The President of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu had a heavy fall earlier today in Abuja while attempting to mount the rostrum in the midst of several aides and security personnel.
Footage of the incident has since gone viral on social media. it can be recalled that the president had just given his independence day speech this morning shortly before the unfortunate occurrence.
The President is hale and hearty.
Watch the video below;
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has replaced Solomon Arase as the Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC).
Ajuri Ngelale, presidential spokesman, who announced this in a statement on Monday, said DIG Hashimu Argungu (Rtd) is the new chairman of the commission.
“President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of DIG Hashimu Argungu (Rtd) as the Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC).
“The President has also approved the appointment of Chief Onyemuche Nnamani as Secretary and DIG Taiwo Lakanu (Rtd) as Member of the Commission.
“The appointments are subject to confirmation by the Senate. Other members of the Police Service Commission will be appointed in due course.
“Furthermore, the President has approved the appointment of Mr. Mohammed Sheidu as the Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Police Trust Fund (NPTF) with immediate effect.
“The President expects absolute demonstration of integrity, diligence, and patriotic zeal in the discharge of these important functions for the overall wellbeing of the Nigeria Police and the nation.”
President Bola Tinubu has approved the naming of the M18 road infrastructure in Guzape District, Abuja after renowned novelist, Chinua Achebe.
The President stated this during his address at the inauguration of the road in Abuja on Saturday, June 8.
This was contained in a post by Special Assistant to President Tinubu on Social Media, Olusegun Dada.
He wrote: “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Commissions the M18 road infrastructure in Guzape District of Abuja. Names road after Nigerian Novelist and Poet, late Professor Chinua Achebe.”
Details shortly…
Following a 48-hour ultimatum issued to him by President Bola Tinubu, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, on Thursday, submitted the projected cost implications of implementing a new national minimum wage.
The submission comes two days after Tinubu issued the directive to present a proposed new minimum wage figure and analysis of the associated costs.
The finance minister’s report is said to outline several potential new minimum wage levels along with the anticipated fiscal impacts on the federal budget of each option.
Recall that the Organised Labour had embarked on a nationwide strike on Monday and Tuesday to demand increased minimum wage for the government workers.
Another of the labour demand was the reversal of the recently increased electricity tarrifs.
The industrial action was suspended for five days by the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) after signing a commitment with the federal government to resume negotiations, and come up with a new minimum wage within a week.
President Bola Tinubu has hinted on plans to relieve underperforming ministers of their duties in the coming weeks.
President Tinubu had asked the ministers to present their scorecard to Nigerians as part of activities to mark his first year in office.
Many Nigerians had said that the president would use that as a yardstick to either retain or relieve these ministers of their positions.
Confirming this position, President Tinubu declared at a meeting with leaders of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) at the villa on Thursday evening that appointees who have performed subpar would be shown the door.
“I thank the cabinet members for their efforts, but I will relieve any of them of their duties anytime I feel that they are failing Nigerians,” Tinubu said.
The president appealed to state governments to prioritize the needs of local communities by ensuring accountability and effectiveness in the administration of local governments.
“I will appeal to you to summon the governors. I am doing my very best to enhance the revenue base of the country. They must equally be sympathetic, and they must urgently consider the needs of the local people.
“People reside in the local communities. That is where they work, farm, and live. If the local governments are not effective in delivering services; as leaders, we must not hang on to the numbers.
“Maybe we should look at recalibrating. What was good four years ago may not be good today. When we want the votes, we go to the locals; when we get the votes, we move to and focus on Abuja,” he said.
Speaking on the significance of education in nation-building, Tinubu described the situation of out-of-school children in parts of Nigeria as unacceptable.
“The question of out-of-school children is unacceptable. Education is a tool against poverty, and that is what brought many of us here. We must use our education to serve the people and improve their conditions. We must develop the backbone of Nigeria’s economy, which is the education system. We will collaborate with you on this intensively.
“We are still building Nigeria, and I am glad that you have emphasized the need for development. The infrastructure decay is unacceptable, and the level of poverty in the north is unacceptable. We must eliminate the source of these trends,” Tinubu said.
On security, President Tinubu said: “Everybody wants to be secure, and we need to invest more in technology. We will do it, I promise you. We will put our heart and soul into ensuring that Nigeria is secure and its citizens are protected.”
He continued: ”As long as we are together, and we have to be together, there is strength in our diversity. Our strength and opportunity are built into our population. I thank the cabinet members for their efforts, but I will relieve any of them of their duties anytime I feel that they are failing Nigerians.”
Leader of the delegation and Chairman, Board of Trustees of ACF, Barrister Bashir Dalhatu, congratulated President Tinubu on his first year in office and expressed the Forum’s appreciation for his achievements and service to the country.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has officially commissioned the Wuye Flyover/Link Bridge in the Wuye District of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The inauguration ceremony took place today on the newly constructed bridge as part of activities marking the president’s first year in office.
The bridge is expected to alleviate the persistent traffic challenges in the Wuye and Berger bridge area.
In his address during the commissioning, President Tinubu emphasized the importance of infrastructure development in driving economic growth and improving the quality of life for Nigerians.
He highlighted his government’s commitment to investing in critical infrastructure projects across the country, aiming to boost economic activities and ensure sustainable development.
The President also commended the efforts of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) and the contractors for the timely completion of the project.
He urged residents to take advantage of the new infrastructure responsibly and maintain it for long-term use.
Watch video below
President Bola Tinubu has approved the extension of free train rides on the Abuja Rail Mass Transit, the Metro Rail, until the end of the year.
