Hemp merchants arrested in Lagos (Punch)
Operatives of the Lagos State Police Command have arrested two men – Tajudeen Atanda, 60; and Rasheed Kehinde, 31; – for alleged possession of seven bags of hemp in the Lekki area of the state. The operatives were said to be on a patrol around 12am on Sunday, September 16, 2018, when they intercepted the suspects in a Golf, with number plate, KJA 377 EY. In a statement on Tuesday, the state Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Chike Oti, said the police after searching the car recovered the banned substances and arrested the suspects. Read more
Ajimobi shuts Obasanjo farms, others in Ibadan (DailyTrust)
The Oyo State government Tuesday shut down the business premises of Obasanjo Farms located at Oluyole Industrial Estate, Ibadan. Other affected firms were the University Press, Lack Horse, Heinemann Educational Books, Lister Flour Mills, Evans Brother, Brooking House, Group Medical Hospital, Butterfield Bakery, Chicken Republic, MRS Oil and Rasmed Publicity. Read more
Lagos State tops voice, internet subscription list in second quarter of 2018 (Vanguard)
Lagos State has emerged the state with the highest number of subscribers of active voice per state in the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics report for the second quarter of 2018. According to the report, Lagos State has a total number of 14, 322, 982 of Global System for Mobile Communications, GSM, and others of subscribers of active voice and it is closely followed by Ogun and Kano states with 6, 563, 625 and 4, 945, 645 respectively while Bayelsa and Ebonyi states have the least number of subscribers with 743, 643 and 842, 099 respectively. Read more
National Assembly rejigs electoral bill, reaffirms card reader (Guardian)
The National Assembly has amended the 2010 Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill. President Buhari, while refusing assent to the third version of the document, had listed about 14 contentious areas he wanted the lawmakers to address. His observations were noted yesterday in the fourth version of the bill adopted by the joint committee of the National Assembly on Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Read more
I want to be president of a united and indivisible country called Nigeria – David Mark (Vanguard)
Sen. David Mark, presidential aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has promised to turn around the economy of the country within two years if elected president of Nigeria in the 2019 general elections. on a campaign visit to solicit votes of the state delegates to the presidential primaries in October. Read more
Disease outbreak looms as floods spread (Guardian)
Scientists have predicted an increase in cases of water and mosquito-borne diseases. The forecast followed flooding in several communities across the country and the consequent contamination of water sources. With the likelihood of more rains, amid a cholera outbreak that has already claimed 517 lives, they expressed concern that things could get worse. The Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) had issued warnings of flooding, which may affect 13 states, especially around the Rivers Niger and Benue. Read more
Dariye submits APC nomination form from prison (DailyTrust)
Sen. Joshua Dariye, who is currently serving a 14-year jail term over financial misdeeds while serving as Plateau governor, has submitted an APC nomination form to contest next year’s election. Mr. Chindo Dafat, the APC Publicity Secretary in Plateau State confirmed the development. Read more
I’ll not appear before EFCC on Thursday as Governor – Fayose (PMNews)
Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose has vowed not to appear before the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Thursday while he is still the governor of a state. Fayose, in a letter written to EFCC, said he acknowledged the receipt of the commission’s letter dated 13th September 2018 requesting him to appear on the 20th September. Fayose said the EFCC was acting contrary to Section 308 of the Constitution which conferred on him immunity by acting him to appear. Read more
Osun poll: FG pays constables N50,000 each for election duty, others more (Punch)
The Federal Government has paid each of the constables deployed for the Osun State governorship election a sum of N50,000 as special duty allowance. A total of 18,426 police personnel have been deployed in Osun State for the governorship election coming up on Saturday, September 22. Our correspondents gathered that the police had paid the money into the salary accounts of each officer participating in the exercise. Read more
Toyota launches Y20 to mark 20 years of Yaris (Punch)
Toyota’s subcompact car, the Yaris, is 20 years old and its manufacturer is not only literally rolling out the drum to celebrate one of the European best-selling hatchbacks, it has also launched a special edition of the model. It is called the Y20. According to a report by automotiveworld.com, the revised Yaris range, revealed for the first time at the Paris Motor Show, will offer a new multimedia system that enables smartphone integration. Read more
Philippines typhoon toll hits 81, expected to rise (Guardian)
The death toll in the Philippines from Typhoon Mangkhut has climbed to 81 and could hit triple digits as searchers dig through a landslide where dozens are presumed dead, authorities said Wednesday. Mangkhut swamped farm fields in the nation’s agricultural north and smashed houses when it tore through at the weekend with violent winds and heavy rains. Since then the toll has climbed mostly due to the corpses recovered from the massive landslide in the mining town of Itogon where dozens are still believed buried under the mud. Read more
FG sells 12.4bn shares in NSPMC to CBN, BPE (Sun)
The Federal Government yesterday sold 21 percent of its stake in the Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPMC), amounting to 12.4 billion shares to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE). The formal signing of the instrument for the transfer of the shares was witnessed by the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, at the Presidential Villa. Osinbajo, who is the Chairman of the National Council on Privatisation (NCP), said the instrument, which was signed by the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, and the Director General of BPE, Alex Okoh, was all about divesting 21 per cent public interest in NSPMC to bring synergies that could come from public and private sector coming together, especially in complex projects that require cutting-edge technology. Read more
Katsina bubbles as delegates arrive for NFF elections (Guardian)
Members of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Congress and candidates for tomorrow’s elections into the executive committee of the federation are expected in Katsina today ahead of Thursday’s polls for a new leadership of the body. Incumbent NFF President, Amaju Melvin Pinnick is seeking a second term in office, but his position is being challenged by the federation’s former President, Aminu Maigari, its former Secretary General, Taiwo Ogunjobi and club proprietor, Chinedu Okoye. Read more