Gunmen Release three Hostages

Breaking: Gunmen Release three Abuja - Kaduna Train Hostages 

ZAINAB JUNAID 

Terrorists have released another three victims of the hostages held captive from the attacked Abuja-Kaduna train on March 28. 

The victims, who are two males and a female, got their freedom around 11 am on Monday, and this makes the total victims released so far add up to 22 from the 62 earlier captured, while the number still in their captivity remains at 40. 

This development followed a protest held on Monday morning by family members of the remaining kidnapped passengers at the headquarters of the Federal Ministry of Transportation, Abuja, calling on the government to help rescue their loved ones, who have spent 117 days in captivity. 

However, the terrorists over the weekend were seen in a viral video on social media, ill treating the hostages by flogging them with sticks and threatening to abduct President Muhammad Buhari as well as Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir El- Rufai. 

In the eleven-minute video released, the victims were seen appealing to the international community such as the United Nations, African Union and Saudi Arabia to come to their aid since according to them, the Nigerian government has failed to rescue them from the hands of the terrorists.

Meanwhile, the presidency had on Sunday reacted to their video threat hours after, challenging the insurgents of using propaganda to compel the government to yield to their demands.

In a statement, the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to President Muhammad Buhari Garba Shehu, said security forces are not helpless in controlling the high rate of insecurity confronting the country.

As Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Garba Shehu said President Muhammadu Buhari has been supporting security agencies by boosting their morale and providing the needed equipment.

He said, “The Presidency, in the meantime wishes to reassure the public that the President has done all, and even more than what is expected of him as Commander-in-Chief by way of morale, material and equipment support to the military and expects nothing short of good results in the immediate.”

Toll gate on Lagos Ibadan Road

 FG will return Toll Gates to Lagos-Ibadan Express way- Fashola

ZAINAB JUNAID

The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has said the Federal Government will return toll gates to the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway after the highway is rehabilitated.

 

Fashola disclosed this on Sunday saying three toll gates should be expected on the highway after all works on the expressway have been completed by December 2022.

Fashola said a toll gate is expected in the Lagos, Ogun (Ogere) and Ibadan axis of the expressway when completed.

 

The minister further revealed that government planned to finish the Second Niger Bridge project in the South-Eastern part of the country before Christmas.

 

According to him, Amidst various challenges facing the Second Niger project, the current administration plans to open the bridge before Christmas. We are working towards this period because there is always mass movement of people. 

“Hopefully, by Christmas, it will be opened. That was the last meeting I had with the contractor about three weeks ago.”

NSC Remains Port Regulator

Nigerian Shippers' Council Remains Port Economic Regulator - Transport Minister

ZAINAB JUNAID

The Minister of Transportation, Alhaji Mu’azu Jaji Sambo has said that the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) remain the economic regulator of the Nigerian port industry.

Alhaji Sambo who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Transportation, Mrs Magdalene Ajayi, said this at a sensitization forum jointly organized recently by the Ministry and Nigerian Shippers Council. The theme of the event was "Promoting Competitiveness in the Maritime Industry: The Mandate of Nigerian Shippers Council." 

He reiterated that the position of the Federal Government remains that the NSC should be the economic regulator of the port industry and thus enjoined industry stakeholders to cooperate with the council and get acquainted to their supervisory role. 

Recalling how the council was appointed interim port economic regulator in February 14, 2014, with the appointment made substantial in 2015 to effectively regulate tariffs, rates, and other related services as well as monitor all matters relating to the cost, standard and quality of services rendered by the regulated service providers, and also to bring sanity to the port, the Minister maintained that Nigerian Shippers Council remains the economic regulator while the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) is the technical and supervisory regulator.

The minister declared that the two agencies are working within the Nigerian port system for the betterment of the industry and advised those in court to embrace the regulatory roles of the two government agencies. 

"This position should be retained pending the time the National Transport Commission would come into being to regulate the transport industry," he said. 

Meanwhile in his analysis, Prof. Bongo Adi, a Professor of Development Economics and Data Analytics, Lagos Business School, who was the guest speaker at the event, opines that though NSC was appointed the port economic regulator in 2014 to promote competitiveness and compliance in the maritime sector, the port industry has remained naturally monopolistic as it was since entrance to the industry is not open. The council needs to enhance competitiveness that will buoy the nation’s export taking cognisance of the fact that the Nigeria's monetary policy has become sterile. 

