Author: Vardiafrica

A total of 331 young graduates of diverse academic disciplines on Thursday received certificates and awards after completing a 12-month Human Capital Development Basic Training Programme on the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited Train 7 Project. The hands-on training, which held on a live LNG Plant at Finima, Bonny Island, base of the NLNG Limited, centred on Lifting and Working at Heights, Marine and Offshore Services, Quality Management Systems, Facility Management and Maintenance, Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Engineering, Welding and Fabrication, and Non-Destructive Testing (NDT). In the keynote address, the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe,…

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has nominated a former presidential aide, Reno Omokri (Delta), and former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, among 32 ambassadorial nominees forwarded to the Senate for confirmation, days after he submitted the first batch of three names. This was disclosed in a statement on Saturday by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy. According to the press release, in two separate letters to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, President Tinubu asked the Senate to “consider and confirm expeditiously” 15 nominees as career ambassadors and 17 as non-career ambassadors Breakdown of the Additional Nominees Onanuga noted that there are four women on the career ambassadors list and six…

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) on Wednesday at the Nigerian Content Tower (NCT), Yenagoa, held an interactive session with students union leaders of tertiary institutions in Bayelsa State, to raise awareness about the Board’s vision and mandate as well as projects in the state, and emphasise the important roles expected of students in the sustainable development of society. In attendance were Student Union Government (SUG) officials drawn from Bayelsa Medical University, Yenagoa, Federal University, Otuoke, National Open University, Yenagoa Centre, University of Africa, Toru-Orua, Bayelsa State College of Health Sciences, Federal Polytechnic, Ekowe, Isaac Jasper Adaka Boro College of Education, Sagbama, and International…

Members of the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) have suspended their indefinite nationwide strike after reaching an agreement with the federal government. On November 1, Mohammad Suleiman, the NARD president, announced that the association has commenced a nationwide “total, comprehensive, and indefinite” strike. The doctors were demanding fair remuneration, payment of salary arrears, improved working conditions, adequate staffing, and the provision of essential medical infrastructure. Their concerns also include excessive workloads, which they said directly affect the quality of healthcare delivered to Nigerians. In a post shared on his X handle on Saturday, Suleiman confirmed the suspension of the strike. “The National Executive…

The General Manager, Corporate Communications Division of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Dr. Obinna Ezeobi has identified creativity and innovation as part of the driving force in the implementation of local content policy in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry. Addressing a capacity audience at the Bayelsa Creatives Converge 2.0, held at the D.S.P. Alamieyeseigha Memorial Banquet Hall, Ovom, Yenagoa, he said changing the way things were done in the sector demanded creativity and pragmatism after the enactment of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, 2010. The NOGICD Act, he explained, was instituted to reverse decades of near-total dominance of the industry by foreign business interests and…

Former President Goodluck Jonathan on Saturday visited President Bola Tinubu at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa in Abuja, following his return from Guinea-Bissau where he was trapped after a military takeover in the country. The visit was confirmed by presidential media aide, Bayo Onanuga, in a post on his official X handle. “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu received former President Goodluck Jonathan at the Presidential Villa on Saturday on Jonathan’s return to Nigeria from Guinea-Bissau,” he wrote. “President Jonathan went to the West African on an election monitoring mission. There were concerns about his safety following a military takeover in Guinea-Bissau.”…

The Nigerian Government has broadened its regional security strategy and modernised the national identity management with the formal introduction of the ECOWAS National Biometric Identity Card (ENBIC). This signals a renewed offensive against transborder criminality, irregular migration and document falsification across West Africa. With the rollout, Nigeria becomes the seventh country in the sub-region to adopt the digital credential, a scheme conceived more than a decade ago but revived under what officials described as President Bola Tinubu’s results-driven leadership. At the launch ceremony, the Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, said the activation of the biometric card marks “a powerful new…

President Bola Tinubu has approved the establishment of the National Tax Policy Implementation Committee (NTPIC). The committee, chaired by Joseph Tegbe, is to ensure the implementation of the administration’s landmark tax reforms in line with the economic aspirations of the government and the people of Nigeria. It is also expected to enhance revenue mobilisation, minimise leakages, and reinforce accountability, thereby strengthening the government’s fiscal sustainability and national development objectives. A statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, says the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, will oversee the…

The court of appeal in Abuja has struck out an appeal filed by Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), challenging the alleged violation of his fundamental rights during his detention by the Department of State Services (DSS). A three-member panel of justices held on Thursday that the appeal had become academic following Kanu’s conviction, sentence to life imprisonment, and transfer from DSS custody to a correctional facility. Delivering the lead judgment, Boloukuromo Ugo, one of the justices, said the court could no longer grant the reliefs sought, including an order directing his relocation from DSS custody to Kuje…

The Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government, acting through the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council, has suspended Guinea-Bissau from all ECOWAS decision-making bodies until a full and effective constitutional order is restored in the country. In a virtual meeting at the level of Heads of State and Government, chaired by the President of Sierra Leone, Julius Maada Bio, leaders expressed deep concern over the unfolding political crisis in Guinea-Bissau. The communiqué highlighted particular concern given that citizens had recently demonstrated resilience and commitment to democracy by participating actively in the presidential and parliamentary elections held on 23 November…