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  • Tinubu Appoints 8 New Permanent Secretaries 

    Tinubu Appoints 8 New Permanent Secretaries 

    President Bola Tinubu, on Friday appointed eight new permanent secretaries in the Federal Civil Service.

    The appointment follows “the recently concluded selection process by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation,” a statement signed by President Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, read Friday.

    The statement is titled ‘President Tinubu appoints eight new permanent secretaries.’

    According to Ngelale, the new appointees include Ndakayo-Aishetu Gogo, Adeoye Ayodeji, Rimi Abba, and Bako Deborah Odoh.

    Others are Omachi Omenka, Ahmed Umar, Watti Tinuke, and Ella Agbo.

    Tinubu said he expects the new Permanent Secretaries, having emerged at the top of qualified candidates after a diligent assessment process, to deploy their expertise and competence to revitalise service delivery in all Federal Ministries, Departments, and Agencies in the interest of Nigerians.

  • Nasarawa Guber: Appeal Court Overturns Tribunal Verdict, Reinstates Abdullahi Sule

    Nasarawa Guber: Appeal Court Overturns Tribunal Verdict, Reinstates Abdullahi Sule

    The Abuja Division of the Appeal Court on Thursday reversed the sack of the Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule by the State Election Petitions Tribunal in its judgment delivered on October 2.

    Declaring the tribunal verdict a nullity, the court held that the Ezekiel Ajayi-led tribunal acted in grave error in using witness statements on oath and not front-loaded as required by law to arrive at the unjust conclusion of nullifying the election of the governor.

    The appellate court, in its judgment delivered by Justice Uchechukwu Onyemenam, said that the Tribunal was legally bound to act on witness statements filed along with the petition or front loaded within 21 days stipulated by law.

    The Court held that no petition can lawfully be amended outside the 21 days allowed by law as wrongly done by the Tribunal.

    Since the statements used by the Tribunal to sack the Governor were not front loaded in compliance with law, the statements were product of illegality with no probate value tor a law Court to act upon.

    The Court also dismissed the over voting issues also used to annul the election adding that allegations to that were not established by law.

    Justice Onyemenam held that the petition by the Governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party PDP was a nullity and invalid on the ground that the jurisdictional issues raised by the governor was unlawfully ignored by the Tribunal.

    According to the Court of Appeal, the Tribunal denied the governor fair hearing by not considering and making findings on the issues of jurisdiction raised at the hearing of the petition.

    Justice Onyemenam agreed that denial of fair hearing against the governor was fatal and tendered all decisions of the Tribunal invalid.

    In all, the Court of Appeal reversed all orders made against the governor and the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC and affirmed Sule as the lawfully elected governor of the state.

    INEC had declared Sule winner of the governorship election on the ground that he polled a total of 347,209 votes to defeat his closest opponent David Emmanuel Ombugadu who secured 283,016 votes.

    In a split decision on October 2, the tribunal nullified Sule’s election and upheld Ombugadu as the winner.

  • Ceasefire: First Hostages From Gaza Set For Release Friday

    Ceasefire: First Hostages From Gaza Set For Release Friday

    Delays are already affecting the start of a four-day ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas to let aid into Gaza and to free dozens of hostages, which was set to go into effect after nearly seven weeks of war.

    The truce was due to begin on Thursday at 10 am (0800 GMT) but the exact timing remains unclear as Israel has not yet said when it would pause its air and ground offensives in the coastal area.

    An Israeli army spokesman said the process of returning hostages from the Gaza Strip to Israel is complex and not yet concrete.

    The military is preparing the implementation of this first phase of the hostage exchange agreement, said Daniel Hagari late on Wednesday.

    However, the repatriation of the people abducted to the sealed-off coastal strip could take time and take place in several stages, he said.

    “The release (of hostages) will begin according to the original agreement between the parties, and not before Friday,” Israel’s security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi was quoted by newspapers Haaretz and the Times of Israel and the N12 channel as saying.

    “The talks on the release of our hostages are progressing and will continue on an ongoing basis.”

    The first exchange of hostages kidnapped in Israel for Palestinian prisoners was initially expected to take place on Thursday.

    The Times of Israel cited an Israeli official as explaining the delay by saying that both Israel and Hamas would have to sign a document ratifying the agreement for it to come into force.

    Haaretz reported that Israeli officials had said there would be no halt to the fighting as long as there is no finalized timeline for the agreement with Hamas.

