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http://ift.tt/eA8V8J The Bayelsa State Police Command on Tuesday confirmed the killing of a police sergeant at a police station in Yenagoa. The spokesman of the command, Mr Asinim Butswat, confirmed the killing in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Yenagoa. He, however, did not disclose the identity of the killed policeman but said that manhunt for the killers had commenced. Butswat said that the sergeant was shot dead while on guard duty at the Sagbama Police Station in the Yenagoa metropolis. “The policeman was killed on Sunday at about 8:30 p.m. in front of the Sagbama Police Station by two unknown gunmen on an unregistered motorcycle. “We are working to establish the motive behind the dastardly act because they didn’t stop. We recovered the rifle of the dead policeman. “They shot at the policeman and zoomed off but we have swung into action and some people have volunteered useful information, “Butswat said. NAN learnt that the incident threw policeme...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J In a bid to ensure Nigerians have easy access to more data on agriculture, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Nigeria will hand over the Computer Assisted Personal Interview (CAPI) system developed through the Agricultural Market and Information System (AMIS) project to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. AMIS is an inter-agency platform developed by FAO under the auspices of the United Nations and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. AMIS was initiated in 2011 by the Ministers of Agriculture of the G20 countries to improve food market transparency, coordination and monitor price volatility. AMIS is composed of G20 Members, Spain and seven additional major exporting and importing countries of agricultural commodities, one of which is Nigeria; recognised as a major agricultural hub in sub-Saharan Africa. As part of the deliverables of AMIS in Nigeria, CAPI System was developed for the colle...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday offered to help British Prime Minister Theresa May marshal support in the fight against terrorism, days after a suicide bomber killed 22 people in Manchester. May, at her first G7 meeting since becoming prime minister in 2016, was set to urge the world’s major industrialised nations to encourage technology firms to stop militants moving “from the battlefield to the internet”. France has itself suffered multiple jihadist attacks, in which over 230 people have been killed since 2015. “We know this kind of attack,” the newly elected president told May at the San Domenico Palace Hotel, a former monastery in Taormina, Sicily. “We will do everything we can in order to increase this cooperation at the European level, in order to do more from a bilateral point of view against terrorism. “We will do that during the whole day, because that’s the common challenge.” Sitting in front of the flags of France, Britain and the EU, M...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, says inspite of the many achievements made by Africa towards gender equality, a lot more needs to be done. Onyeama made this known at the 54th Africa Day anniversary, celebrated on Thursday at the Sheraton Ladi Kwali Hall, Abuja. This year’s event which was themed “Harnessing the Demographic Dividend through Investments in Youth” was held to celebrate the progress of Africa and focus on the importance of youth empowerment across Africa. The minister urged governments to take stronger measures to close the gender gap, to make Africa greater than it already is. “It could be said today that Africa has largely succeeded in overcoming the challenges and threats of our unity but we are not yet through. “We still have to address the issue of gender parity in the continent as this lays emphasis on educating the girl child. “Africa will definitely stand a better chance at development when both genders are given the opportun...

