Author: straightnewsng.com

The Presidential Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja has dismissed preliminary objection the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, filed to challenge the non-inclusion of Vice President Yemi Osibanjo, SAN, as a party to the petition challenging the outcome of the February 23 presidential election. INEC had in the motion it filed on May 5, asked the tribunal to strike out the petition over failure to join the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osibanjo as a necessary party in the case.  It argued that by section 133 and 137(2) of the Electoral Act, Prof. Osibanjo, was a co-winner of the presidential election…

At least 3,600 children from the Boko Haram-wreaked North East are said to be detained by the Nigerian military, a report released by Human Rights Watch, HRW, on Tuesday indicated. The report said most of the children, including 1,617 girls, were being detained at Giwa military barracks in Maiduguri, Borno State capital. But Defence Headquarters, in a pre-emptive manner on Monday, dismissed the report, saying no child was held in detention facilities in the North East. However, Human Rights Watch said the military had since 2013, arbitrarily detained the children in “degrading and inhuman conditions” for suspected involvement with the…

Anxiety mounts as the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja has fixed Wednesday to deliver judgment on the petition seeking to nullify President Muhammadu Buhari’s re-election. The Justice Mohammed Garba-led five-member panel tribunal had on August 21, reserved its verdict on the petition the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and its candidate, Atiku Abubakar, lodged to challenge the outcome of the February 23 presidential election declared in favour of President Buhari and the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC. The tribunal is mandated under section134 (1) to (3) of the Electoral Act, 2010, to determine the petition filed on March…

Members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, IMN, Tuesday, clashed with the police in some states of the federation, with the Shi’ites claiming that at least 12 of them were killed. But the Police reacted swiftly that nobody was killed in the latest clash with the IMN members, noting that four of the protesters were arrested. The Shi’ites had said last week that they would embark on their annual religious rite, Ashura, procession Tuesday but the police warned them not to, saying their group, the IMN, remained a proscribed organisation. According to the police, any procession by the member will…

Debutant Joe Aribo and striker Victor Osimhen both scored in the first half as the Super Eagles of Nigeria got a 2-2 draw against Ukraine in Dnipro. Aribo scored as early as the fourth minute before Osimhen got his first Super Eagles goal in the 34th minute from the penalty spot. Nigeria went into halftime with a 2-0 lead after a dominant first but could not keep the lead which they surrendered in the second half. In a game of two halves, the Ukrainians dominated the Super Eagles and got came back to draw the game 2-2. Meanwhile, the Under-23…

The marriage of convenience between U.S. President Donald Trump and John Bolton, the National Security Adviser has irreversibly broken down leading to the latter being given a boot. Trump, Tuesday, said he had asked John Bolton, his national security adviser, to resign, citing strong differences of opinion with his hawkish assistant. “I informed John Bolton last night that his services are no longer needed at the White House. I disagreed strongly with many of his suggestions, as did others in the Administration,” Trump tweeted. “I asked John for his resignation, which was given to me this morning,” the president said,…

As part of an effort to reposition Ports and Terminal Operators (Nigeria) Limited (PTOL), an indigenous firm operating in the nation’s maritime industry for optimal performance, the company has put in place a new management team. Headed by Mr. Denrick Moos as its managing director, PTOL is a multi-purpose terminal and has twice the berth length of WACT. PTOL runs efficient warehousing activities and handles wheat, salt, bitumen, frozen fish and containers, with Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) seeking its services weekly. Moos, a South African maritime expert, has 21 years experience in the sector. A former South African naval combat…

By Akanimo Sampson China Merchants Group (CMG) that operates many key transportation infrastructures in Mainland China and Hong Kong, and very influential in five major ports in China including Pearl River Delta (Hong Kong, Shenzhen), Yangzee River Delta (Shanghai, Ningbo), Bohai Bay (Qingdao, Tianjin, Dalian), Xiamen Bay (Zhangzhou), and Southwest coastal area (Zhanjiang) is currently bidding to invest in port assets owned by French shipping company, CMA CGM. It seems the state-owned firm is seeking to diversify geographically and boost capacity. In 2017, CMG’s container throughput was over 100 million TEU for the first time, which makes the company the…

By Akanimo Sampson The US-China trade conflict appears to have evolved into a bullish animal. After a plural bouts of tariffs and counter-tariffs, last August 23, Beijing slapped a 5 per cent levy on US crude for the first time, targeting a commodity analysts say is already influenced by the trade tensions, and adding to a swathe of US-origin commodities like propane, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and soybeans. Those who know better say it was part of a wider tariff on $75 billion of US imports into China. US President Donald Trump responded with raising tariffs on $550 billion of…

Femi Adesina, presidential spokesman, says Nigerians will not become second-class citizens elsewhere if the country is what it ought to be. Speaking at the “Naija Youth Talk” programme organised by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Abuja on Monday, Adesina said while it is the right of citizens to demand for the kind of country they want, it is pertinent to love Nigeria against all odds. The event was the first of a series of conversations about the Nigerian youth and children ahead of the 2019 International Literacy Day. He said: “We have a right to ask for the kind…