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Second Niger Bridge To Cost N414 Billion Says Fashola |The Source

By
Uche Mbah
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second niger bridge

By Uche Mbah

The Minister of Works, Babatunde Fashola, has said that the second Niger Bridge will cost the Federal Government N414 billion to execute. Besides, it is estimated to gulp 68 tonnes of cement, 19 liters of diesel and four million cubic tonnes of sand.

In a town hall meeting with stakeholders in Awka, the Anambra state capital, Fashola lamented the menace of agitations by host communities, a move he claims is hampering the completion of the project.

The second Niger bridge has been subject to political controversy since the last administration of President Goodluck Jonathan, when the contract was awarded to the German construction giant, Julius Berger. Berger started the work under Jonathan, but the work was stalled since the inception of the Muhammadu Buhari administration while being enmeshed in controversies.

Part of the allegations was that the local people were demanding exorbitant compensation for damages on their land in the execution of the project.

But Fashola has asked the indigenous people to think of the economic benefit of the completed bridge to the zone, while he lamented that some grounds have been lost due to the agitations of the native people.

According to him, while the total cost of the bridge is estimated at N414 billion, the bridge on its own will gulp N206 billion, while N28 billion will be used to build ancillary link roads to the bridge.

Besides, all materials for the construction of the bridge will be sourced locally, which will result in economic empowerment for the host communities. This will involve the people of both Delta and Anambra state.

“Let me speak to what this project will do, what it is doing, and what it will be delivering. In order to complete this project, this company will be needing 644 aggregates. The contractors won’t import these; they will be buying them from here.

“They will need four million cubic tonnes of sand; 68,000 tonnes of cement and 21,000 tonnes of re-enforcement,” he said, adding that Julius Berger  “will need 19m liters of diesel which will be supplied by contractors as it does not produce diesel while 1400 indigenous workers will be employed to work on the bridge.”

He noted that from the start of the project the price of land has appreciated.

Recession: SERAP Gives Buhari 14 Days Ultimatum To Cut Down Cost Of Governance |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
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By Akinwale Kasali

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has launched another attack on President Muhammadu Buhari, following the disclosure that the nation has plunged into recession, giving him a-14 day ultimatum to cut down the cost of governance in Nigeria.

Nigeria has once again slumped into recession, the second in five years, and the worst in decades.

Reacting to this, SERAP, has called on Buhari to put the country’s resources at the service of the masses to enable them enjoy a good standard of living.

A letter dated 21 November, 2020, signed by SERAP’s Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadare, said the economic crisis provides an opportunity to prioritise access of poor and vulnerable Nigerians to basic socio-economic rights, and to genuinely recommit to the fight against corruption.

It stressed that the nation cannot afford getting back to business as usual, and urged the implementation of transparency and accountability, measures that would save money, address projected adverse human rights impacts of the recession, and fast-track the economic recovery process.

SERAP said it is not too late to take urgent steps that would put the country’s wealth and resources to work for the common good of all Nigerians.

The body decried that decades of mismanagement and corruption, and deep-seated deficiencies in public financial management have directly contributed to higher levels of borrowing and public debts, and consequently, the economic recession.

It lamented that successive governments had squandered the promise afforded by the country’s natural wealth and resources.

The letter read in part: “The paltry resources Nigeria invests in essential public goods and services that would benefit ordinary Nigerians can be partly explained by the high spending of public funds to finance a life of luxury for members of the National Assembly, state governors, and other powerful politicians.

“The country’s resources appear to have been used almost exclusively for the benefit of the political elites rather than on projects that would ensure the right to an adequate standard of living, the maximum welfare, prosperity, freedom and happiness of every citizen on the basis of social justice and equality.

“SERAP is seriously concerned about the adverse consequences of the economic crisis on the human rights of poor and vulnerable Nigerians, including denying them access to essential public goods and services such as healthcare, education, clean water, and regular electricity supply.”

The organization urged Buhari to commence moves to cut spendings on government officials.

