A tricycle rider has allegedly been beaten to death on Thursday by a member of a task force operating in the Ogbogoro area of Obio Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State. According to eyewitnesses, the keke rider identified as Nsikak Esieme was transporting a passenger when he was accosted by members of the task force who demanded N200 ticket money from him. However, trouble started when Mr. Esieme refused to oblige their request, arguing that he had just come out and was yet to make a substantial sum of money yet. Trouble started when a member of the task force identified simply as Osisi rejected his explanations and a fracas ensued. It was at this moment that Osisi allegedly punched Nsikak in the tummy which saw him slump to the ground. He was thereafter rushed to a hospital before he was pronounced dead. Speaking to journalists, the Chairman of the Keke Riders Union in the Ogbogoro community, Ivumba Friday, said: “Nsikak Esieme was murdered this morning by one Osisi that has been terrorizing Ogbogoro and our people on a daily basis. We’ve reported this matter to OSPAC and even to the Police”. He claimed that “so many times he used to break their windscreen in Ogbogoro…our keke people are law-abiding people who pay their taxes but if you see the level of ticket prices from the community and even Osisi himself you’ll be shocked. Up till now, we don’t know the whereabouts of the corpse of our member that has died”. Mr. Esieme’s elder brother, Lucky, who also spoke to newsmen demanded the release of his late brother’s corpse to the family even as he gave a graphic detail of what transpired. “Till now, I don’t know where my brother’s corpse is. I want the person to come and show me my brother’s dead body and look for how we will bury him,” he said. The Police meanwhile are saying the death of Nsikak was due to “two fighting”. The spokesperson of the Rivers Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, told Channels Television that the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Ogbogoro said it was a case of two fighting between Nsikak and his assailant.   According to her, the case has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for further investigation. She also revealed that Osisi is on the run, but the Command is on the lookout for him. The task force is yet to comment on the matter as of the time of this report.

  Ganduje, who also served as Kwankwaso’s deputy when he was governor, issued the threat after meeting with the President Bola Tinubu on Friday where he apprised him of the damage allegedly done by the government led by Kwankwaso’s party barely two weeks it assumed office. “I know he (Kwankwaso) is in the building but we have not met. Probably if we met, maybe I could have slapped him,” Ganduje said while addressing State House correspondents. Ganduje, who also served as Kwankwaso’s deputy when he was governor, issued the threat after meeting with the President Bola Tinubu on Friday where he apprised him of the damage allegedly done by the government led by Kwankwaso’s party barely two weeks it assumed office. “I know he (Kwankwaso) is in the building but we have not met. Probably if we met, maybe I could have slapped him,” Ganduje said while addressing State House correspondents. The former governor stated that less than 72 hours after the inauguration of Governor Abba Yusuf on May 29, four properties erected based on a public private partnership arrangement were demolished by the government. Ganduje, who expressed disappointment over the ill-motivated moves by the current administration, which can hamper proper development in the state, said that he has also briefed the Inspector General of Police. While declining to disclose the President’s response on the matter, Ganduje disclosed that inside information have it that even the governor is unhappy with the level of destruction, that has infuriated a lot of residents, as some of their members have been affected. Meanwhile, Kwankwaso, who preceded Ganduje as the governor of the state, is still in a meeting with the President. The President has in the last one week met no less than twice with the immediate past Governor of Kano state. The former governor stated that less than 72 hours after the inauguration of Governor Abba Yusuf on May 29, four properties erected based on a public private partnership arrangement were demolished by the government. Ganduje, who expressed disappointment over the ill-motivated moves by the current administration, which can hamper proper development in the state, said that he has also briefed the Inspector General of Police. While declining to disclose the President’s response on the matter, Ganduje disclosed that inside information have it that even the governor is unhappy with the level of destruction, that has infuriated a lot of residents, as some of their members have been affected. Meanwhile, Kwankwaso, who preceded Ganduje as the governor of the state, is still in a meeting with the President. The President has in the last one week met no less than twice with the immediate past Governor of Kano state.