    The agreement foresees 100 hostages being released from Gaza in exchange for 300 Palestinian prisoners held in Israel.

    The Israeli Cabinet signed off on the deal early Wednesday after weeks of fraught negotiations mediated by Qatar and the United States.

    The deal’s first step involves the release in stages of 50 Israeli women and children that have been held by militants in Gaza since the October 7 terrorist attack. In exchange, 150 Palestinian prisoners are to be released.

    In a second step, up to 50 further Israeli hostages are also to be exchanged in small groups for up to 150 further Palestinian prisoners.

    The ceasefire is to be accompanied by larger aid deliveries for the suffering civilian population in the Gaza Strip, where food, water, electricity, and medical supplies are running scarce.

    Israel said the ceasefire will last at least four days but could be extended by one day for every additional 10 hostages released.

    A maximum of 10 days is planned for the entire exchange.

    After that, the Israeli army’s fight against Hamas and other Islamist extremists in the Gaza Strip is to continue.

    Terrorists from Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups carried out unprecedented massacres in southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing around 1,200 people and taking around 240 people hostage.

    Of the 240 people who were kidnapped and taken to Gaza, four women have so far been released by Hamas.

    One young soldier was rescued by the Israeli military.

    The army also found the bodies of two people.

    It is unclear how many hostages are still alive.

    Local media reported Israel will pass on a first list of names of hostages to be released.

    Kidnapped mothers and children were not to be separated.

    The Israeli government on Wednesday announced the names and details of the 300 imprisoned Palestinians who are eligible for release from prison.

    On list are 123 people under the age of 18, with the youngest being 14.

    According to the list, 33 prisoners are girls and women.

    They are accused of throwing firebombs, arson, and knife attacks, among other offences.

    No prisoners serving time for murder are set for release.

    Once free, they are to return to the places where they lived before their imprisonment, such as the West Bank or East Jerusalem.

    Shortly after the Oct. 7 attack Israel’s military launched airstrikes on the Gaza Strip and deployed ground troops with the aim of destroying Hamas.

    According to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, more than 16,000 people have been killed so far.

    The Israeli army said on Wednesday that soldiers have destroyed around 400 tunnel shafts since the start of the war.

    Many of the tunnels used by Hamas were found under civilian hospitals, schools, and houses.

    The Palestinian Red Crescent said more patients are to be evacuated from the ruined al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.

    Fourteen ambulances, accompanied by staff from the UN and Doctors Without Borders, arrived at the Gaza Strip’s biggest hospital on Wednesday.

    Patients were to be taken to hospitals in the south, where conditions are relatively safer than in the north.

  • We’re Closely Monitoring Egina Spill Situation -NIMASA

    We’re Closely Monitoring Egina Spill Situation -NIMASA

    The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has said it is closely monitoring the crude oil spill incident which took place during loading operations in Egina on 15th November 2023 at about 6:30am.

    The Assistant Director, Public Relations, NIMASA, Osagie Edwards, in a statement said the Agency is working closely with the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) and Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) from the Crisis Management Room CMR, where the spill is being monitored real time using oil spill monitoring software from the Emergency Response Centre.

    NIMASA explained that though the volume of the spill is not yet confirmed, Total Energies is providing aerial surveillance, dispersant application, while further mobilization is being considered. 

    “The Oil Spill Response Limited from the United Kingdom is also assisting with pollution control measures. Reconnaissance survey of the impacted area confirms that the shoreline communities of Andoni, Qua-Iboe terminals, Bonny Island, Opobo/Nkoro and Eastern Obolo, which are closest to Egina, are not yet affected,” the Agency said. 

    NIMASA Director General of NIMASA, Dr Bashir Jamoh, noted that the Agency is in collaboration with all stakeholders to control the pollution and also put in place measures to prevent such occurrences in the future, in line with provisions of the MARPOL Convention.

    “Since the incident happened, our men have been liaising with other organs of Government to ensure the pollution is effectively controlled and managed, to protect the marine environment and the communities close to the incident point. Accidents do happen, it’s what we do thereafter that matters and I believe that the IOC Total, working with NIMASA, NUPRC, NOSDRA and collaborating with international service providers, will surely ensure proper management of the spill,” he said.

  • Tinubu Not Sick, Still Nursing Knee Injury After Surgery – Presidency

    Tinubu Not Sick, Still Nursing Knee Injury After Surgery – Presidency

    President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has explained why the president can’t walk properly.

    Onanuga disclosed that his principal still nurses a knee injury.