His words, "The Council was appointed the regulator almost a decade after ports were concessioned. This was a challenge as it became a regulator that took no part in the concession exercise. NSC’s late appointment make them an agency leading from behind to enforce competitiveness. We know the port industry is naturally monopolistic because entrance into the industry is not open, the fact that the most important sector of the economy is the foreign sector where the country interacts with the rest of the world through imports and export, should prompt NSC to focus more on promoting competitiveness that will buoy the nation’s export, knowing fully that Nigeria’s monetary policy has become sterile."

Bongo declared that the only thing that can save Nigeria is export which must come in form of diversification, but warned against relying on agricultural produce which he labeled as inferior goods.

"Agriculture should not be the priority except for the purpose of export." 

However, in his welcome address, the Executive Secretary of the Shippers Council, Rt. Hon. Emmanuel Jime buttress the fact that the ports need to be made competitive to guard against monopoly, in which the council was appointed port regulator for. 

He thus expressed appreciation to the Federal Ministry of Transportation and other industry agencies for their support in  the successful discharge of the council duties as economic regulator. 

Customs Generate #274. 32 Billion

Customs Generate #274. 32bn Revenue in Six Months at TinCan Port

ZAINAB JUNAID

TinCan Island Port Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has recorded the sum of #274. 321 billion revenue in the first six months of the fiscal year 2022. An increase of 27.50% from the last year’s collection of #229. 322 billion within the period under review.

The Customs Area Controller of the command, Comptroller Adekunle Oloyede, who disclosed this while reviewing the command’s performance in the first half year of 2022 at a press conference held with Maritime Journalists, said the implementation of VIN-Valuation service contributed greatly to this achievement. 

He said, “The implementation of VIN-Valuation brought different challenges at early stages of its deployment due to the degree of understanding of the process especially on the part of the stakeholders, nevertheless the process has helped the command to achieve an expedited clearance process due to predictability of value- assessment, increase in revenue generation, improved ease of doing business among other advantages.”

Speaking on the export value facilitated by the command, Compt Oloyede said the command has recorded an outward throughput in export cargo of 138,246.50 metric tons in 6 Months representing an increase of 73% from 100,500 metric tons recorded in 2021. 

According to him, “the Free On Board (FOB) value is #100. 447 billion. An increase of 60% from the #66. 295 billion recorded in the fiscal year 2021.

He added that the Duty Paid Value of total seizures that contravenes Sections 46, 47 and 161 of the Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA) Cap 45 LFN 2004, is amounted to #1. 3 billion.

However, during a tour to the command's Roll on Roll off (RoRo) scanning site, (a place where Vehicles are being scanned/screened) the TinCan Command Chief revealed that some culprits (clearing agents) have been arrested, bailed for human rights sake but will be prosecuted for forging his signature to clear some imported consignments. 

His words, “Four units of used Mack truck heads, one unit of used Toyota Sequoia 2008 model, one unit of used Mercedes: Benz GL450 2008 model and one unit of used 2011 Toyota 4Runner were arrested in their possession. 

“You know that the signature aspect of the clearance procedure has not been automated. Very soon, we will be automating that aspect too. It’s because the signature aspect of the clearance procedure has not been automated, these unscrupulous agents, four in numbers, attempted to clear some imported vehicles out of the port with my forged signature.”

He later commended the eagle-eyed customs officials for detecting and arresting the fraudsters and affirmed that the culprits will be punished by law. 

Biden Tests Positive

 President Joe Biden Tests Positive for Covid- 19, has mild symptoms

ZAINAB JUNAID

... with Agency Report

President Joseph R. Biden Jr. has tested positive for COVID-19, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement on Thursday morning. 

“This morning, President Biden tested positive for COVID-19,” She said in a statement. “He is fully vaccinated and twice boosted and experiencing very mild symptoms.” She added, “He has begun taking Paxlovid. Consistent with CDC

"Biden, 79 years, is fully vaccinated after getting two doses of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine shortly before taking office, a first booster shot in September and an additional dose in March 30," Washington AP News had reported. 

