Headlines from Nigerian newspapers and the latest news from Naija for today, Wednesday, December 21, 2022,
The following is a roundup of today’s articles from Nigerian newspapers:
1. His Royal Majesty, Omo N’Oba N’Edo, Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Ewuare II CFR, has commenced the 2022 Ugie otherwise called Igue festival, with Ugierhoba rites, heralding the end of the year
2. The United States Federal Government has said that it is taking all necessary steps to put a stop to cash withdrawals from accounts held by the United States Federal Government, State Governments, and Local Governments. Yesterday, this was said by the Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), Modibbo Tukur.
3. The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, has accused opposition political parties of spreading false information to the Nigerian people against the government of President Muhammadu Buhari. He stated that the government is aware that opposition parties will intentionally lie to Nigerians about Buhari’s administration in the run-up to the general election in 2023. He was referring to the period before the election.
4. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) stated that in order to successfully carry out the general elections in 2023, they will require more than 100,000 cars in addition to 4,200 boats. The information was revealed yesterday in Abuja by the chairman of the commission, Mahmood Yakubu, at the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the commission and the Road Transport and Marine Workers Union.
5. Emmanuel Sombo, an accountant who worked for the Federal Institution of Education in Eha-Amufu, was found guilty of forgery and theft of N34. 9 million from the account of the college and was sentenced to 304 years in jail for his crimes. After a lengthy trial that began in 2010, Sombo was found guilty just this past week by a high court in the state of Enugu, which was presided over by Justice Kenneth Okpe.
6. On Tuesday, the Senate started an investigation into the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation about the N978 billion that it allegedly got through the Service Wide Votes (SWV) between the years 2017 and 2021. The aforementioned sum of N978 billion is comprised of both one-time and recurring costs, both of which are considered to have been paid out by the office of the AGF to various ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs).
7. On Tuesday, President Muhammadu Buhari and Femi Gbajabiamila, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, met behind closed doors to discuss the cash withdrawal limitations that were recently implemented by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). This came about because the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, was unable to respond to an invitation from the House of Representatives.
8. As a result of his conviction on charges of money laundering, Dr. Doyin Okupe, who was serving as the Director-General of the Labour Party’s Presidential Campaign Council (PCC), has resigned from his post. In a letter dated December 20, 2022 and written to the Presidential Candidate of the party, Peter Obi, Okupe stated his intention to step down as chairman of the party.
9. Agents of the Kano State Hisbah Board have detained 19 young people at a well-known event centre on the suspicion that they were participating in same-sex weddings. People in their early twenties were alleged to have gathered to see the wedding of two individuals named Abba and Mujahid, both of whom were known to be homosexuals.
10. On Tuesday, the Senate confirmed the appointment of Lauretta Ifeanyi-Onochie as the substantive Chairman of the Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission. Lauretta Ifeanyi-Onochie is the President’s Special Assistant on New Media. Despite the criticism that followed her nomination, the Senate voted to confirm her appointment.
11. The Governor of Zamfara State, Bello Mattawalle, has stated that the Nigerian Air Force was successful in its campaign against bandits in the state, but that the action resulted in the deaths of a large number of people and troops. It was also reported that the bandits had attacked soldiers who wished to give ground assistance to the Air Force, ultimately resulting in the deaths of ten of the soldiers.