Breaking News in Nigeria Today 22nd December 2018

We bring you the breaking news in Nigeria today, 22 December 2018. Some of the interesting happenings include NLC and FG war on minimum wage and what makes Peter Obi sad about Nigeria.

1. Federal Government Denies Amnesty International’s Report on Nigeria is True  

The Federal Government has denied the latest report by Amnesty International that the administration has failed to bring to justice the perpetrators of herder’s attacks in the country.

The Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohamed, said at a media briefing in Abuja that the report did not take into account the strident efforts the Nigerian government had been making to checkmate killings but rather asked why AI does not condemn and document the killing, abduction and maiming of soldiers, policemen and other security personnel by insurgents but was more keen on attacking the military whenever they move to check insurgency.

However, Mohammed said that one thing Amnesty International got right in their report is the cause of the killings. Amnesty said the root cause of this conflict has nothing to do with religion or ethnicity; and that it is largely about land and access to grazing.

He also said that insurgency has reduced drastically across the nation and that didn’t happen by accident, but by a concerted and determined effort of the Buhari’s administration.

2. Saraki Describes the 2019 Budget Proposal as Hopeless

Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki, has urged Nigerians not to expect much from the 2019 Appropriation Bill, describing the budget proposal as hopeless.

 Saraki, who spoke in his capacity as the Director General of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign Council, PPCO, also declared that Nigerians were safer in 2015 than they are today. He stated this at an interactive session between the PDP presidential candidate, former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Abuja.

According to Saraki the 2019 Budget Presented by President Muhammadu Buhari has no future no hope for anybody because the statistics and the figures only show poverty. In his words, “if you look at the figures based on revenues that are coming in, there is nothing left”.

PDP vice Presidential candidate, Peter Obi, at the event lamented that 60 percent of the 2019 budget is dedicated to servicing bad debt of the APC government which he noted has surpassed what was accrued in the 16 years of the PDP government.

In his final notes, Saraki lamented the level of poverty in the country and also lambasted the President for urging Nigerians to tighten their belts, saying “Nigerian people have no belt again to tighten up”

3. Buhari Loves Ndigbo and Will Hand Over to an Igbo President in 2023- Mustapha

The ruling All Progressive Congress, APC, has restated its resolve that President Muhammadu Buhari will hand over power to an Igbo person in 2023 and urged Ndigbo to embrace the party.

Contrary to the stance of the Works and Housing Minister, Babantude Fashola that President Buhari would hand over to a Yoruba in 2023, Mr. Boss Mustapha has assured Ndigbo during the inauguration of the South East chapter of the Presidential Support Committee, PSC in Umuahia that President Buhari does not hate them and will hand over power to them in 2023.

He said that President has demonstrated love to Ndigbo by work going on in the zone and the ongoing work on the second Niger Bridge, saying that “Buhari has done a lot for Ndigbo”.

According to him, the shortest route to producing an igbo president in 2023 is by supporting and voting for APC in 2019.

4. ASUU Strike: 2019 Elections Under Threat-INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has described the lingering strike of the Academic Staff Union of Universities ASUU as a threat to the success of the 2019 general elections.

 INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Barr. Festus Okoye, informs that over 70 per cent of the ad hoc staff needed for the elections is gotten from students of federal tertiary institutions.

In his word, “the lingering strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, will no doubt have serious impact on the preparations for the conduct of the 2019 elections”.

He further quipped that it is important that students of federal tertiary institutions should and must be in school at least a month before the February 16 Presidential and National Assembly elections to ensure a hitch free general elections in 2019. 

5. Number of Unemployed Nigerians Increase by 3.3m— NBS

 The number of unemployed Nigerians rose by 3.3 million to 20.9 million in the third quarter of 2018, a report from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has shown.

According to the NBS , Unemployment rose by 3.3 million or 19 percent to 20.9 million in the third quarter of 2018 from 17.6 million in third quarter of 2017, while on quarterly basis, it rose by three percent from 20.3 million in second quarter of 2018.

The report also showed that unemployed and under-employed female population far outnumbered that of the male counterpart. As expected, the rate of job losses in the rural areas also far exceeded that of the urban centers with the rate of unemployment in the rural center increasing by 7.5 percent, while the rate  unemployment in the urban center decreased by 2.2 percent.

