News
Emergency rule: Ibas seeks more time to brief Reps on ‘situation’ in Rivers
Sole Administrator Ibok-Ete Ibas has requested more time from the House of Representatives Ad hoc Committee on Rivers State to properly brief the lawmakers on developments in the state.
Ibas made the request at a meeting with the committee in Abuja on Friday. He had earlier failed to appear before the committee on April 17 and 24.
He expressed regret over his failure to honour previous invitations by the committee.
Ibas held a closed-door meeting with members of the ad hoc committee on Rivers State on Friday.
The committee called the meeting as part of efforts to take over legislative duties in Rivers State.
The declaration of emergency rule in Rivers State had to the suspension of the legislature, Governor Sim Fubara and his deputy.
Speaking at the meeting with the committee, Ibas said: “I have always held the National Assembly in the highest regard.
I recognise the importance of your oversight responsibilities and your interest in the progress being made in Rivers, which is presently relatively calm, but still fragile.
“I remain fully committed to cooperating with the committee and to ensuring that all relevant information is made available in due course to support your important work.
“I only request the understanding and the indulgence of this committee to grant me additional time to adequately prepare and present a comprehensive and constructive briefing, given the complexities and sensitivities surrounding the current transitional period in Rivers.
“It is important that any engagement with this committee is done with the depth, accuracy, and clarity it rightfully deserves.
“I remain fully committed to cooperating with the committee and to ensuring that all relevant information is made available in due course to support your important work.”
Finnish prosecutors on Friday said they had charged a man with inciting terrorism online who a media report identified as Nigerian separatist leader Simon Ekpa.
According to the prosecution authority, the accused remained in custody and denied the charges.
AFP reports that Finland’s National Prosecution Authority said in a statement that it had charged “a Finnish individual in a case involving suspected public incitement to commit crimes with terrorist intent and participation in the activities of a terrorist group.”
It added that the alleged crimes had been committed in the city of Lahti between 2021 and 2024 and were related to the suspect’s efforts to establish Nigeria’s Biafra region as an independent state.
The prosecution authority did not name the accused but Finnish public broadcaster YLE identified him as separatist leader Simon Ekpa.Ekpa — who claims to lead the Biafra Republic’s government in exile — was detained in November.
According to the prosecution authority, the accused remained in custody and denied the charges.
News
Tinubu to attend Pope Leo XIV’s inauguration May 18
The inauguration marks the formal beginning of the Pontificate of Pope Leo XIV, the 267th Bishop of Rome.”
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will depart Abuja on Saturday for Rome, Italy, to attend the inauguration of Pope Leo XIV as the new head of the Roman Catholic Church.
The President will be accompanied by a delegation that includes the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu; Archbishop Lucius Ugorji, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria; Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja; Archbishop Alfred Martins of Lagos; and Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of the Sokoto Diocese.
Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, confirmed in a statement via X.
‘Tinubu is travelling at the invitation of the Vatican and will lead Nigeria’s delegation to the solemn installation mass scheduled for Sunday, May 18, at St. Peter’s Square.
The inauguration marks the formal beginning of the Pontificate of Pope Leo XIV, the 267th Bishop of Rome.”
A fire broke out on Thursday at the General Hospital in Ifako-Ijaiye, Lagos, engulfing parts of the three-storey building and causing panic among residents and patients.
Videos from the scene showed thick smoke pouring from the hospital building as onlookers gathered in distress. Firefighters later arrived to battle the blaze.
An eyewitness, Modinat Melemuku, who shared footage of the incident on Facebook, called for urgent help.
She said: “Happening now at General Hospital Ifako-Ijaiye, College Road. Please repost.
Help is needed,” she wrote.
An eyewitness also told reporters the fire began in one part of the hospital before spreading to other sections.
“The fire then spread to the prenatal and postnatal rooms, after which it affected the pediatric ward,” the eyewitness said.
There were concerns that nursing mothers and infants might have been trapped inside, although no casualties were confirmed as of the time of filing this report.
Emergency responders were still on the ground trying to bring the situation under control.
Pat Utomi replies DSS on Shadow govt
Simon Ekpa denies terrorism charges in Nigeria and Finland
JUST IN: Former Cameroon Football Legend Emmanuel Kunde Dies In His Sleep At 68
Tech Expert, Zuckerberg trains with UFC champions, Adesanya, Alexander
Organ Trafficking: Ekweremadu bags 10 years in UK prison
SAINT OBI: Between his marriage and his death
-
News2 days agoUTME 2025: Candidates scheduled for resit will get text messages from today
-
News2 days agoTension in Ogun, Lagos over alleged ‘deadly rice’ in circulation
-
News2 days agoJUST IN: Lagos govt bans night construction
-
Crime2 days agoBREAKING: Ondo APC chairman’s abductors kidnap ransom bearers, make fresh demand
-
News2 days agoFormer South Africa Rugby winger Hendricks dies at 37
-
International2 days agoGlobal Oil Market Report – May 2025 by IEA
-
News3 days ago
BREAKING: JAMB Registrar breaks into tears, apologises for UTME errors
-
Business2 days agoBREAKING: Goodnews, as Nigeria’s inflation rate nosedives to 23.7%