Phillip Shaibu, the immediate past Deputy Governor of Edo State, has said he has been vindicated by the Federal High Court judgment which invalidated the governorship primary election of Edo State.

In a reaction on Thursday to the judgment delivered by Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo, Shuaib claimed that what PDP tagged as a primary election on February 22, 2024, was nothing but a tea party with no force of law.

He said he had consistently and persistently cried out loud and clear that the PDP killed internal democracy with the fraudulent ways its purported primary election was conducted at the Samuel Ogbemudia stadium in Benin.

The former Deputy Governor maintained that those who voted for him at his parallel primary election were the authentic delegates lawfully chosen by the people to nominate the governorship candidate for PDP.

On the move by the All Progressives Congress, APC, for him to defect to the party, Shaibu claimed that there was nothing wrong as long as democracy remains a game for the vast majority of people.

“When you see a political party wooing people to its group, that party wants to win but when you see a party chasing people away as in the case of the PDP, that party is planning nothing but rigging of election.

Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo had in his judgment invalidated the February 22 PDP primary election on the ground that 378 delegates who were supposed to vote in the election were unlawfully excluded.

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A former Super Eagles coach, Sunday Oliseh, has said that the ex-goalkeeper Joseph Dosu ‘housed’ John Obi Mikel before he became famous.

Dosu was the only home based player to be included in Nigeria’s 1996 Olympic team, which won gold at the tournament.

However, his career was short-lived as a result of an automobile accident.

In a recent interview with Elegbete TV Sports, Oliseh said Dosu was one of the people who helped Mikel to attain glorious status.

He said: “Before Obi Mikel made it in football, Dosu Joseph housed Obi Mikel and fed him. I bet you all didn’t know this. He helped Obi Mikel become what he is today.

“In spite of all the help he gave Obi Mikel, please let’s ask ourselves: has Obi Mikel ever once gone to say hello to Dosu? And with all the millions you’ve made, help the guy (Dosu).”

Responding to the ex-Chelsea midfielder’s recent criticism of his coaching ability, Oliseh said “I think the kid needs help”.

Mikel had criticized Oliseh’s coaching ability on his podcast, calling him “the worst manager I played under.”

“He was bitter, jealous, and disrespectful to everyone, including the physio”, he added.

Speaking during the interview, Oliseh, who spent eight months as Super Eagles coach, after being appointed in 2015, said: “I think the kid needs help. You cannot achieve what you were not able to achieve on the pitch outside the pitch by talking on a podcast”.

While defending his coaching abilities, he mentioned his award for best coach in the Jupiler Pro League, voted by players and coaches.

He said: “I think the kid(Mikel) needs help, to be honest. There’s something I’ve not really shown much, I won the best coach for the first period of the Jupiler league, which is in the Dutch league.

“That was not voted by the press, that was voted by the players and the coaches of the league.

“I’m the only, and the first coloured man from Sub-Saharan Africa to ever win this title with a club like Fortuna Sittard, who had very average players who were able to qualify from the second division from last position to the first division, where they still are now.”

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has threatened to penalise deposit money banks (DMBs) that reject mutilated naira notes.

In a statement on Thursday signed by Solaja Olayemi, CBN’s acting director of currency operations department, the apex bank said several reports have been made against the banks.

“The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has received several reports of rejection of dirty/mutilated Naira banknotes by some Deposit Money Banks (DMBs),” the bank said.

“Consequently, it has become imperative to remind DMBs that the CBN circular dated July 2, 2019, reference number COD/DIR/GEN/CIR/01/006, which prescribes penalties for the rejection of Naira banknotes, is still enforceable and binding on erring DMBs.”

The apex bank said it will not hesitate to impose strict sanctions on banks reported to have rejected naira deposits from the public, under any guise.

Also, on July 2, CBN warned banks and authorised foreign exchange dealers against rejecting old series and lower denominations of dollars.

The apex bank said all relevant parties must adhere to and comply with the instruction, emphasising its disapproval of selective acceptance of deposits.

CBN said it discovered old series and lower denominations of dollars are still being rejected during a consumer market survey.

The senate has constituted an ad hoc committee to investigate the “importation of hazardous petroleum products and dumping of substandard diesel into the country”.

During plenary on Wednesday, the upper chamber also appointed Opeyemi Bamidele, majority leader of the senate, to lead other 14 lawmakers to unravel the masterminds behind the illicit practice and transaction.

