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ASCON Lauds FG Over Accelerated Work On Agbara-Badagry Expressway

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The Administrative Staff College of Nigeria(ASCON) ,Badagry, yesterday commended the Federal Government over accelerated work on Agbara -Badagry expressway project.
Director-General of the college, Mrs Cecillia Gayya, gave the commendation in an interview with The Tide source in Badagry.
The Tide source reports that the 46km highway was awarded to CGC Construction Company in October 2018 at N63.2billion.
Gayya said the hitherto deplorable state of the expressway had made access to the college difficult, affecting patronage by existing and potential clients .
“But today ,the state of the road is much better than what we had in December 2021 as the drive from Badagry to Oko-Ofo now takes a short time
“The bad state of the road actually prevented many people from coming to ASCON.In fact on many occasions ,our clients told us they would have come to the college but for the bad road.
“But we are happy with the way work is being done on the expressway now.
“Even if it is just one lane that they are able to finish by the middle of this year, that will cut down the hours being wasted on the road ,and it will serve us in ASCON”, he said.
On the digital learning initiative of ASCON, Gayya said the college was partnering with Work-Force ,a private company, to develop an e-learning platform to boost virtual learning.
She said that the platform would enable those who might not want to come physically to ASCON in Badagry to take courses at the college.
“We have trained our staff on that and the private company and the college are working to set up a platform for us to be able to deliver some of our programmes online.
“Hopefully, before the end of second quarter of the year ,that programme will be on because we have gone beyond the training of staff.
“What we need now is the platform to start test running one or two programmes so that we can correct if there is any mistake, and then we pursue it from there”, she said.
Gayya said that the college organised online seminars in 2020 and 2021, the peak years of COVID-19 pandemic, to respond to clients’ needs.
She, however ,said that those seminars that the college ran at the period were not paid for , but were run test the capacity of the college to deliver online programmes.
“Those seminars showed us that we can have people do our programmes online and also we can go to them instead of them coming here.
“So , instead of people being worried of coming to ASCON ,then we say don’t worry, we can come to you, and so this is one thing we are working hard upon”, she said.
Gayya, however, said there were some programmes which had to be done at the college as facilities at the institution would be needed to run them.

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Firefighters battle New Year Day inferno in Abuja, several states

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Federal Fire Service FFS entered the New Year on full operational alert, tackling multiple fire outbreaks across the country from midnight into the early hours of January 1, 2026, in what officials described as one of the busiest festive-season deployments in recent years.
The intensified nationwide response followed a December 2025 directive issued by the Controller General of the Federal Fire Service, Olumode Samuel Adeyemi, who had ordered that no firefighter should proceed on leave throughout the holidays.
According to a statement by the National Public Relations Officer and Head of Corporate Services of the FFS, DCF Paul Abraham, the no-leave policy proved critical as the Service moved swiftly to contain fires in several states.
The Federal Capital Territory FCT recorded its first fire incident of the year barely twenty-three minutes after midnight when flames erupted at Cake Hot Restaurant located within River Plate Park, Wuse, Abuja.
Abraham said fire crews from the Federal Fire Service and the FCT Fire Service arrived promptly and were able to stop the blaze before it could spread through the popular recreational centre.
While a section of the garden area was destroyed, no lives were lost and no injuries were recorded.
Officials said property worth an estimated ?1.5 billion was saved, although losses were placed at about ?500 million.
“Preliminary findings suggested that the fire was triggered by objects thrown during New Year celebrations, reinforcing long-standing warnings over the dangers posed by fireworks during the harmattan season”, the Service said.
The Controller General had repeatedly urged Nigerians to avoid fireworks, candles and open flames indoors, warning that the dry winds characteristic of the season allow fires to spread rapidly.
He also warned the public about electrical faults and power surges and advised that electrical appliances be switched off and unplugged when not in use or when occupants leave their homes, stressing that overloading sockets and extension boxes remains a significant cause of domestic fires.
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Enugu North LG chairman presents ?10.8bn 2026 Budget, prioritises roads …Security, Healthcare, Human Capital Development

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Chairman of Enugu North Local Government Area in Enugu State, Dr. Ibenaku Harford Onoh, has presented a Ten Billion Eight Hundred Million Naira (?10.8bn) 2026 budget to the legislative council of the local government.
The budget, tagged “Budget of Continued Growth and Consolidation,” was presented on Wednesday during a plenary session attended by councillors, department heads, and other stakeholders.
Dr. Onoh explained that the 2026 budget is designed to consolidate achievements recorded in 2025 while scaling up development across the council’s 13 wards. Priority areas include road infrastructure, grassroots security, healthcare delivery, youth empowerment, and digital governance.
He also reviewed the 2025 budget performance, highlighting significant revenue growth and successful completion of key projects. Notably, the council’s internally generated revenue more than doubled, attributed to the introduction of digital revenue collection platforms and other innovative measures.
Among the 2025 achievements, Dr. Onoh mentioned the reconstruction of major roads at European Quarters, Hilltop, Coal Camp, and Ukwa Street, Ihewuishi, as well as the upgrade of the local security architecture through the reorganisation of the neighbourhood watch into “The City Watch.”
On the 2026 budget, the chairman stated that projected revenue would come from statutory allocations, VAT, internally generated revenue, and counterpart funding through public-private partnerships.
He noted that capital expenditure would take the larger share of the budget, with over half allocated to the economic sector. Planned projects include:
Completion of transport terminals at Aria Market
Construction and reconstruction of urban roads
Establishment of two sports centres
Healthcare interventions
Youth skills development programmes.
Dr. Onoh emphasised that the projects, policies, and programmes outlined in the budget are aimed at complementing the initiatives of Governor Peter Ndubisi Mbah, who is setting standards for local government councils to follow.
Responding, the Leader of the Legislative Council, Rt. Hon. Chizoba Nnamani, said the budget would be carefully scrutinised in the interest of residents before its passage.
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Christians Convert To Islam or die As ISWAP burns down Christian village

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Christians in Adamawa have been asked to Convert to Islam or die as commanded by the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP).
.The ISWAP forcedly burnt down Christian village in Adamawa Nigeria as reported on January 1, 2026.
The Islamic State of West Africa Province, ISWAP, has continued to wreak havoc on Christian communities in the Northeast, Nigeria.
This comes as ISWAP burned down a Christian village in Adamawa State.
A security expert, Brant Philip, disclosed this on Thursday in a viral video released by the terrorists.
“ISWAP released an image of one of the Christian villages in Adamawa State burning, alongside a statement saying that all Christians in Nigeria are legitimate targets, and they have an opportunity to “spare their blood” by converting to Islam or paying the jizyah tax to ISWAP,” Brant Philip wrote on X.
The move is perceived as retaliation for recent joint airstrikes by the Nigerian and United States military against a terrorist enclave in Sokoto, Nigeria.
Recall that five days ago, United States President Donald Trump announced that the US military launched airstrikes against terrorists in Sokoto State.
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