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Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, has moved to stop the Speaker of the Niger State House of Assembly, Abdulmalik Sarkin-Daji, from marrying 100 girls.

Addressing journalists in Abuja, the minister said she has also petitioned the Inspector-General of Police over Sarkin-Daji’s plan.

She said a thorough investigation has been launched into the circumstances surrounding the issue slated for May 24.

The Niger lawmaker disclosed last week that he would sponsor the wedding of 100 girls, some of whom were orphaned by banditry, as part of his Maringa constituency project.

He said he had acquired materials for the event scheduled for May 24, and promised to pay dowries for the bridegrooms.

Following the criticisms that greeted the announcement, the speaker clarified that he was only funding the wedding — not forcing the girls into marriage.

However, Kennedy-Ohanenye said the plan is unacceptable, and that the future of the girls should be a priority.

She said the ministry will take responsibility for the girls’ education and vocational training.

“I want to let the honorable Speaker of the House in Niger state know that this is totally unacceptable by the Federal Minister of Women Affairs and by the government,” Kennedy-Ohanenye said.

“Because there is something called the Child’s Right Act and I said it from the onset, that is no more business as usual.

“These children must be considered, their future must be considered, the future of the children to come out of their marriage must be considered.

“So I have gone to court. I have written him a letter and written a petition to the IG of police.

“And I have filed for injunction to stop him from whatever he is planning to do on the 24th, until a thorough investigation is carried out on those girls, find out whether they gave their consent, their ages, find out the people marrying them.

“As the speaker did not think about empowering these women or sending them to school or giving them some kind of training support financially. The Women Affairs have decided to take it up and we are going to educate the children.

“Those that do not want to go to school, we will train them in a skill, empower them with sustainable empowerment machines to enable that child build his or her life and make up her mind who and when to get married.

“If for any reason the speaker tries to do contrary to what I have just mentioned, there will be a serious legal battle between him and the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs,” added.

Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) have invaded a State High Court sitting in Ilaro, Ogun State, arresting two defendants.

The defendants , Alhaji Isiaka Fatai and Samuel Oyero, were trial in a suit marked HCP/IC/2023 between the State vs Awode Oladosu & 13 others.

The court was presided over by Justice A.A. Shobayo.

The case bordered on an allegation of arson reported by one Chief Akeem Adigun (aka Socopao) against Alhaji Isiaka Fatai, Oyero and 12 others.

Agosasa community in Ipokia Local Government Area of the state was recently enmeshed in crisis, with property worth billions of naira destroyed and one life lost over an Obaship tussle in the town.

But there was a pandemonium when operatives of DSS stormed the court premises and took away the suspects.

Counsel to Alhaji Isiaka, Kehinde Bamiwola, in a statement , alleged that men of the DSS operatives used weapons on the two, stressing that “Alhaji Isiaka Fatai was beaten, slapped, man-handled, rough-handled and molested.”

The Principal Registrar of the High Court and Sectional Head of High Court, Ilaro, Comrade Omololu Olusanya, who confirmed the incident, described it as shocking and disrespectful to the rule of law.

He noted that even after the judge had ordered the operatives not to make any arrest within the court premises, they still proceeded to arrest the two persons.

“They still went ahead and did the act to the extent that they assaulted one of our staff members, Mrs. Fadina, while doing that act. It’s a very sad issue that caused a lot of noise within the court premises.

“It was from the source that we heard they were DSS agents. If anybody sees them, one would think they were armed robbers.

“They did not wear anything that identified them as DSS, but they came to my lord this morning and said they had some people to arrest. That was when we knew they were DSS officers.

“They approached the judge before the court session began. The honorable judge advised them that if they wanted to make an arrest, it must not be done within the court premises.

“They could stay outside and do whatever they wanted, but they refused that advice and carried out the arrest within the premises.” he said.

Peter Afunanya, DSS spokesman, did not answer calls or reply a text message sent at the time of filing this report.

Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has announced plans to establish a judicial panel of inquiry to investigate the conduct of governance in the state before his assumption of office on May 29, 2023.

The announcement was made during the swearing-in ceremony of Mr Dagogo Israel Iboroma, SAN, as the new Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice of the State at the Government House in Port Harcourt.

While the scope of the investigation was not explicitly defined, Governor Fubara indicated that the inquiry would delve into past governance practices, potentially spanning administrations since 1999.

During his address, Governor Fubara said: “My brother, Dagogo Iboroma, you are going to be the brand new Attorney-General of our dear State. SSG (Secretary to the State Government) give him his letter, he is the Attorney-General.