Cybercrime: US Court Prosecuting Two Nigerians |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
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Cybercrime

By Akinwale Kasali

A few criminally-minded Nigerians have further dented Nigeria’s image following their fraudulent activities on the internet.

A Boston Court in the United States of America is set to jail two Nigerians,  Nosayamen Iyalekhue and Esogie Osawaru for Internet Frauds.

Both Iyalekhue and Osawaru have pleaded guilty for defrauding victims using various internet fraud during the COVID-19 pandemic.

While Osawaru pleaded guilty on November  12, Iyalekhue, 33, pleaded guilty to a one count charge of wire fraud on Thursday.

U.S. Senior District Court, Judge Rya W. Zobel in Boston, Massachusetts, has scheduled sentencing for March 4, 2021.

Iyalekhue, a former Teller at TD Bank in Norwood, Massachusetts from 2018-2019, was arrested in June 2020 along with 27-year-old Osawaru.

Iyalekhue and Osawaru participated, from 2016, in a series of romance, pandemic unemployment insurance, and other online scams designed to defraud victims by convincing them to send money to accounts controlled by them.

They were caught when they started having unemployment benefits deposited into their accounts in May 2020.

To carry out the scams, the defendants used false foreign passports in the names of others, but with their photos, to open numerous bank accounts and, in turn, directed the victims to send money to these accounts.

Iyalekhue and Osawaru then rapidly withdrew the victims’ money from various bank branches and ATMs, often multiple times during a single day.

The schemes included collecting unemployment insurance in the name of others during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The charging statute provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater, and forfeiture.

The defendant is also subject to deportation proceedings.

Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.

United States Attorney, Andrew E. Lelling, and Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division made the announcement.

Assistant U.S. Attorney, Sara Miron Bloom of Lelling’s Securities, Financial and Cyber Fraud Unit is prosecuting the case.

Both Iyalekhue and Osawaru risk a 20 Year jail term, each.

Tension In Ekiti As Police Escort Shoots Two, Kills One |The Source

By
Ayodele Oni
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Victim of Police Gun Shot

By Ayodele Oni

Two young men, who were relaxing at a hotel in Ado Ekiti, Saturday night, were shot at, leaving one dead, and other on danger list.

The tragic  incident which happened at Queens Court, along Ikere/Ado Ekiti road was, allegedly carried out by a police escort on the entourage of an Assistant Inspector General of Police, (AIG).

No reason has been adduced for the action of the trigger-happy police escort as efforts are being made to save the life of the second victim who is now on  danger list at a private hospital in Ado Ekiti

The two victims were reportedly conveyed by the policeman in the Hilux vehicle to the hospital, before he eloped, leaving behind the vehicle.

Sources disclosed that the policeman may not likely be attached to Ekiti state Police Command, going by the explanation of the command’s spokesman, ASP Sunday Abutu.

Abutu, who confirmed the incident,  said that he has been arrested and is under interrogation and will face necessary disciplinary action.

Kidnapped APC Nasarawa State Chairman, Shekwor, Killed |The Source

By
Adesina Soyooye
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Kidnappers
Kidnappers

By Adesina Soyooye

Tragedy, Sunday morning, struck Nasarawa State, and the All Progressives Congress family in particular.

Philip Shekwor, the APC State Chairman, has been killed.

Shekwor was abducted Saturday night from his residence along Dunamis Church, Bukan Sadi, Lafia, the State Capital.

He was found dead Sunday morning.

No statement has been issued either by his family, the party, or the Police.

Details later.

Meet Dr Ogbuagu, Nigerian, Behind The Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine |The Source

By
Adesina Soyooye
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Dr Onyema Ogbuagu

By Adesina Soyooye

A Nigerian Medical Doctor is at the core of developing the Pfizer Vaccine, said to have over 90 per cent efficacy for COVID-19.

He is Dr. Onyema Ogbuagu who studied Medicine at the University of Calabar, before proceeding to Yale.