http://ift.tt/2rQzpYH By Chinedu Adonu ENUGU – NATIONAL president of Ohaneze Ndigbo youth wing, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro has called on the federal governnent to release the chairman of capital oil, Ifeanyi Uba within 48 hour. Isiguzoro threatened that the youths should go on massive protest if the government failed to release Ifeanyi Uba within 24 hour. “We are giving the DSS 48 hour to release Ifeanyi Uba from detention and if they failed to do so, we will embark on massive protest in Abuja and other states”, Isiguzoro threatened. Also speaking, NUJ South East vice president, Chris Isiguzo called on the DSS to release ifeanyi Uba in accordance with the court rulling. He urged federal government agencies to follow court order in order not to lead Nigeria into anarchy. “DSS should work in accordance with the rule of law and release the Authority publisher Ifeanyi Uba within 48hours”, Isiguzo said. This was made during an event organised by Authority Newspapers to honour and appr...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Nasarawa State Chapter, on Thursday said three more labour unions would join the ongoing strike by civil servants in the state. Yusuf Sarki-Iya, the state NLC spokesman said that the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) and others currently not part of the strike would join this Thursday. Sarki-Iya made the disclosure in an interview with newsmen on Thursday in Lafia. “Other unions in the state are expected to declare strike today in solidarity with the NLC and TUC. “The embattled NLC Chairman Abdullahi Adeka who is the Chairman of Medical and Health Workers Union is also directed to declare strike as a condition to be reinstated as the NLC Chairman. “So if Adeka do the needful by joining the strike the state executive council will meet and take a decision regarding his reinstatement as directed by the headquarters of our union,” he said...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J Sijuade Adedokun, President, Association of Music Artistes Managers of Nigeria (AMAMN), says its charity match between artists and their managers was aimed at raising funds for motherless babies. Adedokun, who spoke to newsmen on Thursday in Lagos, said the match would be played on Friday at the Green Field Soccer pitch, Marwa Bus Stop at Lekki, Lagos. He called on his colleagues in the music business to participate and support the charity match. “The match will be a platform for stakeholders to give back to society by raising funds for motherless babies. “A-list artistes like Olamide, 2face, Praise and other upcoming acts will participate in the match, Adedokun said. He added that the match would further bond artistes with their managers. “It is worthy of note that it is the masses that make artistes stars from their patronage and giving back to them is what the artistes should continually do. “The concept of giving back to society by pursuing humanitarian...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J By Chidi Nkwopara, OWERRI. Over 63 civil society organizations and other interested parties are planning a one million-man march against what they tagged “the growing administrative anomalies,bad governance and gross insensitivity of the state government to the welfare of the citizenry”. Confirming the planned protest march exclusively to Vanguard yesterday, in a telephone interview, the former Speaker of Imo State House of Assembly and protagonist of Advocacy for War Against Corruption Initiatives, Chief Kennedy Nwagwu, lamented that “Imo is stinking and we must recover Imo for Ndimo”. In his words: “We must make the Governor to sit up. Over 63 civil society organizations have declared interest to fully participate in the one million man march against bad governance in Imo State”. While saying that nobody can completely rule out the participation of the organized labour and pensioners in the exercise, Nwagwu equally promised that they will work round the cloc...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J China’s ambition to build a new Silk Road is not about seeking to expand its military role abroad nor about seeking to set up foreign bases, the Defence Ministry said on Thursday. The new Silk Road, formally known as the Belt and Road initiative in China, is President Xi Jinping’s signature policy to expand links between Asia, Africa and Europe underpinned by billions of dollars in infrastructure investment. At a summit in Beijing at the beginning of the month, Xi pledged 124 billion dollars for the plan, promising to forge a path of peace, inclusiveness and free trade. However, China’s ambitions have caused nervousness in some countries, particularly India and in some European capitals, which suspect Beijing of using the plan to promote Chinese influence globally, pointing to investments in ports in places such as Pakistan that could one day be used by China’s navy. Asked whether Chinese Belt and Road investments in ports in Greece, Pakistan and Sri Lanka had...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J The Nigerian Navy football team has set up a final encounter with the Nigeria Customs Service of Lagos in the ongoing Ships and Ports Maritime Football Cup competition in Lagos. The Navy sailed to the final after a 2-1 defeat of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) on Wednesday at the Astro Turf pitch of the National stadium in Lagos. On the other hand, Customs edged Josephdarm Port Services 2-0 at the NPA sports ground in Surulere, Lagos o also berth at the final. The NPA drew first blood through striker, Taiwo Monsoh in the 19th minute and took command of the game and eventually claimed the first half. However, a spirited performance by the Navy team saw them draw level through a loan strike by Musa Mohammed in the 50th minute. Dick Precious confounded NPA’s woes when in the 75th minute he scored directly through a corner kick which will arguably stand as the goal of the tournament. All efforts for the NPA team to get their all important equaliser were unsuccess...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J Eating chocolate on a regular basis may be associated to a lower risk of heart disease, a new study published online by Heart revealed on Wednesday. Researchers have discovered a link between moderate chocolate intake and a lowered risk for atrial fibrillation or flutter (AF), the irregular heartbeat that can lead to stroke, heart failure and other serious problems. Scientists, using food-frequency questionnaires to determine chocolate consumption, collected diet and health data from 55,502 men and women ages 50 to 64 in Denmark. “About 3,346 cases of atrial fibrillation occurred in this follow-up study lasting over 13 years,’’ they said. The study, however, showed participants who ate one to three one-ounce (28.35 grammes) servings a month had a 10-per cent lower rate of AF than those who hardly did. “Those who ate one serving a week had a 17-per cent lower rate and those who ate two to six serving a week had a 20-percent lower rate,’’ researchers found. In...

http://ift.tt/2qwrpPq PDP National Secretariat, Abuja The Board of Trustees(BoT) of the Peoples Democratic Party [PDP], says no decision has been taken to adopt an alternative platform because of the leadership crisis rocking the party. The PDP BoT Chairman, Senator Walid Jubrin made the clarification in a statement he issued on Tuesday in Abuja. The Supreme Court has adjourned its sitting on the party’s leadership tussle until May 24. Jubrin expressed the BoT’s commitment to follow all legal processes that will help redeem the party’s image “as anything not built on truth will fail and falsehood will crush. “The attention of the PDP BoT has been drawn to series of publications alleging that PDP has adopted a particular political party just newly registered as its fold back position. “I want to make it very clear that PDP has never formed any alternative party. If it has to agree on something like that, all organs and forums of the party viz BoT, National caucus, PDP Gove...

http://ift.tt/eA8V8J …Total loans at N171bn By Yinka Kolawole, with agency report DISBURSEMENTS  of loans to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sub-sector by the Bank of Industry (BoI) in 2016 increased by 42 percent to N8 billion from N5.64 billion in 2015. This was contained in the bank’s 2016 annual account which also indicated that the bank’s total loans and advances rose by 10 per cent to N171 billion in 2016 from N156 billion in 2015. BOI’s loan support to SMEs sub-sector starts from N5 million. However, loans below N5 million are provided on the bank’s matching fund platform which is operated in collaboration with various state governments and on its Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) scheme which is operated through MicroFinance Banks. The bank further noted that the quality of its risk assets improved with a reduction in the ratio of non-performing loans to 3.72 per cent in 2016 from 5.87 per cent in 2015. It assured its stakeholders of a positive financial year in 2017, ...