Senators from the Northern part of Nigeria have commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for ordering the release of minors arrested and detained during the #EndBadGovernance protests.

The lawmakers under the aegis of the Northern Senators Forum, in a statement signed by its Chairman, Abdulaziz Musa Yar’adua, on Monday, said Tinubu’s decision demonstrates his commitment to protecting the rights and well-being of Nigeria’s youth.

The lawmakers under the aegis of the Northern Senators Forum, in a statement signed by its Chairman, Abdulaziz Musa Yar’adua, on Monday, said Tinubu’s decision demonstrates his commitment to protecting the rights and well-being of Nigeria’s youth.

“By his directive to the Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi, to expedite the release process, this is a welcome development, and we appreciate the president’s leadership in addressing this critical issue.

“I would also like to acknowledge the efforts of leaders in the North who have worked tirelessly to secure the release of these minors. Their dedication and advocacy have been instrumental in bringing this matter to the forefront, and we are grateful for their commitment to the welfare of our young people.

As we move forward, I urge leaders in the North to prioritize the safety and education of our children. It is essential that we create an environment where they can grow and thrive, free from harm and exploitation. Let us work together to ensure that our youth receive the support and resources they need to become active contributors to Nigeria’s growth and development,” the statement read in part.

Tinubu directed the immediate release of all the detained minors following the outrage that trailed their arrest and arraignment over the #EndBadGovernance protests held in several parts of the country in August.

Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump have tied with three votes each in the tiny New Hampshire township of Dixville Notch, kicking off Election Day in one of the first places in the country to report its presidential preference.

The unincorporated township, located along the US-Canada border in New Hampshire’s northern tip, opened and closed its poll just after midnight ET in a tradition that dates back to 1960.

Four Republicans and two undeclared voters participated.

While Dixville Notch isn’t always predictive of the eventual winner – or even the state’s pick – its annual production, despite a dwindling population, is a success story for local leaders and a reason to smile for political junkies eager for an early taste of the day’s events.

By tradition, all eligible voters gather at the now-dormant Balsams Hotel in Dixville Notch to cast their secret ballots once polls open at midnight. Once every ballot is cast, votes are tallied and results announced – hours before anywhere else, making it a destination for national reporters, who often outnumber the voters.

Les Otten, one of the township’s voters and the lead developer for the Balsams, called the early release of the results “a civics lesson for the country,” adding that “if we can help people get out and understand that voting is an important part of their right as an American citizen, that’s perhaps the key to what we’re doing.”

Otten said he expects to break ground on the redevelopment project next summer. In the meantime, he said, “as long as we’re here and we’re property owners and we have, you know, our toothbrush in our bathrooms, we might as well exercise our right to vote.”

Nearby Millsfield and Hart’s Location, which is tucked in the White Mountains, first offered midnight voting before Dixville Notch but haven’t participated continuously and aren’t conducting it this year. A fictionalized version of the three neighbors was featured in an episode of Aaron Sorkin’s “West Wing” dubbed “Hartsfield’s Landing.”

Dixville Notch voters have supported the Democratic nominee the last two presidential elections, with the township in 2020 unanimously casting five votes for President Joe Biden and with Hillary Clinton in 2016 winning four of seven votes — two went to Trump and one to Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson.

In January, four registered Republican voters and two independents participated in the GOP primary, casting six unanimous votes for former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.

The 75-year-old Otten, who said he has been “a Republican ever since I was seven years old,” told CNN before Tuesday’s vote that he would cast his ballot for Harris.

“Nowhere in the Pledge of Allegiance does it say anything about pledging your allegiance to a person,” Otten said. “And I think at the end of the day, Trump has made it clear that you need to pledge allegiance to him, and he alone can fix this, and that is as anti-democratic as I can understand.”

The voters also cast their votes in the country’s most competitive governor’s race between former one-term Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte and Democratic nominee Joyce Craig, the former mayor of Manchester, to succeed retiring Republican Gov. Chris Sununu. (CNN, but headline altered)

A middle-aged man has reportedly lost his life in a collapsed two-storey building at the Egbelu Mgbaraja axis of Ogbogoro Community in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.

This comes barely a week after the collapse of a three-storey building at the Iriebe axis of the same LGA, although no life was lost in that incident.

A witness, Mr. Jonathan Obey, said the building under construction at Ogbogoro caved in on Monday, at about 2pm while the contractors were working on the 2nd floor, killing one of them, while another narrowly escaped with severe injuries.

He said deliberate infractions by the property developer may have caused the building to collapse.

He said: “It’s a building collapse, as we speak one person is trapped right inside the rubble, when we first came, we tried to rescue the person but we couldn’t. When we did our investigation, we found out that they used substandard materials to execute the project, we also found out that the foundation was 3ft for a 2-storey building which was wrong.

“We also found out that some of the rods used by the builders were of low quality, the decking itself was not chained, there was no center beam, it was supposed to have a center beam and a pillar at the middle but it doesn’t have that. They did not use enough cement in casting the first decking.”

Meanwhile, the Rivers State Government has sealed the premises of the collapsed building and declared the property developer, Vincent Nwoye, wanted.

The Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Evans Bipi, during an on-the-spot inspection of the collapsed building accused the developer of gross negligence and default of the extant building laws and regulations the state.

He cited failure by the property developer to obtain government-approved building plan and use of substandard materials as the cause of the building collapse and avoidable death.

Bipi said: “We have repeatedly warned that if you are caught building without government-approved building plan, you will certainly face the penalty.

“Government has sealed this property in question and declared the owner wanted because a life has been lost, we need to question him to know why he choose to use substandard materials to execute the project, on why he decided to use 12mm rod for a 2-storey building.

“It would interest the public to know that even the property does not have government approval, it is something the government will not take lightly, we will use this developer as scapegoat for others to learn.”