2003 elections: I regret not winning Lagos for PDP, says Atiku (Punch)
Former Vice-President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, on Monday said he regretted not doing much to help the People’s Democratic Party win in Lagos State when he had the opportunity in 2003. Abubakar, a PDP presidential aspirant, spoke in Lagos while holding a meeting with members of the party in the state. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the meeting was part of his nationwide tour of state chapters, to seek support for his aspiration ahead of 2019 general elections. Read more
Lagos completes Pedestrian Bridge on Lagos-Ibadan expressway (Punch)
The Pedestrian Bridge that was recently begun by the Lagos State government across the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway to Olowopopo Road has been completed. According to the State Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Mr Adebowale Akinsanya, it was in line with the vision to protect lives and improve the aesthetics of the environment. Read more
Lagos trains artisans for better performance (Punch)
The Lagos State Government has said over 1,500 tradesmen and artisans in 23 different trades and vocations stand a better chance above their peers after completing eight-week intensive training and re-skilling programme organised by the state. The Commissioner for Wealth Creation and Employment, Mrs Uzamat Akinbile-Yusuf, stated this during a visit to one of the re-skilling centres in Ikeja, adding that the participants had been exposed to modern tools in their various vocations and trades. Read more
2019: David Mark joins presidential race (SUN)
Barring any last minute change of plan, immediate past Senate President and the longest serving senator in Nigeria’s contemporary political history, David Mark, will formally declare his intention to run for president, today. He will run on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). The party has already scheduled its presidential primary poll for early next month. Read more
Blame yourself, not media for killings, HURIWA tells Buhari (Guardian)
A Non-Governmental organisation, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), has told President Muhammadu Buhari to blame himself and not the media for the killings in parts of the federation. It said the “prevarication and policy ambivalence of President Buhari” on the deadly attacks by armed herdsmen on famers accounted for the spike in the violence that gripped the land and not the “professional job of reporting the killings by the media.” Read more
Tambuwal: I Won’t Quit PDP If I Fail to Get Presidential Ticket (ThisDay)
Sokoto State Governor and presidential aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, has said he hoped to emerge the party’s standard-bearer in the coming election. He, however, added that he would not quit the party if he failed to get the presidential ticket. Read more
Obasanjo queried me for backing restructuring — Atiku
Atiku, who is frontline presidential aspirant ahead of 2019 elections, said that the query was the punishment he suffered for supporting restructuring of the country. He said this when Pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, led by Chief Ayo Adebanjo, hosted him in Lagos. Read more
Buhari’s supporters storm APC headquarters, demand direct primaries (Thisday)
A group claiming to be supporters of President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osibanjo, yesterday held a protest at the national secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abuja, expressing their support for the adoption of direct mode of primaries for the 2019 elections. The group, which stormed the party premises at about 1 p.m. mounted pressure on the security men at the entrance gate before gaining entry into the place. Read more
Breaking: Ekweremadu declares to re-contest for fifth time (Vanguard)
The senator representing Enugu west constituency, Dr Ike Ekweremadu has on Tuesday declared his intension to represent his constituency for the fifth time in the senate. Breaking: Ekweremadu declares to re-contest for fifth time Ekweremadu who disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday morning, averred that he was persuaded by his people to return to the senate. Read more
APC NWC meets over primary elections (ThisDay)
As part of the preparations for the 2019 general elections, the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) met yesterday to prepare the guidelines and timetable for the party’s primary elections. Also in a bid to stem further agitations over the method of the primary election and the proposed amount for nomination forms, the National Working Committee (NWC) is reviewing the issues and is expected to give its verdict today (Tuesday). Read more
Kwara: A month to governorship primaries, Saraki keeps PDP on edge (Vanguard)
Less than three weeks to when it is expected to produce its governorship candidate, mystery has continued to dog the contest for the ticket in the Kwara State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. The return of Senate President Bukola Saraki to the party has mystified the process with none of the known aspirants putting forward even a poster indicative of interest in the contest. Read more
Cameroonian rights activist ‘missing’ for weeks: family (Guardian)
A prominent Cameroonian rights activist has been missing for nearly a month after heading to the restive anglophone region on a fact-finding mission, his partner said Monday. Franklin Mowha, the head of the Frontline Fighters for Citizen’s Interest, disappeared after leaving the commercial capital Douala on August 6 for Kumba, a town in the English-speaking South-West Region, Stephanie Flore Ngiedie Nkamgue told AFP. Read more
Boko Haram in trouble as donors pledge $2.52b to fight sect (PMNews)
The international donor conference on Boko Haram holding in Berlin on Monday pledged $2.52 billion to help countries in the Lake Chad Basin to fight Boko Haram. The German foreign ministry said the aid would be disbursed “in the coming years” to Nigeria, Chad, Niger and Cameroon, where the jihadist group launches frequent suicide bomb attacks from its bases in Lake Chad. Read more
NCC, NDA to deploy technology for military capacity building (Guardian)
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the Nigeria Defence Academy (NDA) have agreed to collaborate on boosting the defence institution with high-profile technology. This follows the realisation that modern day military intelligence and battles could be prosecuted through technology, rather than just weapons. Read more
Kofi Annan and his likes in Nigeria (Guardian)
Of all the books written by or on Kofi Atta Annan (1938-2018) none is more controversial than the 442 page book, The Best Intentions by Mr. James Traub, a New York Times magazine journalist, who enjoyed unprecedented access to Mr. Annan and his top aides for three years from 2003-2007. In the book, Mr. Traub described the Oil-for-Food scandal, the deep divide between those who wished to accommodate American critics and those who wishes to confront them, and the failed attempt to act decisively against ethnic cleansing in Sudan. And he accounts Annan’s attempt to respond to criticism of the UN with sweeping reform. Read more
MainOne, Minkels announce expansion of W/Africa’s largest Tier III+ Data centre company (Vanguard)
Leading connectivity and data centre solutions provider, MainOne, and data centre supplier Minkels have announced the completion of the second phase of upgrade to West Africa’s largest Tier III+ Data centre company (MDXi). The recent upgrade further enhances the capacity of Mainone to deliver on its promise of quality services. MainOne plans to expand its data centre business, MDXi, into new territories across West Africa with a target to build new facilities in 3 new locations including Sagamu, Nigeria; Accra, Ghana and Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire in addition to an ongoing expansion of its Lekki Data Centre in Lagos, Nigeria. Read more
2019 Lagos City Marathon holds February (Punch)
The fourth edition of the Access Bank Lagos City Marathon has been fixed for February 2, 2019. In a statement signed by Olukayode Thomas, Head Communications and Media, Yussuf Alli, the General Manager for the Lagos Marathon explained that the new date was chosen to align with the new international calendar for global races. Read more