Top Nigerian Newspaper Headlines For Today, Tuesday, 21st May, 2024

Good morning Nigeria. Welcome to the Naijaonpoint roundup of top newspaper headlines in Nigeria for today, Tuesday, 21st May 2024

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has reacted to the tragic demise of his counterpart in Iran, President Ebrahim Raisi.

Naijaonpoint reported earlier that President Raisi was involved in a helicopter crash.

President Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian were both travelling when their helicopter developed a hard landing on Sunday.

The incident reportedly occurred near Jolfa, a city located on the border with Azerbaijan, in Iran’s East Azerbaijan province.

Search and rescue teams had been combing the region since Sunday afternoon when the helicopter carrying the president, foreign minister, and other officials disappeared.

The missing helicopter was subsequently found early Monday by relief workers, and state TV confirmed the unfortunate news of the president’s death.

Reacting to the sad development in a statement issued on Monday morning via his spokesperson, Ajuri Ngelale, President Tinubu conveyed his condolences to the government and citizens of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

President Tinubu expressed deep sorrow over this distressing incident and hailed President Raisi as a dedicated leader who ardently worked towards the progress of Iran.

The Nigerian leader extended his sympathies to the grieving families and offered prayers for the enduring peace, stability, and prosperity of the Iranian nation.

On behalf of the Nigerian government and people, the President assured the country of Nigeria’s unwavering support and prayers during this time of mourning.

The Federal Government has said the first phase of the Student Loan will be officially open for students in federal institutions whose institutions have completed the uploading of their data.

The Managing Director of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Akintunde Sawyerr, said this during a press conference on Monday ahead of the opening of the portal for applications on Friday.

He disclosed that a maximum of 1.2 million students across federal tertiary institutions will access the student loan in the first phase.

While noting that the loan application process has been streamlined to ensure easy access for all eligible students in federal tertiary institutions, he said prospective applicants can begin their application process effective from the 24th of May, 2024.

Sawyerr said the loan is available to all students in government tertiary institutions and it is going to be rolled out in phases, starting with federal institutions before getting to state institutions.

The organized labour on Monday held an emergency National Executive Council (NEC) meeting over the new minimum wage negotiation with the federal government.

At the end of the meeting, which was attended by officials of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), it was insisted that the government must conclude all processes relating to the new minimum wage by the end of May.

The labour leaders, in a communique at the end of their meeting, which was signed by the President of NLC, Joe Ajaero, and his TUC counterpart, Festus Osifo, lamented that the government has not shown commitment to the new minimum wage process.

The unions also directed its state councils to issue a two-week deadline to state governments not paying the N30,000 minimum wage to workers, adding that it couldn’t guarantee industrial peace in those states if they failed to pay workers the ₦30,000 wage.

The NLC and TUC expressed readiness to return to the negotiation table after staging a walkout during last week’s meeting when the government offered ₦48,000 as the new minimum wage.

The labour leaders also condemned the government’s increase in the electricity tariff and called for its immediate reversal.

Former President, Goodluck Jonathan, has implored Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State and his predecessor, the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, to cease escalating political tensions in Rivers.

Naijaonpoint gathered that Jonathan and his entourage landed at Port Harcourt International Airport around 11 am to inaugurate a road construction project, a legacy initiative aimed at connecting the city with several coastal Ijaw communities in the state.

Given the ongoing political crisis, some observers saw the invitation as a strategic move by Fubara and his team to cement their allegiance with fresh allies.

Jonathan, speaking at the inauguration of the N222.1 billion Trans-Kalabari Road construction, emphasized the necessity for Fubara and Wike to collaborate in propelling the progress and prosperity of Rivers State.

He noted that the political tension in the state was excessive but emphasized that the crisis would not contribute to the development of Rivers.

Jonathan asserted that destabilizing Rivers would adversely impact the Niger Delta region and would also generate ripple effects across the country, reiterating that Rivers remained pivotal to Nigeria.

The Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP) has rejected the newly reconstituted governing councils of Federal Government-owned polytechnics and Universities.

Naijaonpoint reported that President Bola Tinubu had last week approved the appointments of 555 persons to serve as Pro-chancellors/Chairmen and members of the Governing Boards of 111 Federal Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of Education.

An advertorial signed by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Didi Esther Walson-Jack, showed the appointment of a chairperson and four members for each institution.