    He made the disclosure while stressing that Tinubu was not nursing any other ailment.

    In 2021, Tinubu had knee surgery in London, which was before he commenced his presidential campaign.

    However, Onanuga said the surgery was responsible for the president’s inability to walk properly.

    Responding to questions from Tribune, the presidential aide said Tinubu is not sick.

    According to Onanuga: “No, he was not sick. We made this clear to Nigerians. Tinubu was as fit as the fiddle in the run-up to that election.

    “Before that campaign began, I think a year before, he went for knee surgery, which was not a secret as President Buhari even went to see him in London when he was recuperating.

    “So, that was what he went to do – knee surgery. That was why he could not walk properly.

    “When you do knee surgery, you cannot walk like a 25-year-old man. He is still nursing it up till now because it was a major surgery. It is not that he has any other ailment,” Onanuga said.

  • FG To Collaborate With China On Technology Transfer, Intelligence Sharing

    FG To Collaborate With China On Technology Transfer, Intelligence Sharing

    The Minister of Defence, Muhammad Badaru Abubakar, CON, mni has said that the Federal Government would collaborate with the Chinese Government on technology transfer, intelligence sharing and military training, in its quest to tackle insecurity in the country.

    The Minister stated this when he received the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China to Nigeria on a courtesy visit to Ship House, Abuja.

    He said there has been a lot of working relationship with the Chinese companies on transfer of technology and talk on Military equipment production.

    According to him, the interest of the Government of China to cooperate with Nigeria in the areas of technology transfer and training was overwhelming.

    “I was in China to attend a forum which was very successful and we had a very good discussion centred on the transfer of technology, military training and the protection of the interest of China Corporations in Nigeria,” he said.

    Speaking further, he said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR is passionate with Private sector involvement in the renewed Hope Agenda of the current administration.

    “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu just signed the Defence Industry Act as a guide on the development of the Defence Industry. The Act provides a level playing grounds for all investors,” he said.

    He called on the Ambassador to encourage more investors into Nigeria economy. “We need serious investors in steel, power and energy to help actualize our defence industry technology. Mr President understand the need for development for private sector to prosper. We are open to power, steel and defence industry to have these investments actualized in the country. Chinese companies have the potential and technology to invest in our country,” he said.

    Earlier in his remark, the Ambassador of China to Nigeria, Cui Jian Chun said China has strategic interest on cooperation with Nigeria in areas of Military operations, economy cooperation and international cooperation. 

    He said China and Nigeria have investment in security, education and economy, adding that; “Nigeria has great potential to develop new economy.”

    He opined that Nigeria has abundant natural and human resources that can support China Corporations based in Nigeria.

    “Nigeria is a large country just like China and we are willing to build our Military Industries in Nigeria to support local production of Military equipment,” he said.

    According to him, the Chinese companies would not only boost the fight against insurgency and other related crimes in Nigeria, but would also boost the Federal Government’s drive on employment generation.

  • Chief Judge Releases Postings For 23 New Judges

    Chief Judge Releases Postings For 23 New Judges

    Sequel to the appointment of 23 new judges, the Honorable Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Hon. Justice John Terhemba Tsoho, has released a new posting of the court’s judges to various divisions across the country.

    The Chief Judge directed the affected judges to report at their duty stations before the date of resumption from the Christmas vacation, being the 8th day of January, 2023.

    In a statement signed by the Assistant Director Information of the court, Catherine Oby Christopher, PhD, on Wednesday, the CJ wished his fellow lordships a wonderful vacation in advance.

    Below is the list of judges and their new postings:

