Author: Kwara Reporters

Despite the skyrocketing cost of rice and the recent halt on the ban of foreign exchange for its imports, the crop is still a restricted commodity, the Nigeria Customs Service has declared.Rice, a staple food widely consumed in Nigeria, has been rising in price despite its production locally. The commodity now sells for between N55,000 and N60,000 for a 50kg bag, depending on the area of purchase.Its price was around N30,000 for the same 50kg bag about a year ago, but the cost has maintained a northward drive despite the local production of rice and the recent lifting of the…

Naira has been rated among the world’s worst performing currencies in 2023.This is according to Bloomberg in its latest report.It said the currency is poised for its worst year since the return to democracy in 1999, with analysts predicting further depreciation in 2024.Bloomberg noted that the Naira plunged 55 per cent this year to 1,043 per dollar as of Thursday, making it the world’s worst performer after the Lebanese pound and the Argentine peso among 151 currencies tracked.Daily Trust reports that Naira reached an all-time low on Thursday as it depreciated to N1,043.09 per US dollar in the official market…

IGP Egbetokun visited Plateau State Jos to assess the security situation in the state on Friday, December 29, 2023. Facebook/Nigeria Police ForceThe Nigeria Police Force has set up a Special Operation Squad which will commence work immediately in Plateau State as part of the intervention to address insecurity in the state.Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, disclosed this on Friday at the Government House in Jos during a condolence visit to the governor of Plateau State, Caleb Mutfwang, over the recent attacks that led to about 195 deaths and many injuries.“More deployment of our tactical unit will be made. We…

Chris Uba Convoy has been attacked by unknown gunmen.It was gathered that a convoy suspected to belong to the self-styled godfather of Anambra politics and former senator who represented Anambra South Senatorial District at the Nigerian Senate, Chris Uba was attacked last night by unknown gunmen.According to Daily Post a source said that vehicles in the convoy were riddled with bullets, just as two police operatives attached to the politician were killed. It was also gathered that another politician and a chieftain of the Labour Party, Val Ozigbo, narrowly escaped the attack.The source said: “We witnessed what happened. Chris Uba’s…

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Gombe State Command, said, on Thursday, that it uncovered an illegal refinery in the federal low-cost area of the state.The commandant of the command, Muhammad Muazu, said the owner of the illegal refinery was arrested in the act of producing gasoline in the neighbourhood, adding that the arrest was sequel to complaints from residents.He said, “The illegal refinery is situated within Gombe metropolis. In there is what they are illegally producing which is gas. We had the intelligence for weeks and we had been following. Yesterday God helped our men to move to…

The Chairman of the Police Service Commission, Solomon Arase, says the Special Police Constabulary needs to either be outright overhauled, disbanded or given a separate uniform different from that of the regular policemen.According to him, men of the Special Police Constabulary engage in unethical practices, including extorting, and hurting the image of the Nigeria Police Force.Arase took the position in a statement on Thursday by the PSC spokesperson, Ikechukwu Ani.The statement read: “The commission is already in contact with the Inspector General of Police on the need to overhaul the organisation and operations of the outfit. There have been several…

Official reports of multiple cyber-attacks on both government and private digital infrastructure have exposed Nigeria’s Information and Technology (IT) security vulnerability in the outgoing year, 2023.According to the National Information Technology Development Agency (NiTDA), Nigeria, S/Africa, Egypt and Kenya lose $2.4bn annually to cybercrime.NITDA said during the outgoing year, Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt and Kenya accounted for 60% of the $4 billion annual cost of cybercrime in Africa.During the 2023 general elections, there were reported cases of local and foreign cyber-attacks on the country. Though officials did not say categorically whether some sensitive documents were compromised, experts said billions of…

Justice Donatus Okorowo of the Federal High Court in Abuja has extended the interim order stopping the Independent National Electoral Commission ((INEC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from taking any action against the 26 Rivers House of Assembly members who defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).Justice Okorowo extended the order following an application by counsel for the lawmaker, Steve Adehi, who appeared for the Rivers House of Assembly.He held that based on Order 26, Rule 10 of the Federal High Court, the court had the discretionary power to grant the plea in the interest of justice.The judge held…

The UN human rights chief said Thursday he was “deeply alarmed” by the string of attacks on villages in central Nigeria which left nearly 200 dead, according to local authorities.Armed groups launched attacks between Saturday evening and Tuesday morning in Plateau State, a region plagued for several years by religious and ethnic tensions.The region is on the dividing line between Nigeria’s mostly Muslim north and mainly Christian south.“I am deeply alarmed by the series of attacks by gunmen on multiple rural communities in Plateau State,” UN rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement.“I call on the Nigerian authorities to…

The Northern Concerned People Forum has announced the appointment of Kwarareporters Publisher, Hammed Adedayo Said, as its Public Relations Officer (PRO).Said, a public affairs analyst and media practitioner, was selected by the forum’s executive to fill the vacant position.The Chairman of the organization, Alhaji Omar Aiyelabegan, expressed his confidence in Said’s abilities. He brings his wealth of experience to his new role as PRO of the Northern Concerned People Forum.With his strong background as a media consultant and public affairs analyst, Said is expected to effectively communicate the forum’s objectives, concerns, and initiatives to both the Northern region and the…