L-R: Former Special Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan on Political Matters, Sen. Ben Obi, a chieftain of Afenifere Socio-Cultural Group, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, Deputy Governor of Ogun State, Yetunde Onanuga, former Deputy Governor of Lagos, at the funeral service for Dr Tunji Braithwaite held at Revd’ Braithwaite Memorial Church, at Papa-Epe in Lagos State, yesterday.

Adamawa

Federal Government has distributed empowerment tools
to associations and victims of Boko Haram insurgency in Adamawa.
Presenting the materials which comprised grinding machines, water pumps, tricycles, wheel chairs and block molding machines at a ceremony in Yola, the Secretary to the Federal Government (SGF), Mr Babacir Lawal, said the gesture was to assist them with something to depend on as they tried to settle down.
Lawal ,who was represented by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Policy Development and Analysis, Alhaji Ibrahim Bapetel, said government was concerned about the welfare of displaced persons and would take steps to ameliorate their sufferings.
He tasked beneficiaries not to sell the items but should rather use them to generate revenue for their benefit and that of their communities.

Benue

The Resident Pastor, Dunamis International Gospel Centre
(DIGC), Makurdi, Rev. Joseph Idakwoji, has advised couples not to expect automatic success in their marriages.
Idakwoji said this at the wedding between Nancy Abutu of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Makurdi office and James Okpanachi.
He said that all couples should prepare to work for the success of their marriages, adding that, “you cannot be doing another thing and be expecting result for another”.
He said that marriage was designed by God for the betterment and enjoyment of his children.
“The purpose of marriage includes protection of partners, companionship, procreation or fruitfulness among others.”

Borno

The Nigerian Army said that the curfew imposed in
Maiduguri between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. was still in force.
This is contained in a statement issued in Maiduguri by  the Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, Col. Mustpaha Anka.
It warned that drastic action would be taken against individuals found violating the curfew.
“It has come to the notice of Headquarters, 7 Division Nigerian Army, Operation Lafiya Dole, that some members of the public violate orders on curfew imposed in Maiduguri and environs.
“ Violations of curfew threaten the relative peace being enjoyed in Maiduguri town.
“Please be reminded that a legitimate curfew in Maiduguri imposed from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. is still in force.

FCT

Himma Community Health Circle Initiative and
Empowerment (H-COHECIC), an NGO, says it is training more than 250 traditional birth attendants to reduce maternal mortality in Zamfara.
The Initiator of the organisation, Miss Zainab Yari,  told newsmen in Abuja that the training was a key strategy in curbing maternal mortality in the country.
She said that 50 traditional birth attendants would be trained in Zamfara in May, this year, by the group to help gynaecologists during deliveries.
Yari disclosed that the NGO would train 200 traditional birth attendants in Zamfara before the end of this year.
According to her, the team decided to focus on traditional birth attendants training due to lack of healthcare facilities in the vicinity.
“We initiated the idea of training traditional birth attendants because we realised that the high number of death rate in Zamfara was as a result of lack of access to health facilities”, she said.

Kano

The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has
sanctioned 26 filling stations in Kano State and Jigawa for various offences.
The DPR Comptroller in charge of the two states, Alhaji Isa Tafida, made the disclosure while speaking with reporters in Kano shortly after monitoring fuel sales at some filling stations.
He said that 10 out of the defaulting stations were caught by DPR officials selling petrol at odd hours of the night.
Tafida warned marketers to desist from selling fuel at odd hours or be ready to face severe sanctions.
Katsina

The Katsina State Government says it will establish a
Tomato Processing Company to boost irrigation in the state.
Governor Aminu Masari disclosed this in Mashi during a Town Hall meeting with people of the Mashi/Dutsi Federal Constituency.
Masari said the company would be established in Danja local government area through a Public Private Partnership (PPP).
The governor said the decision was part of the efforts of his administration to boost irrigation, thereby creating job opportunities for the people.
He said the initiative would also prevent rural-urban drift in the state.
Masari said his administration would continue to accord top priority to agriculture to enhance agricultural productivity and guarantee food security.

Kebbi

The Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbeh, said
that the Federal Government would support rice and flour millers to establish additional milling factories for the economy to thrive.
Ogbeh gave the assurance in Suru, Suru local government area of  Kebbi while on a one-day assessment tour of the rice farms in the area.
The minister commended the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Kebbi government for the successful implementation of the Anchor Borrowers Rice and Wheat production programme in the state.
Our correspondent reports that the minister was accompanied by the Central Bank Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, Governor Atiku Bagudu, Sen. Adamau Aliero and some prominent farmers including, Alhaji Garba Dandiga and Hakimi Jiga.

Kwara

The Kwara State Government has warned contractors
currently handling various road projects across the three senatorial districts against shoddy jobs.
The state’s Commissioner for Works and Transport, Alhaji Aro Yahaya, gave the warning while speaking with newsmen in llorin after the inspection of some of the ongoing road projects.
Yahaya said that the state government would not pay any contractor who did not meet required specification.
He expressed the readiness of Governor AbdulFatah Ahmed to pay contractors, who executed their projects on time and according to standards.

Lagos

The Lagos State Chapter of the All Farmers Association
of Nigeria (AFAN) has called on its members to take advantage of the forthcoming 1st International Agric Fair to attract investors.
AFAN’s Chairman, Chief Femi Oke, told newsmen that it was important for farmers from across the states to participate in the fair.
Oke said that it would afford them the opportunity to showcase their farm produce to local and international visitors and investors.
Osun

The Government of Osun has ordered the
suspension of slaughtering of animal in all abattoirs and meat shops across the state as from Monday, April 25.
This information is contained in a press statement issued by the Coordinating Director, Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Youth Engagement, Dr Oluwabukola Aluko.
“The suspension of all slaughtering activities in the state is to sanitise animal slaughtering and other activities in the meat industry.
“It is also to meet up with the requisite standards of providing wholesome meat fit for human consumption,’’ it said.
The government advised all butchers willing to continue in the trade, to apply to the Veterinary Office nearest to them for the renewal of their ‘Permit’ to slaughter animals.

Plateau

Workers of defunct Power Holdings Company
of Nigeria (PHCN), Jos, inherited by the Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JEDC), following its sale in 2013, are resisting the reforms aimed at re-positioning the outfit.
JEDC Managing Director, Alhaji Mohammed Gidado Modibbo, who made the observation in an interview with newsmen in Jos, said the workers had yet to realise that the company was now a private outfit working towards meeting strict corporate goals.
According to him, management’s insistence on assessing the productivity of staff towards ensuring that everyone is an asset that adds value to the outfit, is being resisted by some workers.

Sokoto

The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, has
urged Muslim faithful to apply the teachings of Islam in tackling Nigeria’s challenges.
Abubakar made the call during a meeting with the executive members of Da’awa Coordination Council of Nigeria (DCCN) at his palace in Sokoto.
“Muslim faithful have so many challenges not only in Nigeria but across the world which need to be tackled through the teachings of Islam.
“We need to utilise our number as the most populated in the world to struggle and encourage the teaching of Islam in facing and controlling our challenges.
“These challenges surely make us stronger in the world and in contributing to the development of the globe.’’