President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of 18 special advisers and senior special assistants for the Vice President, Kashim Shettima.
The appointments were announced in a statement signed by Olusola Abiola, Director of Information, Office of the Vice President, on Monday.
According to the statement, “the team comprising six Special Advisers and 12 Senior Special Assistants will work in the office of Vice-President Shettima, supporting the “Renewed Hope” agenda of the Tinubu administration.”
“The approved appointees for Shettima include Rukaiya El-Rufai, Special Adviser (SAD) to the President on NEC & Climate Change; Tope Kolade Fasua as Special Adviser (SAD) to the President on Economic Matters; Aliyu Modibbo Umar, Special Adviser (SAD), General Duties; Hakeem Baba Ahmed, Special Adviser (SAD) on Political Matters, and Jumoke Oduwole, Special Adviser (SAD) to the President on PEBEC & Investment.
“Others include, Sadiq Wanka, Special Adviser (SAD) to the President on Power Infrastructure; Usman Mohammed, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Administration & Office Coordination; Kingsley Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Communications; Ishaq Ahmed Ningi, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Digital Media & Emergency Management.
“Also on the list of appointees are Peju Adebajo, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Investment & Privatisation; Mohammed Bulama, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Political/Special Duties; Kingsley Uzoma, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Agricbusiness & Productivity Enhancement; Gimba Kakanda, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Research & Analytics, and Temitola Adekunle-Johnson, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Job Creation & MSMEs.
Nasir Yammama, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Innovation; Zainab Yunusa, Senior Special Assistant to the President on NEC; Mariam Temitope, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Regional Development Programmes, and Bashir Maidugu, Deputy State House Counsel (Senior Special Assistant to the President), completes the list of appointments in the Vice President’s office.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
