Several filling stations have started exploiting Nigerians amid the controversy and attendant public outrage surrounding the hike in petrol price in the country.
The Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) had on Thursday night announced an increase in the pump price of petrol from N186 to N212 per litre.
File Photo used for illustration.
Although the agency deleted the template showing the new price increase on Friday, amid nationwide backlash; several filling stations are currently selling between N205 and N250 per litre. Meanwhile, petrol stations have locked their gates and stopped selling to customers.
Checks by SaharaReporters at selected filling stations in Lagos, however, showed that some of them were still selling at N205.
A motorcyclist, who plies the Berger axis of Lagos, told SaharaReporters that he bought fuel at N205 per litre on Friday morning.
He said: "Even if they increase fuel price to N250, passengers will suffer because I can't keep charging N200 when fuel price has increased. I wanted to stop coming to Berger but because I have to eat, I just had to come. As it is, every other thing will increase."
It was also discovered that some filling stations had started hoarding fuel.
Several bus stops in Lagos were filled with stranded passengers on Friday morning as transport fares had also gone up.
Seven countries have now suspended the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine being administered on Nigerians for allegedly causing blood clotting and other health hazards.
It was reported by the Cable News Network (CNN), that Denmark, Iceland and Norway have suspended the use of the treatment, as the European Medicines Agency (EMA) is investigating the claims.
Other nations that have shelved the administration of the drug include Italy, Austria, Estonia, Lithuania, Luxembourg and Latvia. Denmark, however, did not state whether its reported death was connected to the batch.
Denmark announced a two-week suspension yesterday following reports of clotting. Iceland and Norway followed suit but did not disclose how long their suspensions would last.
Despite the statement by AstraZeneca on Thursday that patients’ safety was its “highest priority,” the stakeholders in Nigeria's health sector have not said anything about suspending the inoculation of the vaccine in Nigeria.
But according to the Guardian, the Head, Public Relations Unit of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency said, “We are satisfied that the clinical evidence indicates the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine to be safe and effective. Our assessment is in line with countries such as Spain and the UK which have indicated that they will continue to administer the vaccine, because it remains an important tool to protect against COVID-19.”
Meanwhile, President, Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Prof. Innocent Ujah, had said: “You need to know and establish the reason for suspension of the vaccine in those countries before contemplating anything.”
However, the EMA has approved the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for use within the European Union. The US-produced one-shot vaccine has become the fourth to be granted approval by the regulator with the EU already ordering 400 million doses.
Meanwhile, 14 COVID-19 herbal medicines have been listed as safe for use in the country by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, but their degrees of potency have not been established.
According to the NAFDAC, the medicines are now harmless for consumption but their degree of effectiveness is to be determined during clinical trials.
The Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, who disclosed this yesterday in Abuja after receiving a jab of the AstraZeneca therapy observed that his organisation conducted a diligent study on the vaccine and confirmed that it is “safe and efficacious for use against COVID-19 virus.”
The Secretary-General of the Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, Saleh Al-Hassan, has said his organisation has no connection with a suspected leader of a gang of Fulani bandits, Mohammed Isa, allegedly killed by the Easter Security Network after he was captured in Benue State.
Al-Hassan, though undeterred about the arrest and murder of Isa said to be notorious, as revealed by the Indigenous People of Biafra, he, however, questioned the authority of the group to carry out such an act.
File photo used to illustrate story.
He told SaharaReporters on Friday while responding to the statement by the IPOB that Isa had been handed over to his ancestors.
The IPOB spokesman had said on Thursday that, “We have made it open before now that we don’t spare terrorists.
“Mohammed Isa was captured by ESN Northern Command and handed over to God. We handed him over to God, to meet his ancestors.
“It is our resolve that any Fulani terrorists masquerading as herdsmen in our land if we catch you, we send you to God Chukwu Okike Abia
“ESN has no power to judge terrorists. Only God has the power to do so, (we are) therefore advising them to leave our lands, forests and farmlands.”
Reacting, Al-Hassan said, “How can you ask me about a bandit? Are we really bandits? No! If they said they killed our member, we would talk no matter the nomenclature they gave him. But, if they claimed to have killed a bandit, then the matter should be with the police.”
