The Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Education has increased the school fees of new students into Federal Government Colleges otherwise known as Federal Unity Colleges to ₦100,000. This was contained in a directive from the Office of the Director of Senior Secondary Education Department of the Federal Ministry of Education, reference number ADF/120/DSSE/I, dated 25th May, 2023, and addressed to all Principals of Federal Unity Colleges. According to the circular entitled, “Approved fees/ charges for Federal Unity Colleges (1st Term) for new students“, signed by the Director of Senior Secondary Education, Hajia Binta Abdulkadir, new students are expected to part with ₦100,000 instead of the previous N45,000. “The latest fees/charge increment will affect virtually all aspects and activities of the school, including tuition and boarding fees, uniform, text books, deposit, exercise books, prospectus, caution fee, ID card, stationery, clubs and societies, sports, extra lesson, insurance, et al. “Please be informed that the ministry has approved only the underlisted fees and charges for all Unity Colleges,” the memo read.

  Head of the Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has said his men will continue to fight in African countries, where they are already present. Ever since Prigozhin mounted a failed mutiny in Russia last month and was banished to Belarus, there have been questions over Wagner’s future. “There was no, and there will be no reduction in our programmes in Africa,” Prigozhin told Afrique Média TV. BBC Verify has analysed the audio and confirmed it was Prigozhin’s voice. He did not appear on camera during the interview with Afrique Média, which is a pro-Kremlin news channel that targets French-speaking African countries and has been linked to the Wagner group. Prigozhin’s soldiers are embedded in countries including Mali and the Central African Republic (CAR), where rights groups and the UN accuse them of committing war crimes. The UK yesterday announced sanctions against 13 individuals and businesses linked to the Wagner Group, accusing them of executions and torture in Mali and CAR and threats to peace and security in Sudan. They include the heads of Wagner’s operations in Mali, Ivan Aleksandrovitch Maslov and in CAR, Konstantin Aleksandrovitch Pikalov. Wagner fighters are also accused by the U.S. of enriching themselves with illicit gold deals on the continent. But Prigozhin insists their work is of a different nature. “We continue to work in all the countries where we started or are now doing this work of co-operation and development,” he told Afrique Média TV. “If the assistance of the Wagner Group is needed anywhere to combat gangs and terrorists and to protect the interests of the people of these countries, we are ready to begin immediately to fulfill this task after agreeing on the conditions.” The Wagner boss’ comments echo those of Russia’s foreign minister, who has said that despite recent events, Wagner and Russia were in Africa to stay.

  Friday 21 July 2023 APC crisis: NWC members oppose Ganduje, tip North Central for chair NNPCL, UTM to build Nigeria’s first floating gas plant Military destroys 23 illegal refineries, arrests 60 oil thieves Edo police arrest 53 suspected cultists Men in police vests invade Abuja home, assault brothers Subsidy Removal: Palliatives Not Enough To Address Poverty – Shehu Sani FG To Close Section Of Eko Bridge For 40 Days Tribunal: WAEC Fails To Tender Ogun Gov Abiodun’s Certificate INEC Recognises Youth Party After Supreme Court Judgement Amnesty: Niger Delta Agitators Had Legitimate Demands Unlike Bandits – Clark Reps To Probe Max Air Contaminated Fuel Incident APC Chairman’s Resignation: There Is No Problem In Our Party, Says Uzodinma Court Orders DSS To Grant Kanu Access To Doctor Of Choice Tinubu Okays Infrastructure Support Fund For 36 States Tribunal: Court Dismisses Justice Ugo’s Reported Resignation Reps Reject Proposed Electricity Tariff Increase Fuel Subsidy Removal: FG Set To Review Workers’ Salary – Akpabio How Varsity Students Murdered Bolt Driver In Abuja Tinubu Moves To Block Atiku’s Fresh Petition On Chicago Records Fresh Worry For Ibori As UK Weighs Jail Option Or Seizure Of Over £100m INEC Registers New Party, YP Fuel subsidy: Vehicle owners drop big SUVs for small cars With one week left, Tinubu’s ministerial list fails to surface at Senate Visit a newspaper stand this morning, buy and read a copy for yourself…

