Minimum wage: Atiku to pay his workers N33,000
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former vice president and the presidential candidate of the peoples democratic party alhaji atiku abubakar has directed the implementation of n33000 minimum wage to all employees in his companies1 the directive was issued to heads of business units of companies owned by the former vice president and was to take immediate effect1 muhammad el-yakub the managing director gotel communications a company promoted by the former vice president in his home state in adamawa said the implementation of the payment would commence after a meeting with union officials1 he said the directive affected gotel communications and other companies owned by the former vice president1 he said former vice president atiku abubakar the wazirin adamawahas ordered the implementation of n33000 new minimum wage to workers in all of the businesses owned by him1 the directive is with immediate effect and will be implemented across all the businesses owned by the former vice president1

Man United stun Juventus as City, Madrid win big
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jesus scored the spot-kick the first of two penalties in his hat-trick. city will head to lyon later this month requiring a draw to secure a last-16 place1 manchester united produced a stunning late comeback to beat juventus 2-1 on wednesday in what could be a turning point in their champions league campaign while a gabriel jesus hat-trick helped manchester city all but secure a last-16 berth1 juventus were within seconds of confirming their spot in the last 16 after cristiano ronaldo put them ahead in turin with a superb volley in the 65th minute1 the hosts had already hit the woodwork twice before that and should have been out of sight before juan mata equalised from an 86th-minute free-kick1 the turnaround was completed in the 90th minute when leonardo bonucci scored an own-goal and united boss jose mourinho delighted in taking to the field at the end cupping an ear towards the home support1 the former inter coach said it was a response to insults from juve supporters and united are now two points behind the italians in group h1 in a beautiful italian city they insulted me for 90 minutes. i didnt insult them. i just made a little thing mourinho told bt sport1 it is a big victory for us not just because we needed the points but because it was away from home against an amazing team1 the result was a blow for valencia who are still two points behind in third after beating young boys 3-1 at mestalla1 santi mina scored twice either side of a roger assale goal before carlos soler sealed the win. young boys who had sekou sanogo sent off cannot now qualify1 there was less drama at the etihad stadium where city whose financial dealings have come under scrutiny in a series of football leaks allegations eased to their biggest win in the competition1 goals from david silva and riyad mahrez bookended the victory. in between there was a stunner from raheem sterling who was also awarded a penalty for kicking his own foot into the turf in the box1 pep guardiolas city crushed shakhtar donetsk 6-0 on a night which saw real madrid also win big as bayern munich closed in on a place in the knockout stage1 unfortunately we havent qualified but we are so close and will try to maintain this level said guardiola whose team play united on sunday1 city would have been through already had lyon not squandered a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 at home to 10-man hoffenheim1 nabil fekir and tanguy ndombele had the french club 2-0 up at the break and the germans had kasim nuhu sent off early in the second half1 but andrej kramaric pulled one back and lyon missed chances to secure the victory before pavel kaderabeks stoppage-time equaliser1 reigning european champions madrid had no trouble against viktoria plzen in the czech republic with karim benzema scoring twice in a 5-0 win1 real were four ahead at the break benzemas goals taking him to 200 for the club. casemiro and gareth bale also netted in the first half and toni kroos completed the scoring with a delicious chip1 santiago solari has now overseen three victories all with clean sheets since being put in charge of madrid and the spaniards are level atop group g with roma1 the italians won 2-1 away to cska moscow kostas manolas and lorenzo pellegrini scoring their goals either side of arnor sigurdssons equaliser1 cska who had hordur magnusson sent off still have a slim chance of qualifying but plzen are out1 meanwhile bayern require just one more point to advance in group e after robert lewandowski netted twice the first a penalty on his 100th european appearance in a 2-0 home win over aek athens who are eliminated1 ajax remain well placed to progress too. they are second four points clear of third-placed benfica after a 1-1 draw in portugal. jonas put benfica ahead before dusan tadic equalised1

Ekweremadu: Police detain 4 personnel, 1 NSCDC staff
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by joseph edeh2 he said that he had been into the act of stealing for five years without using gun adding that his colleague dan ali escaped while he was caught1 also arrested according to the force public relations officer acting dcp jimoh mohood is one personnel of nigeria security and civil defence corps nscdc also on duty at ekweremadus home at the time1 the news agency of nigeria nan reports that ekweremadu his wife and son allegedly escaped assassination attempt at their apo residence of abuja early hours of tuesday1 nan also recalls that ekweremadu narrowly escaped an alleged attempt on his life in abuja on nov. 17 20151 moshood who addressed newsmen on wednesday in abuja said that the arrested officers were being investigated1 he said that there was no cover-up by the police in the investigation of the crime1 the four policemen and one personnel of the nscdc on duty at the residence of the deputy senate president at the time of the incident have been arrested and detained he said1 the force spokesman said that it was not correct that the police responded after seven hours when the incident occurred1 the police said it had arrested four of its personnel on duty at the residence of deputy president of the senate ike ekweremadu when the alleged assassination attempt on him took place1 update on further investigation did not reveal assassination attempt but a burglary attempt he said1 he added that the investigation so far revealed that the suspects in the case did not have idea thatthe residence belonged to the deputy president of the senate1 moshood said that efforts are being intensified to arrest the second suspect dan ali who escaped from the scene of the crime1 he said that the inspector-general of police ibrahim idris had directed the upgrade of apo legislative quarters outpost to a divisional police headquarters1 others to be upgraded according to him are supreme court kabusa and trademore estate1 he explained that the upgrade was to reduce crime and criminal acts in the affected areas and improve police visibility in the fct1 speaking to newsmen the principal suspect mohammed yusuf 25 said that they only went there to steal and not to assassinate him1 we did not go to the residence of ekweremadu to assassinate him or any body in the house he said1 he said that further investigation had showed that the incident was not an assassination attempt on the life of ekweremadu1

