Alleged N2bn fraud: Court admits Sylva to bail on liberal terms

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Thursday, admitted the former governor of Bayelsa State, Timipre Sylva, to bail in the sum of N100million with one surety in like sum.

NCC to sanction telecoms for non-payment of penalties

Following the expiration of the deadline given to GSM service providers to pay penalties for poor service delivery, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has threatened to sanction them. Tony Ojobo, the NCC Director of Public Affairs, in an exclusive interview on Thursday, said that the commission would sanction defaulters if penalties were not paid.

Ekiti-Koya commends teachers over ‘competence test’

A socio-political group in Ekiti State, Ekiti-Koya, has commended the resolve of the state teachers to stay away from the competence test examination directed by the state governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi.

Gunmen kidnap Lebanese in Benue

A Lebanese working with Rock Bridge Construction Company, Mohammed Dhabre, was on Wednesday, kidnapped by unknown men on the company’s premises on the Otukpo-Igumale area of Benue State.

Terrorism: Police auction abandoned, unclaimed vehicles in Bayelsa

AS members of the Boko Haram sect intensify their terror campaign in the North, with the recent bombing of a church in Bauchi, where over 10 persons lost their lives, authorities of the Bayelsa State police command, on Thursday, in Yenagoa, began the auctioning of abandoned vehicles to checkmate any attempt to plant Improvised Explosive Device (IED) or bomb inside such unserviceable automobiles.

Ahead Edo/Ondo gov elections...

THE 14 July governorship election in Edo State will have the highest number of monitors in the history of gubernatorial election in Nigeria, including no fewer than 20 Independent National Electoral Commissioners (INEC) officials.

Air Nigeria workers suspend strike

AIR Nigeria, on Thursday, announced the suspension of the strike embarked upon by a section of its aircraft engineers and pilots, under the umbrella of the Nigerian Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers (NAAPE).

10 injured in Oyo NURTW clash in Ibadan

Forty-eight hours after the Oyo State government unbanned the state chapter of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), some members of the union, in Ibadan, on Thursday, engaged one another in a violent clash that saw 10 people seriously wounded.

Reps threaten Jonathan over bills •Why we can’t move against him - Senate

THE House of Representatives chairman on Rules and Business, Honourable Albert Sam-Tsokwa, on Thursday bemoaned the attitude of the presidency to non-implementation of the National Assembly resolutions and assenting to bills passed by the legislature.

Africa remains central to Nigeria’s foreign policy - Jonathan

PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan has reiterated the centrality of Africa, its peace, political stability and socio-economic development to Nigeria’s foreign policy.

Ekiti, teachers disagree on test

The face -off between Ekiti State Government and teachers in the state over the conduct of competence and assessment test slated for tomorrow has taken a twist, as the umbrella body of the unions, Nigeria Union of Teachers and Academic Staff Union of Secondary Schools (ASUSS) have directed their members to stay away from the designated centres earmarked for the exams.

S-Court dashes ACN’s bid to sack Governor Akpabio

The Supreme Court, yesterday, quashed moves by the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, to sack Governor Goodswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State through the election petition tribunal.

Extra-judicial killings in the North: We didn’t do it, JTF tells Elders

THE Joint Task Force (JTF) in Borno State Operation Restore Order took on Northern Elders, yesterday, over the claim that the military outfit, raised to curb insurgency, engaged in extra-judicial killings.

Catholic Bishops Meet Jonathan On ‘Worrisome State Of Insecurity’

REPRESENTATIVES of the Catholic Bishop’s Conference of Nigeria met with President Jonathan yesterday in Abuja with terror attacks by the Boko Haram sect, alleged discrimination against Christians in the North and corruption top on the agenda.

Car bombing Bauchi, north Nigeria church kills 3

A suicide car bomber drove into a north Nigeria church's compound Sunday and detonated his explosives as worshippers left an early morning service, killing at least three people and wounding dozens more, officials and witnesses said.

Corps members now posted to only where they are secure – NYSC D-G

Brig-Gen. Nnamdi Okore-Affia is indeed an army officer who says it the way he sees it. When he spoke with journalists in Abuja on Thursday, he was blunt on the contentious issue of posting corps members to volatile areas where several of them were killed by insurgents last year. According to him, female corps members now receive marshal arts training and members will no longer be posted to areas where their lives could be threatened. Excerpts:

NMA directs Lagos doctors to resume work

The national body of the Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, yesterday, directed all doctors under the umbrella body of the association to immediately resume work including those in Lagos State.

Five dead as fire rages on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

10 vehicles burnt as tanker spills 30,000 litres of petrol. MOTORISTS had another nasty experience yesterday on the ever-busy Lagos-Ibadan expressway.

NNPC’s inefficiency costs Nigeria $65m – KPMG

MORE revelations emerged, yesterday, at the Senate resumed hearing in the ongoing investigation into the mismanagement of fuel subsidy in the country, as the international auditing firm, KPMG, said inefficiency in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, costs the country $65 million from 2007 till December 2010.

New electricity tariff takes off today

A NEW electricity tariff regime with potentially grave cost implications for urban dwellers, the rich and commercial concerns commences today.