Author: Chronicle Editor

The African Development Bank, AfDB, will partner with the Sokoto State Government in its plans to establish an agro-industrial park for the North-West geo-political zone, its President, Dr. Akinwumi Adeshina, has said. He added that as a starting point to the realisation of the overall objective of the project, cotton production would be given priority attention in order to resuscitate the ailing textile industry in the region. Speaking during a visit to Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State, Adeshina said the bank was interested in partnering with the state in particular, and the North-West states in general, because of the…

Some of the masterminds of the attacks and killings in southern Kaduna have been arrested, Governor Nasir el-Rufai, said on Tuesday. El-Rufai unveiled the names of the suspects when he visited the State Commissioner of Police, Mr Agyle Abeh. He vowed that government would ensure that all those involved in the attacks in Southern Kaduna were fished out and prosecuted. El-Rufai stressed that the administration would not condone any form of criminality and lawlessness in the state. He called on the people to embrace peace and tolerance in the interest of and development of the state. Earlier, the Police Commissioner…

In what appeared to many as a national joke, the frontline members of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in the Senate on Wednesday made an open overture to the deputy Senate President, Dr. Ike Ekweremadu to cross over to their party. While moving the motion to adopt the votes and proceedings for the Tuesday 10th January 2017 legislative day, the Senator representing Zamfara Central, Kabir Garba Marafa said it was high time the deputy Senate President crossed the carpet to the ruling party. Senator Abdullahi Adamu (Nasarawa West) while seconding the motion, also stressed the need for Senator Ekweremadu to…

The formal trial of embattled former National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Olisa Metuh, was stalled due to his ill-health. Metuh, who is standing trial alongside his company, Destra Investment Limited, was not in court as he was reported to have been rushed to the National Hospital on Jan, 8. His is standing trial on a 7-count charge of fraud to the tune of N400 million pressed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, before Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja After counsel on both sides entered their appearances,…

The Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, has dismissed insinuations in certain quarters saying he endorsed popular ponzi scheme, Mavrodi Mondial Moneybox, MMM. “A statement endorsing MMM is being credited to me on digital media. It is false. Please ignore it. Impostors and identity thieves at work,” the Presidential media aide wrote on his twitter handle. Recall that the popular money doubling scheme had announced a ‘freeze’ on accounts of users in December 2016, with a promise to return on January 14, 2017. It had also asked participants to perform Promo Tasks: A New…

The Port Harcourt Polo Club kicked off its golden jubilee celebrations on 8 January and it will run through January 14, 2017. Events marking the 50 years of the sport in the Garden City include inter-states polo games, evening musical live performances and pageantry. The president of the club, Mr Ibiwari Pepple extolled the game during its opening and noted how the spectacular game was for gentlemen. On Tuesday, matches between states continued with Kano State battling for a shot at the star prize. Club member and patron of the Port Harcourt club, King Alfred Diete Spiff, the Amayanabo of…

A former opposition leader in Republic of Congo was arrested on Tuesday for arms possession after months in hiding, police said. Okombi Salissa, who lost last year’s election to President Denis Sassou Nguesso, but accused the longtime leader of rigging the poll, had an arrest warrant out against him since December for holding weapons. “This arrest was made without violence. It is part of an investigation against (Salissa), concerning an attack on state security,” the police said in a statement. The country’s chief prosecutor André Oko-Gakala in November presented to the public weapons supposedly found at the home of Salissa’s…

Gambia’s outgoing President Yayah Jammeh on Wednesday appointed a mediator to facilitate meetings between himself and president-elect Adama Barrow. Jammeh, who ruled the small West African nation with an iron fist for more than two decades, refuses to accept the result of the Dec. 1 presidential polls, which saw him, lose power. Barrow, a former real estate agent, who was little known before he announced his candidacy, is scheduled to take office on Jan. 19. The ruling party’s secretary general will mediate between Jammeh’s supporters and the opposition to “resolve any mistrust and issues,’’ Jammeh said in a televised address…

The brother and nephew of former United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon thought they had a can’t-miss plan to sell an ailing skyscraper complex in Hanoi, Vietnam: pay $2.5 million in bribes to the head of a sovereign wealth fund in the Middle East to buy the complex, prosecutors said. Instead, their middleman stole the initial payment, and the three of them found themselves in the U.S. government’s cross-hairs. They were indicted Tuesday and charged with participating in an international bribery scheme. Ban Ki Sang, the 69-year-old brother of the former UN chief, and his son, Joo Hyun Bahn, 38,…

US President Barack Obama is giving a farewell speech in Chicago, reflecting on his time in office. “By almost every measure, America is a better, stronger place” than it was eight years ago, Mr Obama said. He implored Americans of all backgrounds to consider things from each others point of view, saying “we have to pay attention and listen”. The country’s first black president, now 55, was first elected in 2008 on a message of hope and change. His successor, President-elect Donald Trump, has vowed to undo some of Mr Obama’s signature policies. Mr Trump will be sworn into office…