Minimum wage: Gov. Umahi threatens to resign?
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by chukwuemeka opara4 we pledge to assiduously discharge our duties and make recommendations that will permanently solve the problem for a healthy government and labour relationship he said1 umahi who is the chairman of the south east governors forum said this while inaugurating a 36-member fact-finding committee to ascertain the mode of workers promotion arrears payment in states across the six geo-political zones of the states1 according to umahi the payment of the n30 000 can only be realised if the federation account allocation formula is reviewed to offer more earnings to states1 the federal government collects 52 per cent of the revenue from the federation account and when i tried to put the n30000 figure to local government areas lga it means they will borrow n1billion to add to their allocation in paying salaries1 i will definitely not be a governor to govern such a state and will never preside over a state that will allocate 100 per cent of its earnings to pay salaries he said1 the governor recommended that the issue of petroleum subsidy in the country should also be reviewed as had been noted by the state and federal governments1 we must presently have the courage to say this because a lot of money can be saved from the subsidy if properly distributed1 when 100 000 litres of petrol is allocated to me for instance and deducted from my allocation it is then my business to ensure that there is no leakage1 there is no governor or political office holder that signs cheques but civil servants as the countrys leaders and labour are just putting water inside a basket and praying god to hold it with this minimum wage issue he said1 gov david umahi of ebonyi on wednesday in abakaliki declared that 95 per cent of states in the country cannot pay the proposed n30 000 minimum wage to workers1 we should determine how much should be allocated to education health infrastructure among others if 100 per cent of earnings are used to pay workers salaries1 many states are experiencing various problems and cannot pay salaries but the people condemn their governments over their inability to provide good roads and other amenities1 people dont understand the problems being experienced by these states and the governors have kept quiet for long and need to speak presently he said1 umahi regretted that the issue of promotion arrears for workers in the state had lingered for long and urged the committee to be sincere with their findings to find an amicable solution to it1 we have been setting up committees on this issue and getting no results with people not being sincere and resorting to all sorts of things he said1 dr hyginus nwokwu the secretary to the state government ssg noted that the issue made the governor to institute a 36-man member committee to tour states in the six geo political zones and ascertain the mode of payments1 the members are drawn from critical elements of state with the organised labour having 12 nominees christian association of nigeria can 12 nominees and the government-12 nominees1 the committee will tour three states in each of these zones ascertain relevant facts analyse and present them to enable government take disposable and final actions on the matter he said1 mr leonard nkah the acting chairman of the nigerian labour congress nlc in the state and chairman of the committee pledged to ensure the actualisation of the committees aims1 he urged the countrys leaders and labour to liaise and decide on the percentage of the federation account that should be voted for salaries and other sectors1

Kidnapped Cameroonian students freed
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the attack targeted pupils and staff at the presbyterian secondary school in the northwest region one of two areas where surging anglophone separatist militancy has been met with a brutal crackdown by authorities1 ninety cameroonian students kidnapped from presbyterian secondary school nkwen bamenda in the countrys anglophone region have been freed after a military operation the defence ministry said wednesday1 when the group was freed on wednesday it turned out there were another 11 pupils with them who had been abducted from the same school five days earlier1 the presbyterian church which runs the school said the 11 had been taken on october 31 but the news was kept secret to enable negotiations with the kidnappers1 it was the first mass kidnapping to hit cameroon and one of the gravest incidents in 13 months of pro-independence violence1 the students and three adults were freed in a military operation which began in the early hours of the morning on wednesday defence minister joseph beti assomo said in a statement1 when they have been checked by the militarys psychological unit and have undergone a thorough medical check the freed pupils will be soon sent back to their families he added1 a six-minute video seen by afp on monday showed 11 boys aged about 15 identifying their school and saying they were abducted by the amba boys a name for anglophone separatists1 a source close to the establishment said wednesday these were the 11 who had been snatched on october 311 armed separatist militants on monday stormed the school in the capital of the northwest region seizing 79 schoolboys and three adults prompting urgent calls for their release1 the chain of events leading up to their release was not immediately clear nor was the identity of the kidnappers1 communications minister issa bakary tchiroma said all 79 students had been released while the presbyterian church separately announced news about the other 111 it said the school would remain closed until further notice1 on tuesday reverend foki samuel forba a leading member of the church said he had been negotiating with the kidnappers who were not demanding a ransom but the closure of the school1 the kidnappings took place a day before cameroons 85-year-old president paul biya was sworn in for a seventh term in office and coincided with an upsurge of tension in the majority french-speaking country1 such mass kidnappings were previously unknown in cameroon although they are notorious in neighbouring nigeria where islamist boko haram militants snatched more than 200 nigerian schoolgirls from chibok in april 20141 so far 107 have been found or released but the jihadists abducted scores more from neighbouring yobe state in february this year1 the students release comes a day after cameroons 85-year-old president paul biya was sworn in for a seventh term in office cameroons biya on tuesday promised to address frustrations and aspirations in english-speaking regions in his first public acknowledgement of resentments in the northwest and southwest regions.1 in 2016 anger at perceived discrimination in education the judiciary and the economy fanned demands for autonomy there1

