Nigerian Newspapers: 10 things you need to know Wednesday morning

Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers:

1. Rivers State Government is under a debt burden imposed by the soaring cost of projects initiated by my predecessor, Governor Siminalayi Fubara said on Tuesday. He said many contractors were demanding outstanding payments running to billions of naira, which former Governor Nyesom Wike could not redeem before handing over last year.

2. Niger State House of Assembly Speaker, Abdulmalik Sarkindaji has lashed out at the Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, for opposing his decision to sponsor the wedding of 100 girls orphaned by banditry. He said she was being misled. Sarkindaji told reporters that the minister does not know anything about his constituency and their needs and has no right to criticise his decision.

3. Reversal of the hike in electricity tariff will be a setback for the transformation of the energy sector to boost supply to Nigerians, Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, said on Tuesday. He appealed to Labour to see reason with the government.

4. The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA, said Tuesday that petrol stations are to have points of sale for Compressed Natural Gas, CNG. The agency’s Chief Executive, Farouk Ahmed, broke the news to reporters after a meeting with high volume suppliers of petroleum products in Abuja.

5. The ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) in Ebonyi has pegged the forms for local government chairmanship election at N25 million and that of councillor at N210,000. The party’s chairman in the state, Stanley Emegha, announced this in a statement in Abakaliki, the state capital.

6. Operatives of the Economic Financial Crimes Commission, on Tuesday, expanded its clampdown on Bureau De Change operators, arresting traders in Abuja, Lagos, Kano and Port Harcourt. This came as the naira weakened further against the United States dollar at both the official and parallel foreign exchange markets.

7. After several weeks of hiatus, the tripartite committee set up by the Federal Government will finally meet today (Wednesday), May 15, 2024, sources familiar with the matter confirmed the development. The Labour unions also stood their ground on their proposal of N615,000 minimum wage while insisting on the May 31, 2024 deadline.

8. A member of the House of Representatives representing Zurmi/Shinkafa Federal Constituency, Bello Hassan, on Tuesday, said bandits had attacked no fewer than 50 communities in the Zurmi Local Government Area of Zamfara State. He said the incessant attacks by the bandits had forced residents of the affected communities to abandon their ancestral homes.

9. Loud explosions were heard at the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria gas processing plant at Gbarain, Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State on Tuesday. Thick smoke was seen rising into the sky, raising concerns of gas export disruptions as the gas plant feeds the Nigerian Liquified Natural Gas export terminal in the Bonny Island area of the state.

10. Osun State Police Command, on Tuesday, said it has arrested a former manager in one of the branches of a first-generation bank in Osogbo, Mr Adeniyi Talabi, for allegedly stealing a sum of N650m belonging to 35 customers of the bank.

Nigerian Newspapers: 10 things you need to know Wednesday morning