Tag: newsletter

NUJ declares one week mourning for assassinated journalist

The Adamawa Council of Nigeria Union of Journalists ( NUJ) has declared a one week mourning for late Maxwell Nashon, a journalist who was murdered on Wednesday in the state.

Nashon was a reporter with Fombina FM, Yola, before he was killed.

Mr Ishaku Donald, the state NUJ Chairman said this in a statement on Friday in Yola.

The Adamawa Council of NUJ has declared one week mourning and prayer for the repose of the soul of our great member, late Maxwell Nashon.

“His killing was not only inhumane and barbaric but unpardonable injury meted on the union.

“While the union condoles with the family of the deceased, management and staff of the FRCN Fombina FM Yola, it calls on the State Government and security agencies to step up measures to stem the current insecurity challenge,” Donald said.

He said that the council would continue to remember Nashon for his commitment and sacrifice to duty.

January 31, 2020
Ighalo in surprise move to dump Chinese club for Man Utd

THERE are strong indications last night that Manchester United m ay strike a deal for former Super Eagles striker Odion Ighalo before the end of the January Transfer Window today.

Since last week, words were rife that the struggling English Premier League side had been linked with a shock move for the former Watford striker United from Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua as a late injury replacement for Marcus Rashford.

English tabloid Daily Mirror further hinted last night that Ighalo is mulling over the possible switch from China to England following the spread of the Coronavirus in the Asian country.

“Ighalo is currently in limbo due to the coronavirus health scare, which has forced the Chinese Super League to delay the start of the 2020 season,” declared London Daily Mirror. “As a result of the delay, Ighalo is due to fly to Europe later today(Thursday) , which would allow him to put pen to paper on a move before the window slams shut on Friday.”

Incidentally, the Chinese Football Association (CFA) had expressed fears that the rapidly spreading of coronavirus might force several stars out of the Chinese Super League while announcing the postponement of all domestic games.

“Chinese Super League stars could be tempted into looking for new clubs after the Chinese Football Association (CFA) announced the postponement of all domestic games due to the rapidly spreading coronavirus,” Sky Sports Football tweeted the CFA notice.

Only on Monday, sources close to Ighalo informed NationSport that the 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) top scorer is unperturbed with the Manchester United transfer rumours.

“Ighalo is not disturbed with the rumours linking him to Manchester United and that’s why he has chosen not to make any statement about the transfer speculation,” the source close to the player told NationSport few days ago.

Just last year, Ighalo reportedly turned down a short-loan move to Catalan giants, FC Barcelona, saying he preferred a longer contact than an ‘a six-month loan and strictly as a back-up striker’.

January 31, 2020
Pastor accused of selling, anointing women’s pants, bras with his pictures speaks

An Abuja based pastor, J.S. Yusuf, accused of anointing the bras and pants of spinsters with his image, has debunked the trending stories about him as ‘fake news’.

The fake report with photoshopped bras and pants, emblazoned with the pastor’s photo, was shared on the popular Nigerian social media platform, Nairaland on Thursday night, ten days after Yusuf’s church trashed the story. The fake news publisher is a news platform called ‘Abuja Reporters’.

Pastor Shedrach Abang who issued a disclaimer on behalf of the church, Touch for Recovery Outreach International, on 21 January, said the report was concocted and dismissed it as false.

“As a church, we do not take this report as just blackmail, but a calculated plan to steal, kill and destroy”.

Yusuf is the senior pastor of the church, with acronym TROI.

Read Abang’s statement:

The fake pants and bras with Yusuf’s image

Pastor J.S. Yusuf and his wife

January 31, 2020
Court sets new date for case against ex-Senate President

The Ivo Division of Ebonyi State High Court, presided over by Hon. Justice Onwusi, has set a new date for hearing of the case of destruction of a large farmland belonging to a septuagenarian farmer, Sir. Moses Orji, brought against former Senate President Anyim Pius Anyim.

Justice Onwusi adjourned the case to Tuesday 4 Feb. 2020 when the matter came up on Tuesday 28 January.

Recall that there had been reports of invasion of farms of the 76-year old farmer with bulldozer allegedly brought to the property by agents of Senator Anyim.

Matter, however, took a worse dimension when the farmer was on Thursday jolted by a return of the bulldozer to his farm to continue its destruction in spite of the case being before the court.

Orji’s lawyer, Barr. Ogbonna Paul Arochukwu said: “Senator Anyim and his fronts have continued with further destruction of Sir. Moses Orji’s farms”.

When this reporter called Pa Orji, he confirmed the ugly situation and said he was still at the farm to assess further damages done.

“I am shocked he could return bulldozer to my farms. They have uprooted more palm trees and other plants”, the distraught farmer lamented.

January 30, 2020
Tension as APC reveals those plotting to overthrow Buhari

The All Progressives Congress, APC, Local Government Chairmen on Thursday raised the alarm over an impending plot by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to overthrow President Muhammadu Buhari with the aid of the National Assembly. (more…)

January 30, 2020
Breaking: Jonathan storms Aso Rock in face of rising insecurity

Former President Goodluck Jonathan on Thursday stormed Aso Rock to meet with his successor, President Muhammdu Buhari.

TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports President Buhari received the former President at the State House, Abuja.

The reason for the august visit, while the nation is in turmoil over insecurity, is yet to be known.

Jonathan maintained absolute silence when accosted by journalists after the brief meeting.

It is possible that Jonathan was at Aso Rock to share ideas with Buhari on the best way to surmount the insecurity challenges besetting the nation.

Recall that Buhari earlier, today as well, held a meeting with the National Security Council at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The meeting follows Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe’s calls for Buhari’s government to resign and vacate office for same issue of insecurity.

Following Abaribe’s call, Buhari Resign trend erupted on Twitter, but the president’s agenda at the meeting with the country’s security chiefs was yet to be known.

Meanwhile, we gathered that the meeting was a routine one where the security chiefs updated the president on security developments, particularly the ongoing fight against insurgency and crimes in some parts of the country.

Also, we reliably gathered that the meeting had nothing to do with the calls, in some quarters, for the removal of the service chiefs as being speculated on social media.

Recall that the Chairman House of Representatives Committee on Police Affairs, Hon Usman Kumo had advised Buhari not to rely on executive briefs from service chiefs.

Kumo in a chat with TNG said the executive briefs don’t actually tell Mr President the true situation of things as the chiefs will always tell him they are on top of the situation.

The APC, Gombe Rep said once the president gets such executive summaries and they tell him that they are on top of the situation he feels comfortable with that.

“But I sincerely believe that he should adopt a more radical approach to the situation,” Kumo said.

He explained that” the information gathering structure has to be revisited involving the DSS, CID, Local Governments and the State Governors who understand their territories better than anybody.

“The Governors have a knowledge of their territories; claiming that it’s the Federal Government problem is not right so we need to get our priorities right.

“The Governors have a fair knowledge of their territories better than anybody so there’s need for them to be adequately involved.

“There is urgent need to key in the Governors in the fight against insecurity in the country.

“If you say there is no manpower why not employ the services of equipment using drones to hit at targets to get a meaningful result at the end of the day”.

Meanwhile, those in attendance at today’s security meeting included the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, and Chief of Staff to the President, Malam Abba Kyari.

Others were the Ministers of Defence, Interior and Police Affairs, retired Maj. Gen. Bashir Magashi, Rauf Aregbesola and Maigari Dingyadi, respectively, as well as the National Security Adviser (NSA), retired Maj. Gen. Babagana Monguno, and Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Adamu.

Others were the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Gabriel Olonisakin, Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok Ekwe Ibas, Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshall Sadique Abubakar, Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ahmed Rufa’i Abubakar, and the Director-General of the Directorate of State Services (DSS), Yusuf Bichi.

We will bring you details of Jonathan’s meeting with President Buhari as the development unfolds.

January 30, 2020
Helicopter crash: Kobe Bryant’s wife Vanessa breaks silence

Vanessa, grieving wife of basketball legend Kobe Bryant, finally broke her silence on Wednesday as she replaced her profile picture on Instagram with an emotional one that brings memories of her husband and daughter, Gianna.

Both Kobe and Gianna died in the helicopter crash on Sunday morning.

TMZ reported that the photo was taken at the 2016 NBA All-Star Game in Toronto.

In the picture, Kobe is embracing his daughter. She has her arm on his shoulder and he is looking down at her lovingly.

Vanessa has not yet spoken publicly about the loss of Kobe and Gigi. Some reports said she has been crying all the time, unable to compose herself.

Kobe Bryant and her late daughter Gianna

The devastating helicopter crash occurred Sunday morning in Calabasas, California, claiming the lives of nine people. The victims have been identified as Kobe Bryant, Gigi Bryant, John Altobelli, Keri Altobelli, Alyssa Altobelli, Sarah Chester, Payton Chester, Christina Mauser and the pilot, Ara Zobayan.

Bryant met Vanessa back in 1999 when she was 17 and was working as a background model on a music video.

They got engaged six months later and married in 2001.

The couple have four children together: Gianna, 13, who was killed alongside her father, Natalia, 17, three-year-old Bianka and seven-month-old Capri.

January 30, 2020
SEC Gives Stockbrokers Deadline to File Liquidity Position

Brokers and dealers in the nation’s capital market have been directed to compute and file their monthly net liquid capital position not later than five days after end of the month.

In a directive posted on its platform on Wednesday, the apex regulator in the country’s capital market said for the 2020 returns, the brokers must file their net liquid capital on or before February 5, 2020. The returns are required to be sent to the agency and the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

It was stated that failure to file the returns as required would attract appropriate sanctions and they must be submitted “in the manner prescribed by the commission from time to time.”

According to SEC, the computation must reflect the true and fair position of all assets and liabilities of the broker/dealer, while material mis-statement or omission would be regarded as misleading the commission and shall attract appropriate sanction.