“Why are we bringing you at this very critical time? We have a lot of issues around us. We believe that you are not going to be the one that when they send service to you, you go and file “nolle prosequi” or you go and file one thing that would kill us here.

“Let me also say this, you have a big task. We will be setting up a judicial panel of inquiry to investigate the affairs of governance. So, brace up, I am not going back on it.

“Please, defend us. We know that you are going to defend us because your record is clean. You are a gentleman and peaceful. You are not a noise maker. People like you are endowed, and they have the fear of God.”

The presidential candidate of Labour Party, LP, in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi, has explained why yesterday, he paid what close associates described as “private visits” to prominent leaders of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Those visited included former vice president and presidential candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar; former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, and former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido

But Obi’s visit to these leaders has raised questions about future plans of Nigeria’s main opposition parties, ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Recall that Atiku first announced Obi’s visit on his X (Twitter) handle. He informed his followers that the former LP standard bearer paid him a visit. Atiku noted that he was always delighted to receive him.

Peter Obi, the former Anambra State governor was Atiku’s running mate on the PDP presidential ticket during the 2019 general elections.

However, they lost to former President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress, APC.

But details of yesterday’s meetings are yet to be made public.

Meanwhile, Vanguard gathered that discussions about the need for the opposition to form a common front, ahead of 2027, featured prominently.

Atiku had, at various fora, harped on the need for the opposition to unite. According to him, it remains the only way to rid the nation of the current hardship imposed by the President Ahmed Tinubu-led All Progressives Congress, APC, administration.

Contacted, Atiku’s Media Adviser, Paul Ibe, said: “The meeting was held behind closed doors. But we haven’t been briefed.”

However, Obi’s media aide, Dr. Yunusa Tanko, explained the visits in a statement. This came barely an hour after Obi’s separate meetings.

He explained that “the state of the nation and the plight of the poor” inspired the visits.

Tanko said: “Mr. Peter Obi has continued to live up to his expressed commitment to the peace and progress of the nation.”

Aso, he added: “His abiding devotion is to the emergence of a Nigeria that works for all its peoples and where the people are quickly pulled out of poverty.

A man has reportedly stormed a Nigerian bank in Dadin Kowa town, Jos South, Plateau State with belts packed with what appeared to be a Person Borne Improvised Explosive Device(SPBIED).

It was gathered that he was apprehended on May 13, 2024, when the suspect was found with an apparent bomb strapped to his body to detonate at the bank.

Intelligence sources told Zagazola Makama, a Counter Insurgency Expert and Security Analyst in the Lake Chad region that the vigilante Security at the bank prevented the attack after they spotted the suspects.

They immediately apprehended him before he could achieve his aim. The suspect was later surrounded by an angry mob who demanded that he should be killed immediately.

It is, however, not clear if the suspect is linked with the Islamic State of the West African Province or Boko Haram. He was taken to the Police station where he was undergoing investigation.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has charged former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, his brother, Abubakar Sirika, and their company, Enginos Nigeria Limited, with over N19.4 billion fraud. This is the second criminal charge filed against the ex-aviation minister.

The charges are related to several aviation ministry contracts awarded by Sirika to Enginos Nigeria Limited, owned by his younger brother, Abubakar. The Sirika brothers and Enginos Nigeria Limited are scheduled to be arraigned before Justice Belgore of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja today.

This development comes after Sirika was last Thursday arraigned for N2.7 billion fraud before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Abuja. He was charged alongside his daughter, Fatimah; brother-in-law, Jalal Hamma, and Al-Buraq Investment Ltd. The defendants pleaded not guilty, and Justice Sylvanus Oriji granted them N100 million bail each, with the condition that they must not travel out of the country until the end of the criminal case.

The EFCC has alleged that Sirika, while being the Minister of Aviation, used his position to confer unfair advantages on Enginos Nigeria Limited, which is owned by his biological brother, Abubakar. The anti-graft agency accused Sirika of violating Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000 and punishable under the same section.

In the fresh charges, the EFCC alleged that Sirika used his position to influence the award of several contracts to his brother’s company, including a N1.345 billion contract for the construction of a terminal building at Katsina Airport, a N3.811 billion contract for the establishment of Fire Truck Maintenance and Refurbishment Centre at Katsina Airport, and a N615 million contract for the procurement and installation of lift and air conditioners and power generators for the Aviation House in Abuja.

Furthermore, the EFCC alleged that Sirika had possession of an aggregate sum of N2.337 billion, which sum he knew indirectly represented the proceeds of criminal conducts of Hadi Abubakar Sirika, who was the Minister of Aviation at the time.