    1. ABUJA :

    1.  HON. JUSTICE J.T. TSOHO  — Chief Judge

    2.  HON. JUSTICE G.K. OLOTU

    3.  HON. JUSTICE B.F.M.   NYAKO

    4.  HON. JUSTICE R.N. OFILI- AJUMOGOBIA

    5.  HON. JUSTICE A.R.  MOHAMMED

    6.  HON. JUSTICE I. E. EKWO

    7. HON. JUSTICE D.U. OKOROWO

    8.  HON. JUSTICE JOYCE OBEHI  ABDULMALIK

    9.  HON. JUSTICE JAMES  KOLAWALE  OMOTOSHO

    10. HON. JUSTICE EMEKA  NWITE

    11.  HON. JUSTICE OBIORA  ATUEGWU  EGWUATU

    12.  HON. JUSTICE MOBOLAJI  OLUBUKOLA  OLAJUWON

    13.  HON. JUSTICE NKEONYE  EVELYN  MAHA

    2.  UMUAHIA -ABIA

    1. HON. JUSTICE SUNDAY ONU

    2.  HON. JUSTICE MUSA KAKAKI

    3.  YENAGOA — BAYELSA 

    1. HON. JUSTICE ISA  HAMMA  ADAMA  DASHEN

    2.  HON. JUSTICE SALIM  OLASUPO  IBRAHIM

    4.  BENIN -EDO

    1. HON. JUSTICE S. M. SHUAIBU

    2. HON. JUSTICE CHUKA AUSTINE OBIOZOR

    5.  BIRNIN KEBBI.- KEBBI

    1. HON. JUSTICE  EMMANUEL  GAKKO

    6.  KADUNA

    1. HON. JUSTICE R.M. AIKAWA

    2. HON. JUSTICE HAWAU BUHARI

    7.    KANO

    1. HON. JUSTICE A.M.  LIMAN

    2. HON. JUSTICE M.N.  YUNUSA

    3. HON. JUSTICE S.A.  AMOBEDA

    8.   LAGOS

    1.  HON. JUSTICE J.T. TSOHO – Chief Judge

    2.  HON. JUSTICE A.O. FAJI

    3.  HON. JUSTICE A. LEWIS -ALLAGOA

    4.  HON. JUSTICE C.J. ANEKE

    5.  HON. JUSTICE YELLIM  S.  BOGORO

    6. HON. JUSTICE DANIEL EMEKA OSIAGOR

    7.  HON. JUSTICE AKINTAYO  ALUKO

    8.  HON. JUSTICE PETER  ODO LIFU

    9.  HON. JUSTICE ABIMBOLA O. AWOGBORO

    10.  HON. JUSTICE DIPEOLU  DEINDE  ISAAC

    11.  HON. JUSTICE OGUNDARE KEHINDE OLAYIWOLA

    12.  HON. JUSTICE IBRAHIM  AHMAD    KALA

    13.  HON. JUSTICE OGAZI  FRIDAY  NKEMAKONAM

    9.    ILORIN -KWARA

    1. HON. JUSTICE  EVELYN  NMASINULO ANYADIKE

    2. HON. JUSTICE  ARIWOOLA OLUKAYODE JNR.

    10. AKURE – ONDO

    1. HON. JUSTICE TOYIN  BOLAJI ADEGOKE.

    2. HON. JUSTICE OWOEYE  ALEXANDER  OLUSEYI

    11.  IBADAN -OYO

    1. HON. JUSTICE UCHE N. AGOMOH

    2. HON. JUSTICE EKERETE UDOFOT AKPA

    12.  ABEOKUTA -OGUN

    1. HON. JUSTICE A.A. OKEKE

    2. HON. JUSTICE ADEFUNMILOLA  ADEKEMI  DEMI  – AJAYI

    13.  ADO -EKITI, EKITI

    1. HON. JUSTICE B.O. KUEWUMI

    2. HON. JUSTICE B.O. QUADRI 

    14.   ASABA- DELTA

    1. HON. JUSTICE  F.A. OLUBANJO

    2. HON. JUSTICE  AGBAJE  OLUFUNMILOLA  ADETUTU 

    15.   AWKA – ANAMBRA

    1. HON. JUSTICE NNAMDI DIMGBA

    16.  ABAKALIKI – EBONYI

    1. HON. JUSTICE HYELADZIRA AJIYA NGANJUWA

    2. HON. JUSTICE  M.T.  SEGUN- BELLO

    17.   OWERRI -IMO

    1. HON. JUSTICE  INIEKENIMI NICHOLAS OWEIBO

    2. HON. JUSTICE  WIGWE-OREH CHITURU JOY

    18.  WARRI- DELTA

    HON. JUSTICE I.M. SANI

    19.  PORT  HARCOURT —RIVERS

    1. HON. JUSTICE  P.I. AJOKU

    2. HON. JUSTICE   E.A.  OBILE

    3. HON. JUSTICE  PHEOBE MSUEN  AYUA

    4. HON. JUSTICE  STEPHEN  DAYLOP PAM

    5. HON. JUSTICE   ADAMU  TURAKI  MOHAMMED

    6. HON. JUSTICE  SA’ADATU  IBRAHIM MARK

    20.  CALABAR — CROSS – RIVER

    1. HON. JUSTICE I. L. OJUKWU

    2. HON. JUSTICE  ROSEMARY  O.  DUGBO. OGHOGHORIE 

    21.  UYO — AKWA-IBOM

    1. HON. JUSTICE  M.A. ONYETENU

    2. HON. JUSTICE  ONAH  CHIGOZIE SERGIUS 

    22.  MAKURDI – BENUE

