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Top 11 stories of Friday, April 01, 2016

POWER: HOW NIGERIA EXPERIENCED ZERO MEGAWATT

The nationwide power crisis being experienced in the country worsened on Thursday, with a total system collapse at exactly 12.58p.m. On the systems collapse, the nation got to Ground Zero, with all the Discos
receiving zero megawatts allocation from the system operator, the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN.
The nation had experienced drastic reduction in power supply through the national grid in recent time, with
generation standing at 2,243.20mw, which the Federal Government blamed on vandals.

It was observed that before the systems collapse, allocation to Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, AEDC, earlier in the day stood at 257.97mw. 

 

AKWA IBOM ASSEMBLY APPROVES GOV. EMMANUEL’S N15 BILLION LOAN REQUEST 

The Akwa Ibom State Government, on Thursday, secured the state House of Assembly’s approval to serve as
guarantor for a N10 billion bank loan for a contractor handling the dualisation of Etinan-Ndon Eyo Road in the state.

The loan, from the United Bank for Africa, with an interest rate of 14.5 per cent per annum will run for 36 months, according to a statement from the House of Assembly.

The House also gave Governor Udom Emmanuel approval to get a separate N5 billion loan for the state government. The House, which did not give details of the loan, said the money was “to enable the
government complete ongoing road projects in the state”

 

LAGOS SLUM COMMUNITY PROTESTS ‘LIFE – THREATENING’ DREGING ACTIVITY 

Over 100 slum dwellers in Otodo Gbame community besieged the Lagos State Government House, Wednesday, protesting dredging and sand-filling activities near their homes. Otodo Gbame is a predominantly fishing village in Lekki. The community people demanded an immediate stop to the dredging activities at the Otodo Gbame lagoon by Destiny Dredgers’ International (DDI) Ltd, purportedly owned by Lekki Gardens.

“The sand-filling by DDI is causing serious suffering and hardship to the people of Otodo Gbame and is even threatening our way of life and very existence,” the community stated in a letter to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode and Mudashiru Obasa, Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly.

The letter were signed by Dansu Hunkpe, the Baale of Otodo Gbame; Paschal Tosinhun, a community leader; and Emmanuel Anasu, the community para-legal.

 

EXPLOSION ROCKS NNPC FILLINGS STATION IN YOLA   

A deadly explosion has rocked Yola, sending wild flames into the atmosphere. The deadly explosion, which occurred at the Wuro-jobe area of the metropolis, around 8pm is believed to have claimed two cars, which were charred beyond repair, sending motorist who queued around the vicinity to scamper for their
dear lives. No live was claimed in the explosion, eye witness said.

The explosion, according to a military officer who spoke from the scene, was from a filling station belonging to Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation licensed marketer.

According to him, the fire which has been raging for over an hour, has defied the intervention of fire fighters stationed at Faro bottling company located at wuro-jobe the scene of the incidence. The cause of the fire still remains unknown at the time of filling this report.

But eye witnesses who rushed to the scene following the explosion, are lamenting the severity of the fire which they claimed had been amplified by the petroleum products contained in underground tank of the filling station.

 

IPMAN COMMENCES 24 HOUR SERVICE

The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria has on Thursday announced that it would commence 24 hours service at its petrol stations in order to ensure that fuel queues disappear within the next two weeks.

Also in a bid to end the petrol scarcity across the country, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu has waded into the lingering crises within the IPMAN.

The minister, who held a meeting with the feuding factions of IPMAN at the corporate headquarters of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation on Thursday, raised a 14-man committee and charged them with the task of doing everything possible to bring back peace to the association at the national, zonal and
depot levels.

 

LAGOS STATE GOVERNMENT DENIES ABOLISHING MONTHLY SANITATION 

The Lagos state government has clarified reports making the rounds on social media that the monthly environmental sanitation in the state has been outlawed, saying that the policy on the monthly exercise has not been reviewed for now.

In a statement signed by the commissioner for information and strategy, Mr. Steve Ayorinde, the government said the erroneous story which was attributed to the state’s commissioner for the environment, Dr.  Babatunde Adejare was inaccurate.

 

WOMEN GROUP HAILS RASHIDA BELLO ON EMPOWERMENT

Women Group hails Rashida Bello on empowerment on March 31, 2016 10:03 PM / IN News / Comments
The Woman Empowerment Coalition, WEC, has hailed the empowerment initiative of the Kogi State First Lady, Rashida Bello, as “a timely intervention to save women and youths from poverty and deprivation.”

Speaking in Lokoja, the spokesperson of the group, Deaconess Magareth Adebayo conveyed the group’s appreciation to Mrs. Bello for considering the plight of women and youths a priority agenda of her initiative.
According to Adebayo, it is imperative for non-governmental organizations to key into the New Direction agenda of the present administration to ensure rapid socio-economic development of the state.

Her words: “It is a thing worthy of commendation for the First Lady, Mrs. Rashida Bello to leave her comfort zone to attend to the needs of rural community women across the state.”

 

TEXTILE MANUFACTURERS BACK GENETICALLY MODIFIED COTTON PRODUCTION IN NIGERIA 

The Nigerian Textile Manufacturers Association (NTMA) has expressed its approval for the introduction
of genetically modified cotton into the country.

In a statement Wednesday by its acting Director-General, Hamma Kwajaffa, the association said a timely
introduction of GM cotton, especially the Bt cotton variety, which has high resistance to pests, is capable of
repositioning Nigeria’s moribund textile industry.

The association’s statement is coming barely two days after several rights groups and faith-based organisations kicked against an attempt by Mosanto Agriculture Ltd., a supplier of agricultural products, to obtain approval for environmental introduction and commercial production of genetically modified cotton and maize from the National Biosafety Management Agency, NBMA.

  

 

CHIEF OF AIR STAFF SAYS BOKO HARAM END IS NEAR 

Air Marshal Abubakar made this comment during a visit to commission some projects at the Air Force medical centre of the 81 Maritime Group of the Nigerian Air Force in Benin City, the Edo State capital.
He said that apart from equipping the military with the necessary logistics, the government is also taking the welfare of its soldiers and their dependants as a top priority in its bid to end terrorism and properly secure the country.

 

WITH BUHARI, NIGERIA HAS UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO BE GREAT – OSINBAJO

Nigeria has a unique opportunity now to become a great country with President Muhammadu Buhari at the
helm of affairs, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said Thursday.

Mr. Osinbajo said this while receiving at the Presidential Villa, a delegation of his Law Faculty classmates with whom he attended the University of Lagos between 1975 and 1978.

He called on Nigerians to support President Buhari, whom he described as “a man who is honest and whose only desire is to make Nigeria go forward and become a great nation”.

Mr. Osinbajo said despite the twists and turns in governance, the country has a unique opportunity to make good progress now.

“The president and I are determined to give a good account of ourselves and more importantly ensure that the
country makes a good progress,” he said. The vice president expressed appreciation for the visit.

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Fuel scarcity now at dangerous, destructive point

Today’s Major Headlines, Tuesday, April  1, 2016.