TheNewsGuru

Tag: Kaduna State

  • EFCC grills woman with 18 voter cards in Kaduna

    EFCC grills woman with 18 voter cards in Kaduna

    Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, in the early hours of today, February 25, 2023 intercepted a woman with 18 voter cards in a sting operation at Badarwa area of Kaduna, Kaduna State.

    The woman, one Maryam Mamman Alhaji, who is a member of the support group of one of the leading political parties, also had in her possession, a 17-page list containing names of eligible voters, their bank details and phone numbers as accredited under Badarwa/Malali Ward 01 and 08, Kaduna North Local Government Area of the state.
    Maryam was reportedly nabbed after undercover operatives pretended they had voter cards and were desperate to sell them.
    She is currently being grilled by operatives of the Kaduna Zonal Command of the EFCC, with a view to unravelling other members of her syndicate whom she claimed are also collecting voters’ cards and paying monies through PoS or direct bank transfers.
  • Kaduna Govt insists on use of old Naira notes

    Kaduna Govt insists on use of old Naira notes

    The Kaduna State Government has insisted on the use of old Naira notes in the State, directing all agencies of the State Government to accept payments in old and new notes.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Muyiwa Adekeye, Special Adviser to the State Governor on Media and Communication made this known in a statement on Sunday.

    The statement reads: “In line with the subsisting order of the Supreme Court, the Kaduna State Government has directed its ministries, departments and agencies to ensure that their collection agents continue to accept payments made in all denominations of the naira, old and new.

    “The laws of Kaduna State do not allow personnel of government agencies to be involved in cash collection of revenues. The collection agents authorised by state government agencies do offer citizens a route for cash payment, and are expected to comply with the subsisting court order”.

    Govt warns against breakdown of law and order

    Meanwhile, the Kaduna State Government says it has received credible intelligence reports of plans by various groups to deliberately disrupt public peace, by organizing street protests.

    This was contained in a statement on Sunday by Samuel Aruwan, the State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs.

    The government in the statement reminded citizens in the State that protests remain strictly prohibited.

    “Citizens are strongly advised to avoid all actions remotely capable of inciting a breakdown of law and order,” it reads.

    The government empathized with citizens who have been placed in untold distress as a result of the CBN cash swap policy.

    “Residents must shun the baitings of mischievous groups hoping to ride on these hardships and incite violence.

    “The Government of Kaduna State, and other concerned state governments, are deploying the full instrumentality of the law to attain a proper resolution, and thus bring relief to citizens.

    “Government is also studying options for addressing challenges being faced by citizens with regard to transport to their places of work.

    “Any resort to unruly or violent conduct is illegal and against the public interest which values law and order. Security agencies have been placed on high alert and have been directed by the Government to decisively uphold law and order.

    “Citizens are therefore urged to maintain calm, and to remain peaceful and law-abiding as they prepare to exercise their civic franchise in an atmosphere free of all forms of threat,” the statement reads.

  • Old Notes: Kaduna residents ignore El-Rufai’s directive

    Old Notes: Kaduna residents ignore El-Rufai’s directive

    The residents of Kaduna State have started to ignore the directives given by the  Governor of the state, Nasir El-Rufai that they should continue using the old N500 and N1,000 as legal tender for businesses purposes in the state.

    Recall that El-Rufai, during one of his state broadcast to the citizens of the state, described the naira redesign policy as a weapon by members of the ruling party and close allies of President Buhari bent on stopping the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Tinubu, from winning the 25 February election and described it as “mindless”.

    The Governor then urged the people to still collect the old notes, saying that after the Buhari governmnet, the new APC government would reverse the policy.

    However, the people have started to reject the old notes in the Kaduna with claims that they are being rejected by others who feel the notes have lost its relevance.

    A bus driver, Mohammed Sani, told journalists, “I cannot collect the old N500 and N1,000 notes from passengers because l cannot use the same money to buy petrol or give it to the owner of the vehicle. I only know that it is only the N200 old note that is allowed to be used as directed by President Muhammadu Buhari.”

    He added, “If you go to the market, you cannot use the old notes to buy anything, neither will you accept the old notes from anybody because you cannot use it to transact any business.”

    A trader at the Kaduna Central Market, Alhaji Sale Musa, said that he cannot sell anything because most people do not have the money, adding, “Nobody is willing to use the old notes or accept it any longer for any business transaction.”

    He said that he would not be misled by the direction of El-Rufai, who, through a broadcast to the people of the state, enjoined them to continue using the old naira notes for their business activities.

