The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State yesterday afternoon reacted with outrage to the news of the withdrawal of the security details of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, in the wake of his defection to the party from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Rivers APC in a statement signed by the State Chairman, Dr. Davies Ibiamu Ikanya, described the withdrawal of Tambuwal’s security details as “executive radicalism and abuse of the country’s Constitution.”
“We wish to call on Nigerians to condemn this affront on the fourth citizen of our nation and insult on our representatives. Let us reiterate that it is the constitutional right of Tambuwal to freely associate with any party of his choice, including, of course, APC,” Dr. Ikanya said in the statement issued in Port Harcourt.
He said that “it is only an unserious politician who will continue to stay in a sinking party like PDP that has brought our nation shame and pains and made us a laughing stock before the international community. We therefore ask for the immediate reversal of this obnoxious order and commend Tambuwal for the bold step he has taken to join the party for a new Nigeria.”
Continuing, Ikanya said: “As we sympathise with the present leadership of PDP for making the party the largest undemocratic party in Africa and leading it to its present sorrowful state and imminent demise, we wish to further state that those calling for the resignation of the Speaker are just exposing their level of ignorance of the functions of the House of Reps and our Constitution. Speaker Tambuwal was duly elected by the generality of the House members and can only be removed by impeachment by 240 members of the House. With only 180 PDP members in the House, from where are they are going to get the extra 60 members to aid them in the impeachment of Tambuwal? They should accept the reality that an APC Speaker is now in place, signaling the beginning of the take-over of the mantle of leadership by our great party on 29th May, 2015.”
Rivers APC advised the ignorant PDP leadership to try and read Section 50 (1)(b) of our Constitution, which states: ‘There shall be a Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives who shall be elected by the members of that House from among themselves.’ The party pointed out that the Speaker was elected as the representative of the “generality of Nigerians” and not necessarily because he belonged to a particular political party.
“As we await the mass decampment of the remaining 50 PDP members of the House we wish to urge President Jonathan to stop overheating the polity and start writing his handover note because he stands no chance of implementing any third term agenda next year as we will resist such an unholy attempt,” Rivers APC said. The party insisted that all hope is lost for both Jonathan and PDP, asking: “With Kano, Lagos and Rivers states in the kitty of APC and with the likely elimination of rigging during the 2015 general elections, what realistic chances does PDP have in the 2015 general elections?”
President Goodluck Jonathan was at the National Secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP to collect his expression of interest and nominations forms to enable him contest the February, 2015 Presidential election.
President Jonathan who promised to work with all Nigerians to move the country from its present level to where Nigeria should be, however boasted that he would have still picked the form if the party had refused him right of first refusal and did not give him the forms.
Speaking at the party’s National Executive Committee hall shortly after he received the two forms from the National Organising Secretary, Abubakar Mustapha, the elated President thank God for today, and thank Nigerians that were there to support him.
This horrific picture shows a young girl’s leg that has shrivelled and turned completely black after being bitten by a snake.
The snake’s venom caused severe necrosis – the premature death of cells. This caused the tissue in her leg to die, leaving it withered and rotten.
An unidentified suspected rapist has been killed in the Lekki area of Lagos State while attempting to rape a 22-year-old woman, Ifeoma Okechukwu.
It was learnt that the incident happened on Monday, around 12.30pm, in Atlantic View Estate, Alpha Beach Road, Lekki.
Punch learnt that Okechukwu was on her menstrual period and had gone out to buy sanitary pads.
The Imo State indigene was said to be on her way back home when she was accosted by the stranger.
She said,
“After buying the sanitary pads, I was going back home when I saw a man, who should be in his forties, standing at a corner. He approached me and ordered me to take him to my house.“He put his hand into his pocket as if he wanted to bring out a weapon. He said he would kill me if I shouted.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has dispelled rumours that he intends to dump the All Progressives Congress (APC) soon. Alhaji Atiku Abubakar’s absence at the party’s Special Convention Wednesday was noticed by many, giving life to the speculations.
The APC presidential aspirant took to Twitter to explain the reason for his absence from the Special Convention.
“I was scheduled to return to Nigeria yesterday from a quick business trip abroad, but could not, due to last minute logistics changes,” he said.
“This is why I couldn’t attend the APC Special Convention. Apologies to leaders & supporters of our great party, who were expecting me,” Atiku added.
He is in the race alongside former Head of State, Muhammadu Buhari, and Kano state governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, for the ticket to fly the party’s flag in the 2015 presidential election.
According to reports, the NFF has been ordered by President Goodluck Jonathan to reinstate former Nigerian international as the head coach of the African Champions.
Supersports made it known that the president had an emergency meeting with troubled NFF president Amaju
Pinnick on Wednesday night and advised that Keshi should return as the national team gaffer.
A 32-year-old man, Mr. Simon Mbam, of Izzi Local Government Area of Ebonyi State has committed suicide after he was tortured by some villagers for allegedly stealing N1,000 from a shop in the market.