From Abia State, South-east, Nigeria, his father is Prof. Chibuzor Ogbuagu, a former Vice Chancellor of Abia State University, as well as a former Secretary to the Abia State Government.

Dr Ogbuagu  is one of the twins born to his parents in New Heaven, Connecticut,  when they went to do tbeir Doctoral programs at Yale.

On their return to Nigeria, Onyema studied Medicine at the University of Calabar before going to Yale for specialist courses.

An Associate Professor of Medicine in the Clinical Educator Track, he is an  Infectious Disease Specialist, Yale, New Heaven.

Pfizer announced a few days ago its heart-warming news – development of COVID-19 Vaccine – which has brought both relief and joy to a world ravaged by the pandemic.

Fayose Meets With Ajayi, Ondo Deputy Governor |The Source

By
Ayodele Oni
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Ayodele Fayose and Agboola Ajayi

By Ayodele Oni

Ondo state Deputy  Governor, Mr Agboola Ajayi, received a brotherly advice from former Governor of Ekiti State,  Ayodele Fayose, at the weekend during his visit to Fayose’s Ekiti country home.

Fayose, still savouring the joy of his 60th birthday, told the embattled Deputy Governor to return to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

Ajayi, whose tenure as a Deputy  Governor  terminates in February next year, contested the October 10 Governorship election in Ondo state and came a distance third. He ran under the banner of the ZLP.

He had dumped the All Progressives Congress, (APC), a party that made him deputy to Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, joined the PDP which he left, after losing the Governorship primary to Mr Eyitayo Jegede, and teamed up with ZLP.

With his unimpressive outing at the election, there is a cloud over his future as regards the politics of Ondo state as his current ZLP has no national spread.

But former Governor Fayose has decided to chart a future for Ajayi as he advised that “it is important for him (Agboola Ajayi) to put the past behind,  return to PDP, and join hands with other leaders in the State to rebuild the party.”

Describing Ajayi as a force to be reckoned with in the politics of Ondo State, Fayose added that he would thrive better politically in a mainstream and liberal political party like the PDP.

“What I can tell you like a brother is that the past should be put behind you and the future should be focused on realistically.

“The best option before you now is to return to the PDP and I am encouraging you to give it a consideration because you need the party and the party too needs a strong political character like you,” Fayose said.

Responding,  the Deputy  Governor  commended Fayose for his credible leadership in the Southwest and the country as a whole.

He described Fayose as a clear-minded personality, who will say his mind not minding whose ox is gored.

“I have come to Afao Ekiti at this hour of the day to wish a friend, brother and leader a happy birthday at 60.

“Fayose is one person I have great respect for and I will continue to relate with him because he is not someone who will not tell you A when he means B. His yes is yes and when he says no, he means no,” Ajayi said.

Defection: Why S.East APC Leaders Shunned Umahi |The Source

By
The Source
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Dave Umahi defection to APC

By Charles Igbo

If the absence of South East APC bigwigs at the official defection by Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi, from the PDP to the APC is anything to go by, Umahi is not only walking a lonely path, but a rough path.

He may not be as welcome as he thinks into his new party. He may be alone, planning alone.

Proof: On the day he was welcomed into the party by the National body, Umahi was embarrassed by the absence of APC Leaders and high profile members from the Zone. Ordinarily, all of them would have been there.

Expected to have led the pack of the welcome party were Senator Orji Uzor Kalu and Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma.

Kalu is the Chief Whip of the  APC in the Senate. In that position, he is the highest elected member of the APC from the Zone. But he shunned Umahi’s  official entry into the party.

Until Umahi, inexplicably, joined the APC, Uzodinma was the only APC Governor in the zone. So, ordinarily, one had expected him to be in Abakiliki to welcome Umahi. Indeed, Uzodinma had, a couple of days earlier,  seemed happy over the development. He had told Journalists, after a closed door meeting he had with the party leadership in Abuja, that Umahi was defecting, and would be followed by others. He said he would be on hand to welcome Umahi to the party.