6. Atiku’s Statement, an Act of Desperation – Lai Mohammed

 The Federal Government has described the PDP Presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar statement that “killings will continue if President Muhammadu Buhari is re-elected’’ as an “act of desperation’’.

The minister said that Atiku is desperate due to his floundering campaign and admonished the former Vice President to stop bad politicking and politicising killings.

Lai Mohammed also said that it was clear to all Nigerians that the electioneering campaign of the PDP presidential candidate has failed to gain traction. “From Sokoto to Ilorin to Ibadan to Gombe. According to him, “it has been a disastrous outing for the campaign.”

7. Pregnant Lady Slumps and Dies at Lagos BRT Terminal

A pregnant lady said to be in her early twenties was reported to have slumped and died at a BRT terminal in Lagos. The pregnant lady, who slumped and died, was trying to catch a bus at the Mile 12 BRT terminal before the sad incident occurred.

Eyewitnesses disclosed that she died before she could get medical help. A similar incident occurred few years ago. It was reported that a young girl slumped and died at the BRT terminus in Obalende, just as she was about to pay for ticket to board a bus to Ajah.

Immediately she slumped, passengers with the assistance of BRT staff rushed her to the First Consultant Hospital behind the bus terminus where she reportedly gave up the ghost after the medical team at the hospital tried all they could to revive her.

Is something wrong with Lagos BRT terminals?

8. How Media Saved Me From Detention- Edo Deputy Governor

EDO State deputy governor, Comrade Philip Shaibu said but for the press who exposed his detention in Gasua prison by the military junta of late General Sani Abacha, he could have been a dead man.

 Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu Shaibu stated this in his residence yesterday when he hosted journalists to his annual Christmas breakfast meeting. “We were arrested in Yaba, Lagos and we found ourselves in Gasua prison in far away Zamfara State.

The federal government then later said all detainees have been released, it was a journalist who wrote that some of us were still being held that made the public know this. I owe my survival to the media and I will ever remain grateful to the media.”

 Shaibu thanked media practitioners in the state for supporting and promoting the administration of Governor Godwin Obaseki whose quest is to deliver on its electioneering campaign promises to the citizens of the state. He charged Nigerians to take advantage of the festive season to show kindness to others with the view of promoting unity in the country and attracting God’s blessings.

9. NLC Issues December 31 Deadline To Fg on Minimum Wage

 The organised labour has given the Federal Government up to December 31 to send the tripartite committee report on N30,000 minimum wage to the National Assembly following a decision that was taken at a joint meeting of three labour centres—the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the United Labour Congress (ULC).

Labour said the ultimatum followed President Buhari’s statement that a “high powered technical committee” would be set up to device ways of ensuring that the implementation of the new wage did not lead to increased level of borrowing by his administration.

NLC President, Ayuba Wabba, who addressed newsmen after the meeting, said that setting up a technical committee could not be a condition for passing the minimum wage report to the National Assembly. According to Wabba, the organised labour cannot guarantee industrial peace and harmony in the country if the wage report was not passed for implementation on or before December 31.

The NLC President, Ayuba Wabba said they reject in its entirety the plan to set up another `high powered technical committee’ on the minimum wage. According to him, “It is diversionary and a delay tactics”.

10. 2019 presidency: What Makes Me Sad – Peter Obi

The Vice Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Peter Obi has revealed what makes him sad about Nigeria.

Obi said that the recent report of over 87 million Nigerians being out of job was a sad one. He noted that the rate of unemployment in the country would reduce if certain areas were given adequate support.

According to him, if the right approach is not taken, we can have 15 million rice farmers and rice will still be expensive in the country.“The more people that get into rice production, the more rice we produce and the more the price of rice goes up. “It shows that there is disconnect. If we have 10 million rice farmers, the price of rice should have been coming down. “If they are getting it right, the number would have been reducing, the whole approach or economic architecture is wrong.

According to him, the overall unemployment and underemployment rate in 2014 was 24 per cent but now it is 40 per cent. He called on the Federal Government to take drastic measures to reduce the rate of unemployment in the country.

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