denmarks free university education policy in response to the reports claim that Americans are more likely to obtain higher education.

There was no mention of the 32 million adults in the U.S. that are illiterate, the author wrote.

The Danish government has weighed in following criticism of its socialist policies from Republicans before.

When a Fox Business segment in August framed socialist Denmark as an overtaxed dystopia with high unemployment rates, Denmarks minister of finance and ambassador to the U.S. called the criticisms uninformed.

Danish Ambassador Lars Gert Lose posted a document with Denmarks global rankings, which show the small country coming out on top in terms of unemployment and education.

Denmark is not technically socialist, but its social welfare policies are far more expansive than those in the U.S.

Unemployment rates in Denmark are lower than those in the U.S. and its residents are more productive on average than Americans, according to data compiled by the economic research company Trading Economics.

Reported by TheHill.com

Source: NAN

ByThomson Reuters Foundation

Khady knew the man who waited outside her house one evening, followed her down a dark street and put his hand over her mouth. She had refused his offer of marriage several months before.

The assault that followed is a blur. The 26-year-old fell pregnant, and five months later she was jailed for breaking Mauritanias law banning sex outside of marriage.

They said I was guilty. I dont know why, she said at a center for victims of rape in the capital, Nouakchott.

I thought if I told the police what happened, they would put him in prison, Khady, whose name has been changed for her protection, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Sex outside wedlock is by far the most common cause of incarceration for women in Mauritania, accounting for more than 40 percent of female prisoners, according to a survey by the Mauritanian Association for the Health of the Mother and Child.

About 50 women were locked up for zina or sex outside marriage in the main womens prison in Nouakchott between July 2016 and June 2018, the rights group said.

Yet most are victims of rape, according to activists who hope the nations new parliament will breathe life into an abandoned bill that could improve justice for Mauritanian women.

Mauritania, a vast desert country in northwest Africa, is an Islamic Republic with a penal code partly based on sharia law.

Adultery, sex between single people and rape are all crimes, yet the law does not define the latter or the notion of consent.

This means rape convictions for men are rare while prosecuting female victims of sexual violence for zina is common, according to campaigners who say rape victims must generally prove the use of force in order to be found innocent.

Once a woman becomes an adult, in most cases, they say she consented, said Aminetou Mint Ely of the Association of Women Heads of Family, which runs support centers for rape victims.

The laws are open, and they facilitate the interpretation of rape as zina, added Ely, the president of the rights group.

Mauritanias justice ministry did not respond to a request for comment.

A law on gender-based violence that would be tougher on rape and provide more support to victims was almost adopted two years ago, but it lost support in parliament as misinformation spread.

Khady was taken to hospital in February where she gave birth before being returned to jail with a premature baby girl. She was released on special grounds a month later after persistent efforts by lawyers working for Elys organization.

Night and day were the same, she said shakily, recalling how she kept to herself in prison and avoided the other inmates.

Zina is officially punishable by flogging or stoning, but Mauritania does not carry out corporal punishments in practice.

Yet without a good lawyer, women convicted of zina can idle in jail indefinitely, said Zeinabou Taleb Moussa, head of the Mauritanian Association for the Health of the Mother and Child.

The risk of incarceration is so high for adult rape victims that Moussa sometimes discourages them from going to the police.

If we know that a woman is going to be imprisoned, we tell her, Unfortunately, the law does not protect you., she said.

If you report it, he (the rapist) will be imprisoned, but youll be imprisoned too.

Men are also charged with sex outside of marriage not rape in many of these cases, but they often serve shorter jail terms than women, according to several local rights groups.

A 2005 child protection law made it less likely for girls to be prosecuted for zina, and there has been some progress in the treatment of rape victims in recent years, Moussa said.

Before, every woman who went before a judge and said she was raped was accused, she said. Now there are investigations, there are testimonies, there is attention given to the woman.

Yet the law remains stacked against adult victims, and even minors are still occasionally imprisoned, activists say.

On a recent visit to Elys office, a 16-year-old in a pink headscarf tried to soothe her baby. Having been raped by her boss, she was convicted of zina but placed under probation a victory for the associations lawyers because she escaped jail.

Sitting nearby, head bowed, a 15-year-old girl was less fortunate. Having flirted with the man who then raped her, she was judged to have consented, and jailed for a month.

Saleck Jeireb, an official in the ministry of social affairs, children and family, said the government had a plan to tackle gender-based violence, which includes training health workers and providing psychosocial support for victims.

The response is not at the scale that we want, but weve started, he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Ely and Moussa helped to draft a law on gender-based violence in 2012 which clearly defined rape and increased support services for victims, among other measures.

The executive branch and senate approved the bill in 2016, but debate broke out when it was sent to parliament.

The bill was pulled after rumors spread that it was against Islam, backed by Westerners, and condoned homosexuality.

There was a debate, unfortunately founded on errors, said Jeireb of the ministry of social affairs.

With the installment of a new parliament, the draft law will be resubmitted, he said.

Moussa sounded cautiously optimistic there would be allies in the new government, but she did not expect them to move fast.

They promised they would study it, but we dont know when, said Ely.

For countless young rape victims in Mauritania, the legal system remains a source of bewilderment. Some could barely articulate their confusion at having been raped then punished.

I only told the truth, Khady said.

Source: NAN