News
Angry youths protest in Kano, stone Buhari’s helicopter
There was a protest in some parts of Kano on Monday by some angry youths during President Muhammadu Buhari’s working visit to the state.
In an area, the youths were seen throwing stones at Buhari’s helicopter.
They were however dispersed by security agents who fired shots in the air to scare them away.
The protesting youths were chanting “Ba mu so” (We don’t want) as they set a bonfire of tyres along Hotoro Road where the President went to commission the Muhammadu Buhari Interchange.
The development came hours after Abdullahi Ganduje, Kano governor, made a U-turn over the president’s visit to the state.
Ganduje had asked the president to postpone the visit over security concerns and difficulty in accessing the new naira notes.
There were also videos that went viral on Monday showing stones littering a road said to be the area where the president’s convoy was expected to pass through.
In one of the videos, a voice in the background said the people were angry at the president and decided to attack him with stones.
Reacting to the incident in a statement, Debo Ologunagba, PDP spokesperson, described the alleged incident as treason and sacrilege.
“This organised attack on the person of the President is outrightly treasonable and a sacrilegious assault on our national sovereignty which must be condemned by all,” the PDP said.
“Our Party is alarmed that this attack is part of APC Presidential Candidate’s alleged plot to undermine the Presidency, cause confusion, trigger violence in the country, disrupt the conduct of the 2023 general elections and derail our democracy; having realised that he cannot win in a peaceful, free and fair electoral process.
“The PDP invites Nigerians to note how Governor Abdullahi Ganduje attempted to abridge President Buhari’s movement and even tried to stop him from visiting Kano State. More disquieting is the fact that the APC Presidential Campaign sought to humiliate and harm President Buhari, while performing his official duties in Kano.
“It should be noted that the APC Presidential Candidate has been displaying open aversion and making inciting statements against President Buhari since Mr. President’s declaration, in line with democratic best practice all over the world, that Nigerians should freely vote for any candidate and Party of their choice in the 2023 general elections.
“The apparent frustration of Asiwaju Tinubu to resort to encourage or condone violence is fueled by his entitlement mentality, that it is his turn to be President, despite his numerous ineligibility and disability baggage.
“Nigerians are reminded about Asiwaju Tinubu’s infamous statement in London where he declared to his supporters that ‘political power is not going to be served in a restaurant, it is not served a la carte. It is what we are doing; It is being determined; you do it at all cost; fight for it, grab it, snatch it and run with it’.”
However, Bayo Onanuga, spokesperson for the APC presidential campaign council, dismissed the claim of the attack and criticised the PDP for reacting to something “imaginary”.
“We were not surprised to read of the imaginary attack on the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria being peddled by the Peoples Democratic Party since the party has nothing tangible to tell Nigerians from its crumbling Presidential Campaign,” Onanuga said.
He also said,“This invented attack on President Muhammadu Buhari must have happened only in the fertile imagination of PDP National Publicity Secretary, one Debo Ologunagba.
“Nigerians should disregard this fake news from a party that has lost touch with reality and suffering the agony of violating its own rules on power rotation.
“Just as it has been masterminding fake news against the APC presidential candidate and trying vainly to cause disharmony in the APC family, we believe the party may have planned to embarrass President Buhari in Kano and then put the blame on host Governor Ganduje and Tinubu.
“This is because PDP has of recent morphed from being a Buhari virulent critic to strangely becoming a Buhari spokesperson! The last time it issued a self-serving misinterpretation of Asíwájú’s statement in Abeokuta as an attack on President Buhari.
“It should be quite obvious to Nigerians that the knowledge of impending defeat of PDP at the coming presidential poll has pushed the party and its candidate into frenzied hallucinatory mode of mindless, ridiculous, ludicrous litany of lies and fabrications against APC and its candidate.
“The PDP is a drowning party feverishly clawing at any straw of lies and lashing out in all delusional directions to keep afloat – but sink it will. We believe Nigerians are not taken in by the jejune antics.”
Onanuga also asked security agencies to “arrest” Ologunagba over his comments regarding the alleged attack.
News
Nigeria Customs Service begins 2025 recruitment [How to apply]
Nigeria Customs Service begins 2025 recruitment [How to apply]
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has announced the commencement of its recruitment exercise, assuring Nigerians that the process is entirely free and fair.
The agency has cautioned the public to be vigilant against scammers who may attempt to exploit unsuspecting applicants during the recruitment period.
