Isa Pantami, minister of communications and digital economy, says the federal government has outlawed the use of generic internet domains for official purposes. Pantami said this on Wednesday while addressing journalists at the end of the weekly federal executive council (FEC) meeting presided over by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo. The minister said the council approved the ‘National Policy on the Government, Second Level Domain’, which mandates the migration of all official communications from generic domains to the nation’s second-level domain under government top-level domain. He explained that all government agencies must switch to an official communication medium and stop using public email systems such as Gmail, Yahoo mail, Hotmail, and others. “This policy has been approved, and it focuses more on mandating federal public institutions, ministries, departments, agencies (MDAs) and all institutions as long as they are for government; they should migrate from using generic domains in their websites and their emails to our second level domain under government top-level domain,” Pantami said. “For example, you will discover today, some government institutions will engage in official communications using private email: yahoo.com hotmail.com gmail.com. “And it is an official communication and someone may retire or will complete his tenure or the tenure can be terminated, and he will go with the same email. And in that email, there are many official documents. “So, this will not be tolerated by the government anymore. Any official communications must be using an official email and that email should not be a generic one, it must be ‘.gov.ng.’ What is most important is ‘.ng’ that is our national identity.” “There are many categories of the second-level domain, some are for military, you will see like mil.ng mil is a short form of military.ng for Nigeria. You can see .gov.ng — Gov for government and ng for Nigeria. “So, there are categories of the second-level domain, while our country top-level domain.ng must be there in our websites so that whoever gets access will know that this website is from Nigeria, while for email, it must reflect the official name.”

  A family member and a colleague of a bus driver, identified as Ayobami, aka Ero, have denied that he set himself ablaze after his vehicle was impounded around 7 and 8 Bus Stop, Airport Road, Lagos State. The aggrieved family and colleague, who spoke to our correspondent during a visit to the area on Wednesday, alleged that some government agents set Ayobami ablaze. A colleague, who identified himself as Adeola, said he was conveying passengers to a destination when the incident happened, adding that he saw the state officials impounding vehicles at the bus stop. During the enforcement, Adeola explained that one of the area boys working with the task force dragged the steering with Ayobami, who refused to release his vehicle. In a desperate attempt to impound the vehicle, the eyewitness said the area boy reached for petrol, poured it on Ayobami and used a lighter to set the father of two ablaze. He said, “He did not set himself ablaze; how can somebody who is normal set himself ablaze? It was the area boys working with the task force that poured patrol on him and used a lighter to set him on fire. “It was done to make him get down from the bus. At first, they threatened him with the petrol, but he refused to get down, so they poured it on him and threatened to burn him, but he refused again. “It was when the area boys were switching on and off the lighter that the fuel attracted the fire and his body started burning. Even the area boy who was dragging with him at the front seat quickly jumped down and fled alongside the task force officers.” PUNCH Metro gathered that the victim, who sustained serious burns in the face, chest, stomach, back and arms, was rushed to the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja. A relative, who identified himself as Baba Roqeeb, confirmed Adeola’s account of the incident, adding that doctors were battling to save Ayobami’s life. He said, “Immediately he got burnt, his conductor, Rotimi, called me. But when I rushed to the scene of the incident, I was told that they already rushed him to Makinde Police Station. “I quickly rushed down there but was told they already left for the task force office at Bolade, Oshodi. When I got there, the policemen detained me in a cell when they knew I was there because of Ayobami. “I asked why they detained me, but they said they heard we were trying to burn the office like it happened during #EndSARS. They released me when they needed a family member to accompany him to a hospital.” Our correspondent saw Ayobami’s vehicle parked close to his house around Aji Camp, Ajao Estate. Black patches were seen on the roof of the driver’s side, indicating that the front seat was burnt. The Chairman of the Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences Enforcement Unit (task force), CSP Shola Jejeloye, in a statement on Wednesday, distanced officials of the agency from the incident. Jejeloye said at the time of the incident, his men were still at their base, adding that some imposters were using the name of the agency to perpetrate crimes. He said, “Investigations and accounts of persons who were present at the scene of the incident have categorically revealed that the driver, one Mr Ayo aka Eru, poured petrol on himself to scare security operatives from enforcing the traffic law which he violated. After the operatives left, luck ran out on him and some of the hoodlums present mistook him for one of the security operatives and set him ablaze. “Let me emphasise here that for us as an agency of government, we believe that it is better for us to allow an offender to go unharmed than to cause an injury.” The state Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Adekunle Ajisebutu, said the state Commissioner of Police had ordered an investigation into the incident.

  Nollywood Actor, Yul Edochie, has called for the release of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). Edochie, in a tweet via his Twitter handle on Wednesday while seeking the release of Kanu, called for dialogue. He tweeted: “Release Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and call for dialogue. “In a multi-tribal country like Nigeria, there’ll always be agitation from different quarters. “To keep the country united you should listen to your people, know why they’re agitating and resolve it peacefully. Not by the use of force.” Meanwhile, Nnamdi Kanu, at the hearing in court today, complained that he was going blind and pleaded with the Judge to rescue him. Kanu disclosed that the Department of State Services, DSS, took away his glasses since his arrest. He also asked the court to dismiss the charges against him on the grounds that the alleged offences were not committed in Nigeria. The Biafra leader claimed that no prima facie has been made against him by the federal government throughout the proof of evidence in support of the charges.

  Justice Binta Nyako of a Federal High Court Abuja, has fixed April 8 for ruling on a preliminary objection filed by the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, challenging the validity of the 15 amended charges filed against him by the Federal Government. Justice Nyako fixed the date after counsel for Kanu, Mike Ozekhome (SAN) as well as prosecution counsel, Shuaibu Labaran, had adopted arguments for and against the defendant’s preliminary objection. In a short adumbration, Ozekhome pleaded with the court to acquit and dismiss all the charges filed against Kanu by the Federal Government. At a resumed trial on Wednesday, Ozekhome argued that the 15-count amended charge was “defective and baseless”. Specifically, he informed the court that his application seeks the “quashing, striking out and dismissing of the 15-count amended charge” against Kanu for being “incompetent and denying the court of jurisdiction” to entertain charge. The application, with 34 grounds, and supported by 36-paragraph affidavit, Ozekhome said, also seeks for an order acquitting and discharging Kanu for want of jurisdiction and defective, baseless and incompetent charges. Ozekhome adopted his application and asked court to quash, strike out and dismiss the entire charges. He asked the court to look at the entire grounds and affidavit, from paragraph 5 to 36, of notice of preliminary objection, etc.