Good morning Nigeria. Welcome to the Naijaonpoint roundup of top newspaper headlines in Nigeria for today, Tuesday, 7th May 2024
The Special Adviser to the President on Information & Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, accused former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of distorting facts to sabotage President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Making the allegations in a statement on Monday in response to Atiku’s recent claims that suggested that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal line project was ceded to a company that had the president’s son, Seyi Tinubu, on the board, Onanuga argued that the claims are unfounded and misleading.
Naijaonpoint reports that the statement highlighted the influx of foreign capital, such as the $20 billion attracted into the Nigerian economy since Tinubu took office, including over $14 billion committed by Indian business leaders during the G20 Summit in New Delhi.
The presidency also refuted claims of conflict of interest involving President Tinubu’s son, Seyi Tinubu, concerning the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.
It clarified that Seyi has been on the board of CDK, a tiles manufacturing company, since 2018, emphasizing that his business dealings were established long before his father’s presidency and were within legal bounds.
The Vice President of Nigeria, Kashim Shettima is unable to attend the US-Africa Summit 2024 due to technical issues with his aircraft.
Naijaonpoint reports Shettima was billed to depart Abuja for Dallas in the United States of America on Sunday night to represent President Bola Tinubu at the 2024 US-Africa Business Summit hosted by the Corporate Council on Africa.
A statement on Sunday by the Senior Special Assistant to the VP on Media and Communications, Stanley Nkwocha, had said Shettima would represent President Tinubu at the business summit.
However, an update on Monday from the presidency disclosed that Shettima could n’t make the trip due to technical issues with his aircart.
In the absence of the Vice President, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, will be representing President Bola Tinubu at the event, while Shettima would continue with other national duties.
Rivers State Governor, Sim Fubara, has slammed members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, saying they do not exist.
Naijaonpoint recalls that Fubara and Wike have been at loggerheads since he assumed office as governor.
The face-off led to some lawmakers defecting from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
To ensure peace, President Bola Tinubu ordered both factions to sign a peace deal in December last year, which included recognizing the aggrieved state lawmakers loyal to Wike.
Addressing a delegation of political and traditional leaders from Bayelsa State who visited him at the Government House in Port Harcourt, the state capital, on Monday to seek an end to the political crisis in Rivers State and an improved relationship between both states, Fubara stated that he accepted Tinubu’s peace accord to give the lawmakers a floating.
According to him, the peace deal with Wike was political and could derecognize his loyalists as lawmakers.
Governor Fubara added that he made many sacrifices to allow peace to reign in the state.
The federal government has announced its decision to remove the Naira from all peer-to-peer (P2P) exchanges.
The Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Emomotimi Agama, stated this during a virtual conference with blockchain stakeholders on Monday.
This is projected to be included in a series of regulations scheduled for rollout in the upcoming days.
This resolution seeks to tackle manipulation of the local currency’s value in the foreign exchange market.
Agama, while addressing stakeholders during the meeting, reassured them of SEC’s commitment to collaboration with all stakeholders, mentioning the commission’s ongoing review of guidelines to promote best practices.
He also expressed concern over market players manipulating the Naira’s value and emphasized the commission’s efforts to ensure global respect for the crypto environment through collaboration.
The SEC DG’s declaration follows a recent directive from the Central Bank of Nigeria to fintechs, instructing them to caution their customers against participating in crypto transactions.
The Bola Tinubu-led Federal Government has said it is not considering any military base in the country.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, made this known in a statement on Monday in Abuja.
He said the government is aware of false alarms being raised in some quarters alleging discussions with some foreign countries on the siting of foreign military bases in the country.
Idris stated that the government has neither received nor considering any proposals from any country on the establishment of any foreign military bases in the country.
The minister, therefore, urged the general public to totally disregard this falsehood.
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has confirmed that it gave approval to the Electricity Distribution Companies (Discos) to implement a reduction in the tariff of customers on Band A.
NERC gave the confirmation in a statement on Monday released via its website.
The Commission added that it granted approval for the reduction in electricity tariff for the affected customers due to the appreciation of the Naira in the foreign exchange market.
