Author: straightnewsng.com

In the emerging political melodrama, Akwa Ibom Peoples Democratic Party, PDP has again dragged Senator Godswill Akpabio to the suffocating political space. Verbal assaults and tantrums are tools of war. Yet, human rights lawyer has warned the party against dragging judiciary into its political propaganda. Recall that the trial judge, Justice Okon Abang in his ruling on May 17, 2019, said the senator only “moved to join the All Progressives Congress (APC), out of frustration of being expelled by the PDP through a letter dated August 2, 2018.” The judge held that having been expelled from PDP, Akpabio was at liberty…

Plans have been perfected for the dissolution of Akwa Ibom State Executive Council on Wednesday, May 22, Straightnews has been informed. A source in Government House, Uyo told the online newspaper that the dissolution will take place after Wednesday’s state Executive Council. The council has 18 commissioners and two special advisers assigned to different ministries and bureaus. Recall that last Wednesday, Dr. Uduak Udo-inyang, Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Sufficiency was relieved of his duty for reason known to the government. Already, most commissioners on Tuesday, May 21 held management meetings with their staffers preparatory for the pack-out order by…

The Federation Account Allocation Committee, FAAC, distributed N46.35 billion in April to the nine oil-producing states based on the 13 per cent derivation principle. In the pack, Akwa Ibom State which produces 31.4 per cent crude oil produced daily in the country will be a major earner of the allocation. The Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF), Ahmed Idris, who stated this Tuesday night further said the federal government shared N616.19 billion as revenue generated in April among the three tiers of government. The amount showed a decrease of about N1.37 billion from what was shared in March. Mr Idris, represented…

African champions, Super Falcons of Nigeria have landed at the Avita Resort facility in the Austrian city of Bad Tatzmannsdorf for a two–week residential camping ahead of the 8th FIFA Women’s World Cup finals. A delegation including nine home–based professionals and technical and administrative staff departed from Abuja on Monday night aboard an Air France flight, and travelled from Paris to the Austrian capital, Vienna on Tuesday morning before connecting Bad Tatzmannsdorf. At the airport in Vienna, nine overseas –based professionals from different parts of the world joined the contingent, taking the number of players to 18. With England–based Ini-Abasi Umotong…

An Akwa Ibom community has joined the league of beneficiaries of social health insurance programme under National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in Nigeria, Straightnews has gathered. Of the five benefiting Nigerian states, Ukana Ikot Ideh in Essien Udim local government area of Akwa Ibom is the only community in the state chosen for the pilot implementation of VCSHIP-Vital Contributions Social Health Insurance Programme in the 2018 Federal Appropriation Act. Already, 36 communities from five Federal Constituencies in Imo, Nasarawa, Kaduna and Kogi States are also beneficiaries of the scheme. Under the pilot scheme, 240 lives from Ukana Ikot Ideh in…

Alarmed by the rising suicide cases, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has described as worrisome the rate in which Nigerian youths take their lives. Of recent, social media have been awash with reports of youths committing suicide, especially with a popular mosquito repellent, Sniper. Straightnews had reported that Chukwuemeka Akachi, a first class final-year student of English and Liteary Studies, University of Nsukka, and Olaitan Gbadamosi, a 100-level student of Chemical Engineering Department, University of Port Harcourt, allegedly drank the chemical and died. It was also reported by social media that Michael Arowosaiye, a gospel singer, purportedly hanged himself over…

The Nigerian Army has repulsed Governor Nyesom Wike’s allegations against the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 6 Division and Land Component Commander Operation DELTA SAFE, Major-General Jamil Sarham. Colonel Aminu Iliyasu, Deputy Director Army Public Relations, in a statement on Monday, described the claims as false and a deliberate effort to tarnish the towering image of the Chief of Army Staff and the GOC 6 Division. Governor of River State, Nyesom Wike had accused General Officer Commanding the Army’s 6 Division in Port Harcourt, Jamil Sarham of raising a team of soldiers to steal and sell petroleum products in the region.…

The House of Representatives has passed a bill into law to abolish the existing dichotomy between Higher National Diploma, HND, awarded by polytechnics and the Bachelor of Science, B.Sc degree by universities in the country. The bill was passed during Tuesday’s plenary. The legislation, which was sponsored by Ali Isa and Edward Pwajok from Gombe and Plateau States respectively, passed a second reading in April 2017. It seeks to end perceived discrimination against polytechnic graduates and remove the challenges facing HND holders, especially those in the public service. Leading the debate for the bill to pass second reading, Pwajok said…

The Nigerian Government has declared May 29 and June 12 as public holidays. May 29 is meant for the inauguration of new governments at the Federal and state levels while June 12 is to celebrate Democracy Day. The Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, who made the announcement during a press conference in Abuja on Monday, said most of the activities formerly held on May 29 as Democracy Day would now hold on June 12. He added that the events slated for May 29 would be low key as foreign dignitaries would only be invited to attend the June 12 events.…

The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) has petitioned President Muhmmadu Buhari over the released guidelines by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) on granting financial autonomy to local governments. The NGF in a letter signed by Chairman and Governor of Zamfara, Abdulaziz Yari, and made available to newsmen on Sunday in Abuja, expressed “dismay and angst” over NFIU action as attempt to dabble into a matter that was beyond its mandate. Yari accused the NFIU of “stoking mischief and also deliberately seeking to cause disaffection, chaos and overheat the polity”. The NFIU, which was excised from the Economic and Financial Crimes…