10 top stories from Nigerian newspapers Friday morning, October 25, 2019

These 10 top stories from Nigerian newspapers will make your Friday morning.

1. World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business ranking shows my policies are working —Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari said Thursday that the strategies adopted by his administration in the ease of doing business in the country are working perfectly. The President was reacting to the country’s rise in the World Bank’s latest ranking in the ease of doing business where Nigeria moved up by 15 spots to 131st position out of 190 countries across the globe. Nigeria was ranked 146th in the Ease of Doing Business Index (DBI) last year.

2. Reps to probe FCT’s $460m CCTV contract

The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Finance, James Faleke, said on Thursday the House would investigate the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) contract which was awarded for $460million. Faleke, who disclosed this during 2020 budget defence of the Ministry of Finance and National Planning at the National Assembly in Abuja, said the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, had been directed to submit all relevant documents on the matter for thorough scrutiny.

3. Nigeria Immigration Service remits N11.69bn in 8 months

The Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Muhammad Babandede has disclosed that the agency has remitted the sum of N11.69 billion and $22,972 (N7 million) between January and August 2019 to the Federal Government. Babandede who was speaking at the Comptroller General’s Annual Conference tagged ‘Migration Management in a Developing Economy: The Role of NIS’ in Benin, confirmed the agency also remitted a total sum of N6.9 billion and $36,909 (N11.3 million) to the Federal Government as its share of revenue generated through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects.

4. NEMA receives 141 more Nigerian returnees from Libya

National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has received another batch of 141 stranded Nigerian returnees from Libya. The coordinator, NEMA Lagos Territorial Office, Abubakar Muhammed, received the returnees on behalf of the Federal Government at the Cargo Wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on Thursday.

5. NNPC, Russian oil firm sign pact on upstream operations, others

NIGERIA and Russia on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), that would allow the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Russia’s Lukoil to elevate the commercial relationships to a government-to-government backed partnership. With this agreement, the two firms will work together in upstream operations and revamp Nigeria’s refineries. A statement issued by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, said the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Mele Kyari and Vagit Alekperov, President of Lukoil, signed the agreement.

Read also: 10 top stories from Nigerian newspapers Thursday morning, October 24, 2019

6. Seven days after resignation, Gov Dickson’s commissioner backtracks, returns to cabinet, PDP

Bayelsa State Commissioner for Mineral Resources, Mr Markson Fefegha, has backtracked and returned to his position and party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Fefegha had seven days ago resigned his position in Governor Seriake Dickson’s government and his membership of the ruling PDP in the state. However, he made a surprise return to the party after ‘several persons’ were said to have prevailed on him to rescind his earlier decision.

7. IPPIS a breach of varsity teachers’ pact with Nigerian government – ASUU

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on Thursday reiterated its rejection of the newly introduced Integrated Personnel Payroll System (IPPIS), saying the system is a breach of the agreement on university autonomy, the body national leadership signed with the government in 1992, 2001 and 2009. The ASUU Coordinator, Lagos Zone, Prof. Olusiji Sowande, who stated this at a press conference held at the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, said the 1992 agreement the union had with the Federal Government held that “universities should be allowed to operate in compliance with their enabling laws, rules, and regulations in conformity with due process and within the laws of the land”

8. State witnesses to testify against journalist, Agba Jalingo wearing masks

Witnesses lined up to testify against a journalist, Agba Jalingo in his ongoing terrorism and treasonable felony trial in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, would do so wearing masks, a Federal High Court sitting in Calabar has ruled. The presiding judge, Justice Simon Amobeda, gave the order while granting an application by the prosecution to mask its witnesses in a case against Jalingo. Jalingo is facing four charges bordering on terrorism, treasonable felony and attempt to topple the Cross River State government.

9. LASEMA officials stop man from diving into lagoon on Third Mainland Bridge

Officials of the Lagos State Emergency Agency, (LASEMA) Thursday prevented a middle-aged man, identified as Ayinla Rilwan, from diving into Lagos lagoon on the Third Mainland Bridge. Rilwan was spotted by an eagle-eye LASEMA official who drew his colleagues’ attention to a man standing on the edge of the Third Mainland Bridge at 9:08 a.m. When he was approached, Rilwan reportedly told the LASEMA officials that he was contemplating suicide.

10. Ex-school supervisor jailed 60 years for molesting toddler

Adegboyega Adenekan, a former supervisor at Chrisland School, Victoria Garden City, Lagos State has been sentenced to 60 years’ imprisonment for defiling a two-year and 11-month-old pupil. Justice Sybil Nwaka of an Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court Thursday convicted the 47-year-old on a one-count charge of defilement. The judge held that evidence before the court showed that the supervisor was guilty as charged.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now