Al-Hassan in his response reiterated that the Fulani cattle herders in his organisation are not criminals, therefore would not be concerned with whatever punishment was meted out to criminal elements. He challenged the IPOB to release the corpse of the leader of the bandits to the police to know if he was truly killed.
He also condemned lawlessness in the country adding that it may jeopardise the peace of the law-abiding citizens.
“I don’t know. We keep on saying consistently, that these bandits are criminal elements. They are not members of our organisation. So, it must be stated very clearly, not ambiguously. Yes, if they have criminals, they should be treated as criminals.
“But, to even think that IPOB or ESN has killed somebody, either bandits or no bandits, are they lawful security agents? Who are they? Can’t they go and kill ‘Yahoo Yahoo’ (internet fraudsters) boys? Can’t they go and kill drug pushers that are destroying our image? You see, we must not be encouraging lawlessness because if we encourage lawlessness, I’m telling you this country is gone.
“See, every tribe is trying to raise a militia like that but is that what we want. There is a way we should help this country to get over its problems by giving stories that create unity and progress. If they killed him, are they keeping the corpse? They should give the corpse, at least, to the police now. Do they carry tags on their heads that I am a bandit?
“You see, all these things – lawlessness – that is given credibility is sad. It is not good for the country. I’m telling you; you see, I pity those people promoting that kind of statement because at the end of the day if there is a crisis, do you think anybody will benefit? We have Igbos in every nook and cranny of this country. So, it’s not good. We are trying to promote peace. You see, they keep on lumping things together. I think this is political, you people should investigate this.
“If the crude people are killing themselves in the villages, we the elite should help them because it is our responsibility to give them leadership.”
InsecurityNewsAddThis : Original Author : SaharaReporters, New York Disable advertisements :
The Nigeria Inter-Religious Council under the joint leadership of the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, and the President, Christian Association of Nigeria, Reverend Samson Ayokunle, has blamed the incessant herdsmen and farmers’ crises in the country on climate change.
The NIREC stated this in a release on behalf of the two leading clerics by NIREC’s Executive Secretary, Fr. Prof Cornelius Omonokhua, in Abuja.
The council noted that a large proportion of the clashes between herders and farmers had to do with the poor vegetation caused by global warming.
The clerics said, “Nigeria as a country is experiencing its own fair share of environmental pollution and global warming effects. The fact that herdsmen and farmers are clashing over vegetation can be directly or indirectly linked to climate change.
“The indiscriminate felling of trees without replanting, illegal mining, etc. are all part of man’s activities that are taking a toll on the environment.
“The impact of these activities resulting in climate change has given birth to high exposure to heat stress and ultraviolet radiation, the absence of clean air, a shortage of potable water, desertification, unpredictable weather, etc.”
According to them, where and when necessary, the government should consider the possibility of making new legislation to combat and address these crises.
“Our lands are polluted due to improper or lack of available dumpsite for domestic wastes and wrongful or excessive use of agro-allied chemicals; our waters are polluted by direct dumping of refuse in the water or waterways thus causing blockage of such waterways which results in flooding and contamination of water; crude oil drilling activities of the oil producing states are another aspect of water pollution. Improper chemical waste disposal by industries is also not left out of this.
“The pollution that our air suffers mostly comes from emissions of carbon monoxide from automobiles and industries. There are no stiff penalties for such emissions and as such, a lot of vehicles drive around with visible emission, with heavy duty vehicles, creating a dark cloud of soot while they are in motion.
“In order to mitigate against the devastating effects of these pollutions, the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council hereby calls on the government to make legislation, particularly enabling the respective regulatory Ministries, Departments and Agencies to address and combat these crises.”
Also, the Council urged the people to avoid acts that could be inimical to the environment, praying that the nation would be pollution free and the world at large would experience climate justice.
Africa’s leading brand, Arise Media Group, has announced that it will launch a new streaming service by Sunday, Ariseplay, a platform which is worth $100million.
Arise Group said in a statement that the new channel would feature all of Arise’s industry leading original productions and ensure that subscribers get to see the best content from both sides of the Atlantic.