  A bereaved father, Adun Samuel, has offered to pay N100,000 to anyone who can provide information leading to the arrest of his son in-law who allegedly murdered his daughter. The alleged killer, identified as Inuaghata, is wanted for killing his wife, Osaretin. Mr. Adun, who spoke to journalists in Benin City, said his daughter has three children for the fleeing husband. Adun said he was called that his daughter had been killed by her husband. According to him, the son in-law fled and has been hiding since May 24 when he committed the offence. His words, “I hail from Orhionmwon local government. My daughter was killed by her husband. She was 23 years old. The incident happened at Egba on the 24th of last month. I do not understand the problem they have. I was called that my daughter has been killed. He used knife to slit her throat. My daughter was pregnant when she was killed. I want the boy arrested. “I will give anybody that give information leading to his arrest the sum of N100,000. The boy had not formally married my daughter. His parents are both dead. I have called his brother. He ran away after killing my daughter. His name is Inuaghata.” Edo state Police Command Public Relation Officer, Chidi Nwabuzor when contacted said the matter had not been brought to his attention of the command.

  Chef Hilda Effiong Bassey, popularly known as Hilda Baci, has denied rumours that she charged N25,000 for a personal meet-and-greet and for fans to watch her cook in Abuja. The chef, who rose to prominence after she broke the Guinness World Record for the longest cooking marathon by an individual with a 100-hour record time, disclosed this in a post shared on her Twitter handle on Friday. According to a purported e-flier that recently surfaced on the Internet, Baci allegedly charged N25,000 for personal meet-ups, live cooking, and food tasting in Abuja on June 24, 2023. Reacting to this, she denied the report, saying, “ Hi everyone, This is to inform everyone that I’m not doing any meet and greet in Abuja. I would also never ask anyone to pay for such. Thanks.”

  The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III on Friday has told President Bola Tinubu that given the number of challenges in the country at this time, royal fathers do not envy him as a leader. He made the statement when the President met with royal fathers from the six geo-political zones under the aegis of the National Council of Traditional Rulers at the State House Banquet Hall in Abuja, the nation’s capital.   Leading the group on the visit, the Sultan of Sokoto however assured the President of the support and loyalty of the royal fathers, underlining their availability at any time it is required.   The royal fathers also reposed confidence in the Tinubu-led administration and the ‘Renewed Hope’ mantra which they believe will lead the country on a path of progress. In his remarks, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Adewusi, who chanted ‘Use Us’ severally, urged President Tinubu to make more use of the traditional rulers particularly in tackling the challenge of insecurity.

  Amobi Ogah, member-elect of the house of representatives, says he did not know that President Bola Tinubu is “so intelligent”. Ogah, who will represent Isuikwuato/Umunneochi federal constituency of Abia in the 10th assembly, spoke on Thursday after members-elect of the national assembly met with Tinubu at the presidential villa. Elected on the platform of the Labour Party (LP), Ogah said Tinubu’s charisma shows that he is ready for the challenging task of leading the nation. “Today is my best day. Today, I’m so happy that I’m an elected member seeing my president talking. In fact, I’ve never known that this man is so intelligent,” he said. “I never knew that this man is so prepared to serve this country. I saw the love, character, and charisma — the belief that Nigeria can be a better nation.” Ogah said he is convinced that he should support the All Progressives Congress (APC) nominated candidates for the leadership of the house of representatives. “So I’m so glad that the meeting we had today is going to take us a little bit to a more stabilised house. Now, even without talking to us again, we have agreed that we are going towards the government’s decision,” he said. The APC had nominated Tajudeen Abbas from Kaduna and Benjamin Kalu from Abia for the positions of speaker and deputy speaker of the 10th assembly. “Not minding (that) I’m of Labour Party, as of now, the party is not the issue. We’re talking about building the nation. We are talking about the unity of the nation,” he said. Peter Obi, who was the standard-bearer of the LP in the 2023 presidential election, lost to Tinubu of the APC. Obi and the LP are currently challenging Tinubu’s victory at the presidential election tribunal.

