Author: Safiu Kehinde

Safiu Kehinde Former Nigerian Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has called for the establishment of a Presidential panel to investigate the fuel tanker explosion which occurred yesterday along Karu bridge, Abuja. NPO Reported that the tragic incident claimed several lives with over 30 vehicles destroyed. However, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) confirmed six deaths, 25 injured, and 18 cars destroyed. Reacting in a statement on X handle, Atiku labelled the incident as unacceptable as he recalled similar incident along Otedola bridge, Lagos, when claimed four lives with over 20 others sustaining various degrees of injuries. The ex-Vice President held the…

Safiu Kehinde The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has, on Wednesday, arraigned a former Deputy Director , Highways, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, Augustine Ojo Olowoniyan, alongside a surveyor, Sulaiman Abdulkadir Muhammed of the Department of Highways and Planning over alleged N1.9 billion fraud. They are arraigned before Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court, Apo, Abuja. This was disclosed in a statement issued on the EFCC’a official X handle. According to the statement, the suspects were arraigned on a three-count charge bordering on alleged diversion and misappropriation of public funds amounting to N1.9…

Safiu Kehinde The Presidential Compressed Natural Gas (PCNG) Initiative has spoken over possible cause of the fuel tanker explosion which occurred on Wednesday evening along Karu bridge, Abuja. Speculations have emerged over the cause of the incident which had left many dead and over 30 vehicles destroyed as some claimed the tanker that exploded is a converted vehicle using CNG. This has again raised fear over the safety of the CNG. Reacting in a statement issued on Wednesday, the PCNG dismissed the speculations, stressing that preliminary investigation indicated that the accident is most likely caused by brake failure. The initiative…

Safiu Kehinde A fuel tanker explosion has, on Wednesday evening, claimed many lives along Karu Bridge near Nyanya, Abuja. The tragic incident reportedly occurred after a fully loaded fuel tanker suffered brake failure, ramming into several vehicles and igniting a massive inferno. This is coming exactly a week after a gas tanker exploded at Otedola Bridge in Lagos, claiming four lives and injuring over 20 others. According to eye witnesses, the impact was immediate,as flames engulfed the crash site. This further triggered multiple explosions that sent debris flying across the area. The tanker was carrying compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders…

Safiu Kehinde The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has allayed concern over fire incident reported at the Port Harcourt refinery. In what was described as a minor incident in a statement issued on Wednesday by its spokesperson, Femi Soneye, NNPC maintained that the Port Harcourt refinery is fully operational. The company assured the public that all sections of the recently rehabilitated plant are in full operation. “The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) wishes to clarify that despite a minor incident at a section of the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC) earlier today, the plant remains operational and…

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s President Félix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame have called for an “immediate ceasefire” in eastern DR Congo, after having direct talks in Qatar. It is the first time two leaders have met since Rwanda-backed M23 rebels stepped up an offensive in the region, where authorities say 7,000 people have been killed since January. It is unclear whether the M23 would heed the ceasefire call, after the rebels refused to attend peace talks in Angola on Tuesday. DR Congo accuses Rwanda of arming the M23 and sending troops to support the rebels in the…

The Israeli military said Wednesday that it had launched “targeted ground activities” in Gaza, partially recapturing a key area in the territory, a day after launching an aerial bombardment of the Strip that shattered the two-month-old ceasefire with Hamas. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that its troops “began targeted ground activities in the central and southern Gaza Strip in order to expand the security zone and to create a partial buffer between northern and southern Gaza.” “As part of the ground activities, the troops expanded their control further to the center of the Netzarim Corridor,” the military said. Under…

Agency Report The Nigerian Army’s 81 Division has denied claims that soldiers invaded an Eko Electric Distribution Company (EKEDC) substation in Badagry following a misunderstanding in Topo Barracks. Lt.-Col. Olabisi Ayeni, spokesman for the Division, denied the allegations in a statement issued on Wednesday in Lagos. Ayeni said the claim was made during an interview aired by Arise Television with the Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Nigeria Electricity Distributors on Tuesday. He stated the report did not reflect the true events and appeared designed to mislead the public. “During the Arise TV interview, the repeatedly aired footage depicted…

Agency Report The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa, says over 90 per cent of land in Nigeria remains unregistered. He said this has resulted to over 300 billion dollars loss due to longstanding land registration challenges. Dangiwa disclosed this on Tuesday at the National Land Registration and Documentation Programme (NLRDP), a National Workshop, organised by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development in Abuja. He said that since the inception of formal land registration in Nigeria in 1883, the processes have been conducted under a non-compulsory sporadic system. “This process was slow, cumbersome, opaque and expensive for the…

Agency Report Residents of Port Harcourt rushed to markets on Wednesday to stockpile food and other essential items following the state of emergency declaration in Rivers. President Bola Tinubu had on Tuesday suspended Gov. Siminalayi Fubara, Deputy Governor Ngozi Odu, and the state lawmakers for a six-month period, citing security concerns. A News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) visit to major markets, including Mile 1, Mile 3, and Slaughter in Port Harcourt on Wednesday, revealed a surge in patronage as residents scramble to buy essential goods. Findings indicated that many people were making large purchases in anticipation of possible restrictions and…