Protesters, on Wednesday, morning broke down the first gate of the National Assembly complex and forced their way into the premises.
The protesters marched from the Unity Fountain to the NASS Complex to demand the reversal of the pump price of petrol, amongst other demands.
Details Later
On their tenth day at sea, the four Nigerian stowaways crossing the Atlantic in a tiny space above the rudder of a cargo ship ran out of food and drink.
They survived another four days, according to their account, by drinking the sea water crashing just meters below them, before being rescued by Brazilian federal police in the southeastern port of Vitoria.
Their remarkable, death-defying journey across some 5,600 kilometers (3,500 miles) of ocean underlines the risks some migrants are prepared to take for a shot at a better life.
“It was a terrible experience for me,” said 38-year-old Thankgod Opemipo Matthew Yeye, one of the four Nigerians, in an interview at a Sao Paulo church shelter. “On board it is not easy. I was shaking, so scared. But I’m here.”
Their relief at being rescued soon gave way to surprise.
The four men said they had hoped to reach Europe and were shocked to learn they had in fact landed on the other side of the Atlantic, in Brazil. Two of the men have since been returned to Nigeria upon their request, while Yeye and Roman Ebimene Friday, a 35-year-old from Bayelsa state, have applied for asylum in Brazil.
“I pray the government of Brazil will have pity on me,” said Friday, who had already attempted to flee Nigeria by ship once before but was arrested by authorities there.
Both men said economic hardship, political instability and crime had left them with little option but to abandon their native Nigeria. Africa’s most populous country has longstanding issues of violence and poverty, and kidnappings are endemic.
Yeye, a pentecostal minister from Lagos state, said his peanut and palm oil farm was destroyed by floods this year, leaving him and his family homeless. He hopes they can now join him in Brazil.
Friday said his journey to Brazil began on June 27, when a fisherman friend rowed him up to the stern of the Liberian-flagged Ken Wave, docked in Lagos, and left him by the rudder. To his surprise, he found three men already there, waiting for the ship to depart. Friday said he was terrified. He had never met his new shipmates and feared they could toss him into the sea at any moment.
Once the ship was moving, Friday said the four men made every effort not to be discovered by the ship’s crew, who they also worried might offer them a watery grave.
“Maybe if they catch you they will throw you in the water,” he said. “So we taught ourselves never to make a noise.”
Spending two weeks within spitting distance of the Atlantic Ocean was perilous.
To prevent themselves from falling into the water, Friday said the men rigged up a net around the rudder and tied themselves to it with a rope. When he looked down, he said he could see “big fish like whales and sharks.” Due to the cramped conditions and the noise of the engine, sleep was rare and risky. “I was very happy when we got rescued,” he said.
Father Paolo Parise, a priest at the Sao Paulo shelter, said he had come across other cases of stowaways, but never one so dangerous. Their journey paid testament to lengths people will go in search of a new start, he said. “People do unimaginable and deeply dangerous things.” New Credit: Reuters
Nigeria’s labour unions have commenced nationwide protests.
President of Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Joe Ajaero, disclosed this on Wednesday in an interview with Channels Television at Unity Fountain, Abuja, where workers gathered to hit the streets.
He said there are some hindrances in the commencement of the protest in some states.
“Protests have taken off in all states bearing some hindrances in some places. We are aware of the Police efforts to stop the process in some areas.
“To be candid with you, nothing is stopping the protest. Based on responses from state governments, it is equally our determination whether the protest will be for today, tomorrow or next, not by using force to stop the people from expressing their views. We are here for the protest, to make a statement to Nigerians”, he stated.
LEADING REPORTERS recalls that workers announced a nationwide protest on August 2 to demand a reversal of fuel price increments and other policies by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government.
As of the time of filing this report, workers had gathered for protests at Unity Fountain Abuja, Ogun and Kano states.