Corruption: Rwanda recommends online assets declaration for Nigeria
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by kate obande-okewu4 the five-day learning visit was to expose state and federal government officials to the mechanisms to be applied during the post-conflict era in reconstructing and strengthening public institutions particularly in the north east nigeria2 dr usta kaitesi deputy chief executive officer of rgb said this when he received the nigerian delegation on a post-conflict learning visit titled readiness for change on thursday in kigali rwanda2 she said that the online method was to enable officers add newly acquired assets and deduct the ones that were no longer in their possession to ensure accurate database2 kaitesi said that rwandan government had zero tolerance for corruption and anybody caught irrespective of their position would face the law2 she explained that rwanda was not 100 per cent free from corruption but it was very minimal adding that only zero tolerance for corruption could guarantee and sustain the fight2 there is no immunity for public office holders in rwanda if you take part in corrupt activities and you are caught you will be dismissed from office and face the law irrespective of your position2 you can always run but no matter how long you run anytime you are caught you will face the wrath of the law2 so either you stay and face the consequences then come out to be a better person or you keep running till you are caught2 we still have some perpetrators of the genocide who are still at large and we are still searching for them any day they are found they must face the law she said2 the rwandan governance board rgb says online assets declaration by public office holders is one of the methods that can be used to reduce corruption to a barest minimum in any country including nigeria2 mrs winifred oyo-ita head of civil service of the federation who led the delegation described rwandas public service as excellent2 oyo-ita noted that the visit was enlightening and that nigeria had learnt a lot and would replicate same in nigeria for better national development2 the delegation also visited the national public service commission rwanda and was received by the mrs angelina muganza executive secretary of the commission2 muganza said that rwanda depended on its human capacity to grow the economy as they had no mineral resources2 she explained that before the genocide recruitment was based on nepotism connection and prejudice but all these had stopped2 according to muganza after the genocide the priority is to find staff the entry year into public service is 18 and exit 652 she also said the recruitment process was done online and if you were not employed there was a platform you could appeal to be employed2 the news agency of nigeria nan reports that the delegation had so far visited 10 rwandan institutions including ministries to learn their post-conflict survival strategies and mechanisms2 she explained that resilience on part of government and compliance by citizens was paramount in ensuring sustainability of any development project or policy2

NGO launches lung cancer prevention campaign
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by joshua olomu2 in collaboration with relevant health organisations the group organises free cancer screening for nigerians across the country1 mr caleb egwuenu the project director of maca told news agency of nigeria nan on the sideline of the campaign that the awarenesswas part of the groups initiative toward marking the 2018 lung cancer awareness month lcam1 november is a global lung cancer awareness month designed toraise awareness on the need for more research and better communityeducation about the disease1 according to egwuenu the campaign is to educate nigerians on some common but unhealthy practices that can cause lung cancer1 he said as we know november is the awareness month forlung cancer therefore we have seized this opportunity to launch the sensitisation1 this is in line with our goals at maca to educate people on cancer and to reduce cancer-related burden and its consequent death rate in our society1 like we did in october as the awareness month for breast cancer we are using this month to provide information to nigerians onlung cancer especially on its prevention1 dr abiodu egwuenu a volunteer epidemiologist with maca during her presentation at the awareness programme said that lung cancerwas the most common type of cancer among males and the third most common cancer among females in developing countries1 move against cancer africa maca a cancer advocacy ngo on thursday rolled out lung cancer prevention awareness programme in the federal capital territory fct.1 research has shown that 58 per cent of new cases occur in less developed regions and this is why awareness is very crucial1 she identified some risk factors of lung cancer to include smoking exposure to secondhand smoke exposure to asbestos andother carcinogens and family history of lung cancer1 according to her exposure to radon a gas produced by breakdown of uranium in soil rock and water also causes lung cancer in the long run1 egwuenu explained thatsymptoms of lung cancer include persistent cough coughing up blood even a small amountchest pain bonepain and worsening shortness of breath among others1 she therefore warned that people should beware of secondhand smoke by avoiding areas where people smoke such as bars andrestaurants where smoking is permitted1 prohibition of smoking in public places including child care facility will help in checking secondhand smoke she said1 maca is an ngo that provides essential medical information to people affected by or concerned about cancer1 it helps individuals and families to understand interpret and act upon the most reliable and recent breast cancer informationfor informed decision making1 she added that for several decades now lung cancer has been the most common in the world and it claims more lives each year thancolon prostate ovarian and breast cancers combined1

