Author: straightnewsng.com

The federal government, Wednesday, described fake news as a dangerous threat to democracy, noting that fake new when mixed with hate speech would amount to a disaster waiting to happen. Speaking at the formal launch of the campaign, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture, said fake news was becoming a serious threat to global peace, Nigeria inclusive, that if left unchecked, could endanger human existence. Mohammed said, ‘‘There is an epidemic sweeping the world. If left unchecked, it could be worse than all the plagues that the world has recorded put together. It is a clear and present…

The Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, said Wednesday that the Federal Government would thoroughly examine the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, AfCFTA, before signing it. Adeosun said this at the 2018 Annual Meetings of the Afreximbank, with the theme, “Powering Africa Through Regional Integration,” in Abuja. She said the trade agreement was too important for the country to sign without ensuring that the interest of its people was protected. She said the government had embarked on nationwide consultations with state governments, local government authorities, manufacturers and other stakeholders. The minister revealed that the government had almost concluded the consultations…

Juventus striker Mario Mandzukic scored the winning goal in the 109th minute of the semi-final, slotting in from Ivan Perisic’s flick-on into the area to send Croatia to their first-ever World Cup final. England’s bid to reach a first World Cup final since 1966 came to an agonising end as they lost in extra time to Croatia in Moscow. Gareth Southgate’s side-playing England’s first semi-final since they were beaten on penalties by West Germany at Italia 90 – were given the perfect start through Kieran Trippier’s 20-yard free-kick after only five minutes, but Perisic’s 68th-minute equaliser sent the match into…

Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Malala Yousafzai described girls’ education in the long term as the most worthwhile investment, urging those vying for the presidency of Brazil in October elections to give the campaign a priority. “Education is more than just about learning and reading. It was about emancipation. It was about empowerment of women,” Yousafzai told some 800 members of the audience in the Ibirapuera Park Auditorium. Yousafzai also announced that she will launch her personal project very soon in Brazil to promote girls’ education, although she did not offer details about the initiative. According to the activist, it is…

The Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee, LPDC, has disbarred seven lawyers and suspended 12 others over alleged involvement in various acts of professional misconduct. This took place as Amasa Firdausi, who was denied the honour seven months ago over hijab wearing classified by the legal Body classified as improper dressing was among the 1,550 new lawyers called to the Nigerian Bar on Tuesday. The young female lawyer from University of Ilorin was disallowed to perform the ceremony on December 12, 2017, after she declined to remove her hijab on the premises that doing so would amount to a violation…

Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State has reportedly escaped plot to assassinate him in the early morning of Wednesday. According to a tweet by Lere Olayinka on his Twitter handle he said that ‘Fayose is currently receiving treatment at govt house clinic after he was hit by teargas canister fired by the policemen. The armed policeme still laying siege at the Govt House. #Ekiti2018 Update Gov Fayose, a few minutes ago escaped plot to assassinate him by Fayemi and his APC. He is currently receiving treatment at govt house clinic after he was hit by teargas canister fired by the…

Black Rhino intends to invest $1.1 billion on Qua Iboe Power Plant and ExxonMobil would invest $500 million on gas project in Akwa Ibom State, Southern part of Nigeria. This followed Federal Government’s approval of $1.1billion Power Purchase Agreement, PPA, negotiated by the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET) on October 27, last year with new investors for the siting of Qua Iboe Power Plant in Akwa Ibom. To further give a stamp of authority to the project, Akwa Ibom government and Black Rhino signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, for the establishment of a transmission line and a power…

Sokoto State governor, Dr. Aminu Tambuwal, has advocated a comprehensive overhaul of the nation’s security architecture, attributing the recurring killings in most parts of the country to leadership failure. Tambuwal stated this on a day Ibrahim Shekarau, former Kano State governor, described as senseless, despicable and unjustifiable killing of innocent and defenceless Nigerians in their own country by dare devil gunmen. He noted that the growing spate of mindless shedding of innocent blood, especially of policemen and other security personnel on their lawful duty posts, had brought a new dimension to the reprehensible state of insecurity in the country.…

Against denials by the Federal Government that it was paying subsidy, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, confirmed deduction of N139.333 billion as subsidy for Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, also known as petrol, from its domestic crude oil and gas sales proceeds from January to March 2018, cutting down on its remittances to the Federation Account. Contained in the NNPC’s report of March 2017 Monthly Financial and Operations Report, the amount deducted by the NNPC for subsidy is far higher than the capital allocation to some key ministries and parastatals in the 2018 budget. Specifically, the amount the NNPC deducted…

In a landmark ruling, a Federal High Court in Abuja has directed the immediate release of two properties located in the United Kingdom, belonging to billionaire businessman and CEO of the Aiteo Group, Benedict Peters, that had been the subject of an Interim Forfeiture Order obtained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, without notice to him. By this decision, the court has upheld his case that the properties wholly belonged to him; were unconnected to the former Petroleum Minister, Mrs Diezani Allison-Madueke, and were unjustifiably included in a list of properties the anti-graft agency tried to seize. In…