The Rivers State Caucus at the House of Representatives read with dismay a statement purportedly issued by the member representing Khana/Gokana Federal Constituency, Hon. Dumnamene Deekor calling for the discipline of the Coordinator of the G-60 Lawmakers in the Green Chamber, Hon. Ugochinyere Ikenga over his position on vexed issues in the polity. While we wouldn’t stand against the popular phrase: ”everybody is entitled to his opinion”, we refused to collectively accede to Dum Deekor’s self serving stands as he has never been elected by the Rivers State Caucus to speak on our behalf. It is a trite knowledge and backed by precedence that the Leadership of the Rivers State Caucus in the House of Representatives and the National Assembly are based on seniority. Hon Dum Deekor being a second term lawmaker cannot arrogate to himself the position of Caucus Leader in the midst of 3rd and 4th term lawmakers. For the records, Deekor was properly elected in 2019 haven lost his seat in 2015 at the Court of Appeal which barred him from being a member of the 8th Assembly. He was recently reelected in 2023 to serve his second term in the House. This alone disqualifies him to jostle for the leadership of the Rivers State Caucus. We call on the general public to discountance Dum Deekor’s statement as vituperations of a gord being. The National Assembly is not guided by Village Council’s rules and as such everyone reserves the right to make contributions inline with his innate conviction. Hon Ugochinyere has in the estimation of right thinking Nigerians proven himself in the act of quality representation.

  The federal government says Tigran Gambaryan, a Binance executive, currently detained in Nigeria is facing lawful trial and has access to quality health care. Mohammed Idris, minister of information and national orientation, made this known in a statement on Friday. Idris’s statement comes a day after two members of the United States congress paid a visit to Gambaryan at the Kuje correctional centre in Abuja. The lawmakers said Gambaryan was suffering and lacked access to proper medical attention. However, Idris said the claims “are false and should be ignored”. “It has become necessary for the federal government of Nigeria to address claims that Binance Executive, is being held in unsavory prison conditions in Nigeria, or that his health is deteriorating,” Idris said. “Gambaryan is being held in lawful detention and has access to quality medical care whenever required. He also has full access to consular services from his home government. Advertisement “The federal government will not do anything to jeopardize his fundamental rights to lawful trial, and to quality care, including healthcare, even as he undergoes trial by the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. “It is worth reiterating that his detention is a court-ordered one, and only the court can alter the terms or direct his release.” Idris also said the federal government will continue to follow due process in its quest to bring Binance to justice. “This adherence to legal and diplomatic standards underscores Nigeria’s dedication to upholding justice and maintaining the integrity of its judicial processes,” Idris added. “The executive is being treated with the utmost fairness, and his legal and human rights are being protected throughout the judicial proceedings.” On June 14, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) dropped the tax charges against Gambaryan, after confirming the appointment of Ayodele Omotilewa as Binance’s representative — with the agency filing a fresh charge listing the exchange as the sole defendant.

  The Police Service Commission (PSC) has asked the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to provide evidence that the recent constable recruitment exercise was marred by corruption. In a statement on Friday, Ikechukwu Ani, PSC spokesperson, said NPF does not respect the commission’s mandate to recruit personnel for the police. The NPF had said the recruitment exercise was marred by gratification and irregularities. “The Commission demands that the Police should provide verifiable evidence to prove the allegations peddled against it as it is obvious that it is a case of giving a dog a bad name in order to hang it,” the statement reads. Ani said the commission is “disturbed by the flagrant abuse” of the supreme court’s judgment that reaffirmed the constitutional mandate of the commission. BACKGROUND On June 15, NPF rejected the list of 10,000 successful applicants for constable and specialist cadre roles, which was released by the PSC on June 4. Muyiwa Adejobi, the force spokesperson, said the recruitment was a tainted process. Adejobi said the published list of successful constables contains the names of candidates who “failed either the computer-based test (CBT) or the physical screening exercise, or both. On June 10, President Bola Tinubu sacked Solomon Arase as PSC chairman and replaced him with Hashimu Argungu, a retired police officer. Responding to the allegations, the joint union congress of the PSC alleged that police attempted to compromise the exercise, while calling for the sack of Kayode Egbetokun, inspector-general of police. ‘SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATES SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO PROCEED ON TRAINING’ In the statement, the PSC spokesperson said the NPF “hired writers to run down the commission” and that the release of the IGP’s letter to the public was against civil service rules. Ani said it is “unfortunate and self-indicting” for the police to attribute its failure to address banditry to shoddy recruitment. “Since 2019, when the Police forcefully snatched the exercise from the commission, they have gone ahead against the provisions of the law to superintendent over the 2020 and 2021 exercises,” the statement reads. “It is the fraudulent recruits that they brought into the system during these exercises that are currently haunting the Nigeria Police Force. “The commission is aware that all these distractions are calculated attempts by the police to hold on, by all means, to the recruitment of police constables despite the supreme court judgment. “The commission wishes to appeal to Mr. President to protect it and rein in the Nigeria Police Force to respect the constitutional mandate of the commission to recruit.” The PSC spokesperson said the commission believes that successful candidates should be allowed to undergo training without delay.

