Author: Vardiafrica

The Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral (Rtd.) Ibok-Ete Ibas, has commended the peaceful and orderly conduct of Saturday’s local government elections, describing it as a decisive step toward restoring full democratic governance at the grassroots. Vice Admiral Ibas, who monitored the exercise in several local government areas, expressed satisfaction with the comportment of voters and election officials, noting that their conduct created a calm and secure environment for the polls. Speaking with reporters in Port Harcourt, the administrator highlighted the voter turnout and the serenity at polling units as proof of Rivers people’s eagerness to reclaim and participate in grassroots…

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) on Thursday in Port Harcourt organized a workshopfor media stakeholders and youth groups, providing profoundinsights into the structural organisation, internal workings, accomplishments and operational targets of the agency after 15 epochal years as an effective driver of local content and regulator in the oil and gas industry. Billed as a signature event of the NCDMB, having been held regularly since the beginning of the Board in 2010, the workshop also acquainted participants with procedures for registration for employment or training programmes in industry-related skill sets, engagement as industry contractors or vendors, and also the Board’s ‘Community Content Guidelines,’ designedto ensure integration of host communities into the oil and gas…

Nyesom Wike, minister of the federal capital territory (FCT), says the “coast is clear” for the termination of the emergency rule in Rivers state. The former Rivers governor said the conduct of the state’s local government elections has cleared the path for the end of the emergency rule. The minister spoke to journalists on Saturday after casting his vote in the LG elections in the state. “I do know that by September 18, the state of emergency will expire, and that would mean that the state governor and state assembly will come back to their job, and we will have…

Governors of Nigeria’s six North-East states have raised the alarm over looming humanitarian and economic crises in the region, citing climate change, rising agricultural costs, and fragile infrastructure as threats to millions of livelihoods. The warning came in a communiqué issued at the close of the North-East Governors’ Forum (NEGF) 12th meeting, held on Saturday in Jalingo, Taraba State. The Forum is chaired by Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum. While commending progress in the fight against insurgency, the governors expressed concern that insecurity, displacement, and poverty are being compounded by emerging challenges. They highlighted forecasts from credible climate agencies…

The Vice President of the Republic of Colombia, Her Excellency, Francia Márquez has arrived in Abuja on a 3-day official visit to Nigeria. Márquez was accompanied on the official visit by her spouse, Mr Rafael Yerney Pinillo Ocoró. The Colombian Vice President was received on arrival at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja by the Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Chief Uche Nnaji; Minister of Women Affairs, Hon. Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim; Minister of State, FCT, Dr. Mariya Mahmud Bunkure, Director General of National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mrs. Zubaida Umar, among other senior government officials. According to a statement by…

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Banco Central do Brasil have agreed to deepen economic and financial cooperation following a high-level meeting between their chiefs in Brasília. CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, held talks with his Brazilian counterpart, Gabriel Muricca Galípolo, on the sidelines of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s state visit to Brazil. The discussions, according to a statement from the apex bank at the weekend, focused on areas of mutual interest including monetary policy, financial stability and regulatory cooperation. Cardoso was joined by CBN directors in charge of currency operations, financial policy regulation and monetary policy. The CBN boss…

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has cast his ballot in the Rivers local government elections Wike, the immediate past governor of the state, voted around 11: 15 am in Rumepirikom, Ward 9, Unit 007, Obio/Akpo Local Government Area of the State, where he served as chairman for two terms. He was a local government chairman in 1999 before he rose to become a governor, serving in that position from 2015 to 2023. ‘I Don’t See Democracy,’ Electoral College Director Faults Conduct Of Rivers LG Polls After casting his ballot, the minister hailed the conduct of the…

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has assured Nigerians that his recent diplomatic missions to Japan and Brazil were anchored on one goal — securing opportunities that will drive economic growth, generate jobs, and promote long-term prosperity for the nation. In a message on his X handle on Thursday after focused from the trips, President Tinubu emphasised that he remained fully committed to the mandate Nigerians gave him in 2023, which is to restore Nigeria’s pride and dignity on the global stage. He noted that in Japan, at the TICAD9 summit, his delegation deepened strategic relationships aimed at attracting new investments in…

Group CEO of NNPC Ltd., Engr. Bashir Bayo Ojulari, has revealed that the Company is under attack from people who don’t mean well for Nigeria and who are against the ongoing transformation efforts in the Company. Ojulari disclosed this while playing host to a delegation from the national body of the Petroleum & Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) at the NNPC Towers in Abuja on Thursday. He said because change always comes with a price, the NNPC Management will not succumb to such attacks. Instead, it will work for the larger interest of Nigerians. “We are under…

The Ebonyi Government has announced an increment in the minimum wage of civil servants from N70,000 to N90,000. The Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Chief Ikeuwa Omebe, made the disclosure on Thursday, while briefing newsmen on the outcome of the state’s Executive Council Meeting. Omebe said that the increment was to enhance workers’ welfare, adding that the implementation was with immediate effect and covered all categories of the workforce. “We want to state categorically that this is not a political statement as this government does not toy with workers’ welfare. “The government has offset the pension and gratuities of state…