DSS arrests high-profile criminals, killers of Kaduna Chief
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on 30th october 2018 at sainyinan dani yabo lga sokoto state the duo of abubakar umar and suleiman sani were arrested for gun running1 the department of state service dss recently arrested suspects in high profile crimes including those allegedly involved in the abduction and killing of the traditional ruler of adara chiefdom hrh maiwada galadima1 dss he said sprang into action in its determination to contain the menace of kidnapping1 with the recent arrests he said that relative peace has returned to kaduna state after the disturbances that followed the violent abduction and gruesome murder1 he said that concerted efforts were being made to address the resurgence of organized criminal activities in the north-west1 the service had also arrested high profile kidnappers and notorious elements in different locations of the state and beyond1 on 25th october 2018 in riga chikun kaduna state five members of a dreaded kidnap gang whose operations span between kaduna and katsina states were apprehended1 they are isa ahmadu gang leader suleiman umar ransom negotiator ibrahim mallam ishaku saidu aka ishe and mansur mallam1 the groups hideout in katsina state was raided after preliminary investigation leading to the arrest of two other members of the group muhammadu ibrahim and muhammed isa1 on 19th october 2018 sirajo a suspected infamous kidnapper was arrested at hayin danmni igabi lga of the state1 the arrest of the suspected killers of galadima was made possible with collaboration with the military mr. peter n. afunanya the public relations officer of dss said on thursday in abuja1 between 11th and 12th october 2018 suspected armed bandits operating in and around zamfara state were also arrested in bakura tsafe and bungudu lgas of the state1 those arrested were dan-alhaji dan-mineri yusuf khalif and musa mallam1 he also said that on 5th november 2018 the tactical team of the service in collaboration with the military arrested muhammed aminu a suspected gunrunner and his accomplice dare okunwola aka boda at lere lga1 during a search of okunwoles residence several ammunitions and eight 8 ak-47 rifles were recovered1 on the same date at toungo lga adamawa state abbas abubakar aka sambo a suspected improvised explosives device ied expert for the islamic state in west africa iswa was apprehended1 other arrests were those made on 15th october 2018 at north bank makurdi benue state where renowned cultists yakubu mohammed and joseph andoaasin were apprehended1 cartridges and a locally made pistol were recovered from them1 investigations have so far uncovered leads that will enable the service and other sister agencies to address the menace of kidnaping in the country. suspects will undoubtedly be prosecuted in accordance with the law1 the dss reassures the public that the tempo of these operations will not only be sustained but strengthened for greater impact on the well-being of residents1 the service therefore enjoins everyone to cooperate with law enforcement agencies and avail them useful information that would assist them carry out necessary operations that will guarantee peace especially at the coming yuletide and general elections1

Nigerian traders hail Buhari, ECOWAS for reopening shops in Ghana
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by isaac aregbesola5 ghana investment promotion centre act will never be applicable to ecowas citizens so people can get on with their normal lives he said1 the president of nutag mr chukwuemeka nnaji said this in a telephone conversation with the news agency of nigeria nanfrom kumasi ghana on thursday1 nan reports that hundreds of shops run by nigerians were reportedly shut following an impasse with the ghana union of traders association guta1 the closure of the shops was allegedly in compliance with authorities mulling some legislation compelling foreigners to have one million dollars r14.3 million as minimum foreign investment capital to do business in ghana1 nnaji who confirmed the reopening of the shops by the authority in ghana said that the government of nigeria had worked so hard to achieve the feat1 yes the government of nigeria has worked so hard to bring this success. all our shops are now opened. we want to thank president muhammadu buhari for his intervention he said1 he recalled that president buhari had sent a special envoy led by foreign affairs minister and president of ecowas commission jean claude brou to ghanaian president nana akufo-addo over the matter1 we also commend the ecowas president jean claude brouand his commissioners and other envoys sent toghana so many times over the issue1 the nigerian union of traders association ghana nutag has commended president mohammadu buhari-led government ecowas ghanaian authority and others for their intervention in the reopening of nigerians shops in ghana1 nnaji noted that the minister had on nov 2 summoned the ghanaian high commissioner to nigeria amb. rashid bawa over the situation on the reopening of the shops1 he commended the nigerian high commissioner to ghana amb. olufemi abikoye and his ghanaian counterpart bawa on their efforts in resolving the impasse1 nnaji also expressed the unions appreciation to ghanaian president akufo-addo for his efforts and the role played in ensuring that the closed shops were reopened1 nan also recalled that president akufo-addo had assured nigerians in his country of freedom to operate their businesses without harassment1 akufo-addo said this while receiving president buharis special envoy to ghana led by foreign affairs minister mr geofrey onyeama1 he urged nigerians to go about their normal businesses in ghana1 as far as the traders are concerned the shops are re-opened people are back to work1 we also want to thank the minister of foreign affairs mr geoffrey onyeama and the senior special assistant to the president on foreign affairs and diaspora mrs abike dabiri-erewa for their efforts he said1

