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http://ift.tt/eA8V8J Gov. Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara has reiterated his administration’s commitment to restoring the state’s lost glory in sports by re-launching towards regaining its famous position of home of champions. Ahmed made the promise on Tuesday in Ilorin while receiving the team which finished as first runners-up in the Channels International Kids Cup Competition, Burahanudeen LGEA School of Ojagbooro in Ilorin. The governor who also received the management of the senior national baseball and softball champion teams expressed his worry about the state’s situation in sports presently. “I can recall that the state used to be the home of champions years back, but I wonder what happened along the line,’’ he said. Ahmed then promised that his government would prioritise sports development by encouraging recognised talents and also work towards discovering hidden ones. “Professionalism in sports has gone beyond just winning medals, but creating wealth for the youths. “The st...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J Gov. Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara has reiterated his administration’s commitment to restoring the state’s lost glory in sports by re-launching towards regaining its famous position of home of champions. Ahmed made the promise on Tuesday in Ilorin while receiving the team which finished as first runners-up in the Channels International Kids Cup Competition, Burahanudeen LGEA School of Ojagbooro in Ilorin. The governor who also received the management of the senior national baseball and softball champion teams expressed his worry about the state’s situation in sports presently. “I can recall that the state used to be the home of champions years back, but I wonder what happened along the line,’’ he said. Ahmed then promised that his government would prioritise sports development by encouraging recognised talents and also work towards discovering hidden ones. “Professionalism in sports has gone beyond just winning medals, but creating wealth for the youths. “The st...

http://ift.tt/2rZSw2r Members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) 2016 Batch ‘B’ Stream 2 cheering during their swearing-in and opening of the Orientation Course at Kubwa in Abuja on January 26, 2017. PHOTO: NAN The Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has advised NYSC members to identify with the ‘Change Begins with Me’ mantra of the current administration meant to restore national values. Osinbajo gave the advice on Thursday in Owerri in a message read by Mr Obinna Aharanwa, the Principal Secretary to the Deputy Governor of Imo, at the swearing in of the 2017 Batch ‘A’ corps members posted to the state. Aharanwa represented Gov. Rochas Okorocha of Imo at the programme. Osinbajo expressed regret that degeneration of moral values and good behaviour had become part of life of some Nigerians which had paved way for corruption and indiscipline. He said it was as a result of this that the presidency set the ball rolling to cleanse the rot through the ‘Change Begins wi...

http://ift.tt/2qTKqdW Acting Managing Director, BoI, Waheed Olagunju The Bank of Industry (BoI) has said it is determined to increase funding to businesses to about N25 billion in 2017 from the N8 billion recorded in 2016. Mr Abdul-Ganiyu Mohammed, General Manager (SME-South) of the bank, disclosed this at the South East Regional Customers’ Forum in Awka on Thursday. Mohammed said BoI had automated it’s operations that the process of accessing loan was now seamless. He said the forum had availed the Bank to get first hand experiences of customer and prospects, adding that it would help it develop new models that would take care of identified challenges. “Last year we were able to fund businesses with up to N8 billion but our target is to increase it to N25 billion in 2017,” he said. The official said there was need to enhance the ease of doing business, especially on the processing of land title to encourage industries to be set up. On his part, Mr Emeka Ezinando, the Pe...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Monday said the call by Nigerians for decentralisation of voting was unconstitutional. Mrs Ndidi Okafor, Deputy Director, Public Relations, INEC, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), told newsmen that it was not possible to register in one place and vote in another. Okafor said that the law establishing the commission did not give it power to allow decentralisation of voting, adding that it would be illegal to embark on such idea. “It is a legal matter; it has nothing to do with the internal administration of the commission. The Electoral Act says vote where you register. “So, you must endeavour to ensure that where you register is where you have to vote because on Election Day, movement is restricted and that is why the law says `go and vote where you registered’. “As long as that law remains and has not been amended, there is nothing the commission can do to allow decentralisation of voting. “All INEC nee...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J Budding singer, Osenuwavie Ajasa, who preferred to be called Wavie has released a viral video to demand answers on the alleged several unfulfilled promises of President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration. The video published on his official Twitter handle, @realwavie on Monday , titled, “Buhari stay with us” is already gaining momentum on the internet via a newly created hashtag, #Buharistaywithus Wavie who delivered most of the lines in his ‘Buhari stay with us’ song in Pidgin English stressed that Buhari still owes Nigerians change and begs him to stay in and deliver his promises. The post Watch trending video: Buhari stay with us appeared first on Vanguard News . Vía Vanguard News http://ift.tt/2qafKCk

