Ugandan TV Disowns Staff Caught Having S*x In Office

The news desseminators have now become the news. Nation Media Group in Uganda is currently in the news after two employees were caught on the camera having s*x in the office.

Kevin Kaija, a producer of “Seeds of Gold” programme aired on NTV and Ann Nakawombe (photo below), a presenter at the same station, have been sacked after photos of them having s*x in the studio leaked.
NTV has also released a statement regarding the matter. The management claims that this is gross misconduct and that’s why they have been shown the door.


Source: NTV Uganda

Here’s What You Should About Annular Eclipse To Occur In Nigeria On Sept 1

According  to National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), an annular eclipse will occur in all parts of the country with different degrees of totality on Thursday, September 1st, 2016. Here are the facts.

This was made known in  a statement released by the Head, Media and Corporate Communications of National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), Felix Ale yesterday August 16th.
The statement says the highest degree of obscurity in Nigeria during the annular eclipse would be in the Southern part of Nigeria, particularly in Lagos, where it was expected to have 80 percent obscurity, while the lowest degree of obscurity would be about 45 per cent and this would be observed in the Northern part of the country, particularly in Sokoto. in Abuja, the annular eclipse will be observed at about 60%.
The eclipse is expected to occur between 7.15 a.m. and 10.03 a.m, with slight variations in actual timing across the country.
In Lagos, the first contact will occur at about 7.15 a.m, while the maximum eclipse will occur at around 8.30 a.m. and will end by 10.03 a.m.
The eclipse is expected to commence in Abuja around 7.17 a.m, with maximum eclipse to be recorded at about 8.32 a.m. and the eclipse will end around 10.00 a.m.
NASRDA says  the eclipse is not a spiritual issue but a natural occurrence that can be accurately predicted by science. It warned that nobody should observe eclipse with unclad eyes as such act can lead to permanent damage to the eyes. It also  appealed to the general public not to panic or attach any mystical interpretations to this event.

Don’t Blame APC Or Buhari For Halted PDP convention – Doyin Okupe

Former Senior special assistant to former President Jonathan on public affairs, Doyin Okupe has said APC and Buhari are not to blame for the halted PDP convention.

Mr. Okupe said the convention cannot and should not be blamed on their political adversaries. Rather the blame should rest squarely on the failure of internal conflict resolution machinery of the PDP, the surprising naivete and desperation of many to seize power and control the party and the gullibility of majority of the followership, who have become entrenched in the cesspool of pervasive impunity of our leadership over the years.
SEE ALSO: Policemen Seal The Venue Of Planned PDP Convention
In a statement posted on Facebook, the former special assistant said it is commendable that the NEC threw sentiments aside and extended the tenure of the controversial caretaker committee by one year and allowed for the future expansion of the membership of the committee.

The import of this is that the party has now officially jetissoned the “Microwave”strategy, hitherto, employed by the leadership, and allowed for ample time to address all issues. By allowing for new inclusions into the members of the caretaker committee, the leadership obviously has made room for possible reasonable negotiation with the Senator Amodu Sheriff ‘s group, which is inevitable and a political imperative, if the party must remain United.
Again, this is neither the time for victory songs nor a season for political vendetta. This is time for seeking lasting and honest peace, time to rebuild from current ashes of flames of the inferno, of political opportunism, greed, selfishness and blatant brigandry and impunity.
There may just be another chance to do it again especially now that our adversaries are burning their political access card.

Oshiomhole To Edo People: Punish PDP With Your Votes

Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State on Tuesday called on the electorate in the state to “punish” the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with their votes come September 10, 2016, saying the party’s 16 years’ misrule is responsible for the current hardship experienced by Nigerians.
He spoke at a campaign rally for the All Progressives Congress governorship candidate in the state, Godwin Obaseki, at Ikhin and Amoya, Owan East Local Government Area of the state.

