News Rider

BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja  A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has ordered the Media Rights Agenda (MRA) to sue the federal government over failure to make rules and regulations for the effective implementation of the Anti-torture Act. The order of mandamus was expected to compel the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN) to exercise its mandatory legal duty as stipulated in Section 11 of the Anti-Torture Act, 2017. Justice Tijjani Garba Ringim granted the order following a motion by MRA's lawyer, Mrs. Bankeye Akinwale, claiming that the AGF had failed to make the needed rules and regulations since 2017 despite the existence of the act.  The MRA had lamented that Nigerians are subjected to torture, inhuman or degrading treatment by law enforcement agencies and other government officials and non-state actors according to various reports by journalists.  The MRA said that it wrote to the AGF on August 20, 2021, reques...

BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja Experts have called on public institutions across the country to embrace the electronic transmission of Freedom of Information (FOI) requests as well as in processing, storing, managing, retrieving, presenting, transferring and distributing information for speedy implementation of the Act.  This is even as they suggested that inadequate application of digital record keeping tools by public institutions in gathering and dissemination of information poses unnecessary burden on desk officers as it undermines the implementation of the FOI act. These were contained in a communique issued at the end of a 2-day workshop for 'Freedom of Information (FOI) Desk Officers of Public Institutions on the Establishment of an Online Engagement Platform' in Abuja recently.  The event was organised by the International Press Centre (IPC) in collaboration with Media Rights Agenda (MRA) and the Freedom of Information Unit of the Federal Ministry of Justice, with t...

BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja The Corporate headquarters of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), located at the Central Business District (CBD) Abuja was yesterday gutted by fire.  This is happening barely few months to the end of the tenure of the current management team headed by Arc Ahmed Dangiwa.  The inferno, which occurred on Wednesday night at about 11 pm, started on the third floor where vital documents were kept.  BOblog findings revealed that the cause of the fire was yet to be revealed as at the time of filing this report.  However, the Group Head, Corporate Communications of FMBN, Mr Lawal K. Isa Kauri in a statement Thursday confirmed the incident but stated that essential FMBN's official documents were not consumed in the inferno.  He said that the fire was promptly contained through the combined efforts of the FCT Fire Service and staff of the bank. Kauri stated that the damage to the building is currently assessed by a combined team f...

BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja In a bid to facilitate the implementation of biosecurity action plan, the Canadian government has invested about $8 million to strengthen Nigena’s capacity to prevent, detect and respond to biological threats.  This was carried out through the construction, operation and maintenance of biocontainment laboratones in Lagos and the National Veterinary Research Institute Vom, Plateau State.  Acting High Commissioner of Canada in Nigeria, Kevin Toker stated this in Abuja yesterday at the unveiling of Nigena’s 5 -year (2022-2026) National Biosecunty Policy and Action Plan. He was optimistic that the Canadian-supported laboratones have played a vital role in supporting Nigena’s COVID 19 response throughout the pandemic, especially by enhancing testing capacity.  Toker said that Canada’s continued commitment to strengthen biosecunty and health secunty in Africa was reflected in its 'Signature initiative to Mitigate Biological Threats in Africa, w...

                               al-Qurayshi  The leader of the Islamic State (ISIS) group, Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi blew himself up along with members of his family as American forces raided his hideout in Syria on Thursday.  This is the second time in three years that the United States has taken out a leader of the violent group that has been struggling for resurgence with deadly attacks in the region. President Joe Biden announced the overnight raid by American special operations forces, which U.S. officials described as a 'significant blow' to the radical militant organisation. The IS group at the height of its power, controlled more than 40,000 square miles stretching from Syria to Iraq and ruled over eight million people. Its attacks in the region last month included a major assault to seize a prison in northeast Syria holding at least 3,000 IS detainees. The raid targeted...

BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja The federal government has launched an investigation to determine the immediate cause of a fire oubreak at the Ukpokiti Oil Field owned by Floating Production Storage and Offtake of Shebah Exploration and Production Company Limited (SEPCOL) in Delta State. This is even as a yet-to-be-identified body was discovered close to the offshore facility in the early hours of Sunday, while seven others remained missing. Ten crew members were said to be onboard the facility when the incident occurred last week.  SEPCOL's Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel named ‘Trinity Spirit’ was in the early hours of Wednesday, February 2, engulfed in a fire while carrying an estimated 50-60 000 barrels of oil.  Though the fire was said to be extinguished on Thursday, February 3, the vessel initially loaded 200 000 000 barrels of oil and had discharged approximately 120,000 barrels before the incident.  Minister of State for the Environment...

BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja  International Press Centre (IPC) Lagos in collaboration with Media Rights Agenda (MRA) yesterday unveiled an online platform for Freedom of Information (FOI) desk officers in public institutions.  The 2-day workshop, which attracted participants from over 60 public institutions, was organised by IPC in collaboration with MRA and the FOI Unit of the Federal Ministry of Justice, with the support of European Union through component 4b: Support to Media of the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN) Project. Speaking at the event in Abuja, the Executive Director of IPC, Mr Lanre Arogundade said the establishment of an online platform would assist in facilitating shared learning, experience sharing and best practice application in the implementation of the FOI Act.  Arogundade, who was represented by the Programme Manager of IPC, Stella Nwofia stated that the platform would also provide an opportunity for FOI Desk...

BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja L-R: Executive Director of Media Rights Agenda (MRA) Mr. Edetaen Ojo and Head, Freedom of Information Unit, Federal Ministry of Justice, Mr Gowon Ichibor at a 2-day workshop for  Freedom of Information (FOI) Desk Officers of Public Institutions in Abuja yesterday.  The European Union has promised to support the implementation of Freedom of Information (FOI) Act in Nigeria, saying that the adoption of the act raised hopes for Nigerians.  Head of Democracy, Governance and Migration Section, Delegation of the European Union to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Mr Clement Boutillier disclosed this in Abuja yesterday at a 2-day workshop for FOI Desk Officers of Public Institutions on the establishment of Online Freedom of Information Forum/ Platform.  The event was organised by the International Press Centre (IPC) Lagos in collaboration with Media Rights Agenda (MRA) and the FOI Unit of the Federal Ministry of Justice, with the support of European Unio...

BY CHIKA OKEKE, Abuja  Cross section of participants at the Ministerial Press Briefing on the Ministry of Environment’s achievements and priority areas for 2022 in Abuja yesterday. Worried by the continued environmental degradation in oil-producing States, the federal government has mapped out plans to remediate about 5,354,766 cubic meters of contaminated soil, covering about 314 acres of land in Ogoni, Rivers State. This is even as bidding for additional 37 hydrocarbon impacted sites commenced last month, expected to provide employment and livelihood opportunities among Ogoni youths.  Minister of State for Environment, Barr Sharon Ikeazor stated this in Abuja yesterday while briefing the media on the ministry's achievements and priority areas for 2022.  She stated that in 2019, contracts for 21 lots were awarded for remediation, which covered 12 of the 65 listed sites in the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report, amounting to 276 acres of land....