SAHCO Appoints Two New Non -Executive Directors

SAHCO Appoints Two New Non -Executive Board Members 

ZAINAB JUNAID 

As part of its commitment to building a diversified Board, Management team and staff with expertise that spans industry circles to cater for its growing list of clientele, Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCO) PLC has announced appointments of two new non-Executive Directors, at the company’s 12th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held at Marriott Hotel, Ikeja in Lagos, recently. 

This was disclosed in a statement made available and signed by the company’s Corporate Head Communications, UANSOHIA Adetola Venessa. 

The two new non Executive Directors are Laila Jean St. Matthew-Daniel and Dr. Bukola Bello Jaiyesimi and were to replace Barrister Chike Ogeah and Mr. Ariyo Olutoye who resigned their appointments in January, 2022.

Laila Jean St. Matthew-Daniel started her schooling at Our Lady of Apostles in Lagos, she went on to St Louis Grammar School, Ibadan, for her “O” Levels, and then Queens College, for her ‘A’ Levels, before going to the United Kingdom (UK) for graduate studies at the Cripplegate Institute/London Guildhall University. She began her career in the corporate world in the UK, and later Nigeria, before boldly taking the entrepreneurial step in 1983, by opening one of the ‘first’ indigenous Furniture Manufacturing Company, during the 1980’s as a result of Government’s ban on the importation of furniture. 

As one of the premier female furniture manufacturers in the early 80’s to early 90’s, she initialized private training programmes for artisans in the furniture industry to boost Governments’ National Directorate of Employment’s empowerment efforts, and pioneered seminars for public enlightenment on relationship between stress and furniture ergonomics apart from winning various awards for unique designs. She coordinated interior fix-outs from conceptualisation, implementation, FF&E & execution of residential, Corporate & hotel projects and has won various awards for unique designs.

Dr. Bukola Bello Jaiyesimi on her part, Is a confirmed Pan-Africanist, lobbyist, developmental and legacy strategist with a passion for mankind and institutional development. She started her academic journey in 1982 at St Luke’s Model School, Lokoja, she proceeded to Command Secondary School, Kaduna in 1988.

Dr. Bukola Bello Jaiyesimi gained admission into University of Abuja where she bagged a Diploma in Banking and Finance in 1995.

She relocated to study in Canada in 1998 and proceeded to Queens School of Business, Ontario, Canada and graduated with a BSC in Marketing in 2001.  She went further to London School of Business and Finance, UK and she graduated with MBA in Entrepreneurship at The Institute of Transformative Thoughts and Learning Doctoral Research Centre (ITTL-DRC). She is also a recipient of the following; Metropolitan Institute of Business and Management - Special Executive Masters in International Business Law (LLM)-2013, CGUI, Boston, Massachusetts - Doctoral Research 2017, Chartered Institute of Public Relations, United Kingdom - Diploma in Public Relations 2018.

NCAA Suspends Dana Airlines...

 NCAA Suspends Dana Airlines Operations Indefinitely 

ZAINAB JUNAID 

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has suspended Dana Airlines' Air Transport Licence (ATL) and Air Operator Certificate (AOC) indefinitely, with effect from midnight of Wednesday, 20th July, 2022.

The suspension according to the agency was made pursuant to Section 35(2), 3(b) and (4) of the Civil Aviation Act, 2006 and Part 1.3.3.3(a)(1) of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig.CARs), 2015.

The suspension order, which was handed down by the Director General, Captain Musa Nuhu, has since been communicated to the management of Dana Airlines.

The decision is the outcome of a financial and economic health audit carried out on the Airline by the Authority, and the findings of an investigation conducted on the Airline's flight operations recently, which revealed that Dana Airlines is no longer in a position to meet its financial obligations and to conduct safe flight operations.

The NCAA on its website acknowledges the negative effect this preemptive decision will have on the Airline's passengers and the travelling public and seeks their understanding, as the safety of flight operations takes priority over all other considerations.

However, the airline in a statement made available to journalists attributed their shortcomings to recent skyrocketing costs of JetA1 which now stand at 830 per litre,  unavailability of forex, inflation among others as contributing factors to their financial setback.