In a bid to test the potency of his newly acquired bullet proof ‘juju’, a man, Ornguga Adega, of Agbatse village in Kwande local government area of Benue State, shot his only son dead while conducting a gunshot test on the boy.
The suspect, who was immediately apprehended by men of the Benue State Police Command, is currently facing trial at a Makurdi Chief Magistrate Court.
Worried by the security challenges in the country and its attendant risks, head teachers of primary schools across the nation have asked the Federal Government to protect the lives of school children by providing adequate security around Nigerian schools.
Speaking under the aegis of Association of Primary School Head Teachers of Nigeria, AOPSHON, the teachers called for the beefing-up of security around schools that are in volatile areas of the North.
National President of the association, Mr. Lawal Mahmud in Abuja, at the end of its National Executive Council meeting, decried the incessant bomb attacks in the country, a trend he described as detrimental to the development of the nation.
The teachers also said they were in full support of the planned strike action by Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, in states of the federation that were yet to implement the 27.5 percent teachers’ enhanced salary structure.
NUT leadership had ordered its members in the 14 states yet to implement the 27.5 percent salary increment, to commence indefinite strike with effect from 23rd of this month.
The administration of Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara state yesterday immortalised the former governor of the state, Late Alhaji Mohammed Alabi Lawal and former Super Eagles striker, Late Rashidi Yekinni .
The decision was taken at the state executive council meeting.
The SSG,Alhaji Isiaka Gold flanked by commissioner for information and home affairs,Prince Tunji Moronfoye and Commissioner for sports Barrister Kayode Towoju said this at a post exco press briefing yesterday.
The State Commissioner for Sports and Youths development, Mr. Kayode Towoju told journalists that, the Ilorin Golf Club was named after late former governor Lawal while the, CBN- Ola-Olu road was named after late Rasidi Yekinni.
Towoju added that, during the life time of Late former governor, Lawal used his wealth to develop the Golf development across the nation and Kwara in particular.
The Federal Government will soon ban the importation of goods being produced in Nigeria to reposition the manufacturing sector, Dr Olusegun Aganga, the Minister of Trade and Investment, has said.
According to him, this is part of a deliberate policy to protect local industries, boost their productivity and create more job opportunities for Nigerians.
Aganga disclosed this on Tuesday during his facility visit to Innoson Vehicles Manufacturing Plant and Innoson Industrial Plastic Plant in Enugu and Anambra, respectively.
He said that the new initiative was part of the National Industrial Revolution Plan of the Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment.
Aganga said that it was aimed at repositioning the manufacturing sector in line with President Goodluck Jonathan’s Transformation Agenda.
“As a country, we have a large market comprising 167 million people. We are the gateway to ECOWAS, which are about 300 million people.
“What this means is that local patronage is very important to us as a country, because we must take advantage of our large market to drive our Industrial Revolution Plan.
“In fact, local patronage is key to President Jonathan’s Transformation Agenda because it will help us to increase the productivity of our local companies; reduce foreign exchange spent on importation of goods from other countries and create more jobs for our people.
“Already, the president has directed us to compile the list of goods produced by Nigerian companies so that we will not have reasons to import those things into the country.
“We are going to do the same thing in the states by adopting the same policy.
“I have already met with the Chairman of Nnewi Chamber of Commerce and Industry over this matter and they will submit their list to me within the next one week.
“Also, the Anambra State governor is doing the same thing as well as the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria’’
He said that once the process was completed, “nobody would be allowed to import those things we produce into the country, especially those items that we have comparative and competitive advantage.’’
The minister also disclosed that the Federal Government was planning to review the country’s public system to give more opportunities to Nigerian companies in line with his ministry’s Industrial Revolution Plan.
The minister said that Nigeria like other countries across the world would have preferential treatment for goods produced in the country.
Gov. Peter Obi of Anambra, while receiving the minister, said that the state government would partner with the Ministry of Trade and Investment to provide conducive environment to fast-track industrialisation in the state.
“Anambra has the highest concentration of industries in Nigeria. So, we will work together with the Ministry of Trade and Investment to provide the conducive environment to support industrialisation,” Obi said.
Dr Innocent Chukwuma, the Chairman, Innoson Group of Companies, said during the facility tour, that the desire to create jobs and make products more affordable for Nigerians motivated him to set up four manufacturing plants.
He said that the support he had so far received from the Federal Government had helped his company to expand his operations.
Chukwuma said that Innoson Group currently employed 7,000 Nigerians, adding that it had plans to employ additional 3,000 “when its new plant comes on stream.” (NAN)
Chief coach of newly promoted El Kanemi Warriors of Maiduguri, Kelechi Emetoele has played down fears of insecurity in the Borno State capital owing to activities of the dreaded religious sect, Boko Haram, saying that football was perhaps, the tonic needed to cancel such fears.
In a chat with Sports Vanguard in his hotel room in Ojodu, Lagos Monday, Coach Emetoele said “we have been having a wonderful time in Maiduguri. In Nigeria today, nowhere is safe. You hear of kidnappings in the South and all sort of things in other parts of the country, some natural while others man-made causes. Nowhere is safe in Nigeria,” he said repeatedly.