    A banker, George Stephen, explained that they are not authorised to receive old naira notes of N500 and N1,000 from customers.

    Findings now show that banks in the country have started collecting for deposit the old notes despite a disclaimer put forward by the country’s apex bank CBN.

  • BREAKING: CBN allegedly destroys old N500, N1,000 banknotes

    BREAKING: CBN allegedly destroys old N500, N1,000 banknotes

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is claimed to have destroyed the old N500 and N1,000 banknotes after withdrawing them from circulation.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai made this disclosure in a statement on Wednesday.

    The statement was released by Governor El-Rufai’s Special Adviser on Media & Communication, Muyiwa Adekeye.

    He disclosed that senior officials of the federal government (FG) reached out to some Governors, including El-Rufai, on the phone to initiate discussions on a possible out of court settlement.

    “They claimed that the CBN had already destroyed the old N500 and N1000 notes that had been deposited, but that those persons who still held the old notes could redeem them up to 10 April 2023,” he stated.

    However, the Kaduna State Governor believes that this is a false claim, stressing that it is contrary to the fact available to Governors to the effect that the old notes were in the custody of commercial bank branches throughout Nigeria and that not a single note had been destroyed.

    The Kaduna State Governor disclosed that the terms the senior government officials proposed were to allow only the old N200 note to remain legal tender and be circulated by the CBN till 10 April 2023.

    Recall that a few hours after the Supreme Court adjourned the currency redesign case today, TheCable published an exclusive story regarding the intentions of the FG on the matter.

    El-Rufai in the statement clarified that TheCable was misled by its sources on the issue.

    “There has been no meeting this week between the FG and either the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) or the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF), not to talk of one lasting till the wee hours of today, Wednesday, 15 February 2023.

    “Rather, senior officials of the FG reached some governors, including Malam Nasir El-Rufai, on phone to initiate discussions on a possible out of court settlement.

    “The terms they proposed were to allow only the old N200 note to remain legal tender and be circulated by the CBN till 10 April 2023.

    “They claimed that the CBN had already destroyed the old N500 and N1000 notes that had been deposited, but that those persons who still held the old notes could redeem them up to 10 April 2023,” the statement reads.

    According to the statement, these were not considered as serious proposals, for obvious reasons.

    It states: “Circulating the old N200 notes alone would not be sufficient to relieve widespread human suffering in Kaduna State, and indeed in Nigeria today.They knew that and that is why they falsely claimed that the CBN had already destroyed the old N500 and N1000 notes.

    “This is contrary to the fact available to the governors to the effect that the old notes were in the custody of commercial bank branches throughout Nigeria until the evening of Monday, February 13, and not a single N500 or N1000 had been destroyed.

    “It is also a non-starter to insist on a new cut off date without first assuring that sufficient new notes would have been printed and circulated.

    “Information available to the governors also indicates that the Mint will need at least 12 months to print the minimum amount of N1 trillion needed to ensure a functioning trade and exchange environment in Nigeria.

    “The tabling of false facts, inadequate solutions to the sufferings of our people, and the bad faith that some of the FG negotiators displayed in our phone conversations and chats have now been taken further in leaking a false account and context to a respected medium.

    “The plaintiff governors rejected the draft proposal as insincere, and invested our hopes in the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

    “Malam Nasir El-Rufai will be addressing the people of Kaduna State on this currency redesign mess, the consequences of the extension of the injunction of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, and related matters tomorrow.

    “But the Kaduna State Government feels it is important tonight not to allow an exclusive falsehood to stand, or even gain the slightest traction. This statement is therefore issued to put the records straight”.

  • Kaduna, Kogi, Zamfara Govts sue FG over Naira redesign policy

    Kaduna, Kogi, Zamfara Govts sue FG over Naira redesign policy

    Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara states have instituted a suit against the Federal Government seeking a restraining order to stop the full implementation of the Naira redesign policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

    In a motion ex-parte filed before the Supreme Court, the three states are praying the court to grant an interim injunction stopping the CBN from ending the timeframe within which the old N200, N500, and N1000 notes will cease to be legal tender.

    They submitted that the 10-day extension is insufficient to address the challenges plaguing the policy.

    The plaintiffs also filed a motion on notice to abridge the time within which the respondent may file and serve a counter-affidavit for an accelerated hearing.

    The states are seeking a declaration that the demonetisation policy of the CBN is not in compliance with the extant provisions of the constitution, and the CBN Act, 2007.

    The plaintiffs said since the announcement of the policy, there has been an acute shortage in the supply of the new naira notes in Kaduna, Kogi, and Zamfara states.

