Adamawa

Dry season famers in Adamawa  State  have predicted poor harvest in the state following the hike in the price of petrol.

President Goodluck Jonathan has announced a new fuel pump price of N97 as against the deregulated price of N141.

The announcement of the deregulation of the petoleum downstream sector triggered a six-day strike by the organised labour and the civil society groups, to protest the policy.

The state chairman of the Dry Season Farmers Association, Alhaji Adamu Dan Wazam,told newsmen  in Yola that the high cost of fuel was threatening dry season farming.

Dan Wazam, who is also the chairman of vegetable dealers in the state, said that some farmers were no longer paying adequate attention to their farms due to their inability to fuel their water pumps to irrigate their farms.

“Many vegetables, fruit, rice and maize farms have been affected and about 90 per cent of our dry season farmers who depend on small petrol water pumps to irrigate their farms, were also affected.

“Report reaching us from our members across the state is that some of the farmers are losing interest in the business.”

Bauchi

A North-East based political pressure group, Democrats for Good Governance (DFGG), has unanimously endorsed former Bauchi State Governor Adamu Mu’azu for the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

This is contained in a communiqué signed by the Chairman and Secretary of the group, Yusha’u Bala and Chief A D Musa respectively on Monday in Bauchi.

The NGO urged Nigerians to begin to look at the past and positive track records of performance of their leaders to enable them select a credible leader.

The group commended the first Prime Minister of Nigeria, late Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa and host of others from the North-East, for their contribution to the development of the country.

It urged members of the party and the North East region to give Mu’azu, who it described as “the only aptly qualified person to hold the post of PDP National Chairman,” another chance.

Benue

The Benue Police Command has paraded 39 suspected armed robbers, car thieves and cultists accused of terrorising innocent people in the state.

Parading the suspects in Makurdi, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Ibrahim, said the suspected criminals were arrested at different locations within the state in the last one month.

Ibrahim, who commended the police for making the arrests, assured Benue citizens that no stone would be left unturned in their resolve to rid the state of criminals.

He said that three of the suspected robbers, who allegedly attacked and robbed a catholic priest of the sum of N340,000 at Katsina Ala on December 26, 2011, were arrested.

The deputy commissioner said that the police were committed to flushing out all armed gangs from the state.

Ibrahim, therefore, called on the people to support the police in tracking down criminals by volunteering information that would lead to their arrests.

Ekiti

Governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi  has defended his decision to appoint indigenes of the state from abroad into his cabinet, saying it was aimed at facilitating the transformation agenda of his administration.

“I will continue to search for Ekiti people wherever they may be to help in the transformation agenda of the administration.”

Speaking while administering the oath of office on two Special Advisers, Messrs Olufemi Tolani (Public Private Partnership), and Dare Tolulope (Legal Matters) on Wednesday in Ado-Ekiti, Fayemi advised critics of his administration to stop describing such appointees from abroad as foreigners.

He said every community in the state had “excellent and great people” in top positions across the globe in the private sectors, who would be brought to the state “to foster robust governance and deliver dividends of democracy to the people”.

FCT

The Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC) has appealed to the National Assembly to ensure that the Nigeria Police is provided with all its logistic requirements.

PCRC Chairman, Gwagwalada Abuja Branch, Prof . Chikwendu Williams, made the appeal on Monday in Abuja in an intreview with newsmen.

He said that Police Area Command, Gwagwalada, lacked patrol vans, noting that the cammand could not respond to emergencies.

Williams said that vehicles currently in use by the command, needed to be serviced, while their tyres required replacement.

He said that the police needed to be properly equipped, especially during this period of great security challenge in the country.

Williams appealed to individuals and corporate organisations to assist solve the mobility problems of the police.

Kaduna

The Kaduna State House of Assembly has began  the assessment of the performance of the 2011 budget, the House Committee Chairman on Information, Yakubu Yusuf has said.

Yusuf told newsmen in Kaduna on Wednesday that the legislators would not pass the 2012 budget proposal if they were not satisfied with the performance of last year’s budget.

He explained that the budget assessment was a constitutional requirement for the legislature before considering the current budget estimates.

According to him, all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and projects will be visited to enable members to have first hand knowledge of their performance in 2011.

Kogi

A non-governmental organisation, the National Youth Leaders’ Forum of Nigeria, has commended President Goodluck Jonathan for the step he took in reviewing the petrol pump price from N141 to N97.

The forum’s president, Mr Ben Oduntoye who gave the commendation in Lokoja on Monday, said it was quite courageous of Jonathan to have fixed the price at N97 after due consultations.

He therefore appealed to Nigerians to embrace peace by accepting the federal government’s position in the best interest of the masses.

“We have to do this, because there were neither winners nor losers in the negotiation,’’ Oduntoye said.

Lagos

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said that it had arrested a 32-year-old man with 7.1 kg of liquid cocaine at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja.

In a statment by its spokesman, Mr Mitchel Ofoyeju, NDLEA said that the drug was intercepted during the screening of passengers that arrived on an Emirate flight from Brazil, en route Dubai on Monday.

Niger

Niger government, on Wednesday assured victims of the recent violence which erupted in Minna over the removal of fuel subsidy, that it would offer adequate compensation to them.

Chairman of the 13-man committee set up by the government to investigate the matter, Alhaji Yahayah Dansallau, gave the asurance in Minna after visiting some of the victims.

“We have seen government and private properties that were destroyed, including individuals who sustained injuries.

“The responsibility of our committee is to assess what has happened and make recommendations to the state government, and our assessment is on-going.

“After our recommendations the government will take a decision on how to come in and compensate the victims, including the public institutions affected’’, he said.

Ogun

Sellers of sachet water in Abeokuta are recording a boom due to the scarcity of water in the Ogun capital, our correspondent reports.

Our  correspondent, who monitored the development on Monday, reports that most residents have resorted to the use of sachet water to cook, bath and for other domestic chores.

The situation has increased the demand for sachet water and consquently the price.

Some residents, who spoke to newsmen, attributed the development to the inability of staff of Ogun Water Board to function, due to the sit-at-home strike declared by the NLC.

Mrs Adeola Adeyemi, a trader, said, “I now buy pure water at N10 per sachet instead of N5.

Ondo

Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State has in Akure released N58 million to 52 farmers executing projects under the Fadama III programme.

The farmers were drawn from the various Fadama Community Associations in the 17 local government areas of the state.

The cheques were presented to the beneficiaries in Akure by Mr Ademola Olorunfemi, the Commissioner for Agriculture, who represented the governor.

Mimiko said that the government had so far released N224 million for the scheme, noting that 97 Fadama Community

Associations and Fadama Users Group, had earlier received N166.5 million from the state government.

Sokoto

The Sokoto Zonal office of the Department of Petroleum Resources ( DPR), has closed down 11 filling stations in Sokoto metropolis for selling petrol above the approved price of N 97 per litre.

The Controller, Alhaji Umaru Moriki, told newsmen in Sokoto on Wednesday that, two of the filling stations were owned by major marketers while the nine others belong to independent marketers.