Author: Vardiafrica

The House of Representatives has asked the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, to immediately halt the signing and implementation of a trade partnership with the United Kingdom (UK), which allows UK lawyers to practice within Nigeria. A motion by 49 lawmakers on Tuesday, pointed to recent reports and public outcry, over an alleged economic and trade partnership between the UK and Nigeria, aimed at exploring new opportunities in key sectors such as the energy, legal, and financial services sectors. The House also noted that the trade deal became very heightened some days ago, as the legal aspect appeared…

MainOne, a West African digital infrastructure service provider, says there is stability on its network across the region. In a statement on Monday, the service provider said it worked with regional partners last week and over the weekend to reroute traffic with restoration capacity. “We worked with regional partners late last week and over the weekend to reroute traffic with restoration capacity and our observations are that we have stability on our network across the region this morning,” MainOne said. These developments, it said, represent a significant milestone to ensure continued connectivity for the West African business community However, MainOne said…

President Vladimir Putin hailed the “return” to Russia of annexed Ukrainian territories on Monday at a concert on Red Square after winning an election blasted as illegitimate by Western powers. The ex-spy won over 87 percent of the vote in a three-day ballot which included voting in parts of Ukraine held by Russian forces. Moscow has presented the weekend presidential election as proof that Russians have rallied around Putin more than two years into the Ukraine offensive. Putin’s victory is widely expected to further tighten his grip on Russia, where dissent is no longer tolerated under fast-accelerating repression. In power…

The United States on Monday denounced Russia’s election as “undemocratic” and said it will not congratulate President Vladimir Putin, who was declared winner by a sweeping margin. Asked about Putin’s reelection, State Department spokesman Vedant Patel responded sarcastically, “I was on the edge of my seat. It was such a nail-biter.” “This was an incredibly undemocratic process,” Patel told reporters. Asked if the United States was withholding recognition of the result, as urged by some dissidents, Patel said, “I think it is safe to say that there certainly won’t be congratulatory calls coming from the United States of America.” “He…

Following the killing of 16 military personnel in the Okuama community of Delta State, the Nigerian Army has assured residents of the area of no reprisal attacks.  The military personnel were gruesomely murdered in the community last week, sparking fears of reprisal after the area was razed. But on Monday, the Nigerian Army through its Director of Public Relations Major General Onyema Nwachukwu called on residents of the community to go about their normal activities without fear. “While law-abiding citizens are assured that there will be no reprisal on the part of the troops, we enjoin all to go about…

Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, has called on the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the last election, Peter Obi, to support President Bola Tinubu in the task of tackling the development challenges confronting the nation. According to a Monday statement by Ibrahim Addra, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Sule threw the challenge when Obi paid him a courtesy visit at the Government House, Lafia. He said that Sule told his guest that there is time for politics and time for governance, urging Obi to tap into his wealth of experience and expertise to support the…

President Bola Tinubu, on Monday, presented the flag of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to Monday Okpebholo, the party’s governorship candidate in Edo state. The APC flag was presented to Okpebholo alongside Dennis Idahosa, his running mate for the September 21 Edo governorship election. The delegation to the presidential villa was led by Abdullahi Ganduje, national chairman of the APC. Addressing the flagbearer, the president said the party is ready to stand with Okpebholo like “the wall of Gilbraltar”. “If you are happy; we are happy. If you are determined; we are determined. We are going to work with you,”…

The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) has said it is in support of the ongoing strike by the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational (NASU) and associated institutions of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and has demanded an “immediate” payment of the withheld salaries of the aggrieved workers. A statement signed by the NLC President, Joe Ajaero, on Monday, said there had been no credible reason or explanation for withholding those salaries in the first place. “We join our affiliate unions, the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational (NASU) and Associated Institutions and Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU)…

The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) have begun a nationwide strike over what they described as unfair treatment and disparity in the payment of withheld salaries by the Federal Government. “Definitely, it (the strike) has already started,” SSANU President, Mohammed Ibrahim, declared on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief programme on Monday. “As of today (Monday), all our workers in registry, bursary, works and maintenance, security, and students’ affairs have withdrawn their services and nothing moves within the administration of any public university in Nigeria and that will be the case for the next seven…

Eighty-seven people have been reportedly abducted by bandits who attacked the Kajuru Station community in the Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State. The bandits were said to have looted some shops and houses in the community. The attack occurred on Sunday night, just a day after 14 people were kidnapped by bandits at Dogon Noma community also within Kajuru Local Government Area. Police authorities in Kaduna State are yet to confirm the latest attack. However, the Chairman of Kajuru Local Government Area, Ibrahim Gajere, told Channels Television, that bandits invaded the Kajuru Station community at about 9: 00 pm…