The victim, who jumped into a pond in the area last weekend, found himself in the mess when he left his house in the evening of the fateful day to buy drinks with his friends.
While late Simon and his friends were busy sipping their drinks, the owner of the shop raised an alarm over a missing N1,000 in his carton of drinks, but no customer admitted to haven taken the money.
Excitement reached a crescendo at UNIPORT on Friday, October 24, 2014 as the long awaited Coke Studio season two campus concerts swept into the campus with A-list Nigerian artistes.
Thousands of students thronged the Abuja car park at UNIPORT despite the scorching sun, to witness thrilling live performances by dancehall virtuoso Patoranking; MMMG crew members Tekno and Selebobo and local favorite Jumabee.
An Abuja-based woman who was barren for 27 years has delivered a baby boy after reportedly being pregnant for 5 years in Lagos State.
PMNews reports that the woman, Adenike Kolawole delivered on Sunday at Evangelical Church of Cherubim and Seraphim located at Pipeline Road, Mafon area, Ejigbo, Lagos during church service.
A man has been arrested after allegedly driving a car into a Ten Commandments monument in Oklahoma, smashing it to pieces, 'because Satan told him to do it'.
South Africa football captain Senzo Meyiwa has been shot dead in Johannesburg only hours after playing a match, police have said in a statement.
Meyiwa, who played for Orlando Pirates, was shot dead when intruders entered his girlfriend's house in Vosloorus, a town 20 miles south of Johannesburg. According to the South African Police Service, two men entered the house, around 20:00 (18:00GMT), while a third man remained outside. All three
fled after shots were fired, in what local media reports say was an attempted burglary. The South African goalkeeper was reportedly shot in the chest at his girlfriend's house in Vosloorus.
'We can confirm that Bucs (Pirates) keeper Senzo Meyiwa has been shot and sadly declared dead on arrival at hospital,' the South African Police Service (SAPS) said on its twitter feed.
Senzo Meyiwa's girlfriend Kelly Khumalo, a South African singer posted this picture with him on Sunday, hours before he was shot dead
His club said in a statement:
'The Orlando Pirates family has learned with sadness of the untimely death of our number 1 keeper & captain Senzo Meyiwa. This is a sad loss to Senzo's family especially his children, to Orlando Pirates & the nation', said Chairman Dr Irvin Khoza.The club will hold a press conference on Monday morning.
The Imam of Federal College of Technology, Yaba Mosque, Imam Saheed Salmon has said that Islam also believes in the second coming of Jesus Christ, emphasising that any Muslim who does not believe in it is not a true follower of Prophet Muhammed.
Salmon made this known at a special lecture held at the Lagos Central Mosque, Tinubu, saying, Jesus is a messenger of God and would still return to a mosque in Damascus.“The second coming of Jesus Christ is a doctrine that every Muslim must believe. The teachings of prophet Muhammed talks extensively about this.
For some months now, many Nollywood stars and entertainers have been revealing their intention to join politics.
And among them is Desmond Elliot who has declared his intention to represent Surulere constituency in Lagos State House of Assembly under APC. Desmond had shocked a lot of Nigerians and was mocked for it when he added “Olusola” to his campaign name.
The poster girl for Kurdish female fighters battling ISIS has been reportedly beheaded by the dreaded group.The young woman, who went by the pseudonym "Rehana" became a symbol of the Kurdish resistance movement when journalist Pawan Durani tweeted a picture of her giving a peace sign and tweeted
"Rehana has killed more than 100 ISIS terrorists in Kobane,"
The photo went viral, receiving more than 5000 retweets.But sadly,social media has been filled with reports that she was captured and killed by ISIS after gruesome pictures began circulating on Twitter of an Isis fighter purportedly holding aloft her head..9News.com reports
More than 10,000 women have joined the forces to battle ISIS.Just last month, a brave female fighter strapped herself with explosives and surrendered to ISIS ,only to blow herself up killing dozens.
The use of motorcycles as commercial means of transport in Nigeria, popularly known as ‘Okada’ or ‘Achaba’ may soon be banned throughout the country.
The proposal for the ban was made by the National Council on Transport after its annual conference in Enugu State and endorsed by the Minister of Transport, Sen. Idris Umar.
A statement from the Federal Ministry of Transport on Saturday evening stated that the ban of commercial motorcycle was one of the measures proposed towards adequate provision of safety and secure transportation in Nigeria.
It said the recommendation was contained in a statement of the week long meeting which had in attendance all the state commissioners of transport, permanent secretaries, directors and officials in the federal and state ministries of transport across the country.
The council advised all states in the federation to henceforth discourage the use of commercial motorcycles as a means of public transportation.
“All states and the Federal Capital Territory have therefore been advised to establish a public transport system that ensure strict regulation of the operation of public passenger transportation system through a well-articulated management system for enhanced safety, security, effective and efficient service delivery,” the statement said.
It added, “The states are to also develop master plans for the development of intelligent transport system to facilitate the development and management of their transport operations in line with emerging trends and global best practices.”