According to Oshiomhole, the PDP leadership diverted funds meant to develop the country into their private pockets.
While pleading with the people to be patient with the President Muhammadu Buhari administration, the governor noted that government is working round the clock to fix the problems it inherited.
“The PDP caused this hardship we are all going through. They pocketed the money meant to buy arms to prosecute the Boka Haram urgency in the Northeast.
“They also stole funds meant to construct roads, build airports and hospitals. They also caused the dollars to be far higher than the naira.
“But while we are pained, I will urge you all to continue to punish them with your votes”, he said.
While commending the people for keeping fate with the APC, the governor urged them to be patient as there was still more work to be done.
He stated: “We all know that we have worked as a government, but I want to tell you that there is still more work to be done. This is why we are asking you again not to relent on your support for the party.
“I want you all to vote Godwin Obaseki as governor, come Sept. 10, for these works left undone to be completed”.
Addressing the crowd, Obaseki promised that if elected, the focus of his administration would be human capital development, and advised the people not to be deceived by PDP’s “lies of working for the people when voted back to office”.
He said PDP’s 10-year administration in the state was a disservice to the people.
“People never knew that government is all about service before the coming of the APC government. Their government was all about sharing money against working for the generality of all.
“We will not allow any disservice again in this state, not especially after the wonderful work of this present government which I am part of”, the governorship candidate added.
Similarly, Mr. Pally Iriase, a member of the House of Representatives, told the people that it was only a good government that could bring good things to them.
Iriase, who represents Owan Federal Constituency, said that APC government in the state was good, and had shown and established that it was truly working for the people.

DSS Arrests Traditional Ruler In Bayelsa

The Department of State Services (DSS) on Tuesday arrested a traditional ruler of Agrisaba community in Nembe local government area of Bayelsa State, King Walter Agiri, over boundary dispute between Agrisaba and Oluasiri in the council.
The traditional ruler’s arrest was however, hailed by the Bayelsa Renaissance Movement, BRM, which commended the DSS for taking the bold step as part of efforts to find lasting solution to the problem.

It was learnt that King Agiri was arrested by the security agency in Yenagoa, the state capital, and whisked away to the command’s headquarters for interrogation.
BRM in a statement signed by its Coordinator, Mr. Rondson Irokari, faulted the claims by some Agrisaba elders that the monarch was nabbed following a protest against the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) in the community.
According Irokari, an independent investigation by the group revealed that the DSS arrested the monarch following security breaches in the area.
Nembe local government area was where three soldiers were recently killed by suspected militants.

Ban On Conference Souvenirs Not Solution To Economic Crisis, Says APC Senator, Shehu Sani

The senator representing Kaduna Central on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Shehu Sani, has said that the recent Federal Government’s ban on conference materials and souvenirs was not a solution to the nation’s economic challenges.
Sani made this known when he featured at the News agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja.

The APC-led Federal Government had last month announced a ban on the procurement and distribution of conference bags, T-shirts and other souvenirs at events such as conferences and seminars funded by federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, as part of ongoing cost-cutting measures and efficiency drive in the utilization of public funds.
But the senator, who is Vice Chairman, Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, said the ban would contribute little or nothing to tackling the current economic problems in the country, describing the measure as cosmetic.

SEE: FG Bans Conference Bags, Souvenirs At Workshops/Seminars

The lawmaker urged the government’s economic team and other relevant stakeholders to find lasting solution to the nation’s challenges rather than discouraging small-scale businesses from growing.
He also urged the Federal Government to give a human face to any new policy on internally-generated revenue.
According to him, any policy on revenue generation that will affect common Nigerians negatively will make life unbearable for them.
“IGR should not be about making life unbearable for the people, because you want more money to do your own project.
“It should be about targeting very key areas of business that will further add to revenue.
“We have the upper, middle and lower class and I think the lower class of Nigerians has suffered enough.
“They have suffered enough from previous governments and they should not suffer now in the name of trying to revive our economy”, he said. (NAN)

Police Arrest Suspect In the Murder Of Imam In N’York

Police have arrested a man in Brooklyn man in connection with the murder of an imam and his assistant in New York. The suspect, Oscar Morel has been charged with two counts of second-degree murder.

On Saturday, Imam Maulama Akonjee, 55, and his assistant, Thara Uddin, 64, were shot in the head at about 1:50 p.m. in Ozone Park,after prayers at a nearby mosque and police reportedly found the revolver used to kill both men at the home of the suspect. The motive for the murder is not yet known altthough some reports suggest it could very well have been a hate crime as both victims were dressed in religious wear.

Multiple Court Orders Leaves PDP Convention In Doubt

ments have created confusion for the Peoples Democratic Party. On Monday, a ruling by Justice Abang Okon of the Federal High Court in Abuja suspended the convention scheduled for August 17.
The Peoples Democratic Party has been in crisis for the better part of the last four months after the removal of Ali Modu Sheriff as National Chairman. Modu Sheriff, who contended that his removal was illegal refused to step down, effectively dividing the party into two factions.