Members of the ad hoc committee comprise lawmakers Adams Oshiomhole, Abdul Ningi, Osita Izunazo, Ifeanyi Uba, Diket Plang, Mohammed Monguno, Abdullah Yahaha, Olamilekan Solomon, Khabeeb Mustapha, Shahabi Ya’u, and Tokunbo Abiru.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio set up the ad hoc committee at the plenary after Asuquo Ekpenyong, a lawmaker, moved a motion on the urgent need to probe the issue.

Ekpeyong cited a report on June 16 as stating that 12 diesel cargoes conveying a total of 660 kilotons of diesel, were exported by refineries to offshore Lome, Togo for “further distribution to West African markets, mainly Nigeria”.

He said the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), despite revising diesel importation standards in line with the Petroleum Industry Act, has been “unable to enforce compliance”.

The politician said a ban on the importation of diesel would be beneficial to the Nigerian petroleum industry and indeed the entire nation and as such, “NMDPRA should cease import licenses in order to address all concerns”.

Consequently, Akpabio highlighted the need for the senate to immediately investigate and unravel those behind the hazardous practice.

On June 23, Devakumar Edwin, vice-president, oil and gas at Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), lamented the activities of the NMDPRA in granting licences indiscriminately to marketers to “import dirty refined products into the country”.

Kenneth Okonkwo, a chieftain of the Labour Party (LP), says Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), is in prolonged detention because of ethnic bias.

Okonkwo spoke on Wednesday when he was featured on NewsDay, a programme of Arise TV.

The IPOB leader has been in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) since he was extradited from Kenya in June 2021.

He is currently facing terrorism charges filed against him at the federal high court.

In recent months, there have been calls for Kanu’s release, particularly by stakeholders from the south-east region.

In June, 50 members of the house of representatives asked President Bola Tinubu to order Kanu’s release.

On Tuesday, governors under the umbrella of the South-east Governors’ Forum also resolved to meet with Tinubu to seek the release of the separatist leader.

The south-east region has witnessed an uptick in the activities of gunmen who violently enforce a sit-at-home order on Mondays to demand Kanu’s release.

‘KANU KEPT IN JAIL OVER ETHNIC BIAS’

Okonkwo claimed that Kanu is being held in detention due to “ethnic bias,”  adding that he has not committed worse crimes like other separatists whose cases in court have been dropped.

“Nnamdi Kanu has not done anything that other people from other zones have done,” he said.

“We know about Sunday Igboho of the Yoruba nation agitator. We know of the Boko Haram people who say that they want a different country where Western education is an abomination.

“These people have been released, not just that they have been released; in the case of Boko Haram, they have been reassimilated into society and given plum jobs.

“Why is Nnamdi Kanu’s case different? There is an ethnic and some unnecessary bias that is keeping that man in jail.

“The government should be wise enough to release this man. You can release him conditionally or unconditionally.

“As a lawyer, I have watched the legal issues very clearly, and I saw that even in the courts, from the high court to the supreme court, there are discordant tunes amongst them.

“Even in the issue of bail, some of the tiers of the court have granted him bail. Even in the issue of the charges, some tiers of the court have quashed all the charges.

“So, you can see that the government has a lot of places it can stand to release the young man and bring peace to the south-east.

“He is now more like a political prisoner. The longer Nnamdi Kanu is in prison, the taller he becomes and the shorter the government becomes.”

Okonkwo asked the federal government to “take the intelligent way out” by releasing Kanu as it did to other separatists.

The naira further weakened against the dollar at the foreign market on Wednesday.

FMDQ data showed that the naira slumped to N1512.61 against the dollar on Wednesday from N1509.45 on Tuesday.

This represents a N3.16 loss against the dollar compared to N1509.45 traded on Tuesday. 

Similarly, at the parallel foreign exchange market, the naira depreciated to N1520 per dollar on Wednesday from N1515 the previous day.

The development comes as foreign currency transaction turnover dropped to $114.91 million on Wednesday from $213.31 million on Tuesday, according to FMDQ data.

President Bola Tinubu, on Wednesday, approved the appointment of qualified Nigerians to the Board of the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation CREDICORP.

The appoinment was announced by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale.

According to Ngelale, the appointment was to further expedite the process of expanding consumer credit access to Nigerians.

He disclosed that Otunba Aderemi Abdul, an Independent Non-Executive Director, has been appointed as the board chairman of the nine-member board, while Engr. Uzoma Nwagba is appointed as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer.