  Azman University, Kano, Kano State; El-Amin University, Minna, Niger State and 35 other new private universities are current receiving their operating licences from the National University Commission (NUC) in Abuja. Daily Trust reports that El-Amin University has, as its proprietor, El-Amin Nigeria Limited, and has its Chairman of Trustees as General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (Rtd). In the same vein, Azman University has its proprietor as Azman Group of Companies Limited and Barr. Ado Muhammad Ma’aji as the Chairman Board of Trustees. Azman, the company that has been in the oil business for sometime, floated an airline recently before acquiring new licence to venture in the education sector. Speaking at the well-attended ceremony, which had the National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Adamu in attendance, the Permanent Secretary, David Adejo, said with the new provisional approval, the number of private universities is now 147. According to him, the approval was given to the universities in order to operate for the first years of operation, adding that it was intended to create room for effective mentoring and qualitative growth within the next three years. He said during the monitoring period, the new universities would be affiliated to older generation universities for academic and administrative mentoring to be moderated by NUC. “This is part of NUC‘s initiative for early-warning signals to detect compromises in quality for the application of corrective and remedial measures to redress such situations. “Substantive licences will be issued to well-managed institutions after the three years of probation following their satisfactory performance and growth, within guidelines stipulated by the Commission,” said. Adejo justified the commission’s position in the increment of the number of universities in the country, saying the country’s bloated 200 million population warranted the development. The top civil servant noted that private universities had contributed to the opening up of admission space for the swelling population of candidates seeking university education in the country. He observed that the argument in some quarters that private universities had become too many in Nigeria was not plausible, noting that comparative figures of universities in other countries show that Nigeria needs more universities. “Government is also well aware that countries that are consistently well-ranked in Human Development indices have, in recognition of the important role of Universities in human capital development, maintained a respectable number of Universities relative to their population. “In relation to Nigeria’s population of over 200 million, the current 264 Universities is quite low when compared to those of other economies’ such as, Korea, Indonesian among others,” he said. He assured that government would continue to encourage NUC to keep strengthening its quality assurance mechanism so that as the number increases, quality and relevance to national needs are not compromised. On his part, the Executive Secretary of NUC, Abubakar Rasheed, said the Nigerian University system has experienced a rapid expansion over the last two decades from less than 40 in 1996 to 264 presently. He noted that in processing the 37 new universities for licensing, the commission took adequate care to ensure the currency and relevance of their proposed academic programmes in addressing the challenges of contemporary society. Rasheed disclosed that the NUC has also developed a code of governance for private universities, which is expected to address the identified governance challenges bedeviling many private universities. He warned the proprietors against breach of the conditions for the approval. “Any unwholesome practice or operation outside the provisions of NUC guidelines is unacceptable and will attract appropriate sanctions,” he said. The universities are – Rayhaan University, Kebbi; Muhammad Kamalud University Kwara; Sam Maris University, Ondo; Aletheia University, Ago-Iwpye Ogun State; and Lux Mundi University Umuahia, Abia State. Others are – Maduka University, Ekwegbe, Enugu State; PeaceLand University, Enugu State; Amadeus University, Amizi, Abia State; Vision University, Ikogbo, Ogun State; and Azman University, Kano State. Also granted provisional approval are – Huda University, Gusau, Zamafara State; Franco British International University, Kaduna State; Canadian University of Nigeria, Abuja; Miva Open University, Abuja FCT; and Gerar University of Medical Science Imope Ijebu, Ogun State. British Canadian University, Obufu Cross River State; Hensard University, Toru-Orua, Sagbama, Bayelsa State; Phoenix University, Agwada, Nasarawa State; Wigwe University, Isiokpo Rivers State; and Hillside University of Science and Technology, Okemisi, Ekiti State. Also are the University on the Niger, Umunya, Anambra state, Elrazi Medical University Yargaya University, Kano State, Venite University, Iloro-Ekiti, Ekiti State, Shanahan University Onitsha, Anambra State, The Duke Medical University, Calabar, Cross River State, Mercy Medical University, Iwo, Ogun State, Cosmopolitan University Abuja and Iconic Open University, Sokoto State. Others include, West Midlands Open University, Ibadan, Oyo State, Amaj University, Kwali, Abuja, Prime University, Kuje, FCT Abuja, College of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Kaduna State, Jewel University, Gombe state, Nigerian University of Technology and Management, Apapa, Lagos State, Al-Muhibbah Open University, Abuja and Al-Bayan University, Ankpa, Kogi State.

  The Lecturers of the Ondo state owned, Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo, Friday commenced strike over non-payment of their 13 month salary arrears. Under the aegis of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic (ASUP), the lecturers said that they won’t be part of the first semester examination of the institution which starts on Tuesday, June 13. This was contained in a communique issued and signed by the Union’s Chairman, Arikawe Ade and Secretary, Fapetu Damilola. They said that they would be embarking on industrial action to pursue their demands for payment of the outstanding 13 months salary. “After much emphasis and extensive deliberation, the Congress unanimously agreed to withdraw the services of members from participating in the scheduled First Semester Examination Exercise which is proposed to commence on 13th June, 2023, until the condition below is met. “The Union before arriving at the decision, observed that the hardship or challenges of the current price of fuel on their members and attendance to their official duties is making it extremely difficult. “We want the payment in full of all outstanding (13 Months) salary arrears owned the staff of the institution. “The Congress wish to strongly emphasise that the decision above is binding on all the financial members of the union (ASUP).” the Lecturers stated.