APA – Lagos (Nigeria)
The report that there is anxiety as President Bola Tinubu and 25 state governors await the verdicts of the tribunals handling the presidential, governorship, National Assembly, and state assembly election petitions is one of the trending stories in Nigerian newspapers on Monday.
The Punch reports that there is anxiety as President Bola Tinubu and 25 state governors await the verdicts of the tribunals handling the presidential, governorship, National Assembly, and state assembly election petitions.
The panels are expected to deliver their judgments this month.
Out of the 28 states where the governorship elections were held, the results of the polls announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission are being contested in no fewer than 25 states.
Most of the tribunals which were sitting in Lagos, Sokoto, Delta, Kano, and 21 other states as well as Abuja had reserved their judgments after the parties concluded their hearings and adopted their written addresses in line with the Practice Direction for the election petitions issued by the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensen.
“We are confident and hopeful about the outcome. The party has done everything it ought to do. That’s why we are optimistic. We believe strongly in the judiciary. It is the only way our country can remain strong. When you lose hope, then it is over. It means you are now calling for anarchy. LP has come too far to lose hope at this stage. We have to continue to hope and believe they do the right thing,” the lawyer noted.
It was learnt that petitioners and respondents would this week adopt their final written addresses in a petition filed by the PDP governorship candidate, Ladi Adebutu, against the election of Governor Dapo Abiodun of the PDP. Abiodun got 276,298 votes while his PDP counterpart garnered 262,383 votes.
When contacted, the Ogun State PDP Secretary, Dr Sunday Solarin, said the party expected the tribunal to be fair.
The newspaper says that the Nigerian Government has said it will examine frequent cases of flight cancellations and delays and possible look at enforcing regulations on such issues.
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo disclosed this during a recent visit to the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, according to a statement by the ministry.
“We are willing to protect local airlines, we expects them to be more efficient and effective. However, issues of flight cancellation and delays will be looked into and laws enforced where necessary,” he said.
According to the Head Press and Public Relations of the ministry, Odutayo Oluseyi , 60 per cent of FAAN’s revenue comes from Lagos, emphasising the need to utilize the new terminal effectively.
The minister was quoted as adding that the new terminal boasts 60 check-in points and has the capability to handle a significant number of air traffic.
He said the Federal Government had expressed its desire to maximise the revenue generating capacity of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria
The Guardian reports that the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) signed an MOU with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Trade Center, to promote the TRADAR Club solution in the market.
The Cooperation Agreement, signed between Afreximbank and the UAE Trade Center on the sidelines of the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2023) Press Conference and B2B Meetings in Dubai United Arab Emirates (UAE), provides for the two institutions to commence harmonisation of their efforts in various areas of collaboration to support the TRADAR Club objectives.
According to Afreximbank, the agreement was signed by Head of Trade Intelligence Solutions, Ms. Lizanne Case, on behalf of Afreximbank, while Chief Executive of the UAE Trade Center, Walid Hareb AlFalahi, signed for his organisation.
It stated that Afreximbank TRADAR Club, launched recently as a prestigious member-driven network, empowers international businesses and executives to transform trade and investments in Africa through trusted trade intelligence and advisory services.
To propagate the solution in the market, Afreximbank is establishing strong relationships with a wide variety of partners. Under the terms of the cooperation agreement with the UAE Trade Center, the two institutions will collaborate in such areas as inter-institutional cooperation; provision of business-oriented information to facilitate trade and investment; business matchmaking; grants; technical assistance; and capacity building, among others.
It further explained that the agreement is expected to facilitate greater interaction by allowing for the sharing of ideas and discussion of common problems to improve relationships and cooperation among members.
TRADAR Club will serve as an information pool assisting the exchange of reliable trade information, trade policies, customer databases, research reports, expert analysis, directories of African investment information, rules and regulations, general updates on statistics, business data and investment incentives, among others.
The newspaper says that the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) on Sunday urged State and Federal Governments to activate emergency preparedness against the impending flood.
The President of NMA, Dr Uche Ojinmah, made the call while addressing newsmen on at the end the association’s National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held in Owerri between Aug. 27 and Sept. 3.
It quoted the report by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) as saying that the theme of this year’s NEC meeting is “Healthcare System in a Depressed Economy.”
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) had said that some states are likely to be flooded, following the release of water from Lagdo Dam in Cameroon.
The states included Adamawa, Taraba, Benue, Nasarawa, Kogi and Anambra.
“The state governments, especially those in flood-prone areas, should be proactive, desilt their drainages, and remove barricades on flood plains.
“We also advise Nigerians living in or close to low lands to move to higher grounds while pleading with governments at all levels to assist these our fellow citizens in relocating,” Ojinmah said.
The president also called on state and federal governments to quickly roll out palliatives for Nigerians to cushion the harsh effects of ravaging inflation with the attendant high food prices.
GIK/APA
Nigeria: Press focuses on anxiety over verdicts of election petition tribunals, others