By the Nigerian Civil Service regulation, section 6 (b) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act states that except where a civil servant is not employed on a full-time basis, he shall not engage or participate in the management or running of any private business, profession or trade; but nothing in this paragraph shall prevent a public officer from engaging in farming or participating in the management or running of any farm. But in sharp violation of this act, it has been discovered that a civil servant, Dr. Francisca Egube, of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital secured a total of 13 contracts from various government departments.
The contracts, worth N623,715,561.23, were awarded to Quevedo International Limited, a private organization owned and run by Egube, a doctor at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital. According to public procurement records obtained by Our reporters, Egube managed to secure these contracts by allegedly bypassing established procedures and manipulating the system. The contracts cover various projects, including medical equipment, renovation of schools, construction projects, and transportation-related services.
The first contract listed in the documents is titled “Provision of Lane Markings across the State LOT5” and was awarded by the Ministry of Transport. With a cost of ₦160,058,701.36, the project was assigned to Quevedo International Limited, the same company that secured the subsequent contracts investigated. The Ministry of Health also awarded multiple contracts to Quevedo International Limited for supplying and installing medical equipment in various hospitals across Lagos State.
These contracts include procuring hemodialysis equipment, oxygen concentrators, endoscopy machines, monophasic defibrillators, phototherapy machines, and radiology equipment, with a combined value of over ₦46 million. Furthermore, the State Universal Education Board entrusted Quevedo International Limited, once again facilitated by Egube, with a contract for the construction of a fence, gate, and gatehouse at Community Primary School in Ikotun, Alimosho LGEA, amounting to ₦15,826,121.15. Another contract involved the emergency renovation of Ewuntuntun Junior Grammar School in Mafoluku, Oshodi, costing ₦31,613,510.30
Additionally, two contracts for the renovation of Apapa Senior High School and Araromi Junior Secondary School Apapa were awarded by the Special Committee on Rehabilitation of Public Schools, with a total worth of ₦99,896,137.86. The Office of Drainage Services & Water Resources assigned Quevedo International Limited to construct outfall channels along Ijede Road, amounting to ₦209,121,090.56.
While it is not uncommon for private organizations to win government contracts, the involvement of a civil servant in securing multiple contracts for the same company raises serious questions about the integrity of the procurement process. Civil service regulations are designed to ensure transparency, fairness, and competition in government contracts, and prevent conflicts of interest.
There is heavy security presence at the Unity Fountain, Abuja as the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) is about to commence its planned protest over some recently implemented policies by the Federal Government.
The protest which was slated to commence by 7am on Wednesday, 2nd August 2023, is about to commence at 8:17am.
Members of the NLC are present in large numbers with flags, placards and loudspeakers ready to commence the protest.
The group has since announced this protest, and after warnings and attempts by the FG to dissuade them, the protest is about to begin.
LEADING REPORTERS had earlier reported that the NLC could not resolve with the FG at the last scheduled meeting held on Friday 28 July 2023.
T
he meeting which ended in a deadlock had the leadership of the NLC, Joe Ajaero revealing that the FG wasn’t ready for a dialogue.
Nigerians have begun a “warm up” protest in Kano State over the hike of petrol price from N195 to N617, naira devaluation, school fees increment and other anti-poor policies of the President Bola Tinubu-led Nigerian government.
Leading Reporters learnt that on Monday that JAF alongside the Alliance for Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond (ASCAB) and Coalition for Revolution (CORE) declared their total support for the August 2 Nigeria Labour Congress nationwide action.
The civic organisations in a joint declaration, signed by Femi Falana (ASCAB), Baba Ayelabola (CORE), and Achike Chude (JAF) after a meeting on Sunday, which was made available to SaharaReporters on Monday, had said they would join in the protest until victory was achieved.
Titled: “August 2nd, 2023 as the beginning of nationwide resistance against fuel price hike and anti-poor policies is sacrosanct,” the civic organisations had said that the minimum aim of the forthcoming struggle is the reversal of the “criminal hike of petrol from N617 to N195, reversal of other criminal policies like fee hike in public tertiary institutions, devaluation of the naira” which they noted had made life unbearable on Nigerian masses.