Lagos-Ibadan rail can run on electric in future
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nigeria as of today has paid 100 per cent counterpart funding for that project1 the ongoing lagos-ibadan standard gauge rail project can be converted to electric train in future the nigerian railway corporation nrc has assured nigerians1 he said that the project was not just about the standard gauge only1 according to him the government has taken into cognisance the possibility for this project to be converted into an electrically driven train in the future1 im sure most nigerians are aware of the lagos-ibadan standard gauge railway project1 this is one of the projects that government of the day has taken very seriously1 as a matter of fact its a project funded by china and nigeria government1 mr jerry oche the railway district manager of the nigerian railway corporation told the news agency of nigeria nan on wednesday in lagos that the federal government was serious on delivering the project on time as work is going on as we speak1 every month we have project meeting chaired by the minister of transport rotimi amechi himself not representative1 the government of the day is serious on delivering that project work is going on as we speak1 and of course in railway the standard gauge is the in-thing of the day1 this particular project is not just about the standard gauge weve also taken into cognisance the possibility for this project to be converted into an electrically driven train in the future1 all the provisions all the land weve acquired weve made provision for that possibility in case we wake up tomorrow and we say hey we want to convert it to electric trains1 but we all know why we wouldnt want to do that now we all know the power situation in the country1 but if there is an improvement i can assure you we will change to that electric trains oche said. nan1

Broadband: NCC raises alarm over vandalism of infrastructure
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bello outlined some of the challenges facing the sector as willful damage of telecom infrastructure to extort money from service providers andlocal communities or individuals barring technical staff of service providers from installing equipment or carrying out repair on existing systems1 by perpetual onuegbu1 miss helen obi the commissions head of zonal operations in niger said this at a one-day sensitisation programme on protection of telecommunication infrastructure on thursday1 according to her telecom infrastructure serve all citizens and should be owned collectively and everyone should work against its vandalism so that it can serve the purpose for which it is meant1 she said we are here to sensitise the people as stakeholders not only as consumers including local governments and agencies of federal government on the need to protect telecom infrastructure1 this is actually key to the 8-point agenda of the ncc chief executive prof. umar danbatta to ensuring quality service and broadband penetration1 this is because tampering with these infrastructure compromises the efforts of government to meet the 30 per cent broadband penetration target for 20181 she said that so far ncc had achieved 22 per cent broadband penetration and hoped to reach 30 per cent target1 dr lawal bello of the department of technical standards and network integrity tsni of the commission said that the industry had continued to lose huge sums of money as a result of vandalism of telecom infrastructure1 he said that the spate of destruction of telecom infrastructure across the country had slowed down the growth of services1 nigerian communications commission ncc has warned against vandalism of telecommunication infrastructure stressing that the act is compromising federal governments efforts toward achieving30 per cent broadband penetration in 20181 he added that diesel theft and digging up of cables for sale were also among the problems1 the tsni official said that ncc had been using various avenues such as the consumer outreach programme the telecom consumer parliament to sensitise people and to educate them about the dangers associated with vandalism of such infrastructure1 he called for speedy passing of the bill of telecom infrastructure and the need to declare it a national asset1 bello added that the protection of telecom infrastructure was not only nccs responsibility or that of security agencies but of all patriotic citizens1 mr abubakar salisu the permanent secretary human resources office of the head of service in niger urged the commission to give incentives to states that have less cases of vandalism1 according to him incentives will encourage states to do more and make others to follow1 ncc statistics shows that niger has the least occurrence of telecommunication infrastructure vandalism1 during the sensitisation programme telecom users were given opportunity to ask questions and lay their complains which the commission pledged to look into1 in attendance were security agencies community members and telecom operators and associations1