The ex-minister’s younger brother, Abubakar, was earlier arrested and detained by the EFCC in connection with N3.212 billion paid to his company, Enginos Nigerian Limited’s bank account by the former minister.

The EFCC’s actions are part of its ongoing efforts to combat corruption and ensure accountability in public office. The case is set to proceed in court, with the defendants facing serious charges of fraud and abuse of office.

Gunmen abducted an unspecified number of Dangote Cement workers Monday, with several workers shot.

The workers were returning from work Monday evening when they were ambushed by suspected bandits at Okpella in Edo, a town near Okene (Kogi state).

Witnesses said it was unclear how many people were wounded or the severity as of Monday evening.

“Other people are in the bush. My colleague has bullet wounds. A coaster bus filled with staff was attacked at Okpella. Kidnappers,” a witness said. “They kidnapped our whole staff bus. Kidnappers took our staff.”

Michael Odofin, a spokesperson for Okpella Cement Plc, confirmed the attack and abduction.

“I cannot give any details right now. The attack is still fresh. We have no one killed,” said Mr Odofin.

President Bola Tinubu has sworn in two commissioners from Ogun and Osun States as members of the National Population Commission.

The two commissioners,  Hon. Fasuwa Johnson from Ogun State and Hon. Amidu Raheem from Osun State, were sworn in just before the Federal Executive Council meeting commenced in the Council Chamber on Monday.

The short ceremony, which entailed their citations being read and oath of allegiance being administered, was witnessed by the Vice President, Kassim Shettima, the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, cabinet ministers and other government officials.

The development follows a 2-day NPC’s management retreat held in Uyo, the state capital of Akwa Ibom last week.

The NPC is the principal data mining commission of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, responsible for collecting, collating, analysing and publishing data about the Nigerian people and economy.

The organised labour comprising members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) are staging a protest at the headquarters the electricity distribution companies in Jos, Ibadan and Port Harcourt.

The protest is in compliance with organised labour leadership’s directive over the recent hike in electricity tariff. The leadership of NLC and TUC were on ground at the different venues of the protest to ensure compliance.

The union members are joining their colleagues across the country to picket offices of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and the Electricity Distribution companies across the country to demand reversal of the tariff increase.

In Jos, the capital of Plateau State, the workers blocked the Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JED), along Ahmadu Bello Way.

The action by the labour unions prevented workers of the distribution company from gaining access to their offices.

The union members in Ibadan were not also left out in the protest as they blocked the office of the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) in the state capital.

The NLC Chairman in Oyo state, Comrade Kayode Martins, while addressing the press at the premises of IBEDC, said enough is enough as Nigerians have had to cope with the backlash of economic policies of the President Bola Tinubu administration.

He said labour unions would no longer sit idly to watch things deteriorate further.

The unions asked that the Federal Government rescind its decision over electricity tariff hike and other policies that have not served Nigerians well.

Similarly, members of the NLC and TUC have shut down the headquarters of the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.

Chanting solidarity songs, the Labour Union members sealed the PHED premises on Monday morning preventing staff of the Disco from accessing their offices.

Speaking to Channels Television, the NLC Chairman in Rivers State, Alex Agwanwor, said the recent hike is discriminatory and will further impoverish Nigerians.

Though the NERC had reviewed the tariff, the labour unions said they were picketing the agency’s office as well as the premises of distribution companies after a Sunday reversal deadline failed.

The Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress have shut down all Abuja Electricity Distribution Company offices to demand the reversal of the electricity tariff hike.

Leading reporters gathered that the NLC prevented staff members of AEDC who resumed work on Monday from entering their offices.

“Apo office AEDC has been closed by NLC. We were asked to return home when I got to the office around 7:00 am on Monday. Other colleagues in our offices in Abuja were told to do the same”, a staff member of AEDC who preferred anonymity said.

Recall that in a joint notice by NLC Acting Secretary-General Chris Uyot and the TUC Acting Secretary-General, Ankan Hassan, Nigerian workers vowed to ground offices of the 11 Discos Nationwide and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission.

Nigerian workers had called for a reversal of the April 3 electricity tariff for band A customers to N225 per Kilowatt-hour from N68 kwh.

However, NERC ignored the NLC, TUC reversal call, announcing a minor tariff reduction to N206 kwh.

Unsatisfied with the tariff reduction, the organized labour vowed to shut down discos and NERC offices to meet their demand.

The development comes as Nigerians grapple with the ripple effect of soaring headline and food inflation, which stood at 33.20 per cent and 40.01 per cent in March 2024.