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By Johnson Nwankwo The Abia State government says there was no security operative killed during a gun battle with unidentified gunmen in Aba on Monday. Prince Okey Kanu, the commissioner for information, stated this during a press conference after the State Executive Council meeting at the Government House in Umuahia. He said armed criminals in three vehicles had confronted police operatives at Umuode Tonimas junction in Osisioma Ngwa LGAs, adding that police operatives killed one of the assailants while others escaped with injuries. Quoting him, "In the ensuing gunfight, the criminals were overwhelmed by the superior gun power of the…

By Hadiza Suleman The federal government has suspended import duties and taxes on essential food items to make basic necessities more affordable for Nigerians. The measure is also to address the prevalent issue of hunger in the nation. The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Bashir Adeniyi, announced this Monday evening. He acknowledged the widespread economic challenges and outlined the government’s commitment to easing the financial burden on its citizens. According to him, global inflation is impacting nations worldwide, including Nigeria, adding that to address this, the federal government, through the Nigeria Customs Service, is suspending import duties and…

The Nigerian Communications Commission has ordered telecommunications network operators to reactivate GSM lines affected by the ongoing verification of National Identification Numbers with the Subscriber Identification Modules (SIMs). Over the weekend many telecom subscribers/consumers were unable to access their phone lines because of the inability of many telecom consumers to verify their National Identification Numbers (NINs) with their Subscriber Identification Modules (SIMs). This meant that their numbers were blocked by their telecom service providers in keeping with laws and policies of the NIN-SIM linkage. This order is contained in a statement issued on Monday by the Commission's Director of Public…

By JACOB OKPANACHI The Labour Party (LP) and its presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, Mr. Peter Gregory Obi have disagreed on the departure of Kenneth Okonkwo from the party.  The former governor took exception to the negative statements against the actor and former spokesperson to LP presidential campaign organisation who announced his exit from the party on Saturday. In a post on his X handle on Saturday, Kenneth Okonkwo said he decided to leave the LP because the party failed to inspire the brand of leadership that can solve Nigeria’s challenges. He also accused Obi of failing to…

By Hadiza Suleman A former minister of petroleum (state), Chief Timipre Sylva, has urged youths across the country, especially those from Bayelsa State and Niger Delta, to shun the planned August 1 hardship protest. Sylva, a former Bayelsa State governor, stated this in a message at the weekend. In the message, entitled: “Dear Bayelsans, Proud Niger Deltans and Great Nigerians”, Sylva said, "The planned protest should be shelved. No problem has been solved by protests and agitation. Only constructive engagement solves problems. The anonymous organisers have reiterated that the protest is primarily about ending biting hunger. “While we know that…

By Jonathan Okpanachi The outburst of Mr Kenneth Okonkwo, former spokesman of the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, on Mr Peter Obi 'is unfortunate'. Obi was the presidential candidate of LP during the 2023 general elections, when Okonkwo served as the spokesman. Okonkwo had made news headlines after resigning from LP a few days ago, describing Obi as lacking the capacity to protect the mandate given to him by Nigerian voters. In response, LP, through its national publicity secretary, Mr Obiora Ifoh, said more moles within the party would be exposed and 'fumigated out'. Obiora stated that, "Kenneth Okonkwo's resignation…