Good morning Nigeria, welcome to Naija News roundup of top newspapers headlines in Nigeria for today, Thursday, 27th January 2022
The presidency has denied that the decision to suspend the removal of fuel subsidy by President Muhammadu Buhari has any political undertone.
Speaking on Wednesday, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina explained that the decision has no link to the 2023 general election as been speculated in some quarters.
Adesina submitted that after due consultations and considerations, the federal government came to a conclusion that the timing wasn’t right as it cause more hardship for Nigerians hence the decision to suspend plans to remove fuel subsidy in the country.
He said the decision was taken in the interest of Nigerians.
Naija News reports the presidential spokesperson made this known during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme.
The Federal Government has revealed plans to impose the same conditions given to Twitter on all other social media platforms accessible in the country.
Naija News understands that part of the terms reached between the government and the microblogging platform is to immediately enrol Nigerians in its Law Enforcement portals and Partners Support Portal.
The law enforcement portal will provide rooms for the Nigerian law enforcement agencies to escalate reports on contents that violate the code of conduct or the national laws.
Speaking on Wednesday at a meeting in Cairo with his counterpart, Egypt Minister of Communication and Information, Dr Amir Talaat, Nigeria’s Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said the government will ensure Twitter rules will apply to all other social media platforms including WhatsApp, Facebook or any other.
Mohammed maintained that the government was amending the National Broadcasting Act and Broadcasting Code to ensure that all online platforms operate within the same rules.
The presidency has lambasted Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, describing him as a failed politician always looking for excuses.
The senior special assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and publicity, Garba Shehu levelled the allegation against the Benue Governor on Wednesday morning.
Shehu in a series of posts via his Twitter account said Ortom has failed woefully as a Governor and politician, adding that it is surprising that even the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has continued to allow him within its folds.
Naija News understands the presidential media aide was responding to claims by Samuel Ortom during a recent interview with Arise TV in which he blamed President Buhari for failing to revive the economy or tackle rising challenges of insecurity in Nigeria.
But in response, Shehu said while Buhari has been working hard to correct the wrongs of previous PDP administrations in the country, Ortom has failed to do anything meaningful for the people of Benue but chose to blame the President for his own failures.
The Senator representing Ekiti South in the National Assembly, Biodun Olujimi has pulled out of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) primary election in Ekiti state.
The lawmaker on Wednesday said she feels unwanted and disenfranchised, hence her decision to disqualify herself from the race.
She added that she didn’t step down for any particular aspirant, urging her followers and supporters to vote for any one of their choice.
Naija News reports Olujimi was one of the main aspirants in the race to emerge as the PDP flagbearer for the 2022 Ekiti governorship election before she pulled out during the accreditation process for the primary election shortly before voting commenced.
The Presidency on Wednesday dismissed the report of Transparency International (TI) on corruption in Nigeria.
Naija News reports that the organisation had on Tuesday ranked Nigeria 154 out of 180 countries on the 2021 global Corruption Perception Index (CPI), a drop from 149 in the 2020 index.
In a report released in Abuja by Transparency International’s representative in Nigeria, the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) said Nigeria scored 24 out of a total possible point of 100 in the 2021 CPI.
TI said the report is based on a methodological study, adding that claims by the Muhamadu Buhari government to be fighting corruption has not yielded much result.
Speaking on Wednesday in an interview on Channels Television, Presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina, said the report released by the organization is baseless.
Adesina stated that the Buhari administration does not need the organization’s report to validate the ongoing war against corruption, adding that the government is making headway in the fight.
He said the Buhari administration has fought corruption and all anti-corruption agencies are making efforts to ensure corruption is reduced in the country.
Adesina asked Nigerians to ignore the report because it is foreign statistics, noting that the people should be the ones giving such a report and not a foreign organization.
Troops of the Nigerian Army have inflicted heavy casualties on terrorists loyal to the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) by destroying some of their strongholds in Borno State.
Information made available to Naija News by the Army on Wednesday, 26th January states that the troops on Tuesday, destroyed the ISWAP caliphate in Borno and killed many of the insurgents as well.
The operation was carried out by troops of 401 Special Forces Brigade in conjunction with 19 Brigade Baga.
Also, troops of the 25 Task Force Brigade Damboa on Wednesday morning, burnt an identified Boko Haram/ISWAP night market at Gumsuri.
The Federal Government has refuted reports that it plans to conduct free Deoxyribonucleic acid tests popularly known as free DNA tests for Nigerians.
Naija News reports that the Minister of State for Health, Dr Olorunmimbe Mamora, denied the reports on Wednesday in a short statement.
On Monday, a Nigerian Twitter user @Ekwulu claimed that the Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehnaire, said DNA tests will be done for free in every government hospital from June.
The claim has been widely circulated on Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp, while many Nigerian social media users have expressed different reactions to the posts.
Reacting, Senator Mamora said the claim that the Minister of Health said there will be free DNA tests in government hospitals from June is false and baseless.
The former Senator added that Ehanire or the Ministry of Health did not make such a statement.
He said: “This is a false claim. At no point did I or the minister (of Health) say this. The claims about free DNA tests are not true.”
The presidency has declared that the people of Nigeria will have to bear the effect of the government having to continue paying subsidy on petrol.
Speaking on Wednesday when he shed more light on the decision of the federal government to postpone the plan to stop paying subsidy, presidential spokesperson Femi Adesina said the government may have to continue borrowing to meet financial demands.
While acknowledging that removal of the subsidy at this time may negatively impact the economic wellbeing of the average Nigerian, Adesina stated that the money that could have been saved from removing the fuel subsidy and invested in other infrastructure is the forgone alternative.
Naija News reports Mr. Adesina made the submission on Wednesday when he featured as a guest on a Channels Television interview programme.
Former Imo State Governor and current Imo West Senator, Rochas Okorocha has openly declared his intention to join the 2023 presidential race.
The lawmaker said he wants to contest the presidency on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Naija News reports Okorocha stated this in a letter read on Wednesday during plenary by Senate President Ahmad Lawan.
He added that he would officially declare his ambition for the 2023 presidency at a world press conference scheduled for Monday 31st January 2022.
Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State has slammed the presidency for labelling him a failed politician.
Recall that presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, had earlier on Wednesday described Ortom as a failed governor and politician always looking for excuses.
Shehu was reacting to claims by the governor during a recent interview with Arise TV in which he blamed President Muhammadu Buhari for failing to revive the economy and tackle the rising insecurity in the country.
In a series of posts via his Twitter account, Shehu said that it is surprising that even the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has continued to Ortom within its folds.
Responding to Shehu’s claims, governor Ortom urged the Presidency to address the issues he raised during his interview and stop attacking his personality.
The Benue governor made this submission in a statement issued on Wednesday by his spokesman, Nathaniel Ikyur.
Ortom stated that the Buhari government always resort to mudslinging and attacking personalities who criticize the President, adding that the response has exposed the current administration of being bereft of ideas and indeed empty of tackling the nation’s myriad of problems
He said the Buhari government who has consistently blamed past administrations now finds it convenient to accuse Ortom of blaming others before him.
Those are the top Nigerian newspapers headlines for today. Read more Nigerian news on Naija News. See you again tomorrow.
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