News Update

The Senate on Tuesday, passed the sum of N1.282,270,710,283.00 as the budget of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, for the 2024 fiscal year. The passage of the budget followed the adoption and approval of the recommendations in the harmonized report of the Senate and House of Representatives Committees on FCT on the 2024 FCT statutory Appropriation Bill at plenary.

 The House of Representatives Committee on Anti-Malaria, HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis yesterday gave the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Mohammed Ali Pate, and the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Daju Kachollom, 72 hours to appear before it. They are to explain the alleged misappropriation of $300 million meant for the funding of malaria since 2021.

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The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has warned political parties against delay tactics and acts that can overheat the polity, as well as cause unnecessary expenditures for them. He said less than six days to the close of nomination for the off-cycle governorship election in Edo State, only six political parties have so far submitted the names of their candidates for the election to the commission.

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 Senate President Godswill Akpabio has said the Senate would constitute a committee to investigate and ascertain whether the killers of the murdered military officers in Delta State were mercenaries. Speaking at plenary during a debate on the killings, Akpabio said the nation was not at war, calling for peace to be restored in the community.

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 The Senate Ad-hoc Committee probing how the N30tn Ways and Means loans were obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria and spent by the former President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration says it has uncovered some infractions in the process of obtaining the overdraft. As such, the committee said it had concluded plans to summon the current CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, to explain certain details regarding the infraction.

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 Some residents of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, and some areas in Kogi State are currently experiencing power outages due to technical glitches. On Tuesday, Abuja Electricity Distribution Company informed its customers in some parts of Abuja that a technical fault on 33kv feeder k6 from AT9 Karu Transmission Station was responsible for the power outage.

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 Operatives of the Edo State Police Command have rescued a kidnapped victim identified as Rev. Canon Tony Mukoro in the state. The victim was reportedly kidnapped by gunmen suspected to be kidnappers in the Isor community while returning home in his car. The spokesperson for the command, SP Chidi Nwabuzor, confirmed the incident.

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 Members of Edo State House of Assembly on Tuesday, directed the state’s Chief Judge, Justice Daniel Okungbowa, to set up a seven-member panel to investigate the allegations of gross misconduct and perjury, among others, levelled against Deputy Governor Philip Shaibu. Speaker of the Assembly, Blessing Agbebaku, notified the lawmakers that the seven-day ultimatum given Shaibu to respond to the impeachment notice served on him on March 6 had expired.

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 The naira on Tuesday appreciated to N1,580 per dollar in the parallel market from N1,590 per dollar on Monday. Similarly, the naira appreciated N1,560.57 per dollar in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market, NAFEM. Data from FMDQ showed that the indicative exchange rate for NAFEM fell to N1,560.57 per dollar from N1,572.86 per dollar on Monday, indicating N12.29 appreciation for the naira.

from dailypost