Sabinews Midday News Update for February 18, 2015
Policemen vow to go on strike, disrupt elections over unpaid salaries
Over 15,000 police officers have threatened to either go on strike or disrupt the March 28 and April 11 general elections over their unpaid salaries.
The aggrieved officers were those promoted from the rank of sergeant to the rank of Inspector and those promoted from the rank of Inspector to the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police, ASP, in December 2013. Read more
Ekiti: Appeal Court judges compromised – PDP
The Ekiti State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has expressed reservations over an aspect of the Appeal Court judgement on Ekiti governorship petition, which laid emphasis on use of military.
The party alleged alliance between the judges and the All Progressive Congress (APC) on the issue. Read more
Keshi close to landing Burkina job
Out-of-contract Nigeria manager, Stephen Keshi, is now one step away from clinching the head coach job of Burkina Faso, supersport.com can report.
Keshi has been shortlisted among the final three for the coaching job of the Stallions. Read more
NLC meets in Abuja to probe botched election
Members of the National Executive Council (NEC) of the Nigeria Labour Congress will today (Wednesday) begin deliberations to possibly resolve issues that truncated last Thursday’s elections.
The botched election would have produced a new president to succeed Abdulwahed Omar. Read more
APGA to stop electoral fraud in Anambra
The national chairman of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and the party’s candidate in the Senatorial election for March 28, national election, Chief Victor Umeh, has warned that APGA will resist attempt by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to write false results of elections as it has done in the past.
Umeh also said that President Goodluck Jonathan must know that the support APGA will give him in Anambra State will be based on a free, fair and transparent election. Read more
Man, 65, two others in court for alleged raping 10-year-old girl
A Senior Magistrates Court in Katsina, on Tuesday, ordered a 65-year-old man Sale Sani, and two others standing trial for raping a 10-year-old girl, to be remanded in prison custody.
The Chief Magistrate, Hajiya Nafisat Lawal fixed March 10 for the mentioning of the case after the police had formally charged the three for allegedly raping the girl. Read more
Saudi cleric tries to debunk Earth’s rotation
A video appearing to show a Saudi cleric saying the Earth does not rotate has gone viral, generating humour and criticism. In the clip, a man identified as Sheikh Bandar al-Khaibari appears to respond to a student’s question on whether the Earth is stationary or moving by saying that it is “stationary and does not move”. Read more
World Bank partners Africa on gas flaring
Nigeria is set to work closely with the World Bank to curb gas flare from oil fields in the Niger Delta region as part of the initiative to reduce flaring, while at the same time monetize gas resources needed for economic growth and development .
The partnership is also encouraging significant investments in gas to power initiative to further help the country realize its power sector reform process. Read more
Domestic Gas Consumption to Hit 10bn CFPD By 2020
Dr. Joseph Dawha, the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), said domestic demand for gas was expected to rise to over 10 billion cubic feet per day (bcfpd) by 2020. He described the level of demand for gas as overwhelming. This is contained in the 2014 last quarter bulletin of NNPC obtained by the newsmen in Abuja. Read more
FG relaxes condition for N220bn MSME fund
The Federal Government has slashed the collateral requirement introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria for banks to access the N220bn intervention fund for the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises sector from 75 per cent to 50 per cent.
The decision was taken at the second meeting of the National Council on MSMEs presided over by Vice President Namadi Sambo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Tuesday. Read more
Chelsea condemns racist Paris train fans
Chelsea Football Club said Wednesday it was prepared to ban self-proclaimed racist fans who were filmed preventing a black man from boarding a Paris subway train, saying their behaviour was “abhorrent”.
Amateur footage obtained by The Guardian newspaper captured the incident in a Metro station shortly before Chelsea’s Champions League march with Paris Saint-Germain in the French capital on Tuesday evening. Read more
Poland to pay $262,000 to inmates held at secret CIA prison
Poland says it will pay 230,000 euros ($262,000) in compensation to two terror suspects held at a CIA secret prison that Poland agreed to host from 2002-2003.
Foreign Minister Grzegorz Schetyna made the statement Wednesday after the European Court of Human Rights rejected Poland’s appeal of its earlier ruling. Read more
Stock markets soar on Greek bailout hopes
The UK stock market has risen to a 15-year high and is poised to smash the record set during the 1999 dotcom boom, buoyed by hopes that Greece will reach a breakthrough with its creditors.
A Greek government spokesman said on Wednesday Athens would request an extension of its bailout, which expires in 10 days. This will fuel speculation over whether Jeroen Dijsselbloem will call another emergency Eurogroup meeting on Friday to consider the plan. Read more
Ukrainian soldiers withdraw from strategic Debaltseve
Separatist rebels, believed to be backed by Russia, fought into Debaltseve on Tuesday despite the ceasefire which came into effect on Sunday. On Thursday senior Ukrainian military figures announced the withdrawal from the town.
Semen Semenchenko, head of a pro-government paramilitary battalion, said on Facebook the withdrawal of forces was taking place “in a planned and organised way”. Read more
Tanzanian albino boy found mutilated
An albino toddler missing since Sunday has been found dead in northern Tanzania with all his limbs hacked off.
Yohana Bahati, aged one, was snatched from the house of his mother, who was cut with a machete. Read more
Solar to power thousands of off-grid homes in north Pakistan
Pakistan’s northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province plans to supply solar power to 5,800 off-grid households in 200 villages, promoting clean energy amid conventional electricity shortages.
The provincial government has earmarked 400 million rupees ($3.94 million) for the nine-month solar project, which will equip up to 29 households in each village. Read more
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