    They added that citizens who have dutifully deposited their old currency notes have increasingly found it difficult and sometimes next to impossible to access the new notes for their daily activities.

    Asides from the unavailability of the new notes, the plaintiffs also submitted that the notice period given by the federal government was inadequate.

    They are also seeking a declaration that the three months notice given by the federal government through the CBN is in gross violation of the provisions of Section 20(3) of the CBN Act which specifies that reasonable notice must be given.

    They also want the court to declare that by the express provisions of Section 20(3) of the CBN Act, the FG through the CBN has no power to issue a timeline for the acceptance and redeeming of banknotes issued by the bank, except as limited by section 22(1).

    Consequently, the plaintiffs want the court to direct the immediate suspension of the demonetisation policy until the relevant provisions of the law are complied with.

    No date has been fixed for hearing.

  • Restructuring: Lies flow in your DNA-Saraki hammers El-Rufai

    Restructuring: Lies flow in your DNA-Saraki hammers El-Rufai

    The Dr Bukola Saraki media office has described the Governor of Kaduna State, Nasr El-Rufai as a pathological liar over his comment on restructuring.

    In a statement issued and signed by Yusuph Olaniyonu Head, Abubakar Bukola Saraki Media Office, reacting to his recent comment on restructuring said:

    “The attention of the Abubakar Bukola Saraki Media Office has been drawn to the interview granted ARISE TV on Wednesday by Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai where in his usual way of throwing tantrums and making false claims, he claimed that Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki as Senate President between 2015 and 2019 frustrated the restructuring plan of the All Progressives Congress (APC) through a constitutional amendment process.

    “This statement is not only false but also indicative of how the Kaduna State governor is fond of making excuses and trading blames to explain his failure and that of his party.

    “El-Rufai claimed he and his party prepared a report on restructuring and engaged with the National Assembly leadership to amend the constitution in 2018 when as of February 2016, more than two years earlier, the 8th National Assembly had commenced the constitution amendment process by setting up committees in both chambers. Members of the committees traversed the entire country and came up with reports and draft bills.

    “By 2018 as El Rufai mentioned, President Muhammadu Buhari had commenced assent to constitutional amendment bills. Out of the 32 Constitution Bills considered by the National Assembly, 24 secured the required number of votes on the floors of both chambers. Also, when the 24 were sent to the state Houses of Assembly, only 12 bills got the required votes.

    ” This same El-Rufai was one of the governors that frustrated the passage of most of the bills by state Houses of Assembly. Eventually, the President assented to five of the 12 Bills submitted to him in 2018 and refused to sign seven others.

    “Even then, it will be interesting to ask the Kaduna State Governor how his state has implemented important restructuring Bills passed by Eighth National Assembly headed by Saraki that have been signed into law like the Financial Autonomy for State Legislature and Judiciary Act.

    “If the APC was elected into power in 2015 and El Rufai and his cohorts were talking about amending the constitution to implement restructuring three years later when the government had less than a year to the end of its tenure, the restructuring agenda must be an after-thought or a less important one on the hierarchy of issues on the APC’s plate.

    “It should also be noted that it has been a clear 44 months since Saraki left office as Senate President and within that period El Rufai and his party has the Senate President they want and the type of Senate they want, yet they have not done anything to restructure Nigeria. We have not seen the so-called “excellent” report of his committee being translated into bills and assented to by the President. He even claimed his committee drafted restructuring bills.

    “El Rufai should tell Nigerians if Saraki is also the one that is responsible for the high level of insecurity which has escalated from just the Northeast to a menace that has now engulfed the whole of Nigeria under the APC administration. We need him to tell Nigerians if the former Senate President is responsible for the collapsing state of the economy, spiraling inflation, huge cost of living, extremely low standard of living across the country, endemic poverty in the land, the foreign exchange rate that has moved from N200 in exchange for a dollar to N740 to a dollar, the high level of youth unemployment, the high rate of oil theft, the alarming rate of borrowing by the government, high rate of disunity among the component units that make up the country and other ills bedeviling the country under the APC administration.

    “Since the Kaduna State Governor is an expert in manufacturing excuses and blames trading, he should tell us why the APC government to which he belongs has not been able to provide good governance to Nigerians and why the party is struggling to appeal to voters to reward their failure.

    “We can see that in addition to his job as state governor, he has now become the spokesperson of a failing presidential campaign as he struts from one television station to the other, making vile threats, throwing abuses, and spewing lies. The day of reckoning will soon be here. Nigerians will surely not reward failure or buy cheap lies.

