Author: straightnewsng.com

The Federal Government has lifted the ban on religious gatherings across the country. The Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Chairman of Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, announced this on Monday at the daily media briefing in Abuja. Similarly, Akwa Ibom Government has approved the reopening of churches in the state on Sunday, June 7, 2020. Mustapha said, “The PTF submitted its recommendations and the PRESIDENT has approved the following for implementation over the next four weeks spanning 2nd–29th June, 2020, subject to review-: “Cautious advance into the Second Phase of the national response to…

By: Akanimo Sampson A new research by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has painted a seeming grim economic picture for Nigeria and other commodity-dependent developing countries. UNCTAD’s findings raise concerns for economies that rely on exports of primary goods, such as energy products, ores and grains. Some two-thirds of developing countries are commodity dependent according to the UNCTAD data. For commodity-dependent developing countries, some of the most vulnerable on the planet, the drop is projected to be between $2.9 billion and $7.9 billion, which will constitute a 9.00% loss in terms of annual growth rate. The…

The Chief Judge of Akwa Ibom State, Justice Godwin Abraham, says the financial autonomy of the judiciary would usher in infrastructure development and capacity building needed to reposition it for an effective administration of justice in the overall interest of the citizenry. President Muhammadu Buhari recently signed an Executive Order No. 10 of 2020, which gives impetus to the implementation of financial autonomy to State Houses of Assembly and the Judiciary across the 36 States of the Federation. In a statement issued and signed by him in Uyo, Justice Abraham expressed confidence “that the new financial dispensation will engender far-reaching…

In a din of five years, Governor Udom Emmanuel has the right to thump his chest that he has attracted 18 industries to the state. In a row of five years, the state government under his leadership can firmly proclaim that it has succeeded in changing the landscape of the hitherto civil service status to an industrial city toga. It is not a mean achievement. This message, as endorsing as it was, came from the Governor as part of activities that marked his fifth-year anniversary on May 29. Like a surprise package, he deftly declared “Industrialization is the linchpin of…

By Akanimo Sampson. Former President Goodluck Jonathan is currently being linked to the $9 billion Process & Industrial Development (P&ID) scandal. Jonathan recently publicly declared that he was pulling back from political activities to support the work of the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation in promoting peace and prosperity. But Menas Associates in its Nigeria Focus, a monthly intelligence report on the giant of Africa is linking the former president to the $9 billion P&ID affairs. Menas has been helping multinational companies operate in the Middle East, Africa, and other emerging markets since the late 1970s. It brands itself as a…

Curfews have been ordered in cities across the US to try to stem unrest sparked by the death of an African American in police custody. But the protesters have defied all, looted shops, burned cars and attacked buildings. Riot police have used tear gas and rubber bullets. President Donald Trump urged “healing” over the death of George Floyd but said he could not allow mobs to dominate. Derek Chauvin, 44, a white ex-policeman charged with murdering Mr Floyd, 46, in Minneapolis is due to appear in court on Monday. In video footage, Mr Chauvin can be seen kneeling on Mr…

For the first time, Nigeria on Saturday witnessed a spike in COVID-19 cases, recording 553 new single-day infections. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) confirmed this in its Twitter handle. This has brought the country’s total infections to 9,855, out of which 2,856 have been discharged while 273 lost their lives “On the 30th of May 2020, 553 new confirmed cases and 12 deaths were recorded in Nigeria “No new state has reported a case in the last 24 hours. “Till date, 9855 cases have been confirmed, 2856 cases have been discharged and 273 deaths have been recorded in…

The sudden demise of the acting Director of Finance and Administration, Interim Management Committee of Niger Delta Development Commission, Ibanga Etang, has elicited condolences from various personalities. The latest came from Senator Godswill Akpabio, the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, who wrote “I lost a brother and a friend a few days back. A fellow Change Agent.” This is as the NDDC in a statement signed by Charles Odili, the commission’s spokesperson, on Friday officially announced the demise of its acting director said to have died on Thursday in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital. Akpabio in his Twitter handle on…

By: Akanimo Sampson COVID-19 scare is currently rocking the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), an interventionist agency. The arrangement is meant to ensure optimal care; contain; and prevent further spread of the virus in the country. Staffers of the NDDC have already been placed on a 14 -day self isolation to enabled the troubled Commission identify those who have contracted the rampaging coronavirus. The Commission’s Acting Head of Human Resources, Silas Anyanwu, directed the workers on May 28 to proceed on the 14-day self isolation. Apparently jolted by the seeming nervous reaction at the NDDC, a civic group in Akwa…

A social critic and public commentator on issues, Femi Fani-Kayode says he is disillusioned over the aloofness of Nigerians, Africans and the international community on what he called “ethnic cleansing, butchery and carnage in Nigeria.” Fani-Kayode, an ex-Minister of Aviation in his Twitter handle on Friday wrote: “If Nigerians, Africans & members of the international community expressed 1% of the outrage that they have displayed over the murder of George Floyd for the victims of genocide in Nigeria, the ethnic cleansing, butchery & carnage that we are witnessing today would have ceased long ago.” According to him, “The truth is…