News
Senate’ll approve presidential jet if Tinubu demands for it – Akpabio
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio has said the Senate will approve the proposal for the purchase of a new presidential jet if President Bola Tinubu requests for it.
Akpabio stated this at the plenary on Thursday. However, he said there was no request for the approval of the purchase of a presidential jet before the Senate.
Akpabio said: “We care about the President and we care about the Nigerian people. We will approve things that will benefit the Nigerian people.
“We will approve things that would improve the living standards of the people. At the same time, we will also take cognizance of the duties of the President.
“If his vehicle is bad, we will repair the vehicle. If his plane is bad, we will approve money for the repair of the plane. So that is not an issue. There is nothing before us. I don’t think you should worry about it.”
The Senate President also said: “Somebody called me from BBC; that what I said in Senator Mongunu’s house was false and should be disregarded. That I was now saying that I will not approve.
“That is what you can call anticipated blackmail. The professors of the story know very well that maybe there is a problem with the presidential fleet and that where they will go will be the parliament.
”And so they are now trying to do anticipated blackmail to tell us if they bring it, do not look into it.
“So I think that we should ignore them because of what we are doing here. I read the president’s correspondence to us.
“Nothing was touching on a plane or no plane.
“But I can tell you that when you hear stories such as the death of the vice president of Malawi as a result of a defective plane, and then the death of the president of Iran as a result of defective aircraft; we shouldn’t ever sit and allow such to be at the ocean. It wouldn’t be.
“The Senate is very responsible. The National Assembly is very responsible. We will look into issues that will benefit the governance of the country.
“Irrespective of anticipatory blackmail, because those people know very well that something like that might come in the future; and if it’s a necessity, the Senate will look into it.
“But there is nothing like that before us now.”
Recall that the Senate President had earlier raised concern over alleged propaganda against the Senate on the purchase of the presidential fleet.
News
Donald Trump unhurt as gunman fires shots at Golf Course where he was playing
By Francesca Hangeior.
Donald Trump is “safe following gunshots in his vicinity” at his Florida golf course Sunday, his campaign said in a statement.
The former president was playing at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach when shots were fired.
Officials believe an armed individual intended to target Trump, according to sources briefed on the matter. A car has been stopped in relation to the incident nearby, according to a law enforcement official.
The Secret Service said it is working with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office to investigate a protective incident involving Trump. The Secret Service said the incident occurred shortly before 2 p.m.
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are both “relieved to know” that Trump is safe and have been briefed on the security incident, according to the White House.
News
IPOB: Justice Nyako hands-off from Nnamdi Kanu’s trial
By Francesca Hangeior.
Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja has withdrawn from the treason trial of the self-acclaimed leader of the separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
Justice Nyako announced her withdrawal on Tuesday shortly after Kanu demanded that the judge recuse herself from his trial.
At the mention of the case on Tuesday, September 24, Kanu’s lawyer, Alloy Ejimakor urged the court to postpone the planned commencement of trial, claiming that his client was denied the opportunity to adequately prepare for his defence.
But, before Ejimakor could conclude his submission, Kanu rose from where he sat in the dock and told his lawyer to sit down.
Kanu told his lawyer: “Sit down! I say you should sit down.” Then, turning to the judge, he said: “My lord, I have no confidence in this court anymore and I ask you to recuse yourself because you did not abide by the decision of the Supreme Court.
“I can understand it if the DSS (Department of State Services) refuse to obey a court order, but for this court to refuse to obey an order of the Supreme Court is regrettable.
“I am asking you to recuse yourself from this case,” Kanu said.
Prosecuting lawyer, Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN) urged the court to ignore Kanu and proceed with the trial.
Awomolo noted that contrary to Kanu’s claim, the Supreme Court ordered that the defendant (Kanu) should be tried on the seven counts left in the 11 counts contained in the original charge on which he was first arraigned.
He said: “The Justices (of the Supreme Court) ordered this court to proceed with the hearing of the charge against the defendant.
“My lord, you should not recuse yourself based on this mere observation, which does not have anything to do with the Supreme Court.
“It is an incompetent observation. We urge this court to proceed with the hearing.”
Kanu, again, stood up and held out a document he claimed was the subsisting judgment of the Supreme Court.
Without seeking and obtaining the judge’s permission, Kanu proceeded to read a portion of the document where he said the Supreme Court found that actions of the trial court in the case “rendered the impartiality of the judge suspect.”
Kanu said: “But my lord, you know that I love you. It is just that this court is allowing the prosecution to railroad me into a trial that is at variance with every provision of the Constitution.”
The defendant then sat down, following which Justice Nyako expressed displeasure about his conduct.
Justice Nyako subsequently announced her decision to withdraw from the case, saying: “I hereby recuse myself and remit the case file back to the Chief Judge.”
News
Flood: NAFDAC removes N5b contaminated drugs, foods, from Maiduguri markets
By Francesca Hangeior.
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has removed all compromised food and drugs valued at over N5 billion from the shelves in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, following the recent floods that ravaged the city.
The comprehensive mop-up operation was carried out across several key markets in Maiduguri at the Gamboru Drug and Food Market, Monday Market, Open Air-Theatre Drug Market, and Gwange Drug Market.
The operation which was directed by the agency’s Director General (DG), Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, was conducted by officials drawn from Borno, Yobe, Gombe, and the NAFDAC area laboratory that meticulously inspected and removed the compromised items.
The initiative, according to the DG, was aimed at removing drugs and food items contaminated by recent floodwaters to prevent their re-introduction into sales as part of our market control strategy, thereby preventing possible outbreaks of diseases.
The agency also provided guidelines to market vendors and the public on how to identify and handle potentially contaminated products in the future.
Furthermore, all manufacturing facilities engaged in the production of regulated products located within the flood-affected areas have been closed down to allow for GMP reassessment before production begins again.
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