Asked about the conduct of fans, particularly in deference to the presence of Boko Haram in the city, Emeteole raised his voice. “The atmosphere during our home matches has always been electrifying. Even the Boko Haram people love football. We have never recorded any incident throughout the season. Even the visiting teams can testify.”
Coach Emetoele who still bears bitterness against his former club, Heartland Football Club of Owerri said he went to Maiduguri to prove a point. He has largely been vindicated as he has piloted the modest Maiduguri based club- though with a rich history- to gain promotion
to Nigeria’s top flight and now in the round of 16 of the Federation Cup.
“Heartland treated me badly, I was a pioneer player in the club, rose to become the captain and subsequently became player/coach. My first year as a coach we missed the League crown by just one point behind Rangers and went on to represent Nigeria in the WAFU Cup.
We played in the final and lost the first leg in Lagos 0-1 to Hassacas of Ghana but were able to hold them 0-0 in Accra. I still feel sad the way I was treated by Heartland. I took them to Champions League final too.”
Kogi State Command of the Nigeria Police has uncovered a bomb factory in Okaito, a remote village in Okehi Local Government Area of the state.
Parading one of the suspects in Lokoja, the state Police Commissioner, Muhammed Katsina, said his men were able to locate the bomb factory following the confession of the man who was arrested in connection with the Sunday’s explosion in Okene.
The commissioner explained that the police discovered that a 4-bedroom bungalow where the suspect ran to for refuge which served as a church and mosque was actually the base where bombs of various sizes are manufactured
Vanguard gathered that the gang always started with Christian service, and minutes later changed to Islamic worship but unknown to the people of the area, while those “services” were going on, other members of the gang were busy assembling the bombs inside.
The police boss who declined to disclose the owner of the said building, said investigation was ongoing and warned property owners, particularly landlords, to examine properly those who they decide to rent their houses to as “anyone found within this criminal conspiracy will be dealt with as a culprit.”
Items recovered from the bomb factory site include 46 Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), 15 capacitors, 15 fuses, three bottles of potassium chloride, five litres of acid and one electrical detonator.
Others are rolls of firing cables, 250m detonating cord, three remote controlled siren, GSM sets, nails of various sizes, ammunition, a motorcycle, Bibles, Quran among other household items.
It would be recalled that between December 2011 till date, four different bomb factories have been uncovered in Kogi State; one in Kabba on the western axis of the state, while the remaining three were located in Okene, Okehi and Adavi areas, all in the central area of the state.
SOME residents of Ibadan metropolis have been sacked from their homes by a heavy rain which started Saturday evening.
Though, there was no reported casualty, many residents at Challenge, Oke-Ayo and Eleyele abandoned their residence to prevent loss of lives as happened last August 26, which sent hundreds of people to their early graves.
As at 4pm, yesterday, the rain still continued and even prevented some Christians from going to churches in the morning.
As a result of the continuous rainfall, some bridges and culverts caved in.
Areas worst hit included Apete and a link road that leads to Army Barracks and Sabo.
Other places affected are Odo-Ona/Apata and Oluyole Estate in Oluyole and Ibadan South-West local government areas where two bridges caved in.
A Mercedes Benz car fell into the stream at Mokola area when the bridge gave way.
Jolted by the effects of the flood, the state government said some structures on waterways had to be demolished.
Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Mr. Bosun Oladele, said there was no casualty as a result of the flooding.
The commissioner said the incident had further exposed some of the structures that should be demolished on the water ways, especially at Orita- Challenge.
Oladele said: “It seems as if we are driving the water, it is finding its way. Some of the structures that were not marked for demolition before were being exposed and the government would have no choice than to continue with the demolition. But, on the whole, we thank God that no casualty was recorded.”
A car carrying explosive devices, yesterday, exploded along Okene-Obehira road just by The Living Faith Church in Okene Local Government Area of Kogi State.
The blast came on the heels of apprehension occasioned by alleged rumour from a pastor in the area of an intending attack on some locations in the state by members of the Boko Haram group.
The Kogi State Police Command spokesman, Mr Ile Simon, who confirmed the explosion in Lokoja, said the suspect was driving in a car and heading towards the church when he was accosted by security men. Ile said that it was while the suspect was still undergoing screening that a “big” explosion occurred.
He said the security men deployed to the church then arrested the suspect before he could escape. He added that no report of death was received but some people were being treated for shock and injuries from the stampede that followed the blast.
But another eye witness claimed that the occupants of the said vehicle were apparently waiting for the church service to end before carrying out their attack when they were accosted by the manager of the NNPC filling station where the vehicle was parked to move the car away.
The source added that it was in the process of moving the vehicle from the station that it exploded, though he said there was no casualty aside the occupant of the car
Simon said one person had been arrested in connection with the incident and was being interrogated while the security agents were on the trail of another suspect who was said to have escaped.