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J The Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) on Sunday gave the Federal Government a 21-day ultimatum to rehabilitate and make the Oshodi-Apapa Dual Carriage Way and the access roads leading to the nation’s sea ports  motorable. The President of MWUN, Prince Adewale Adeyanju, gave the ultimatum while responding to questions from journalists in Lagos. He said that it was sad that the access roads to the ports were in a deplorable condition. Adeyanju said that the union was worried that the access roads to the nation’s seaports and the Oshodi-Apapa Dual Carriage Way that leads to Apapa and Tin-Can had been abandoned. “It is sad that the gateway to the nation’s economy is abandoned. We have written several letters including issuance of ultimatums over these roads but all to no avail. “’We can no longer live with the abandonment of access roads to the ports which have been in the state of disrepair for years in spite of efforts to draw government attention to...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J BY UGOCHUKWU ALARIBE ABA- A medical doctor identified as I.J. Mbaekpe, has committed suicide in Aba, Abia State. Vanguard gathered that Mbaekpe who lives at the Abayi area of the city has been suffering from undisclosed ailment for about 30 years. According to a family source, the medical doctor, aged 74, kept lamenting that he was tired of life, as his health condition defied solution. While his wife, Mary, was said to be out of the house, Mbaekpe allegedly shot himself which attracted neighbours. He died as he was being taken to the hospital. “He has been sick for about 30 years now. While the family continued to take care of him and seek solution to his ailment, he kept telling us that he was tired of life. While his wife was out of the house, he shot himself. Nobody knew he could get to the extent of taking his life,” the family source said. Abia State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Godfrey Ogbonna, who confirmed the incident, stated that the medic...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J The Senate Intelligence Committee had its first chance on Thursday to question the acting director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the wake of President Donald Trump’s decision to fire James Comey. Andrew McCabe became acting director after Trump fired Comey on Tuesday. He is filling Comey’s shoes at the previously scheduled hearing, which was supposed to discuss “worldwide threats” but took on new significance after Comey’s firing. The chairman of the committee, Sen. Richard Burr asked the panel, which includes other top intelligence chiefs, to focus on the original topic of the hearing. Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the committee, said that would be difficult to do. “The timing of director Comey’s dismissal to me and many members of the committee on both sides of the aisle is especially troubling,” Warner said. McCabe told the committee that he could not comment after being asked about conversations Comey had with Trump. The questi...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J In sustenance of the new understanding between the Federal Government and the oil-producing communities of the Niger Delta, the President Muhammadu Buhari administration has released additional N35B to step-up the Amnesty Programme in the region. Although the FG had approved a N20B allocation for the Amnesty Programme in the 2016 budget, President Buhari has now raised the funds, and as appropriated, to N55B with a recent release of additional N30B. There is also a planned release of another N5B later. Currently the Amnesty Office has now paid up all ex-militants backlog of their stipends up to the end of 2016. The release of the additional funds is coming after presidential level interactive engagements in the Niger Delta, where the Buhari administration has enunciated a New Vision for the oil-producing areas based on the presentation made by the Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF, to the President when he received leaders and stakeholders from the region last Nove...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J Abuja – The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested two grandmothers with narcotics at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, while on their way to the U.S and Saudi Arabia. ‎NDLEA spokesperson, Mr Mitchell Ofoyeju disclosed this in a statement on Saturday. He said the‎ suspects allegedly ingested 108 wraps of substances that tested positive for heroin and cocaine during outward screening of passengers at the MMIA, Lagos. He said that the‎ NDLEA commander at the Lagos airport, Ahmadu Garba gave the names of the suspected drug traffickers as Ebunoluwa Adebayo, 60, and Ayisat Amodu, 59. He said that Ebunoluwa was‎ found to have ingested 83 wraps of heroin weighing 1.105kg on her way to New York, U.S while Ayisat ingested 25 wraps of cocaine weighing 275 grammes on her way to Medina, Saudi Arabia. ‎ Ofoyeju said that the women had‎ blamed their involvement in drug trafficking on financial hardship. He said preliminary invest...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J Oil giant, Royal Dutch Shell, has announced plans to invest about 25 billion dollars this year in Nigeria and all its oil and gas operation across the world. Shell made the announcement in its first quarter 2017 financial results released on Thursday. The report revealed that Shell netted an income of 2.2 billion dollars and was expecting to generate 10 billion dollars in cash flow from the delivery of some of its new projects by 2018. The company recently announced the resumption of oil production at its 225,000 barrels per day (bpd) Bonga Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) field in Nigeria’s deep-waters. According to the company, the repair of Bonga will ensure sustained production and reduce unscheduled production deferments. Shell is also involved in a new deep-water project – the 13.5 billion dollars Zabazaba Deepwater project located in Oil Prospecting Lease (OPL) 245. The net profit, it said, doubled in the first three months of 201...