The second faction is led by a caretaker committee headed by Ahmed Makarfi. A court order had earlier sacked the Makarfi led caretaker committee.
Another faction of the PDP has obtained an order from a federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt allowing the convention to go on. It is unclear if the convention will go on as planned.

Footballers not entitled to bonuses in Rio — Dalung

Youth and Sports minister Solomon Dalung has stated that the national U-23 football team were not entitled to receive match bonuses at the ongoing Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
The team, who qualified for the semi-finals after beating Denmark 2-0 on Saturday, had threatened to boycott the quarter-final match against the Danes if their outstanding allowances and the five months salaries owed coach Samson Siasia were not paid.
Dalung said the team’s outstanding camp allowances for 11 days were paid on Saturday.
Dalung stated, “I spoke with the captain of the team Mikel Obi and I explained to him that match bonuses are only paid to players during the World Cup or Africa Cup of Nations but not at the Olympic or Commonwealth Games. This is their first appearance at the Olympics so the players may not know that they don’t pay match bonuses at the Games.

“We have paid all outstanding camp allowances for the Rio Games to the players so we owe them nothing. On Siasia, the federation has admitted that they owe him five months salaries. He was owed before he agreed to take the team to Atlanta, so making it an issue now after qualifying for the quarter-finals is not in the interest of the country. I have appealed to the coach and the players to put the country first before personal interest. All other issues that need to be addressed will definitely be addressed after the Olympics,” the minister said.

EFCC to grill Jibrin again this week over N418m contracts

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is set to quiz a former Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Appropriation, Mr. Abdulmumin Jibrin, again this week over a petition alleging “fraudulent award” of contracts worth N418m to firms linked to him.
The petition, dated July 26, 2016, was written by the Anti-corruption Unit of the National Youth Council of Nigeria.
The EFCC acknowledged receipt of the petition on July 29.
Jibrin was reported to have been interrogated on Tuesday over allegations relating to N17bn money laundering.

It was gathered that the EFCC had concluded arrangements to interrogate the former appropriation committee chairman again this week.
An officer, who confided in Sunday PUNCH, said, “Our operatives will before the end of the week, invite him to answer questions relating to the fresh petition.”
In the petition, the NYCN stated that in September 2014, the National Commission For Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons awarded 10 contracts to five companies in the combined sum of N418m in one day.
It noted that the contract documents merely directed the firms to make supplies to “Kano State”, but did not indicate the purpose of the contract, the location where the supplies would be delivered, nor the names of the recipients.
However, in each of the contract document, the agency copied Jibrin, who was at the time the Chairman, House Committee on Finance.
Part of the petition read, “All contacts were awarded in one day; all the contracts were awarded to Kano State.
“All the contract award letters were copied to Jibrin; three of the companies are located in the same EFAB Mall, Area 11, Abuja.
“Two of the companies, which got four of the contracts, used the same office address, Suite A47, EFAB Mall, Area 11, Abuja.”
Going through the contracts papers, Sunday PUNCH observed that one of the firms, M/S Eash Progressive Ventures, was awarded a contract to supply 140 units of computers for N47.6m.
Another firm, Eleku Construction Limited, was awarded a contract worth N44.1m to supply 2,452 bags of “maize and millet to Kano State.”
The council urged the EFCC to probe the contracts because of the “curious” nature of the deals, which did not include any other lawmaker or the Kano State Government other than Jibrin, who was copied.
It called on the commission to establish the “capability” or otherwise of Jibrin and the Federal Commissioner, who awarded the 10 contracts.
It added, “The unit cost of the supplies in the 10 contracts is outrageous.
“Efforts to trace evidence of completion of the contracts have proved abortive.
“The description of the companies is ambiguous, as they were all supplies to Kano State, without any specification to whom or what purpose the supplies would be deployed.”
The document to the EFCC was signed by the Council’s Coordinator, Mr. Ifeanyi Okonkwo.
The spokesman for the EFCC, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, confirmed to our correspondent on the telephone that the commission had received a petition against Jibrin.
Get ready for trial, Jibrin tells Dogara, others