As earlier reported by Naijaonpoint, the eleven Discos in the country, cut the tariff for Band A customers from 225/kWh to 206.8/kWh, which represents approximately 8.1% reduction.
The Lagos State House of Assembly has expressed its disapproval of the Inspector-General of Police, Olukayode Egbetokun’s stance against the establishment of state police.
Speaker Mudashiru Obasa directed the Clerk of the House to convey the lawmakers’ rejection of Egbetokun’s position to him and the National Assembly.
Recall that IGP Egbetokun had argued at a recent dialogue on state policing that state police would exacerbate ethnic tension and divided loyalty. He suggested merging the Federal Road Safety Corps and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps with the police force instead.
However, Speaker Obasa countered that merging these agencies would not effectively address issues like road accidents and pipeline vandalism.
He emphasized that Lagos State has consistently supported the police through the Security Trust Fund, yet crime remains a persistent problem.
Obasa asserted that state police would enable more effective crime prevention and solution, citing examples from the UK and the US.
He urged the National Assembly to continue pursuing constitutional amendments to establish state police.
The Rivers State lawmakers have passed the state Public Procurement (Amendment) Bill, 2024, into Law and threatened to take stringent measures against Governor Sim Fubara “if he continues to flout the laws of the state”.
Naijaonpoint reports that this is the third time in three months that the Rivers State House of Assembly has overridden the assent of Fubara.
Recall that in March, the assembly had ruled against Fubara to enact the Rivers State House of Assembly (RSHA) Service Commission Law.
It took the same measure in April by passing the local government amendment bill into law despite Fubara’s refusal to give his assent.
The lawmakers, during the plenary on Monday, said the house acted in accordance with the provisions of Section 100 (5)of the 1999 Constitution and passed the bill into law with a two-thirds majority vote.
The lawmakers passed the Rivers State Public Procurement (Amendment)Bill, 2024, on March 26th, 2024, and transmitted it to the governor for assent, which he declined.
The speaker of the house, Martin Amaewhule, commented on the bill, saying it is to secure taxpayers’ money and ensure that it is not spent on frivolities and twisted contracts.
Amaewhule bemoaned a situation in which due process is relegated to the background, contracts are awarded without legal backing, and the state is governed with “dictatorial panache.”
The speaker added that despite all the misconduct, the house would continue to uphold the laws of the state and the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria.
Amaewhule added that the house would not stand aloof and watch the governor breach laws.
The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has implored the federal government to encourage the tripartite committee on the national minimum wage to conclude its proceedings.
According to NECA, the prolonged delay is leading to agitation and a lack of trust among stakeholders.
In an official statement, the president of NECA, Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, voiced dismay over the tripartite committee’s delay in reconvening.
He stated that the delay had caused friction between organized labor and certain state governors, pointing out that the last meeting of the tripartite committee was a month ago.
Oyerinde pointed out that the proposed N615,000 minimum wage by the National Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) had not persuaded the state governors, leading to agitation.
However, he urged both parties to remain calm and await the final decision from the tripartite committee, which will consider all factors discussed in previous meetings.
The Edo House of Assembly, on Monday, suspended three lawmakers over alleged plot to impeach the Speaker, Blessing Agbebaku, and other principal officers.
The speaker announced the suspension of the three assembly members at the resumption of plenary in the Assembly in Benin, the state capital.
Agbebaku named the three lawmakers as Donald Okogbe (PDP Akoko-Edo II), Bright Iyamu (PDP-Orhionmwon South) and Adeh Isibor (PDP-Esan North East I).
Agbebaku, who said the trio were suspended indefinitely, alleged that they plotted to change the leadership of the house.
He alleged that the three suspended members were being influenced by external forces to cause chaos and remove the leadership of the house.
He also alleged that some persons brought native doctors into the house at midnight on Wednesday, May 1, 2024, to make some demonic incantations and dropped charms in the assembly complex.
The suspension of the lawmakers, however, created tension at the house as the affected members kicked against their suspension.
That’s the top Nigerian newspaper headlines for today. Read more Nigerian news on Naijaonpoint. See you again tomorrow.