  West African Examination Council (WAEC) in Nigeria says it would gradually eliminate the use of papers in the conduct of its examinations. Dr Amos Dangut, Head of National Office, disclosed this on Thursday after monitoring the conduct of the ongoing West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) in Abeokuta. The WAEC boss, who was in the company of the Permanent Secretary, Ogun Ministry of Education, Mrs Mariam Oloko, explained that WAEC was planning to deploy electronic devices to various recognised examination centres across the country for the future conduct of WASSCE. He said that the deployment of the devices would eliminate the current use of paper registration of candidates and detect all forms of malpractice in the centres. ” We are saying that in the future, we are going to give this provision where schools that have facilities to do computer-based testing will take the examination on the computer where those that are not ready will do the pen and paper. ” We will work in consultation with the Ministry of Education to have a timeline for this. When the time comes we shall roll it out,” he said. Dangut explained that the assessment was satisfactory, noting that the schools and the students had prepared well for the examination. He, however, added that there was a need for schools to have bigger laboratories that would cater for the students with sufficient equipment. According to him, over 1.8 million candidates are writing the examinations across the country. On her part, Oloko noted that the Gov. Dapo Abiodun-led administration had already commenced the process of online registration of pupils in both public and private schools in the state. The permanent secretary assured continuous upgrading of Information Communication Technology (ICT) and other facilities in public schools to prepare teachers and students. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the monitoring team visited Abeokuta Grammar School and Baptist Girls College, both in Idi-Aba. The team also visited Sacred Heart College, Oke Ilewo and Charis College, Oke Ata, both in Abeokuta.

  The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed a cumulative death of 194, 897 deaths and 1,932 cases globally as a result of a cholera outbreak. A statement by the health organisation’s Eastern Mediterranean Region said the outbreaks were recorded from the 1st of January, 2024 to the 26th of May, 2024. The cases were reported from 24 countries across five WHO regions with the Eastern Mediterranean Region recording the highest numbers followed by the African Region, the Region of the Americas, the South-East Asia Region, and the European Region. No outbreaks were reported in the Western Pacific Region during this time. “The global stockpile of Oral Cholera Vaccines (OCV) was depleted until early March but exceeded the emergency target of 5 million doses in early June for the first time in 2024. As of 10 June 2024, the stockpile has 6.2 million doses. However, demand for the vaccine continues to outpace supply. Since January 2023, 92 million OCV doses were requested by 16 countries, nearly double the 49 million doses produced during this period,” it said. By March, the UN health agency said it exhausted its global stockpile of Oral Cholera Vaccines (OCV). Still, it was able to exceed “the emergency target of five million doses in early June for the first time in 2024”. WHO reported that 16 countries requested 92 million doses of OCV since January last year – almost double the 49 million produced during that time. It said it was working with other partners such as the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and others to use resources to find long-term solutions for cholera. WHO classified the global resurgence of cholera as a grade three emergency in January 2023 the highest internal level for emergencies in WHO. Based on the number of outbreaks and their geographic expansion, alongside the shortage of vaccines and other resources, WHO said it continues to assess the risk at the global level, as very high and the event remains classified as a grade three emergency After decades of progress against cholera, cases are again on the rise, even in countries that have not seen the disease in years,” the agency said. Cholera is an acute intestinal infection that spreads through food and water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, often from faeces. With safe water and sanitation, cholera can be prevented. Although it can kill within hours when not treated, however, immediate access to treatment saves lives. While the triggers for cholera outbreaks—like poverty and conflict—are enduring, climate change and conflict are now compounding the problem. Extreme climate events like floods, cyclones and droughts, reduce access to clean water and create an ideal environment for cholera to thrive, WHO said. In 2022, 44 countries reported cholera cases, a 25 per cent increase from the 35 countries that reported cases in 2021. The trend continued into 2023. “The recent outbreaks have also been more deadly, with case fatality rates being the highest recorded in over a decade. “This increase in outbreaks and cases is stretching the global capacity to respond. There is a shortage of cholera tools, including vaccines,’ the statement added. WHO said it considered the current global risk from cholera as very high and is responding with urgency to reduce deaths and contain outbreaks in countries around the world. In Nigeria, the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Health, Kemi Ogunyemi, said that the number of recorded fatalities as a result of the outbreak has risen to 21 following the last update which reported 350 suspected cases and 15 fatalities. In the same vein, the Ogun State Government confirmed the outbreak which has claimed the life of a 62-year-old woman with five persons hospitalised.

  The Federal High Court sitting in Kano and presided over by Justice A. M. Liman, has set aside the reinstatement of Muhammadu Sanusi II as the 16th Emir of Kano. The court refused to nullify the Kano Emirate Council law but set aside steps by the state government in pursuant of the law. Neighbor recounts how woman abused 12 years old niece, burnt her with hot knife and forced…..0:07 / 1:00 The judge, Justice Liman, however, ordered that status quo be maintained.