The statement noted that the council also agreed that all commercial vehicles should be properly registered in each state while their enumeration should be carried out periodically to enhance safety and security.
The Central Bank of Nigeria has debunked report that it is funding the activities of the dreaded Boko Haram sect.
Some months back, there had been reports that there are people using the apex Bank to fund the activities of Boko Haram.
In a letter by O.A. Ogundana on behalf of the Director, Legal Services Department of the Bank, dated October 16, 2014 and addressed to Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, with reference LSD/ACL/GEN/SRP/02/090, the bank had investigated various departments and could find nothing, Punch reports.
The letter reads in part: “In your letter you had requested from the CBN information about persons or office involved in alleged money laundering activities of the Boko Haram through the CBN; and information on the exact nature and duration of any such transactions.
“We wish to inform you that after investigating the allegations across various Departments at the Bank that deal with payments, the Bank could not find any information pertaining to persons involved in money laundering through the CBN to fund the activities of Boko Haram.
“The CBN as Banker to the Federal Government only maintains accounts for and on behalf of the Government, its Ministries, Departments and Agencies; Deposit Money banks and other financial institutions in Nigeria and can only make payments on their behalf based on authorized mandates.
“Consequently, the CBN does not maintain or operate any accounts for individuals, officers or offices within the Bank. In conclusion, your organization may wish to note that the Bank maintains a robust Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism framework to prevent the use of its platform for financial crimes. Please, accept the assurances of the Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria.”
Recall that Australian Stephen Davis, who spent 4 months in Nigeria negotiating for the abducted Chibok girls release had claimed that a senior CBN official, whose name was not provided for legal reasons, helped passing Boko Haram funds through “legal channel”.
When the CBN did not respond to the allegation, SERAP issued a 14-day ultimatum for the apex bank to respond or face its law suit.
[Punchng.com]
The Lagos State Police Command has said only a court of law could decide whether the two dogs (pictured above)which ate the skull of a four-year-old boy in Igando area of Lagos State, Omonigho Abraham, be killed or not.
The command, which paraded the two dogs at its headquarters in Ikeja, Lagos State on Tuesday, added that the dogs had been examined and been found to be disease-free.
The Commissioner of Police, Cornelius Aderanti, said it was important to parade the dogs so that the public would rest assured that the dogs were still in police custody, and had not been released as being rumoured.
He said, “We have brought the dogs out so that the public would know that they are still in police custody. They have been examined and show no negative trait. It is only the court that will decide what happens to them. The police cannot decide to kill the dogs.”
Lmao Peter Okoye captioned it "Emeka just arrived from London " Can this be real or photoshop?
We read to improve our selves in-other for us to became better and useful to both our selves and our society.
A Timely publication for this generation and the ones to com, it is also very useful to both the parents and children alike...
A must have for every home
A Chinese woman angrily dismantled an ATM machine with her bare hands after she couldn’t withdraw money. The incident happened in a shopping mall where the woman stood next to the ATM mumbling to herself, pounding on the machine.“She also mumbled to herself that the ATM was her friend’s and that it’s was okay for her to break it.”
“After dismantling the machine, she even stood there as if nothing had happened, but was then taken back to the police station once police arrived,.. At the time, the woman’s manner of speaking and bearing both seemed not quite normal, so employees did not go forward to stop her, and only called the police as well as notify the bank to come and deal with the situation.
The PUNCH has been of help to Nigerians and is at it again, by exposing dirty tricks petrol stations, attendants use to cheat customers.
It looks like a long story but it will save you so much money if you care to read to the end. You will never look at a pump attendant the same way again.
Mrs. Bisola Ayeni, a businesswoman in her early 40s confidently left her house at Egbeda (Lagos) with an almost empty tank heading for Ikeja. The red light of the fuel indicator was blinking nonstop but Ayeni knew the quantity of fuel in her tank would take her to the next available filling station where she had hoped to fill up her tank. Indeed, as she got to the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway, Ayeni drove into the filling station and told the attendant to fill her car with N5,000 worth of fuel while she rummaged her handbag to bring out the money as well as pick a call. That was her undoing.
Ayeni would tell PUNCH that she didn’t bother to look at the pump while the sale was on because she didn’t envisage any foul act, besides she knew the level a N5,000 worth of fuel would rise to on her fuel gauge. Ayeni only managed a quick glance at the meter and when she saw that it was reading, she relaxed and enjoyed her discussion on the phone.She said:
The man who designed the Nigeria flag, Pa Taiwo Akinkunmi was decorated as an Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic, OFR, by President Jonathan today September 29th, 55 years after designing the flag.
He wasn't only given an award today, president Jonathan also said he will be placed on a lifetime salary that must be in line with what any Senior Special Advisers earns.
No other government before this government found Pa Akinkunmi worthy of a national award or a lifetime salary. So happy for him.
After the backlash, Tony Tetuila has ditched his trade mark blonde look .He is Sacrificing his brand to represent his people.Looks like there is a hint of blonde hair under the cap though...Hope he wins