But, surprisingly, on Thursday, when Umahi decamped, Uzodinma was conspicuously absent.

Another very conspicuous absence was the cerebral Minister for Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu. Onu is a founding member of the APC, and serving his second term as Buhari’s Minister. Both Onu and Umahi are from the same state. So, he ought to have been happy that the APC has become the ruling party in his state, no longer an opposition party.  But he pointedly shunned Umahi’s “welcome party”

And there are many more.

Senator Rochas Okorocha.

Senator Osita Izunaso, and all the who is who in the South-east.

In deed, the Speaker of the Ebonyi House of Assembly, Hon. Francis Nwaituru was, also, absent, along with most members of the House  of Assembly. Their absence put a lie to Umahi’s claim that he was moving with everybody, almost, and that Ebonyi had become 99 per cent APC.

No member of the National Assembly joined him. They told him he was on his own.

The only APC leader from the South-east who was present was former Senate President, Ken Nnamani, and that’s because, Nnamani is a member of the National Caretaker Committee of the Party, headed by Kebbi State Governor. The Committee were in Abakiliki to welcome  him.

So, why were the South-East Leaders absent?

This magazine can tell you, for free, that most of them are not  comfortable with Umahi’s presence in the party. They may patch-up later, but it will remain what it is: patch-patch relationship.

The magazine gathered that what they see in Umahi, they  don’t like. They are suspicious of him, and of his agenda. His claim that his defection to the APC will mark a positive turn-around for the party, stung them like a bee. Said one of them who pleaded anonymity, “It is like we are doing no work for the party. He is the one now coming to do it.”

Another, from Ebonyi, told The Source that there will be a run in the party. “Umahi is authoritarian. He is dictatorial. Some of us cannot cope with his style. Mark my word, his entrance will trigger a run in the party.”  Already, the State APC Publicity Secretary has quit the party. He said he could not work with the Governor.

Many expect that his former boss, Martin Ekechi, whose Deputy Governor he was, but  who he, allegedly,  pushed out of the PDP, and who, thereafter, defected to the APC, could be on his way back to the PDP.

Most important, however, is that the Leaders of the APC in the State insist Umahi is coming to eat where he did not sow. “We built the party, he comes in, and wants the lion share,” an angry party leader told The Source.

In deed, the impression that Governor Umahi wants to eat where he did not sow is the crux of the matter.

According to the APC constitution, the Governor is the leader of the party. Meaning, that he has pushed  others behind. He has become their leader.

But the main crux is 2023.

Even though Umahi said he would quit politics in 2023, they neither took his word seriously, nor trust him. They believe he has an interest in either the Presidency or the Vice Presidency in 2023.

They have their reason.

Umahi has never hidden his interest in any of the two offices. In 2015, when the PDP Presidential candidate, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar chose Peter Obi, former Governor of Anambra State, as his running mate, Umahi was livid with anger. He hit the roof. Not a few people believed he wanted that position. They also believe he worked against  the ticket. And they believe that if he had succeeded in stampeding the PDP into agreeing that  the party would zone the Presidency to the South-east, as he tried to do, perhaps, he would have stayed back in the PDP, and decamped at the last minute  if he was denied the ticket.

APC  Leaders in the South are positive Umahi has an eye on the Presidency or Vice Presidency. A few of them, including former Governors, now Senators Orji Kalu and Rochas Okorocha are interested in those offices if, and when, the APC zones any of them to the South-east. They have a strong feeling that he must  have got, perhaps, a firm promise from President Muhammadu Buhari, who Umahi, has for years, been giving maximum support, before he defected. Even though Okorocha says, Umahi’s entry into APC does nothing to his ambition, he is ready to battle him.

That, a number of them feel, is the reason why Umahi, allegedly, did not bother to carry them along, fully, before he decamped.

They are waiting for him as 2023 gradually, but surely, draws near.