“We support the decision of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to call Nigerian workers and poor masses out on protest starting from Wednesday, August 2, 2023, against the wicked and neoliberal policies of the President Tinubu government, including, the severe hike in the price of petrol and devaluation of the naira.”
The organisations tasked the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) with unity in their engagement with the Federal Government and encourage them to jointly mobilise for mass action.
The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has reserved judgement in the petition filed by Labour Party (LP)‘s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, against the February 25 election victory of President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The five-man panel led by Justice Haruna Tsammani, reserved judgement to a date to be communicated to the parties.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Tinubu winner of the election but Obi rejected the outcome and headed for the tribunal.
In their final written address dated July 20, Obi and Datti Baba Ahmed, his running mate, said Tinubu was not qualified to contest the election.
Obi and his running mate were in court accompanied by renowned Novelist and scholar, Chimamanda Adichie.
The acting Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, on Tuesday warned the labour leaders that the force would not in any way tolerate violent protest during their demonstration billed to hold on Wednesday.
Lat week the organised labour had declared that it would embark on a nationwide strike and protest to press home their demands against reversal of recent fuel price hike as well as other policies described as anti-masses.
But the police chief expressed concerns about recent developments regarding planned nationwide protest being organised by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC).
Speaking to journalists at Force Headquarters, the spokesman of the Nigerian Police, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, noted that while being mindful of the right to peaceful protest, as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution, the IGP urged all parties involved to ensure that the planned demonstrations were conducted in a peaceful manner.
Adejobi, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, said the labour leaders should ensure that they prevent the demonstration from being hijacked by miscreants, sequel to the previous ugly experiences of such protests in most major cosmopolitan cities in the country.
According to him, the IGP acknowledged the grievances raised by the labour unions and the importance of constructive dialogue, which he considers very vital in addressing these issues.
The IGP, however, ordered the Commissioners of Police in charge of various commands and supervisory Assistant Inspectors-General of Police, to engage in fruitful discussions with the NLC/TUC leadership to foster understanding and reach common grounds on the planned protest.
“A peaceful and coordinated approach is crucial to achieving meaningful solutions and preventing any form of violence or disruptions to public order, should the protests persist.
“The Nigeria Police Force reiterated its commitment to ensuring the safety and security of all citizens during the period of the planned protests as all necessary measures to facilitate the peaceful conduct of these demonstrations have been emplaced.
“However, it is hereby reaffirmed that any attempt by miscreants to exploit the situation for violent purposes viz-a-viz vandalism, gangsterism, and extortion will be met with firm, professional and commensurate lawful approach.
“The Police will not tolerate any act that threatens the peace and well-being of our country.
“In light of the potential challenges posed by the planned protests, the Nigeria Police Force is fully prepared to deploy all available resources to maintain law and order and to protect the lives and property of our citizens.
“The IGP therefore calls on all officers to be vigilant, professional, and uphold the highest standards of conduct during this period,” he said.
The Organised Labour gave an indication on Tuesday that it may reconsider its planned nationwide protest scheduled to commence on Wednesday.
Secretary of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) Emma Ugbaja gave the indication at the end of the Presidential Steering Committee on Palliatives meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He argued that though the measures announced Monday evening by President Bola Tinubu were welcoming, they were not far-reaching enough.
He however said the Labour team would go back to the bodies they represent to consort to achieve consensus on the next line of action.
Details Shortly
A chopper has crashed in the Oba Akran area in Ikeja, Lagos State, Leading Reporters has learnt.
The Spokesman for the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB), Tunji Oketunbi, confirmed the development to our correspondent on Tuesday afternoon.
Also, an official of the The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) told our correspondent that the incident occurred on Tuesday afternoon.
More to follow…
