YellowStone Media International

The Minister of Labour and Productivity, Dr. Chris Ngige, has revealed that the Federal Government has rejected the N22,500 minimum wage proposal by the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF). Ngige stated this on Wednesday during a phone interview on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily. “The governors have not even done enough. I told them that this N22,500 is even rejected by the Federal Government,” he said. Ngige’s comments come 24 hours after NGF unanimously agreed to pay Nigerian workers N22,500 as the new minimum wage as against the current N18,000. Chairman of the Forum and Zamfara State Governor, Abdul’Aziz Yari, said that the decision of the governors was based on the current realities on the ground. But Ngige criticised the governors for the figure saying N22,500 is even below the N24,000 agreement by the Federal Government. He, however, said that all parties on the ground would resume back on negotiations to see that the welfare of the workers is met. Ngige added

President Muhammadu Buhari has again appealed to aggrieved All Progressives Congress (APC) aspirants not to leave the party. The appeal came three weeks after he asked those who failed in their bid to secure the party’s ticket to emulate the Governor of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode, who lost his reelection ticket but did not leave the ruling party. The president had a dinner with the aggrieved aspirants at the Presidential Villa last Tuesday night. Those in attendance included gubernatorial, national and state assembly aspirants who failed to secure the party’s tickets in the forthcoming general election. Buhari urged them to be patient, remain with the party and work for its success during the 2019 elections. While briefing State House correspondents after the dinner, a gubernatorial aspirant of Nasarawa State, Aliyu Wadada, said the president assured the aspirants that justice would be done as their cases would be looked into. According to

President Muhammadu Buhari is currently in Kaduna State. His visit is part of efforts aimed at finding a lasting solution to the consistent killings in the state in recent times. Buhari is expected to meet with religious and traditional leaders as well as other stakeholders. THEWILL recalls that the paramount Chief of Adara, Agom Maiwada Galadima who had been in the den of his abductors was killed last week. The Kaduna State Government confirmed this in a statement on Friday and immediately reimposed a 24 hour curfew in some parts of the state following wanton killings. Four persons including a policeman were killed along Kaduna/Kachia road by the alleged abductors on Friday Oct. 19 before taking away the monarch, his wife and driver. Both the driver and the wife were freed by the kidnappers, leaving only the chief in their custody. Alos the Nigeria Police Force has said it had arrested 93 suspects who actively participated in the recent killings in Kaduna State.

The South East Youth Leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chidiebere Egwu, on Tuesday said the choice of Nigeria’s former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, as the PDP presidential candidate and former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, as his running mate is the best choice to rebuild Nigeria’s ailing economy and address other challenges facing the country. He expressed optimism that Atiku would defeat President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019 as Nigerians were disenchanted with the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led government which he said has brought untold hardship, increased unemployment and poverty in the country. The youth leader who spoke in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, also noted that the youths voted for Atiku massively during the last party national convention of the because of Atiku’s restructuring agenda and his capacity to rescue the country from the challenges of insecurity, abuse of human rights, rule of law, starvation and unemployment.

The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) on Tuesday gave the federal government till November 6, 2018, to meet their demands for workers’ pay raise to N30,000 or face an indefinite strike by the workers. The leaders of the labour unions who are leading protest marches in different parts of the country insisted that the government must approve the sum and nothing less. In Lagos, the protest caused a gridlock stretching from the Ojuelegba axis of Ikorodu road to Freedom Park in Ojota, Lagos state causing motorists to move slowly behind them. In Imo State, the workers trooped out to sensitize the public on their demand for 30,000 naira minimum wage. Also in Taraba, the Labour Union staged a sensitisation rally calling on the Federal Government to meet its demand of 30,000 minimum wage or face an indefinite strike action. The workers said the sensitisation became necessary as the labour union has remained calm and adopted dialogue with the government since the expiration of the m

Nigerian top professionals in the medical, legal, finance and other fields living the Las Vegas, United States, have expressed concerned about the state of the Nigerian state, and therefore back the Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi candidacy to coast to victory in the 2019 elections and restore the country’s glory. When the Medical Director at Grand Desert Medical Services in Las Vegas, hosted the Assistant Director (South East) of the Atiku Campaign Organisation, Hon. Sam Egu, last week at a ‘meet and greet event’ at her home in the exclusive Summerlin suburb of the city, these Nigerians took the opportunity to discuss the way forward and how they can contribute to the imminent turnaround of the Africa’s most populous country. As guest speaker, Egu stressed the importance of Nigerians in diaspora, whose financial remittances have been the major back bone of Nigerians back home. He said: “Your influence on the people you support with money back home is a

Rebecca Ejifoma The Lagos State Police Command has suspended the ongoing operation velvet for a period of one month with effect from October 30 to enable vehicles and motorcycles’ owners time to regularise their documents. The operation, which aimed at enforcing all relevant traffic laws to restore orderliness on the roads was put on hold for a period of one month based on the appeal of the state Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, and members of the state House of Assembly. “However, the police command wishes to warn all road users that the grace period should not be interpreted as a period of lawlessness on the roads. It is a time allowed to get the vehicle documents and necessary permits together,” the state police spokesman, CSP Chike Oti, said. According to him, the Command further warned that it would continue to enforce laws against driving on BRT lanes, parking at unauthorised places thereby causing gridlock, and driving against traffic.