  A state prosecutor on Thursday asked a London court to order the confiscation of more than 100 million pounds ($129 million) from Nigerian politician and ex-Delta State governor, James Ibori, Reuters report. Ibori had earlier been convicted for fraud in the United Kingdom and the ex-governor spent years in prison in Britain. Ibori was extradited in 2011 from Dubai to London, where he was charged with laundering a “corruptly acquired fortune”. He pleaded guilty in 2012 to 10 counts of fraud and money laundering and received a 13-year jail sentence, an outcome hailed by Britain as a landmark in the struggle against corruption. With its highly developed financial and legal services and lucrative property market, Britain is a global money-laundering hub, but it is rare for the foreign kleptocrats it attracts to be prosecuted and Ibori’s case remains an outlier. After more than a decade of legal wrangling and court delays, attempts by prosecutors to confiscate funds considered to be the benefits of Ibori’s fraudulent activities now appear close to conclusion. Judge David Tomlinson of Southwark Crown Court has made factual findings regarding the funds. At a hearing on Thursday, both sides made competing arguments about how the confiscation figure should be calculated, taking into account the judge’s findings. He is expected to finalise and formally issue his order on Friday or shortly afterward. Lead prosecution counsel, Jonathan Kinnear, told the court that the total amount that should be confiscated from Ibori was 101.5 million pounds and that if he did not pay up he should be sentenced to between five and 10 years in prison. Having served half of his prison sentence in pre- and post-trial detention, as is common, Ibori returned to Nigeria in 2017 and did not attend Thursday’s hearing. He told Reuters by text message he planned to appeal against the confiscation order. Ibori remains influential and well-connected in Nigerian politics. President Bola Tinubu, who was inaugurated in May, has hosted Ibori twice at the presidential villa, along with other former governors. Britain has pledged to return any money recovered from Ibori to Nigeria. In 2021, it returned 4.2 million pounds that had been confiscated from Ibori’s ex-wife and his sister, who also served jail time for helping him launder money. But reacting to Thursday’s proceeding on his Facebook page, the former Delta government said his hope was “rapidly fading” for a fair hearing. He also announced plans to seek redress and fight for justice in the highest courts in UK. He said, “Finally, the shenanigans in the Southwark Crown Court are drawing to a close. Judge Tomlinson is due to make a confiscation order which should be both realisable and not punitive. “However, after what transpired in court today my hopes are rapidly fading for any degree of fairness. “In the 2 years it has taken to write this judgment it seems apparent that he has forgotten many of the salient points and is prioritising expediency over justice. “The next step will be to take my fight for justice to the highest courts in the UK.”

  Following the removal of the petrol subsidy and the recent hike in petrol prices to up to N617/litre, the National Executive Council (NEC) has agreed on palliative measures for Nigerians. The decision was reached on Thursday at a meeting held at the Council Chambers of the State House in Abuja. The meeting, which was chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima, has in attendance governors of the 36 states of the Federation, the Director General of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum, as well as stakeholders from the World Bank and other agencies of government. NEC also considered integrity tests on state social registers, cash transfers would be done via state social registers subject to state peculiarities. During the meeting, government officials were urged to reduce the cost of governance in their various spheres. This is even as the Federal Government initiated a six-month cash award policy for public servants. Food items grains and fertilisers are to be distributed by state governments at the rate acquired from National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and states are urged to double down on energy transition plans in the transport sector. This is the second meeting of the Council and it is expected to deliberate on the reviewed palliative package for Nigerians following the removal of petrol subsidy as well as the hike in fuel price. President Bola Tinubu had unveiled his administration’s plan for a monthly N8,000 transfer to 12 million of the poorest households in the country for six months, in a bid to cushion the effects of the removal of fuel subsidy. The plan was contained in a letter read last Thursday on the floor of the House of Representatives regarding the $800 million loan request of the previous Muhammadu Buhari administration for a social safety net programme. But days after the announcement, the Federal Government said it will review the move following the backlash it generated among Nigerians.

  Soji Oye, director of information, National Judicial Council (NJC), says Boloukuoromo Ugo, justice of the court of appeal, has not withdrawn his membership of the presidential election petition court. Umar Sani, a Twitter user, claimed that Ugo tendered his resignation after citing “demands to knee-cap democracy”. Sani alleged that the judge, in his letter, stated that he was asked to “cripple the independence of the judiciary” by ruling in favour of a certain political candidate believed to be President Bola Tinubu. “Justice Ugo’s resignation has caused a serious uproar and a setback to the activities of the presidential election petition court,” Sani alleged.   However, speaking with TheCable on Thursday, Oye described the claims as “falsehood from the pit of hell”. He said the allegations should be disregarded, adding that the aim is to distract Nigerians and set the tone for a narrative, in the event that the court’s judgement doesn’t favour the rumour peddlers. Oye said the presidential election petition court will issue a formal statement to address the issues. When contacted, Josephine Ekperobe, secretary of the presidential tribunal, said the story is “fake”. She said she spent time with the judge yesterday and that as of Thursday, she is yet to be informed of the judge’s purported resignation. SUPREME COURT REACTS TO REPORTS THAT TINUBU SPOKE WITH CJN Ugo’s alleged resignation is coming barely 48 hours after Jackson Ude, a Twitter user, reported that the president spoke with Olukayode Ariwoola, chief justice of Nigeria (CJN), over the outcome of the presidential election petition. Ude alleged that the CJN told Tinubu to prepare for a rerun of the election. However, Festus Akande, spokesperson of the supreme court, said there was “no iota of truth” in the claim. The All Progressives Congress (APC) also denied the allegation by Ude. Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, standard bearers of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Labour Party (LP), are challenging the victory of Tinubu in the last election. Abubakar and Obi recently submitted their final written addresses after closing their respective cases at the election tribunal. The tribunal is yet to fix a day for the adoption of final written addresses and judgement in the petitions.