Labour, FG strike new minimum wage deal, to be revealed Tuesday
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therefore we thought this should be communicated appropriately without also divulging this information as mutual agreement has been reached he said1 labour leaders who have called off a planned nationwide strike have agreed a new national minimum wage at the end of negotiations with a tripartite committee set up by the federal government1 mr ayuba wabba president of the nigeria labour congress spoke to newsmen at the end of the tripartite committee meeting on the new national minimum wage meeting on tuesday in abuja1 he said the national minimum wage negotiating committee has concluded its assignment and agreement has been reached and also documents have been signed1 the report will be submitted to mr president by today and therefore having reached this position the organised labour also decided that the proposed strike is hereby suspended1 the agreed figure will be kept under wraps until 4.15 pm on tuesday when it will be revealed in a report to be presented to president muhammadu buhari1 ms amma people chairman of the tripartite committee also noted that the assignment of the committee has been concluded1 we are going to present our report to mr president today at 415 pm and he will reveal the figure that we have recommended she said1 mr boss mustapha secretary of the government of the federation commended members of the committee for their time and commitment on the processes of recommending the new minimum wage1 i am confident that government will give expeditious consideration of the report when submitted tomorrow to mr president. and very soon the processes will be put in place to truly actualise your recommendations so that the status of our working populace will be enhanced and they would receive appropriate and commensurate payments for the services they offer to our nation and to the different sectors of our economy he said1 the news agency of nigeria nan reports that the organised labour had threatened to commence nationwide strike on nov. 6 over government rejection of a n30000 minimum wage. government offered n24000 which labour also rejected1

Just In: Labour Suspends nationwide strike
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the planned nationwide strike by the labour unions over a new minimum wage has been shelved for now. the strike was scheduled to start on tuesday1 labour leaders government representatives and organised private sector spent many hours on monday to reach a consensus on a minimum wage1 but it was in vain as the tripartite committee decided to convey the resolution of the meeting to president muhammadu buhari for onward transmission to the national assembly1 the report will be submitted to president buhari on tuesday by 415 pm1 government wants to pay n24000 as minimum wage but the labour leaders are insisting on n300001 president muhammadu buhari on mondayintervened in the impasse by appealing to the labour unions especially the nigeria labour congress nlc to consider the rot his administration inherited from the previous governments1 the president explained that the present government was doing more with the fewer resources at its disposal in putting the nations economy right1 more to follow1

NSF: Association promises formidable FCT squash team
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by dorcas jonah2 other members are hadi sani dorcas jonah emmanuel emeka ime ekrikpo anthony oke who is a coach and noah omede who is the secretary1 the associations chairman edem selong told the news agency of nigeria nan the team would have talented boys and girls who would perform well to win medals at the festival1 he assured that with good support the association would get the game of squash back to the centre stage in abuja1 our immediate task is to groom and present a formidable team for the nsf slated for dec. 6 to dec. 16 in abuja selong said1 the fct squash association on monday in abuja said it would build a formidable squash team for the territory to compete successfully at the upcoming 19th national sports festival nsf1 selong said the association would do this as part of all efforts to popularise the sport in the fct1 nan reports that the minister of the fct muhammed bello had on thursday inaugurated new members for the boards of the 29 sports associations in the fct1 he had charged the members to move sports to the next level in the territory1 nan reports that other members of the fct squash association include ladan dahiru who is the first vice-chairman jamal arabi as second vice-chairman and jonah attah as technical director1 he also said the association would expedite action in the completion of the squash courts at the old parade ground in abuja1

Buhari receives Prince Charles, wife at Aso Rock
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president muhammadu buhari on tuesday received prince charles and his wife princess camilla at the presidential villa abuja1 the news agency of nigeria nan reports that prince charles and members of his entourage arrived the state house at about 2.20p.m1 buhari who welcomed the prince at the fore court of the presidential villa introduced some members of his cabinet and presidential aides to the prince1 the president later went into closed door with prince charles1 prince charles 69 who is on a 3-day visit had visited nigeria in 20061 during this visit he would engage in peace-building activities including addressing the persistent attacks of herdsmen on farming communities in nigeria1 he is also expected to discuss practical solutions to alleviating the tensions arising from the activities of herdsmen1 nan also reports that the benin monarch omo noba ewuare 11 had on sunday arrived in abuja ahead of prince charles visit to nigeria1