63rd Birthday: Jonathan Thanks Governors, Aides, Others For Honouring Him |The Source

By
The Source
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Governors Visit Jonathan

Nigerians from different walks of life visited former President Dr. Goodluck Jonathan on Friday in his Abuja residence to honour him on the occasion of his 63rd birthday.

The guests which included his former aides as well as serving and former Governors from both the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) prayed for him and thanked him for the good things he has continued to do to promote peace and the image of the country since leaving office.

One of them who spoke, former Governor of Gombe State Ibrahim Dankwambo, described Jonathan as a boss of inestimable value and a huge asset to Nigeria.

While responding to the goodwill messages Jonathan thanked the visitors for honouring him and commended his wife and other family members for organising the private get-together and for their prayers on his birthday.

He said: “This (Friday) morning, I came down at about 6:00 am and saw people already seated and waiting to pray for me to mark the day.

“That means that those people must have woken up from their houses before 5:30 am to be able to get to my house that early.

“And since that time up until this (Friday) evening, we have been receiving visitors.

“I want to sincerely thank my wife who has put this together and thank all for coming here without any announcement in the newspapers or any form of text messages to invite guests.” President Jonathan said.

Earlier, former First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan presented to her husband a customized card she made for the occasion.

Reading from the big card, she said, “My husband, my hero, my king, the father of my children. I thank almighty God for choosing you to be my life partner.

“Not only are you the most loving husband a woman could ever wish for, but you are also my best friend.

“On this special birthday, I want to tell you how much I appreciate you in my life, it has been a blessing making this life journey with you.

“If I have to do it again my love, I would choose you to be my husband over and over, You are the best.

“To ,me, you mean the whole world and I love you more than words could ever express. May God bless you always, Happy Birthday.”

The numerous guests who visited Jonathan to felicitate with him included Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed, Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, Kebbi State Governor, Atiku Bagudu, Jigawa State Governor, Abubakar  Badaru, the Ebonyi State Governor,  Dave Umahi and former Governor of Gombe State Ibrahim Dankwambo.

The event was also graced by former Senate President Ken Nnamani as well as many former Ministers, including the Former Minister of State  for Culture and Tourism, Dr. Idi Hong; Former Minister for Health who supervised the fight against of Ebola in Nigeria, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, Former Minister of State for Solid Minerals as well as the former Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke.

Others included his former chief of staff Chief Mike Ogiadhome, former Executive Secretary of the Christian Pilgrims Welfare Board, Mr. John Kennedy Opara and the  former political adviser to the President, Alhaji Ahmed Gulak.

Enyeama Pleads With Uzor Kalu To Invest In Enyimba, Instead Of Arsenal |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
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Vincent Enyeama

By Akinwale Kasali

Former Super Eagles Goalkeeper and Captain, Vincent Enyeama has urged Senator Orji Uzor Kalu to re-channel his proposed investment of 35 Percent shares in Arsenal Football Club of England to Nigerian Professional Football League Club Side, Enyimba International Football Club of Aba.

The former Lille Metropole Football Club of France, who played Enyimba FC, winning Two Domestic League and the CAF Champions League, wants the Senator representing Abia North Senatorial Constituency to invest in the Abia State Club.

Kalu had announced his intention to become a major shareholder of the Gunners and help provide the funds that would see the Londoners become Premier League and UEFA Champions League winners.

The former Abia State Governor was the governor when Enyimba International of Aba won back-to-back Nigeria Premier Football League and CAF Champions League titles earlier 2000s.

The billionaire is looking to repeat that incredible feat with Arsenal Football Club.

But Enyeama, arguably Nigeria’s greatest goalkeeper in history, wants Kalu to direct his attention to his State’s beloved club, Enyimba, and turn it into Nigeria’s first-ever mega club.

“Why not invest that money in Enyimba and turn it into a mega-club,” the former Enyimba stalwart wrote on Twitter.

“A club that will bring in a lot of sponsors and create job opportunities for the youths.

“Nigeria has no mega-club side that we can boast of.

“(But) what do I know?”

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