Tinubu gave the approval during his address at the inauguration of the commencement of operations of the Abuja metro rail in Abuja on Wednesday, May 29.
Earlier, FCT minister Nyesom Wike announced free train rides for two months to ease the burden of commuting for residents of the capital city.
However, the president appealed for the extension to offer hope to the people of the FCT and give them reasons to celebrate.
“Our dear landlord and his team, I heard you saying two months free ride. I appeal to you to make it till the end of the year.
“Since today you’re not going to charge me, that will give the people hope and reasons to celebrate,” Tinubu said amid cheers from Nigerians who had come to witness the commissioning.
President Bola Tinubu has arrived at the National Assembly Complex as part of his itinerary to commemorate the 25 years of unbroken democracy in Nigeria.
Tinubu’s motorcade arrived at the National Assembly at about 11:57am and he’s yet to enter the chamber.
Shortly after the president’s arrival, the Speaker of the House, Abbas Tajudeen, alongside the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, entered the chamber.
Mr Akpabio announced that the President would not address the chamber but only listen to the Old National Anthem.
He urged the lawmakers to download the new anthem.
However, the President, thereafter, made a brief speech to the lawmakers.
This is coming amid confusion from the Presidency over conflicting statements of Tinubu addressing a joint session of the National Assembly.
On Monday, the National Assembly had announced that it would hold a special joint session on Wednesday to mark the 25th anniversary of democracy in Nigeria.
In a notable departure from tradition, the Presidency disclosed on Tuesday that President Bola Tinubu would not be delivering a nationwide broadcast on Wednesday to commemorate his first year in office as the leader of Nigeria.
Instead, President Tinubu is slated to address a joint session of the National Assembly, marking 25 years of the nation’s democratic voyage at both the executive and legislative echelons.
The revelation came through Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.
According to him, President Tinubu’s forthcoming speech before the combined assembly will centre on the accomplishments of his administration and Nigeria’s democratic trajectory since the military ceded power in 1999.
Onanuga elaborated on the programme lineup, stating, “Former Senate President, Senator David Mark, former Speaker of the House of Representatives, and now President Tinubu’s Chief of Staff, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, are all lined up to address the parliament.
“Also lined up to speak is the former military ruler, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, who handed over power to civilian administration in 1999.”
Furthermore, he announced that following the series of speeches, President Tinubu would officiate the commissioning of the National Assembly Library and Resource Centre, now christened the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Building.
In his inaugural speech on 29 May, 2023, President Bola Tinubu vowed to tackle the lingering insecurity in the country.
“Security shall be the top priority of our administration because neither prosperity nor justice can prevail amidst insecurity and violence,” the new president declared in his inauguration speech at the Eagle Square, Abuja, promising to overhaul the sector.
“To effectively tackle this menace, we shall reform both our security doctrine and its architecture. We shall invest more in our security personnel, and this means more than an increase in number. We shall provide better training, equipment, pay, and firepower,” he added.
It was not the first time Mr Tinubu would make promises of improved security. He had in countless pre and post-election appearances made such assertions.
However, one year after he assumed office as president, almost all parts of the country still suffer one form of insecurity or the other. Although one year may not be enough to judge the success or otherwise of an administration, there has been no significant improvement in the security sector from where Mr Tinubu’s predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, left it.
Indeed, the menace continued unabated, resulting in more than 4,556 fatalities and 7,086 abductions between 29 May 2023 and 22 May 2024, according to data gathered from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), a global data hub that collects real-time conflict-related data.
Two months after his inaugural pledge to improve national security, Mr Tinubu expressed satisfaction with the performance of the service chiefs he had just appointed barely a month earlier.
“We have seen that we are recording positive results in our security challenges because of your dedication, commitment and steadfastness,” he told the Chief of Defence Staff, Christopher Musa, and three other service chiefs at their decoration ceremony in Abuja.
But killings and abductions keep making headlines.
An analysis of the ACLED data by PREMIUM TIMES shows that the six geo-political zones, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, experienced several violent incidents within the period under review.
Banditry-thorn North-west leads other regions with 1,475 deaths and 4,343 abductions.
The trio of Kaduna, Katsina and Zamfara states prominently featured as violence hotspots, accounting for 551 out of 718 incidents recorded in the region.
In the North-central, 552 incidents of banditry, farmers-herders conflict and cultism claimed at least 1,444 lives, including military and local security forces.
In addition, about 1,321 abductions were recorded in the region.
Insurgency, banditry and other forms of violence in the North-east also resulted in at least 819 deaths and 688 abductions. These were recorded from 408 violent incidents in the region.
A similar pattern of violence, including separatist agitations and extrajudicial killings, claimed about 310 lives in the South-east where 214 others were kidnapped.
Mr Tinubu had barely spent three months in office when his administration was quaked with the killings of 36 military personnel responding to terror threats in some communities in Niger State on 14 August.
That same day, the terror group led by notorious Dogo Gide also shot down a military aircraft on a rescue mission, although the Nigerian Air Force said it was an accident.
Three months later, Nigerians woke to shocking news from Bokkos and Mangu local government areas of Plateau State where over 100 locals were killed on Christmas eve. Violence continued in the area for a while with a series of attacks and reprisals.
In March this year, armed terrorists abducted 137 students from elementary schools in Kuriga, Chikun LGA, Kaduna State. The students were set free two weeks later, after an undisclosed amount of ransom was paid.
That same month, 15 military operatives consisting of two majors, one captain, and 12 soldiers of the 181 Amphibious Battalion, Nigerian Army, were killed by raging youth in Okuama village, Ughelli South LGA of Delta State.