End of year fuel scarcity rumour untrue DPR
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akinyosoye stressed the importance of following dpr guidelines and safety in setting up retail businesses especially when as pertained to liquefied petroleum gas lpg business which had gained ground momentarily in the last few years and had wreaked havoc in most homes across the country1 by ibukun emiola1 mr wole akinyosoye the zonal operations controller of dpr lagos zonal office stated this at the 2018 annual dpr and petroleum marketers meeting in ibadan on tuesday1 news agency of nigeria reports that the event organised by dpr ibadan field office had the theme making safety and integrity the hallmark of our businesses1 we are confident that the right lessons have been learned from all sides from the 2017 experience and all hands are now on deck to ensure it does not repeat this year1 government is leaving no stone unturned. nnpc is working round the clock to keep up with supply and bridge all gaps in all areas especially in shoring up strategic reserves1 dpr is also committed to constant surveillance to ensure fair practice at the forecourts. we therefore require your support you who are the last line to the consumers to keep the product lines flowing to the general public akinyosoye said1 the department of petroleum resources dpr says government is leaving no stone unturned to ensure surplus of premium motor spirit pms and stall the speculated end-of-the-year scarcity1 let us remind ourselves that it is also illegal to operate an lpg skid even in dpr-approved petrol stations1 holding a license to operate a petrol station does not entitle a dealer to set up a gas skid without obtaining the due approvals for the operation from the department and the dealer must always take care to operate in safe manners even under license he said1 mr oluyemi olaonipekun the operations controller of dpr ibadan said that dpr would maintain its statutory role of ensuring high level of compliance to government policies as relating to the petroleum industry1 as the downstream petroleum industry continue to grow and evolve it is imperative that we all brace up to live up to the expectations of government and beneficiaries of our services1 safety of lives and property including our assets should not be taken with levity at this time. no cost incurred on safety is too expensive when compared to the cost when accident occurs olaonipekun said1 while reviewing the activities of dpr till date the head operations dpr mr danjuma sadiq charged petroleum marketers on global best practices and safety1 according to him there are 170 licenses yet to be collected by petroleum marketers while 279 have been abandoned in retail outlets in both oyo and osun states with 2436 retail outlets operations1

Minimum wage: Mixed reactions trail suspension of strike
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i think nlc should have informed us the amount reached at their last meeting before suspending the strike as government can change its mind anytime1 a cross-section of workers on tuesday in abuja expressed mixed reactions on organised labours suspension of the nov. 6 proposed strike to press for the implementation of a new national minimum wage1 some workers who spoke in separate interviews with the news agency of nigeria nan commended the unions and the federal government for reaching an agreement1 mr idris abdullahi a civil servant praised the unions for being resilient1 according to him before the suspension of the industrial action the union leaders are sure that the government will not renege1 is a good thing the strike was called off it shows that the government is on the same page with organised labour he said1 mr lonnie james a health worker commended the unions for ensuring that the government obliged workers demand1 the truth is that workers do not want to shut down the economy but workers are suffering and the only way to get the government attention is through strike1 i am glad that the issue was resolved without going on strike1 mrs joy hassan a civil servant said that the strike was called off in a hurry adding that they did not tell nigerians how much government agreed to pay1 the nigeria labour congress nlc trade union congress tuc and united labour congress ulc was scheduled to commence strike by 12 midnight of nov. 5 but suspended the action on monday night after a meeting of the tripartite committee 1 if tomorrow the federal government comes out to tell us that they cannot pay more than n24000 labour will find it difficult to regroup1 she stressed that nigeria workers need the increment adding the suffering is too much1 mr yusuf mustarpha a teacher at the government secondary school wuse expressed dissatisfaction on the way the strike was suspended stressing that the must ensure implementation of agreement reached1 according to him the proposed n30000 that was initially agreed on should be seen as a starting point1 labour leadersshould follow up until implementation in order to put smiles on the faces of workers that have endured for so long1 nlc president ayuba wabba had explained that the strike was suspended after agreements and documents were signed1 having reached this position and agreements signed the proposed strike is hereby suspended he said1 wabba however refused to disclose the exact figure agreed by the committee1 he said that the amount would only be made public after presentation of the report to president muhammadu buhari. nan1

Buhari distressed, depressed by killings
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the leadership in the respective religions have to work harder to make sure they convince the coming generation that they have to live together in the same country he said1 distressed and depressed by the ethno-religious killings in nigeria president muhammadu buhari has urged religious community and traditional leaders to do more in promoting peaceful co-existence1 the president made the appeal when he received leaders of the church of christ in nations cocin led by rev dr dachollom datiri at the state house abuja on tuesday1 as an organised institution cocin i have no reason to doubt your report on the atrocities being committed in your communities including the killing of idris alkali a retired maj.-gen. the dumping of his car into a pond and the body of the deceased thrown into a disused well1 the communities in plateau have lived long enough to know that there is nothing they can do without each other than to live together in harmony1 as leaders we must persuade the upcoming generation using every channel particularly the educational institutions to live together with our neighbours1 buhari who used the occasion to underscore the important role religious leaders play in engendering peace lauded the exemplary role of the imam in plateau state who risked his life to save hundreds of christian families fleeing attacks in june1 it is not all muslims that are against christians and neither are all christians against muslims1 he also appealed to nigerians to learn to live together in peace and harmony1 buhari assured the christian delegation that he would continue to exert pressure on the nigeria police force to do the needful in protecting lives and property1 in our security arrangement the police is in the frontline in making sure that communities irrespective of ethnic or religious bias live together in peace he said1 he added that nigeria could not afford to take its unity for granted and allow a return to the unfortunate perils of a civil war1 in his remarks datiri while condemning the recent killing of an army general in the state chronicled recent attacks against christian communities in plateau and neighbouring states resulting in the displacement of thousands of persons1 the cleric appealed to the federal government to ensure the safe return and rehabilitation of internally displaced persons idps to their communities in addition to the rebuilding of places of worship destroyed in the unfortunate incidents1 the cocin president also called on the federal government to take adequate measures in ensuring the release of leah sharibu and other abductees of boko haram terrorists1 datiri also requested the president to use his good offices to persuade some northern states to allocate land titles to churches in addition to directing the ministry of education to allow the teaching of christian religious knowledge in schools in the region. nan1