“Where established financial claims against a broker have been omitted from the computation of the net liquid capital, the commission shall adjust the net liquid capital of the concerned broker-dealer;

“Where a broker-dealer is suspended from trading as a result of a short-fall in its net liquid capital, the broker-dealer shall be subject to verification for compliance prior to the commission’s approval for lifting of the suspension.

“Every broker-dealer is expected to comply with this guideline. Returns for January 2020 on net liquid capital are expected on or before 5th February 2020. The returns should be filed with the commission via brokers@sec.gov.ng, while the reporting template can be downloaded from the SEC website,” it said.

The notice further said, “The commission may request for evidence of existence of assets or institute an asset verification exercise when necessary to substantiate claims. A broker-dealer is also required to avail the commission relevant evidence of significant changes in position of assets.”

January 30, 2020
Weapons used by killer-herdsmen from Turkey, Libya, Ivory Coast – Report

Weapons being used in inter-communal violence that has killed thousands of people in northern Nigeria have been trafficked from Ivory Coast, Libya and Turkey, according to a new report by the Conflict Armament Research group.

Fighting between farmers and semi-nomadic herders over land has gone on for decades in Nigeria´s central belt and north. Attacks on civilians by armed groups aligned with the communities have killed more than 3,600 people and displaced 300,000 since 2014, according to the study.

Armed groups involved in the fighting in Kaduna, Katsina and Zamfara states possessed “significant numbers of factory-produced small arms manufactured in Europe, East Asia, the Middle East and North America,” according to the three-year study.

Some of the weapons were from Turkey and were linked to a major organized trafficking network, the group said.

Assault rifles from Iraq and similar to ones used by Islamic extremist groups in Mali and Niger also were found. However, the organization said that while weapons may have come from the same illicit source, that did not demonstrate a connection between the conflict in Nigeria and Islamic extremist groups.

“Nigerian authorities have made strides in gathering illicit weapons from these communities over the last three years,” said Conflict Armament Research’s head of regional operations in West Africa, Claudio Gramizzi. “Preventing their rapid replacement requires efforts by law enforcement across the Sahel, as well as targeted interdiction of new arms being trafficked from Europe and Western Asia.”

January 30, 2020
Fidelity Bank Lifts “World’s Greatest Maths” Teacher, Offers Him Employment

Fidelity Bank Plc has brought succor to physically challenged Chemical Engineering graduate, Mr. Micheal Sowunmi who is fondly referred to as “the world’s greatest teacher” on account of his love for teaching.

Mr. Sowunmi has been offered employment by top lender Fidelity Bank as a facilitator at the bank’s training academy known as CREST Academy. This much was revealed by the bank’s CEO Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo during the bank’s 2019-year end /customer appreciation party which took place at the weekend in Lagos.Okonkwo said the move was consistent with the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policy aimed specifically at uplifting the less privileged members of society.

According to him, the theme of the party ‘Give them wings’ was crafted to underscore the bank’s CSR initiatives and interventions. “Sowunmi’s case is not an isolated one we have indeed demonstrated our passion for lifting people several ways as you have seen tonight with the case of Tim Godfrey and DJ Slim V and the Fidelity Youth Empowerment Academy”, he explained.

Chairman of the Board of Directors, Ernest Ebi, also gave lucid insights into the philosophy behind the bank’s Youth Empowerment Academy (YEA), which he described as a veritable platform to make beneficiaries financially independent and self-reliant. “Fidelity Bank is making the youths turn their passion into a pay cheque through empowerment programmes which includes vocational training in fashion, make-up, coding, catering and more” he said.

Ebi said that the programme seeks to empower Nigerian undergraduates with vocational skills and enterprise training which are relevant for self-reliance. Over 2000 students have benefited from YEA programs at University of Nigeria, Nsukka; Waziri Umar Federal Polytechnic, Birnin-Kebbi; Federal Polytechnic Oko; Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Port Harcourt, and Bayero University, Kano. Some beneficiaries who have since started their own businesses were recognized at the event.

On Tim Godfrey, Okonkwo said the bank is fully supportive of him in spite of the fact that he does not play secular music, just as it has thrown its weight behind DJ Slim V who was discovered from a chance encounter at somewhere in the eastern part of the country. “Today, we have given them a platform this big to perform and showcase their craft to the admiration of all. We urge you to patronize them so they can grow. These energies they are displaying could have been channeled to negative vices” he stated.

The annual event which lasted to the wee hours of Friday last week had in attendance key stakeholders, customers and prospects including public office holders, traditional rulers, regulators and policy makers. KCee of 5 Star Music, Niniola, Timaya and Flavour performed at the party whilst comedians, Bovi and Larry J thrilled with rib cracking jokes. Some of the dignitaries at the event were Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Obafemi Hamzat, Minister for Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi and Alhaji Nasiru Yusuf-Gawuna, Deputy Governor of Kano State, Mr. Ernest Ndukwe, Chairman MTN Nigeria among others

January 30, 2020