    1. HON. JUSTICE   M.S. ABUBAKAR 

    2. HON. JUSTICE  EGBE RAPHAEL JOSHUA.

    23.  ENUGU

    1.  HON. JUSTICE  M.G. UMAR

    2. HON. JUSTICE  F.O.  GIWA- OGUNBANJO

    24.  MAIDUGURI -BORNO

    1. HON. JUSTICE JUDE  KANYIOH   DAGAT

    2. HON. JUSTICE  TIJJANI GARBA RINGIM

    25.  YOLA- ADAMAWA:

    1. HON. JUSTICE   SALEH  KOGO IDRISSA

    2.   HON. JUSTICE ABDULAZEEZ  M. Z. ANKA

    26.  BAUCHI

    1. HON. JUSTICE  MUSA  SULAIMAN  LIMAN

    2. HON. JUSTICE AISHATU AUTA IBRAHIM 

    27.  KATSINA

    1. HON. JUSTICE  AHMAD  GAMA MAHMUD

    2. HON. JUSTICE  HUSSAINI  DADAN- GARBA

    28.  GUSAU-ZAMFARA

    1. HON. JUSTICE  AMINU BAPPA ALIYU

    29.  JALINGO – TARABA

    1. HON. JUSTICE BALA KHALIFA- MOHAMMED  USMAN

    30.  MINNA -NIGER

    1. HON. JUSTICE   GARBA   AMINU

    2. HON. JUSTICE MUHAMMAD DAN- IGE 

    31.  LAFIA -NASARAWA:

    1. HON. JUSTICE  NEHIZENA IDEMUDIA AFOLABI

    2. HON. JUSTICE   ANYALEWA  ONOJA -ALAPA

    32.  LOKOJA -KOGI

    1. HON. JUSTICE ABDU  DOGO

    2. HON. JUSTICE  ABIODUN  JORDAN ADEYEMI

    33.  JOS-PLATEAU

    1. HON. JUSTICE   D.V.  AGISHI

    2. HON. JUSTICE  SHARON  TANKO ISHAYA

    34.  OSOGBO- OSUN:

    1. HON. JUSTICE  N. AYO- EMMANUEL

    2. HON. JUSTICE MASHKUR SALISU

    35.  SOKOTO

    1. HON. JUSTICE  Z. B. ABUBAKAR 

    36.  GOMBE

    1. HON. JUSTICE  HILLARY  IDE OSHO  OSHOMO

    2. HON. JUSTICE AMINA ALIYU MOHAMMAD

    37.  DUTSE – JIGAWA

    1. HON. JUSTICE HASSAN  DIKKO

    38.  DAMATURU – YOBE:

    1. HON. JUSTICE  FADIMA MURTALA  AMINU

    2. HON. JUSTICE YILWA  HAUWA JOSEPH.

  • Wike Slams N5m Charge On Abuja C-of-O

    Wike Slams N5m Charge On Abuja C-of-O

    Mr Nyesom Wike, Minister of the FCT says the FCT Administration has pegged cost of issuance of Certificate of Occupancy (C- of-O) at N5 million.

    Wike made the pronouncement at a meeting he held with estate developers in Abuja.

    He said payment could be made within four months of land allocation after which the C-of-O would be handed over to the applicant.

    He added that he would seek the approval of President Bola Tinubu to link applicants’ National Identification Number to C-of-Os before issuance.

    Wike said the era where three or more persons were allocated the same plot of land with fake C-of-O was over.

    “Allocation of land to three or more persons will no longer be allowed because the C-of-O enables you to do business.

    “When we make the right decision, some people will be happy, and some will not. The rich will kick against some of our decisions, but anything that will help our people must be done,’’ Wike said.

    He promised to ensure orderliness and sanity in land administration system and processes in the FCT.

    The minister expressed worries that workers’ salaries at the FCT Administration and the Federal Capital Development Authority gulped N8.9 billion monthly.

    Wike said he had saved N110 billion for the FCT barely three months into office and assured that the funds would be attached to specific projects.

    Wike inaugurated a taskforce on the issuance of Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) for housing estates and the recovery of land use contravention fees on November 14.