Applications are invited for positions in the Superintendent, Inspector, and Customs Assistant cadres as part of the Service’s plan to recruit 3,927 officers in 2025.
This initiative is aimed at enhancing trade facilitation and supporting Nigeria’s economic recovery efforts.
“Our recruitment is entirely free and fair. At no stage do we charge fees. Anyone requesting payment is a scammer,” the agency emphasized, urging applicants to be wary of fraudulent schemes.
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The NCS outlined eligibility criteria, stating that applicants must be Nigerian citizens by birth, possess a valid National Identification Number (NIN), and have no criminal record or ongoing investigations.
Academic qualifications for the three cadres are as follows:
Superintendent Cadre: A university degree or Higher National Diploma (HND) along with an NYSC discharge or exemption certificate.
Inspectorate Cadre: A National Diploma (ND) or Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) from an accredited institution.
Customs Assistant Cadre: At least an O’Level certificate (WAEC or NECO).
In addition to these qualifications, the NCS stressed that all applicants must be physically and mentally fit, providing evidence of medical fitness from a recognized government hospital.
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News
Tinubu to critics: I won’t reduce my cabinet size
Tinubu to critics: I won’t reduce my cabinet size
President Bola Tinubu on Monday unequivocally responded to critics who described his cabinet as “bloated” by saying he is unprepared to reduce the size of his 48-man cabinet.
“I am not ready to shrink” the size of my cabinet, Tinubu said during a media chat at his Bourdillon residence in the highbrow Ikoyi area of Lagos State.
“I am not prepared to bring down the size of my cabinet,” the former Lagos governor said, arguing that “efficiency” has been at the core of his selection of ministers.
The president also said he has no regret removing the petrol subsidy in May 2023, saying Nigeria cannot continue to be Father Christmas to neighbouring countries.
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“I don’t have any regrets whatsoever in removing petrol subsidy. We are spending our future, we were just deceiving ourselves, that reform was necessary,” he told reporters.
Tinubu appointed 48 ministers in August 2023, three months after his inauguration. The Senate immediately screened and confirmed the ministers. One of the ministers, Betta Edu, was suspended in January while another, Simon Lalong, moved to the Senate.
There were calls for the President to reshuffle his cabinet as many Nigerians have not been impressed by the performance of some of the ministers, especially in the face of unprecedented inflation, excruciating economic situation and rising insecurity.
In October 2024, Tinubu re-assigned 10 ministers to new ministerial portfolios and appointed seven new ministers for Senate confirmation. He also sacked five of his ministers but critics insist that the President’s cabinet remains large, especially with the creation of a Livestock Ministry with a minister.
Tinubu to critics: I won’t reduce my cabinet size
News
Tinubu: Food stampede incidents, grave error
Tinubu: Food stampede incidents, grave error
..Don’t publicise gifts distribution if you don’t have enough
President Bola Tinubu has described the recent three stampede incidents during distribution of relief materials to children and others as a grave error.
He told people to be more organised and stay away from giving palliative or publicity of the giving if they had insufficient materials.
He stated this during his first presidential media chat on Monday.
The President said he had been sharing palliatives in his Lagos residence for 25 years without any incident and blamed the recent food stampedes in the country on poor organisation.
A total of 35 children died on December 18 during a stampede that happened at a funfair event in Ibadan, Oyo State.
10 people, including children, also died on December 21 in another stampede at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in the Maitama district of Abuja during the distribution of palliatives.
Another 22 people were reported dead during a rice distribution event at Amaranta Stadium in Ojika, Ihiala LGA, on the same day.
“It’s unfortunate and very sad, but we will continue to learn from our mistakes. I see this as a grave error on the part of the organisers,” he said.
But the President insisted that the incidents should not dampen the “happiness of the season”.
“It is very sad that people are not well organised. We just have to be more disciplined in our society. Condolences to those who lost members, but it is good to give,” Tinubu said.
“I’ve been giving out foodstuff and commodities, including envelopes in Bourdillon, for the last 25 years, and I’ve never experienced this kind of incident because we are organised and disciplined.
“If you know you won’t have enough to give, don’t attempt to give or publicise it.”
The President compared the situation to food banks in countries such as the United States of America (USA) and Britain, noting their structured approach.
“Every society, even in America, has food banks. They have hungry people. In Britain, they have food banks and warehouses, and they are organised. They take turns m lining up and collect,” he added.
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