The group stated further that Ariseplay will also be partnering with SONY Pictures, FilmOne and other independent producers to deliver “Behind-the-Scene actions and interviews in the run-up to the release of some of the world’s biggest movies.”
The statement signed by Sakina Renneye, Brand and Marketing Lead, reads, “This distinctive streaming service will be combined with linear channels in the UK, Europe and Africa which will enable the unparalleled delivery of hundreds of titles in different categories that include Blockbusters, TV Series, Kids Programming, Comedy, Live Entertainment, as well as the best in Fashion, Music and much more.
“ARISEPLAY will be Home Entertainment like you’ve never seen it before! In the Playroom, described as the place where ‘the stars come out to play’, you will be able to engage with some of the biggest names in music and comedy, and listen to some of their current as well as yet-to-be released productions.
“ARISEPLAY has been carefully curated for a discerning global audience that is looking for exciting, sharp and sagacious viewing choices that are not available elsewhere.
“The ARISEPLAY App has been designed using best-in-class algorithms and AI technology that will automatically determine the options that suit each subscriber’s profile, alert them when there is new content, provide special playback options and optimised viewing to limit the amount of data required to stream. We are also offering a 30-day free trial to give our subscribers a chance to experience the magic.”
A five-man panel of the Supreme Court has affirmed the ten-year jail term sentence slammed on a former governor of Plateau state, Senator Joshua Dariye, who is serving the jail term for criminal breach of trust.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had charged Dariye to court in 2007, accusing him of diverting N1.126 billion from Plateau government’s ecological fund.
In June 2018, Adebukola Banjoko, a judge of a Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Gudu, sentenced Dariye to 14 years imprisonment having found him guilty on 15 out the 23 counts preferred against him.
However, the Court of Appeal in Abuja in November 2018 commuted the sentence from 14 years to 10 years.
The court held that since Dariye is a first-time offender, the 14-year jail term was excessive.
In a lead judgment read by Justice Helen Ogunwumiju on behalf of the Justice Mary Odili panel on Friday, the Supreme Court held that the Appeal Court was right to have affirmed the judgment of an Abuja High Court which originally sentenced the ex-governor.
On Friday, Nigerians woke up to the news of another abduction of female students during an attack on Federal College Of Forestry Mechanisation in the Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna state.
SaharaReporters gathered that the school is less than 15 kilometres from the Nigerian Defence Academy in Kaduna.
Sheik Gumi with bandits
The gunmen on Thursday also attacked three local government areas of Igabi, Giwa and Chikun in the state and killed seven persons.
The gunmen were also said to have injured others, as well as rustled 20 cows.
This is happening three weeks after bandits operating between Tegina in Niger state and Birnin Gwari in Kaduna state met with Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi and vowed to deal with Governor Nasir El-Rufai.
El-Rufai had earlier in February said any bandit arrested in the state would be brought to justice, maintaining that “Kaduna state is at war with bandits”.
He also disagreed with suggestions by Gumi that the bandits should be granted amnesty and compensated.
The governor said the bandits would not be willing to give up kidnapping, considering how lucrative kidnapping had been to them.
“Anybody that thinks a Fulani man that ventured into kidnapping for ransom, and is earning millions of naira, would go back to his former life of getting N100,000 after selling a cow in a year, must be deceiving himself,” El-Rufai had said.
“Why should they be compensated after killing people, destroying their houses? Who offended them? Ahmad Gumi is my friend and this is what we discussed with him.
Speaking during the meeting with Gumi, the leader of the banditry group, Dogo Gide, lambasted El-Rufai over his statement.
According to a source, Gide added that his men were ready to carry out more attacks on communities in Kaduna State.
“He told the delegation led by Sheikh Gumi that he would deal with Governor El-Rufai and nothing would happen. He also said his boys were ready to attack more towns in the state. He said he and his boys were not afraid of death and anybody against their demands would be crushed.
“Sheikh later begged him and told him that all Northern governors had agreed to meet their demands,” a security operative at the meeting told SaharaReporters.
File Photo used for illustration. 