    He explained that the measure was to ensure that each unit in the housing estates had its separate C-of-O.

  • Petrol Price Increased To N630.63 In October -NBS

    Petrol Price Increased To N630.63 In October -NBS

    The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), has said that the average retail price of a litre of petrol increased from N195.29 in October 2022 to N630.63 in October 2023.

    It made the declaration in its Petrol Price Watch for October 2023 released in Abuja on Wednesday.

    It stated that the October 2023 price of N630.63 represented a 222.92 per cent increase over the price of N195.29 recorded in October 2022.

    “Comparing the average price value with the previous month of September 2023, the average retail price increased by 0.71 per cent from N626.21.

    “On state profiles analysis, Zamfara paid the highest average retail price of N659.38 per litre, followed by Gombe and Borno at N658.33 and N657.27, respectively.

    “Conversely, Lagos, Oyo, and Delta paid the lowest average retail price at N590.95, N592.19 and N599.38 respectively,’’ it stated.

    Analysis by zones showed that the North-East Zone recorded the highest average retail price in October 2023 at N644.16, while the South-West recorded the lowest price at N616.81 per litre.

    The NBS also stated in its Diesel Price Watch Report for October 2023 that the average retail price was N1004.98 per litre.

    It said that the October 2023 price of N801.09 per litre amounted to a 25.45 per cent increase over the N801.09 per litre paid in October 2022.

    “On a month-on-month basis, the price increased by 12.82 per cent from the N890.80 per litre recorded in September 2023,’’ it added.

    On state profile analysis, the report said the highest average price of diesel in October 2023 was recorded in Plateau at N1150.00 per litre, followed by Nasarawa at N1138.00 and Benue at N1091.67.

    On the other hand, the lowest price was recorded in Rivers State at N824.44 per litre followed by Borno at N827.27 and Kebbi State at N845.00 per litre.

    In addition, the analysis by zones showed that the North-Central had the highest price of N1090.69 per litre, while North- East recorded the lowest price at N947.32 per litre. 

  • Oil Theft: Navy Hands Barge, TUG Over To EFCC

    Oil Theft: Navy Hands Barge, TUG Over To EFCC

    The Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) DELTA has handed over the impounded TUG MV STEPH 1 and Barge SIMI to the officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    The arrested vessels, laden with product suspected to be stolen Automotive Gasoline Oil (AGO), were handed over to the anti-graft agency on Wednesday at the NNS DELTA Jetty.

    Commander88 Samuel Musa, the Base Operations Officer (BOO) of NNS DELTA released the vessels to the EFCC on behalf of the Commander, NNS DELTA, Commodore Chindo Yahaya.

    Addressing newsmen, Yahaya said that Barge SIMI was impounded with about 120,000 litres of product suspected to be AGO at Workson Jetty, Edjeba, on the NPA Expressway in Warri South.

    He said that TUG MV STEPH 1 was arrested at KFT Yard, Edjeba on the NPA Expressway while discharging suspected AGO into some rubber tanks.

    The commander said that the two vessels were arrested on July 6.

    “On July 6, 2023, NNS DELTA arrested Barge SIMI, laden with about 120,000 litres of product suspected to be AGO at Workson Jetty, Edjeba on the NPA Expressway.

    “The barge was without necessary documents and approvals.

    “Preliminary investigation revealed that the product is an accumulation of Remnants On Board (ROB) from various vessels.

    “Accordingly, Barge SIMI is hereby handed over to the EFCC for detailed investigation and further necessary action.

    “Similarly, On July 6, 2023, NNS DELTA also arrested TUG MV STEPH I at KFT Yard, Edjeba on the NPA Expressway in Warri,” he said.

    Yahaya said that TUG MV STEPH 1 was caught discharging product without necessary documentation, and approvals adding that it was consequently detained and taken to NNS DELTA.

    “Accordingly, TUG MV STEPH 1 is hereby handed over to the EFCC for detailed investigation and further necessary action,” he said.

    Yahaya said that the NNS DELTA was poised to rid-off its area of illegal activities or operations.

    He warned those who indulged in such illegalities to desist forthwith.

    Mr Gomina Suru, Assistant Cdr. EFCC Two, Benin Zonal Command led officials of the anti-graft agency to receive the vessels on behalf of the Commission.

    “I am directed by the EFCC Two, Benin Zonal Command to take over the TUG and Barge from the NNS DELTA for the furtherance of investigation.”

    Officials of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) were on ground to collect samples of the product.