Mrs. Aisha Abdullahi is appointed as the Executive Director (Credit, Risk & Portfolio)/CRO, Ms. Olanike Kolawole, Executive Director (Operations)/COO,
Dr. Armstrong Ume Takang, Non-Executive Director (MOFI Nominee), Dr. Peter Iwegbu, Non-Executive Director (NIMC Nominee), Mr. Mohammed Nasiru Abbas, Non-Executive Director (FMITI Nominee), Mr. Marvin Nadah, Non-Executive Director (FCCPC Nominee) and the Federal Ministry of Finance, FMF Representative, Non-Executive Director (FMF).

The statement added, “The President expects the new members of the Board of this pivotal institutional vehicle to bring their vast experience, competence, and dedication to bear in their functions to achieve CREDICORP’s mandate of accelerating access to consumer credit to millions of Nigerians.”

The Federal Government has invited the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) for a crucial meeting.

The meeting is scheduled to be held on Thursday at the office of the Minister of Education, Prof. Mamman Tahir.

Naija News had reported that both SSANU and NASU threatened to shut down universities on Thursday, July 4, over the non-payment of the four months withheld salaries by the government.

The Joint Action Committee (JAC), comprising SSANU and NASU, had a few days ago issued a two-week ultimatum to the Federal Government to pay its members the four months withheld salaries.

Out of the four university-based unions that embarked on a prolonged strike in 2022, the federal government had paid the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), leaving behind the other three unions.

It could be recalled that the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Labour and Employment, then under Chris Ngige as minister, had invoked the ‘No Work, No Pay’ policy, which caught up with the entire unions when they went on a protracted strike.

Despite the presidential directive to release their salaries, SSANU and NASU members have been ignored by those implementing the directive.

Shortly after assuming office as Minister of Education, Professor Mamman reiterated that all affected unions are to benefit from the payment.

However, the latest threat by SSANU and NASU seemed to have hit the right chord as the federal government summoned an emergency meeting scheduled to be held on Thursday by 1 pm on Thursday in a bid to avert the looming strike.

“The Minister of Education has called to meet with SSANU and NASU today, maybe to persuade us not to go on strike. We will honour the invitation. We are also going to meet with the Minister of State for Labour and Employment by 3 pm,” a source in the know reportedly told the Daily Post.

Reports also revealed that JAC was originally set to convene at 10 am on Thursday before proceeding to the other meeting.

The JAC intended to convene on July 4, following the two-week deadline, to assess the government’s reaction to their requests and announce a perpetual strike should the government persist in failing to pay their suspended wages.

Randy Waldrum, Super Falcons head coach, has unveiled 18 players for the women’s football event at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

According to the list released by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) on Wednesday, Asisat Oshoala, Chiamaka Nnadozie, and Rasheedat Ajibade are among the stars that will represent Nigeria at the competition billed for later this month.

Some other big names on the list include Michelle Alozie, Deborah Abiodun, Osinachi Ohale and Halimatu Ayinde.

Ifeoma Onumonu and Gift Monday are named on the alternative players list alongside two home-based players: Morufa Ademola of Rivers Angels and Nasarawa Amazon’s Jumoke Alani.

The team will depart Abuja for Sevilla, Spain, on Thursday for a two-week training camp. The players are scheduled to head to France on July 18.

Falcons will participate in the Olympics for the first time in 16 years.

The team is placed in Group C and will play Brazil on July 25 before facing Spain three days later and Japan in the final game in the group on July 31.

SUPER FALCONS FOR PARIS 2024 OLYMPICS:

Goalkeepers: Chiamaka Nnadozie (Paris FC); Tochukwu Oluehi (Shualat Alsharqia FC, Saudi Arabia)

Defenders: Osinachi Ohale (Pachucha Club de Futbol, Mexico); Oluwatosin Demehin (Stade de Reims, France); Michelle Alozie (Houston Dash, USA); Nicole Payne (Portland Thorns FC, USA); Chidinma Okeke (Mynavi Sendai Ladies, Japan)

Midfielders: Deborah Abiodun (University of Pittsburgh, USA); Halimatu Ayinde (FC Rosengard, Sweden); Christy Ucheibe (SL Benfica, Portugal); Jennifer Echegini (Juventus Ladies, Italy); Toni Payne (Sevilla FC, Spain)