  • 2023 polls: Obi is a Nollywood actor who’s acting on the political space – El -Rufai

    2023 polls: Obi is a Nollywood actor who’s acting on the political space – El -Rufai

    Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El Rufai has watered down the possibility of the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi emerging as Nigeria’s president in the forthcoming general elections slated to hold on February 25, 2023.

    El-Rufai described Obi as a Nollywood actor who is just acting in the political space in the country.

    Governor, El Rufai made this known while featuring on a political show on Television Continental on Friday morning and monitored by TheNewsGuru.com

    He noted that Obi can only make reasonable numbers in some Southeast and southwest states, saying he will not win in any northern states.

    The Kaduna born politician added that the best Obi can do is to win Christian communities in the Northern states but claimed it’s just a fraction of the Northern states.

    He added that Obi can pull crowd on social media but claims it’s a different ball game when it comes to what happens physically.

  • Tragedy as inferno kills family of 4 in Kaduna

    Tragedy as inferno kills family of 4 in Kaduna

    Kaduna State Fire Service said an inferno which occurred in the early hours of Friday has killed one Mohammadu Sani, his wife, Raulatu Sani, his son, Hashim Sani (8) and an infant, Fatima Sani.

    Mohammad Umar, Commander of the service in charge of Zaria Zone made this known in an interview with newsmen in Zaria on Friday.

    Umar said the outbreak occurred at around 1.00am on Hajiya Maituwo St., Low Cost Area Zaria, Zaria Local Government.

    He added that the fire service was called after the fire had already destroyed substantial part of the house.

    However, Umar added that the timely intervention of the fire service curtailed the spread of the inferno to neighboring houses in the area.

    An eyewitness, Malam Safiyanu Aliyu told NAN that the late Sani was an Imam at one of the Mosques on Buhari Street, Low Cost, Zaria.

    Aliyu, who did not mention the cause of the fire outbreak said they heard a distress call from the members of a vigilance group guarding the area over a fire outbreak.

    He added that by the time they came out for assistance, it was discovered that the fire had destroyed the apartment where ill-fated family resided.

    He said the remsins of the deceased family were taken to their family house in the  Dogarawa in Sabon Gari Local Government for the Islamic burial rights.

  • Insecurity: Sani reveals names of suspected terrorists in Kaduna

    Insecurity: Sani reveals names of suspected terrorists in Kaduna

    Former Nigerian lawmaker, who represented Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani has listed names of top terrorists, in the state who have been suspected to be terrorizing the people of the state.

    Sanni made the revelation in a post via his verified Twitter handle on Thursday

    His tweet reads  “Top five terrorists in the North West of Nigeria still unleashing mayhem;
    Bello Turji Kachalla, Ado Alero, Dogo Gide, Baleri and Manjagara.”

    The former Kaduna central senator, had, earlier in reaction to the kidnap of train passengers in Edo State, expressed concern over the amount of ransom demanded by the terrorists, saying It was a tragic situation.

    Recall that bandits have been terrorizing the North West zone of the country, especially, Kaduna State.

    They, however, struck in Edo State, snatching scores of passengers and demanding a ransom of N20 million.

    Recall that terrorists and bandits have attacked communities in Kaduna on many occasions leaving residents to live in heightened fear and apprehension.

     

  • Man demands N250,000 from wife to marry another wife with

    Man demands N250,000 from wife to marry another wife with

    A businessman, identified as Musa Usman has demanded his divorce-seeking wife, Aisha Umar to pay him N320,000 in exchange for her freedom.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Usman made the demand on Wednesday at a Sharia Court in Kaduna State.

    Usman, through his counsel, Safiyanu Saleh said though he still loves his wife, he will not stop her from exercising her rights for divorce through Khul’i (redemption).

    “I paid N70,000 dowry but I want her to add N250,000 so that I will be able to marry another wife”, he said.

    Earlier, the complainant through her counsel, Abubakar Sulaiman prayed the court to dissolve her union with Usman through Khul’i.

    He said that she was no longer interested in the marriage and was ready to return the N70,000 dowry she received from him or less.

    “According to Islamic law, a woman can redeem herself from a marriage by paying back the dowry she received, less or more; therefore we are praying to pay less due to the harsh economic situation.

    “Alternatively, we pray she spends her waiting period which is three monthly cycle in replacement of the N70,000”, he said.

    The Judge, Malam Rilwanu Kyaudai adjourned the matter until Jan. 24 for final address of the two parties as well as ruling.

    The waiting period known as Iddah is a period a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she may not marry another man.