SABINEWS EVENING NEWS UPDATE FOR FEBRUARY 23, 2016
Lagos establishes first DNA forensic lab in Nigeria
In furtherance of its commitment to the criminal justice sector reforms and take the fight against crime to a greater level, the Lagos State Government on Tuesday announced that it has concluded plans to establish the first ever high-powered DNA Forensic Laboratory in Nigeria which will take off within the next six to twelve months. The lab, which would be called the Lagos State DNA Forensics Centre (LSDFC), when fully operational, would fulfill an unmet need for DNA profiling which is a unique forensic technique that is now being used all over the world. Read more
Village Head Arrested for Infecting 13yr-old Girl with HIV
The Kano State Hisbah board has arrested the village head of Goron Maje in Danbatta local government area, Alhaji Musa Goron-Maje, for allegedly having an affair with a 13-year- old girl and infecting her with HIV.
The Director General of the board, Dr Abba Sufi, told reporters on Tuesday that the suspect was arrested on Monday following a complaint from her parents. Read more
Lawmaker begs FG to repair Lagos-Badagry expressway
A Lagos lawmaker, Mr Setonji David, on Tuesday appealed to the Federal Government to repair the failed portions on the Lagos-Badagry Expressway. David, Chairman of the Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Physical Planning and Urban Development made the appeal while speaking with newsmen in Lagos. Read more
Lagos establishes first DNA forensic lab in Nigeria
In furtherance of its commitment to the criminal justice sector reforms and take the fight against crime to a greater level, the Lagos State Government on Tuesday announced that it has concluded plans to establish the first ever high-powered DNA Forensic Laboratory in Nigeria which will take off within the next six to twelve months. The lab, which would be called the Lagos State DNA Forensics Centre (LSDFC), when fully operational, would fulfill an unmet need for DNA profiling which is a unique forensic technique that is now being used all over the world. Read more
Village Head Arrested for Infecting 13yr-old Girl with HIV
The Kano State Hisbah board has arrested the village head of Goron Maje in Danbatta local government area, Alhaji Musa Goron-Maje, for allegedly having an affair with a 13-year- old girl and infecting her with HIV.
The Director General of the board, Dr Abba Sufi, told reporters on Tuesday that the suspect was arrested on Monday following a complaint from her parents. Read more
Buhari and the Solution to the Currency Quagmire, By Femi Pedro
Our nation is currently submerged in a currency crisis. The value of our national currency is tumbling against the dollar on a daily basis, and our foreign exchange reserves continue to dwindle as a result of the continuous fall in the price of crude oil. In recent months, there has been a rigorous debate as to whether the devaluation of our currency is the answer to these problems, and what specific measures need to be put in place to stabilize our currency and prevent further damage to our fragile economy. As the debate rages on, the damage to the naira, the economy, and the psyche of our people has intensified. Read more
Court urged to sack Senator over fake certificates
A Federal High Court in Abuja has been urged to sack Senator Suleiman Asonya Adokwe, representing Nasarawa South Senatorial District, for allegedly presenting other people’s certificates to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for election.
Adokwe assumed office in December 2015 having successfully challenged the election of Architect Salihu Hussaini Egyegbola in court. Read more
N43b fraud: EFCC, AGF disagree over suspects’ prosecution
Justice Mohammed Idris of the Federal High Court in Lagos on Tuesday ordered the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to decide which of them will prosecute 16 suspects accused of multi-billion fraud at the Consolidated Discount House Limited.
The suspects’ arraignment was stalled due to a disagreement between two lawyers representing the AGF and EFCC on who should prosecute the case. Read more
Oliseh picks Salah as Egypt’s top star
Super Eagles coach, Sunday Oliseh, has singled out Mohamed Salah as Egypt’s top star as the countdown for next month’s African Nations Cup (AFCON) qualifiers continues.
Oliseh made the observations after watching match tapes of the seven-time African champions.
“I have watched some tapes of Egypt. The North African side is a result-oriented team who foul a lot in defence and midfield and depend on the speed of (Mohamed) Salah,” africanFootball.com quoted Oliseh as saying on the Egyptians. Read more
Olympics soccer draws hold April 14
The draws for this year’s Olympics Games soccer event will hold on April 14 at the famous Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Nigeria will represent Africa alongside Algeria and South Africa. Nigeria won the Gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, United States and was defeated by Argentina in the final of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. Read more
Defilement: Court to try ExxonMobil staff
Justice Adedayo Akintoye of a Lagos State High Court, Igbosere, has been appointed to hear a four-count charge bordering on defilement filed by the police against James Ikenna Onuoha, a staff of oil exploration multinational, ExxonMobil.
Onuoha was arraigned on January 14 before a Magistrates’ Court in Igbosere, on allegations that he had forcible sexual intercourse with the 14-year-old niece of his tenant. Read more
Ekiti Obas Deny Rift With Fayose Over Aluko
The Ekiti Council of Traditional rulers on Tuesday said it has no crisis with Governor Ayodele Fayose over his protracted feud with his
former political ally, Dr. Tope Aluko, over the conduct of the June 21, 2014, governorship poll.