Reacting to the development, the ASUP’s President, Shammah Kpanja, in a statement on Monday, said the union expressed disappointment at the new list of appointees whom it tagged as individuals with ‘no knowledge’ of the polytechnic system.

The union noted that it witnessed the fact that former Executive Secretaries of regulatory bodies were appointed in the other subsectors, but none was curiously found appointable for the Polytechnics.

ASUP, however, demanded that the list of Polytechnics be reviewed before the inauguration to include the class of persons with the requisite knowledge of their workings.

The union noted that reviewing the list will save the sector from a crisis associated with poor governance, which is likely to prevail if the list is not reviewed accordingly.

The 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, has accused the federal government of financial indiscipline.

Obi, in a post via his X account on Monday, submitted that the government is allocating funds to things that should not be considered as priorities while some major aspects of national live remain uncatered for.

The former Anambra State Governor cited examples of N6 billion and N4 billion budgeted for the National Assembly car parks and recreational facilities while the nation’s educational sector begs for attention.

He said it is not acceptable for the global average tertiary school enrollment to be above 55 per cent, while that of Nigeria is less than 15 per cent.

Obi stressed that it was time to stop financial indiscipline and embrace financial discipline by prioritising the allocation of resources to the critical areas of human and national development.

The Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, has expressed his support for President Bola Tinubu’s proposed 300 percent increase in the salaries and allowances of judicial office holders in the country.

Naijaonpoint reports that the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) endorsed the increment on Monday, May 20, so as the National Judicial Council (NJC), Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), and the Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Allocation Commission (RMAFC), among others.

During a one-day public hearing on a Bill titled: “A Bill for an Act to Prescribe the Salaries and Allowances and Fringe Benefit of Judicial Office Holders in Nigeria and Related Matters, 2024,” the AGF, NBA, NJC, RMAFC, and other critical stakeholders shared their views.

Organized by the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights, and Legal Matters chaired by Senator Mohammed Tahir Monguno (APC – Borno North), the public hearing saw Fagbemi emphasizing the importance of improving the remuneration of judicial officers in the country, highlighting the historical challenges in this regard.

The head of the outlawed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has challenged the legality of his trial, asserting it as unjust.

Naijaonpoint earlier reported that the Federal High Court in Abuja rejected the plea made by the embattled leader of the Biafra nation agitators, Nnamdi Kanu, to have his bail reinstated and be released from the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).

The leading judge, Justice Binta Nyako, stated that she had previously dismissed a similar request from Kanu due to its lack of merit.

Speaking on Monday after the bail application hearing at the Federal High Court in Abuja, Kanu insisted that no Nigerian court is empowered to prosecute him.

Kanu cited the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act, asserting that according to Nigerian law, he cannot be tried within the country, deeming any attempt to do so as an act of terrorism, as stipulated in Section 2, Subsection 3F of the Act.

He emphasized that violating international treaties, such as the one preventing his trial, is unlawful, refuting claims of bail violation and highlighting the invasion of his home as justification for his actions.

Nigerian billionaire, Aliko Dangote has stated that it is difficult to travel within Africa as a Nigerian citizen.

Speaking during an interview, Dangote said that he had just complained about the situation to Rwandan President, Paul Kagame.

He lamented that he has to apply for 35 different visas to travel within the continent.

The business magnate contrasted his experience with that of Patrick (the interviewer), who likely wouldn’t require 35 visas on a non-African passport.

While acknowledging the existence of visa-free travel zones like the one encompassing Uganda, Rwanda, and Kenya, Dangote called for wider adoption.

The House of Representatives has sent a stern warning to the Cement Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (CMAN) over the arbitrary increase in the price of cement in the country.

The Chairman, House Joint Committee on the Arbitrary Increase in the Price of Cement, Gaza Gbwefi, who issued the warning in Abuja on Monday, said the persistent absence of the cement manufacturers after being summoned twice by the lawmakers was an affront to the powers of the National Assembly.

He also warned CMAN to desist from using frivolous court injunctions to interfere with the ongoing investigation of the arbitrary increase in the price of cement in the country.

Gaza also submitted that the CEO of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), Ms Boladale Adeyinka is not doing enough to protect consumers and users of cement in line with the laws which established the commission.

Speaking to representatives of the FCCPC chairman, Gaza told the agency to go back and rework and represent the four paged document submitted to the house on the investigations of cement price increase.

That’s the top Nigerian newspaper headlines for today. Read more Nigerian news on Naijaonpoint. See you again tomorrow.