But in his Twitter handle on Saturday, Jibrin said Dogara and others involved in budget padding should prepare to face prosecution.
He said that the principal officers could not harass him with media propaganda.
Jibrin said the All Progressives Congress should get rid of Dogara and other members of the party involved in budget padding.
He added that the Peoples Democratic Party should do the same thing to the Minority Leader, Leo Ogor.
He said, “No amount of media propaganda, blackmail or intimidation can stop me. They are very bitter because I have turned down a “family resolution.”
On the issue of cars contract, he said, “Maybe it’s easier for Dogara to explain his role in the fraudulent multibillion-naira cars contract by his fronts as Chair House Services. This same man we call Speaker l, ‘number 4 citizen’ is involved in all cases of fraudulent contracts and money laundering in the House since 2007.
“With the massive amount being moved from the House accounts on Dogara’s instruction, I hope he will be arrested before he steals everything. Speaker Dogara, Lasun and Doguwa are already a baggage that the APC should offload; same for Minority Leader, Leo Ogar to the PDP.”
Tambuwal peace moves fails

Meanwhile, a peace meeting under the auspices of the Transparency Group in the House, said to have been initiated by the Governor of Sokoto State, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal, failed before it started, Sunday PUNCH has learnt.
Sources close to the group claimed that Tambuwal, a former Speaker of the House, had sought to meet with Dogara; and Jibrin.
However, the TG, which is also opposed to the Speaker in the ongoing budget padding crisis, reportedly backed out after Tambuwal failed to revert to the group on the conditions it set to attend the meeting.
The sources claimed the TG demanded the resignation of Dogara, in addition to reconvening the House so that external bodies could probe the budget padding allegations.
Truth will vindicate us — Dogara

Dogara’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Turaki Hassan, in a statement, appealed to the public to be patient as truth will vindicate him.
He said, “Our attention has been drawn to recent publications in some sections of the media in which the Speaker of the House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara has been grossly misrepresented in his statements to the press.
“The first was at the State House after his meeting with Mr President where he informed the press that “ padding” was unknown to the lexicon of the legislature and Nigerian law.
“By this, the Speaker clearly asserted that nothing undertaken by the legislature in the ordinary course of the budget process could be alluded to either as padding or an infraction of any law in Nigeria.
“Unfortunately, the media reported him as saying that ‘padding’ was not a crime. This tended to insinuate that the Hon Speaker admitted there was budget padding but that this did not constitute a crime.

World Bank delaying return of $321m Abacha loot — Switzerland

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The repatriation of the $321m looted by late Gen. Sani Abacha may not be done anytime soon as the Swiss government says the World Bank has to finalise the projects to be executed with the money by the Federal Government.
The Swiss government explained that a bilateral agreement for the restitution of the money would then be signed afterwards, which would form the basis for the transfer of the money.
The Deputy Head of Mission, Swiss embassy in Nigeria, Daniel Cavegn, said this in an email to inquiries from our correspondent about the time frame for the repatriation of the money.
Cavegn stated that the Swiss government was ready to start the transfer of the fund once all the necessary World Bank protocol and agreements had been taken care of.

He said, “Once the monitoring of the World Bank for the projects chosen by the Federal Government is finalised, we will proceed to a bilateral agreement for the restitution, which is the legal basis for the transfer of the money.
“The Swiss forfeiture order provides for a return of $321m to Nigeria and foresees a monitoring of the use of the funds by the World Bank.
“From the Swiss side, we are committed to begin the restitution of the money to Nigeria as soon as possible; we will proceed to a bilateral agreement for the restitution, which is the legal basis for the transfer of the money.
“It is difficult to currently give a time frame for the start of the restitution as the finalisation of the proceedings will still need time.”
On what is further expected of Nigeria, Cavegn said the FG had played its part, adding that the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice of Nigeria and the Swiss Foreign Minister signed on March 8, 2016 in Abuja, a letter of intent regarding the restitution of the fund.
This, he added, was to ensure that the process for the restitution was undertaken on the basis of international best practices of transparency and accountability.
“This letter of intent confirms that the use of the funds will be monitored by the World Bank as foreseen in the forfeiture order issued by the Public Prosecutor of the Canton of Geneva,” the Swiss official stated.
Cavegn noted that the FG had submitted a series of possible projects for which the money repatriated could be used, adding that his country was waiting for details of the proposed projects.
“We are awaiting more details regarding the proposed projects and, in particular, how the monitoring of the World Bank would be assured,” he said.
The envoy further said the mode of payment had not been worked out, noting that it had not been decided whether the money would be paid in instalments. He added that these issues had not been discussed by Switzerland and Nigeria.
The Swiss government said it had repatriated to Nigeria $700 million Abacha loot in several tranches since 2005, noting that the $321m being awaited by the Federal Governmet was not deposited in Switzerland, but frozen and finally repatriated from Luxembourg to Switzerland in the frame of a criminal case against Abba Abacha opened by the Public Prosecutor of the Republic and Canton of Geneva.