The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Kano Depot branch, has said there is no plan to review pump prices of petrol. Rumour was making the round on social media that the federal government was planning to reduce the pump price of petroleum from N145 to N95. However, at a press conference in its office in Kano on Tuesday, the Chairman of the association, Alhaji Bashir Dan-malam, described the report as mere rumours, aimed at deceiving Nigerians in order to achieve a certain political goal. According to him, the rumours were the handiwork of certain unscrupulous elements, who were jealous of the relative availability of the product, even as the federal government had succeeded in tackling the menace of fuel scarcity, which became a tradition every end of the year. According to Dan-mallam, he contacted the Managing Director of PPMC, Umar I. Ajiya, on the issue, and he was assured that the report was a blatant lie. He noted

  The Mo Ibrahim Foundation on Monday revealed that Nigeria scored 47.9 in overall governance, ranking 33 out of 54 countries in Africa. Although Nigeria increased in ranking from 35 in 2017 to 33 in 2018, the country’s overall score dropped from 48.1 to 47.9. According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports, the 2018 Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) was launched by the foundation during a live event yesterday. The report noted that the score is lower than the African average of 49.9 and also lower than the West African average of 54.3. The report stated that Nigeria received its highest category score in Participation and Human rights, scoring 53.2, and its lowest score in Sustainable Economic Opportunities is 43.5. It further showed that Nigeria received its highest sub-category score in Participation snagging 62.7 and its lowest in Transparency and Accountability scoring 34.5. The 2018 Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG)

Former President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan; former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; former Senate President, Ken Nnamani; ex-Minister of Special Duties, Kabiru Tanimu Turaki; former caretaker Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ahmed Makarfi, were among other Nigerians who have condoled the family of late Chief Tony Anenih, describing him as a an institution, a colossus, a patriot and mentor to many Nigerians. The former chairman of PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) died last Sunday at the age of 85 years. Jonathan in a statement issued on Monday by his spokesperson, Ikechukwu Eze, said the exit of the ‘great nationalist’ and founding member of PDP was a sad loss to the party and the country. The former president noted that his rich political experience, sincere patriotism and deep wisdom are qualities Nigerians still need to cultivate for national cohesion, growth and development. According to him, "Late Chief Tony Anenih was a great asset to

The Department of State Services (DSS) has raised the alarm that some unidentified con artists were cloning the Facebook accounts of its senior officials to defraud unsuspecting members of the public. The DSS in a statement issued on Monday signed by its Public Relations Officer, Mr. Peter Afunanya, said the fraudsters had remained unwavering despite being caught and dealt with by the security agency. The secret agency, however, warned that the DSS would continue to look for, fish out and adequately punish the suspected scammers of the criminal act. According to the DSS, “The deceptive and fraudulent activities of certain unscrupulous individuals, who clone Facebook accounts of some DSS senior officials, including that of the immediate past acting Director General, Mr. Matthew Seiyefa, have been brought to the attention of the Service. “It is to be noted that the scammers use the false accounts with images of the officials to defraud unsuspecting member

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday Saudi authorities staged the "worst cover-up ever" in the killing of prominent journalist Jamal Khashoggi this month, as the United States vowed to revoke visas of some of those believed to be responsible. Trump spoke hours after Turkey's president, Tayyip Erdogan, dismissed Saudi efforts to blame Khashoggi's death on rogue operatives. Erdogan urged Riyadh to search "from top to bottom" to uncover those behind Khashoggi's death in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, an incident that has prompted global outrage and strained relations between Riyadh and Washington. Asked by a reporter in the White House Oval Office how the Khashoggi killing could have happened, Trump said: "They had a very bad original concept. It was carried out poorly, and the cover-up was one of the worst in the history of cover-ups." Khashoggi, a critic of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was a U.S. resident a

The Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has denied the allegation that his government has collected a sum of N30 billion from the federal government within the last one week. Fayemi said he was determined to run an open-door policy where government’s dealing won’t be shrouded in secrecy, saying nothing has accrued to the state since he took over from Governor Ayodele Fayose on October 16, 2018. Fayemi was sworn in on October 16 by the Chief Judge of Ekiti State, Justice Ayodeji Daramola, to superintend over the state affairs for the next four years. In a statement by his Special Adviser, Media, Yinka Oyebode, in Ado Ekiti Tuesday, Fayemi said: “The attention of Ekiti State Government has been drawn to some malicious reports from some quarters that the new administration has received N30 billion from the federal government in the last one week. “We would have ignored this baseless rumour that is being circulated on social media by some un

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday pledged that Nigeria will work closely with the Republic of Benin to ensure the success of the newly inaugurated Seme-Krake joint border post between both countries. Buhari stated this at the Seme border during the official handing over ceremony of the joint border post where he described the project, aimed at enhancing the free movement of persons and goods in the region, as ”a symbol of integration that brings together the peoples of Nigeria and Benin.” According to him, “Indeed, the Seme-Krake joint border is one of the busiest boundary lines not only in West Africa but the whole continent, daily recording huge movement of persons, goods and services. “Permit me therefore to congratulate my brother, President Patrice Talon of the Republic of Benin on the successful completion of this magnificent project. “As we all know, Nigeria and Benin share many things in common. Hence, the establishment of the Joint Border Post will certainly

The Supreme Court on Monday set-aside an interim order of the Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt, which gave the All Progressives Congress (APC) the nod to conduct its Ward, Local Government and State Congresses in Rivers State. The apex court, in a judgment that was delivered by Justice Centus Nweze, faulted the appellate court for issuing an order for the stay of execution of a Rivers State High Court order that barred the APC from going ahead with its planned congress, pending the determination of a suit before it. It noted that the High Court had on the basis of a suit that was lodged by one Abdulahi Umar and 22 others, issued injunctive reliefs that expressesly forbade the party from conducting congress in the state. The Supreme Court stated that Justice Chiwendu Nwogu of the high court gave the interim order of injunction on May 11, on a day that some hoodlums loyal to a faction of the APC, besieged the high court premises in Port Harcourt. It observed that despite th

  Nine micro finance banks in Niger State have been axed by the North Central zone of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Secretary of the Association of Micro Finance Banks, Mr. Tsado Daniel, disclosed this in Bida on Monday. Daniel did not name the banks or their locations but said the axe fell on the banks because "they fell short during the regulation exercise carried out by the CBN." The secretary made the disclosure while speaking at the inauguration of the Federal Polytechnic Bida micro finance bank, where he also disclosed that there were 34 micro finance banks in the state before the CBN action. He urged the management and staff of the banks that escaped the CBN hammer "to adhere strictly to the rule of the game" and ensure the survival of the financial organisations while also charging them to protect the investments of their customers. "Banks do not just die, people kill them. Please do not kill the Federa

Former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, was on Monday arraigned on an 11-count charge of conspiracy and money laundering before a Federal High Court in Lagos. Fayose and his company, Spotless Limited, pleaded not guilty to all the charges. The judge, Mojisola Olatoregun, ordered that he be remanded in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and then adjourned till October 24 for hearing of his bail application. According to the EFCC, Fayose received ₦1.2 billion to fund his 2014 gubernatorial campaign in Ekiti State, a sum they said he ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of an unlawful act. Fayose arrived at the court premises at about 8.30a.m, accompanied by EFCC officials and armed police officers. Femi Fani-Kayode, a former aviation minister and member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), was also in court “to show solidarity.” “I’m here to let people know that he’s not alone, I know what he’s

Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, has fingered the National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, of conniving with a cabal in Lagos State that wrote a ‘fake’ result which produced Prince Dapo Abiodun as the party’s governorship standard bearer ahead of the 2019 general election. Amosun made the allegation in an interview Monday shortly after the swearing-in of the new Chief Judge of the Ogun State, Mosunmola Dipeolu, held at the governor’s office in Abeokuta, the state capital. The embittered governor also fingered “former Governors, Bola Tinubu (Lagos), who is the national leader of the party, and Segun Osoba (Ogun State), as having played a strong role what he described as ‘fraud’, while predicating his argument on the silence of the duo, which he said translated to their consent to the electoral fraud. "The president already knows that there was no election in Ogun State. He knows that they just went to

Supporters of former Kano State Governor, Rabi'u Musa Kwankwaso, under the auspices of Kwankwasiyya Youth Wing, at the weekend called on the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) to investigate the state Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, over allegation of corruption.   The members of the group, who are of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), also called on the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) to urgently wade into the matter to thoroughly investigate the allegation and act according to the law. In a press conference to mark the 60th birthday of Kwankwaso in Kano on Sunday, the group condemned the allegation, and urged the two anti-graft bodies to as a matter of urgency, embark on a transparent investigation. It maintained that the investigation over the matter of corruption would uplift the status of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari that holds anti-corruption war as its cardinal principle. The Kwank