The monarchs insisted that they were neither lobbied nor compelled by Fayose to write a communiqué condemning Aluko over his exposure that the last Ekiti governorship election, which brought about the sudden exit of former Governor Kayode Fayemi, was allegedly rigged by military personnel Read more
House Cautions Kogi Assembly as Lawmakers Favour Take-over
The House of Representatives on Tuesday condemned the ongoing situation at the Kogi state House of Assembly, where five members impeached the Speaker, and allegedly forged the signatures of other members to make up the two thirds required by the constitution.
It also cautioned the members to desist from conducting themselves in a manner that demeans the legislature, else the National Assembly would take it over. Read more
Investors forum urges Rivers Govt to create investment friendly environment
Mr Ibifuro Bobmanuel, the President, Rivers State Investors’ and Entrepreneurs Forum, on Tuesday urged the state government to evolve programmes that would make the state investment friendly.
Addressing newsmen in Port Harcourt, Bobmanuel said that the spate of violence going on in some parts of the state was capable of driving away potential investors.
He said that investors willing to invest in Nigeria would prefer going to more peaceful states instead of investing in the crisis prone areas like Rivers.
According to him, the state government should design a proactive action plan aimed at fighting violence and criminality in the state to a standstill. Read more
Workers shut down PPPRA as another chief executive emerges
Workers of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, PPPRA, under the aegis of Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, yesterday, shut down the operations of the PPPRA nationwide over the appointment of another Acting Executive Secretary of the agency. The new Acting Executive Secretary, Mrs. Sotonye Iyoyo, a staff of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, was introduced to senior officials of the PPPRA, Monday, as the new chief executive of the agency by the acting permanent secretary from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources in conjunction with two directors of the ministry. Read more
2016 Hajj: Buhari urged to seek quota increase for Nigeria
The Independent Hajj Reporters (IHR), an NGO, on Tuesday advised President Muhammadu Buhari to appeal to the Saudi Arabian Government to increase Hajj quota for the country.
This is contained in a statement jointly issued in Abuja by the National Coordinator and Publicity Secretary of the group, Messrs Ibrahim Muhammed and Abubakar Mahmoud, respectively. Read more
Greece protests to Austria over migrant meet, moves Afghans from border
Greece angrily protested to Austria on Tuesday after being left out of a planned Balkans migration meeting, as it began sending hundreds of Afghans from its clogged northern border back to Athens.
The new emergency came as Greek authorities had barely completed migrant registration centres on the islands and relocation camps for refugees.
These facilities in Athens were already pushed to capacity after Macedonia on Sunday abruptly closed its border to Afghans and introduced more stringent document checks for Syrians and Iraqis seeking to travel to northern and western Europe. Read more
Plan to close Guantanamo has 13 U.S. prison sites, costs up to $475 million
The Pentagon plan to close the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, references 13 potential sites for detainees to be transferred to U.S. soil but does not endorse a specific facility, administration officials said on Tuesday.
The cost of the transfer and closure would be $290 million to $475 million, an official told reporters on a conference call. Housing the remaining detainees in the United States would be $65 million to $85 million cheaper than at the Cuba facility, the official said, so costs would be offset within three to five years. Read more
Italy summons U.S. ambassador after reports U.S. spied on Berlusconi
Italy‘s foreign ministry on Tuesday summoned the U.S. ambassador after media reports that American intelligence services tapped the telephones of former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi and his aides in 2011.
Newspaper La Repubblica reported the U.S. National Security Agency spied on the billionaire four-time prime minister five years ago when his government was under pressure at the height of the euro zone debt crisis. Read more
Uganda’s Election Results May Be Genuine, but the System is Dying
Uganda’s election results are in, and Yoweri Museveni is the winner. Of course, the opposition has cried foul, alleging repression, vote rigging, a politically-biased electoral commission and wildly different levels of financing. Many of these complaints are likely well-founded, though it is very difficult to judge the extent to which they impacted the result. Observer missions have yet to release their assessments, but they are likely to repeat the verdict on previous elections; that there were irregularities, most glaringly over intimidation of the opposition and the misuse of state funds, but that the result broadly represents the will of the Ugandan people. Read more
Czech crime boss Krejčíř gets 35-year jail term in South Africa
Czech crime boss Radovan Krejčíř has been sentenced to 35 years in prison by a court in Johannesburg. The 47-year-old had been found guilty last year of attempted murder, kidnapping and drug dealing. Reacting to the announcement of his punishment, Mr. Krejčíř described it as shocking and said he would appeal. He fled the Czech Republic in 2005 during a police search of his luxury home near Prague and later became one of the most notorious criminals in South Africa. Read more
