News
Civil servants in Niger to begin strike Wednesday
By Francesca Hangeior
Civil servants in Niger State have declared an indefinite strike over the failure of the government to meet their demands.
The civil servants, acting under the umbrella of the state chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress, had presented some demands to the state government which the NLC said the state reneged upon.
It, however, said its doors were still open for negotiation.
The congress in a letter to Governor Mohammed Bago, dated February 19 and signed by the Chairman, Idrees Lafene, and the chairman of the Trade Union Congress,l, Ibrahim Gana, said the strike would begin 8am on Wednesday, February 21, 2024.
The letter was made available to newsmen on Tuesday.
It read in part “We are writing in furtherance to our earlier letter of ultimatum Ref no. OL/NS/040/GEN/Vol 4/29 dated 20/12/23 and the deadlock on settlement of issues as a result of negotiations with Niger State Government Committee.
“We wish to formally inform the Government that effective 8am on Wednesday, February 21, 2024 that Niger State workers shall commence an indefinite strike action until our demands are comprehensively met.
“Meanwhile, we wish to reiterate that our doors are open for negotiation subject to: Conveyance of formal invitation, reversal of all appointments in dispute ie, Executive Directors Finance, Executive Directors Admin and Executive Directors Operations, Chairman, members and permanent commissioners of local Government Service Commission and Civil Service Commission, Directors General DGs of some agencies
“A clear statement by the government on payment of wage award.
“We also wish to stress that the idea of appointing Permanent Secretaries who are not eligible and within the service will no longer be tolerated by the Organised Labour.
“Accordingly we call on the government to withdraw the recent appointment of a Vice Principal on secondment as a Permanent Secretary to allow for career progression from within.
“We also call on the government to desist from victimising teachers and members from the educational sector as a result of the recent debate by some primary school pupils in Agaie LGA.”
The organised labour reiterated its commitment to the governor’s New Niger Agenda, noting that there was no response to previous correspondence.
The Rivers State Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.), has replied to the Nigerian Bar Association regarding the reason for relocating its Annual General Conference from Port Harcourt to Enugu State.
Ibas faulted the reason cited by the NBA, describing it as misleading and uncharitable.
The Sole Administrator stated this in a statement issued in Port Harcourt on Monday by his media aide, Hector Igbikiowubo, and sent to newsmen.
He said while the NBA reserves the right to choose a venue for its conference, the association had yet to address the issue of the refund of the hosting rights paid by the state government for the conference.
The statement partly reads, “While we respect the NBA’s right to choose its conference venues, we find it curious that the association—despite its “principled position”— didn’t address the refund of the N300 million already paid by the Rivers State Government for the hosting rights of the 2025 conference.
“If the NBA truly stands on principle, it should demonstrate the same integrity by promptly returning these funds rather than benefiting from a state it now publicly discredits.”
It added, “The attention of the Rivers State Government has been drawn to the Nigeria Bar Association’s announcement dated 10th April 2025, relocating its 2025 Annual General Conference from Port Harcourt to Enugu.
The statement partly reads, “While we respect the NBA’s right to choose its conference venues, we find it curious that the association—despite its “principled position”— didn’t address the refund of the N300 million already paid by the Rivers State Government for the hosting rights of the 2025 conference.
“If the NBA truly stands on principle, it should demonstrate the same integrity by promptly returning these funds rather than benefiting from a state it now publicly discredits.”
It added, “The attention of the Rivers State Government has been drawn to the Nigeria Bar Association’s announcement dated 10th April 2025, relocating its 2025 Annual General Conference from Port Harcourt to Enugu.
By Francesca Hangeior
The Federal Government has unveiled the second phase of its contactless biometric passport application system across its four missions in United States, Mexico, Jamaica and Brazil.
The Nigeria Immigration Service NIS disclosed this in a tweet on its ‘X’ handle signed by Service Spokesman, ACI AS Akinlabi.
The statement reads; “ain continuation of the phased Roll-Out of the Contactless Biometric Passport Application System across Nigerian Missions abroad, the Nigeria Immigration Service under its
Comptroller General, Kemi Nanna Nandap wishes to inform the General public especially Nigerians in the Diaspora that it is implementing the next stage of the roll-out across the following countries.
“The Application System, which is currently available on Google Play Store (NIS Mobile), is designed to allow Nigerians to renew their passports without visiting any Passport Centre for Biometrics enrollment. The Apple Store version will be onboarded shortly and an enhanced version of the NIS Mobile App for both Android and iOS users will be deployed to further improve users’ experience and accessibility.
“With this roll-out, the Service further informs the General public that the Contactless Passport App is now available in Canada, the USA, Mexico, Jamaica, Brazil, Europe, and Asia. It is yet to be rolled out in Australia and Nigeria, a future date will be announced for both countries in due course.
“The Service remains committed to innovative and efficient Service Delivery to Nigerians anywhere in the world”.
By Francesca Hangeior
At least eight of the 1,800 candidates shortlisted for teaching positions under the Kwara State Teaching Service Commission have been disqualified after testing positive for banned substances.
This was disclosed in a statement on Monday by the TESCOM Press Secretary, Sam Onile, who quoted the Chairman of the Commission, Bello Abubakar.
According to the statement, the disqualified applicants tested positive for drugs, including benzodiazepine, tramadol, cotinine, marijuana, and amphetamine.
The tests were conducted by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency with support from the state government.
Abubakar said the affected candidates would be replaced by the next best-performing applicants from their respective local government areas.
“A major implication of this development is that the affected individuals will be replaced by the candidates who are next to them in performance from their respective local government areas,” the statement said.
“The idea is to send an unmistakable message about the state government’s zero tolerance for drug abuse. We have a duty of care not to expose little children to drug abuse under any circumstances.”
The TESCOM chairman praised AbdulRazaq for insisting on a merit-based recruitment process, noting that the governor had again demonstrated fairness and commitment to quality education in the state.
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