Biya, 85, sworn in for another 7-year tenure in Cameroon
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biya was declared winner of the presidential poll with more than 71 per cent of total votes cast on oct. 221 cameroons president paul biya in power for almost 36 years was sworn into office for seven more years on tuesday after winning octobers election in a landslide1 during his inaugural speech biya acknowledged the frustrations of people in the english-speaking north-west and south-west regions who feel marginalised in the otherwise french-speaking country1 the president promised to fast-track the decentralisation process to render local councils more autonomous but condemned anglophone secessionists who have held regular protests over the past two years and sometimes stage violent attacks1 war mongers who are jeopardising our national unity and preaching secession should know that they will face not only the full force of the law but also the determination of our defence and security forces said biya1 however the president remained mum about sundays abduction of 79 students their principal the schools driver and another staff member from a christian secondary school in western cameroon1 the abduction seems to be part of a plan by anglophone secessionists to shut down all schools in the disputed regions in a move to make the area ungovernable1 the 85-year old one of africas longest-ruling leaders won the october presidential poll for the seventh time in spite his questionable record that includes corruption and human rights abuse allegations1 his main opponent maurice kamto has since called for a resistance movement against what he said was a flawed electoral process1 biya was born on feb 13 1933. he has been serving as the president of cameroon since nov. 6 19821 a native of cameroons south biya rose rapidly as a bureaucrat under president ahmadou ahidjo in the 1960s serving as secretary-general of the presidency from 1968 to 1975 and then as prime minister of cameroon from 1975 to 19821 he succeeded ahidjo as president upon the latters surprise resignation in 1982 and consolidated power in a 19831984 fake attempted coup where he eliminated all his rivals1 biya introduced political reforms within the context of a one-party system in the 1980s. under serious pressure he accepted the introduction of multiparty politics in the early 1990s1 biya is at present the longest-ruling non-royal leader in africa and the oldest ruler in sub-saharan africa after robert mugabe stepped down during the 2017 zimbabwean coup dtat1 biya has maintained cameroons close relationship with france one of cameroons former colonial ruler besides the united kingdom1

Peace, Economic growth: Rwanda, Nigeria share keys to success
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by kate obande-okewu4 according to him the country utilises and harnesses home grown innovations for their development as well as citizen centered policies1 dr. claudine uwera minister of state for economic planning rwanda who spoke on behalf of the country advised nigerian government to practice inclusive system of government to ensure sustainable development1 uwera gave the advice on tuesday in kigali while receiving mrs winifred oyo-ita head of the nigerian civil service1 the rwandan minister said that gender equality home grown innovations and solutions good governance as well as visionary leadership was key to the success of rwanda1 uwera added that the visit was a platform to share knowledge and learn from each others experiences1 earlier oyo-ita who led a delegation on a post-conflict learning visit to kigali informed the rwandan economic planning minister how nigerias president muhammadu buhari struggled to restore normalcy to the north east1 she however said that nigeria still needed to learn from a country that had perfected its peace building having come from a devastating genocide hence the need for the visit and experience sharing1 restoring infrastructure in the frontline states that faced the crises is not enough we also need to rebuild the public service1 and rwanda is the best country to study and learn from considering the genocide the country experienced in 1994 she said1 godfrey kabera director general national planning and research in the rwandan ministry educated the nigerian delegation on the national planning tools development vision priorities and donor coordination framework of rwanda1 the government of rwanda has handed over to nigeria the keys and strategies which led to the successes recorded by the country in the last decades1 he added that the poverty rate in rwanda had reduced drastically through their economic and result oriented policies1 he noted that one of the key factor to the success of rwanda was the determination to succeed accountability and sustainability on the part of government and the citizens1 kabera said that the government had also reduced inequality and promoted regional and international integration in the country1 he disclosed that the country already has a development plan tagged vision 2050 which is aimed at making rwanda a country with high living standards by 20501 part of the activities by the nigerian delegation was a visit to the ministry of health in rwanda to also learn from their health sector ways to rebuild the health system in the north east1 the permanent secretary ministry of health rwanda mr nyemazi jean pierre said that the vision of the health sector was to provide equitable and accessible quality health care services1 he said the vision was in line with the vision 2050 adding that the health sector had been decentralised from national to the district levels1 he also said that every district in rwanda currently has a hospital catering to the health needs of over 200000 people1 the permanent secretarytold the delegation that it takes less than an hour for a citizen to access health facility and see a doctor1 he said that engaging of development partners in budget planning process to help identify priority areas was essential to development1