1. President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday, commissioned \u2018OPERATION SWIFT RESPONSE\u2019 as a border drill exercise to checkmate the illegal activities of smugglers across the nation\u2019s borders. His spokesman, Femi Adesina, in a statement, explained that this is part of the Federal Government\u2019s effort to ensure food security and improve local production of goods at competitive prices. The presidency said the border drill has been hugely successful and has led to the interception and seizure of large quantities of foods, materials, minerals and petroleum resources illegally trafficked across borders.<\/p>\n
2. Some ex-Militant leaders from the nine States of the Niger Delta region have described as \u201cexpected\u201d and \u201ccommendable\u201d the sack of the Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Professor Charles Dokubo. They said the sack by President Mohammed Buhari, showed the present administration has the interest of the region at heart.<\/p>\n
3. Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo has spoken on the increasing insecurity in Nigeria. Obasanjo spoke on Saturday at the 1st Memorial Lecture for the late founder of the Oodua People\u2019s Congress (OPC), Frederick Fasehun. He said there is no doubt that the national security architecture, apparatus, system and arrangements in Nigeria have failed to measure up to the needs of the citizens in different parts of the country and that even president Buhari was shocked when he realized that things were already getting out of hands. He called on the president to accept the challenge and the responsibility.<\/p>\n
4. The former Deputy Governor of Ondo State, Alhaji Lasisi Oluboyo, who served during the administration of the erstwhile governor of the state, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, on Saturday, dumped his boss\u2019 Zenith Labour Party, ZLP for the All Progressives Congress, APC. Also, some chieftains of the People Democratic Party, PDP decamped to the APC at the mega rally organized by the APC in the state to mark Governor Rotimi Akeredolu\u2019s 3rd anniversary in office.<\/p>\n
5. A Coronavirus patient has died in the US, being the first in the country. This is the first known death in the US from the deadly Covid-19 disease. The death was confirmed Saturday in Washington state, health officials said. The deceased lived in King County, which includes Seattle, according to the Washington Department of Health.<\/p>\n
6. Lafarge Africa PLC, maker of Lafarge Cement, has debunked rumour that it has shut down its factory in Ewekoro because of the outbreak of Coronavirus. The company\u2019s spokesperson, Segun Soyoye, who spoke with newsmen on Saturday, said the production lines were not shut because the guest house where the Italian, (who tested positive to the disease) was lodged was 5km away from the manufacturing plants in Ewekoro. Soyoye informed that 11 other persons that had contacts with the Italian have been quarantined in Ogun State alongside the 28 contacts earlier reported, making a total of 39.<\/p>\n
7. The Department of State Services has said the Presidency ordered the investigation of a trader, Anthony Okolie, who was using a telephone line previously owned by the President\u2019s daughter, Hanan Buhari. The DSS said this in a counter-affidavit in response to the originating motion filed by Okolie. The agency said it had the right to detain Okolie over the matter.<\/p>\n
8. Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) has spoken about the outbreak of Coronavirus in Nigeria, saying that virus won\u2019t affect members of his church who are true children of God. The Pastor\u2019s comment about the virus was contained in a video he posted on his verified social media handles.<\/p>\n
9. Coronavirus disease is taking a toll on the sales of crude as it has dropped drastically due to companies shutdown. The impact is fast telling back home as the sales of Nigeria\u2019s crude oil in the international market has fallen from its projection of $57 per barrel for 2020. The Nigeria\u2019s Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylvia has expressed strong concern about the situation which has left the country\u2019s projection for 2020 with a shortfall that may be too massive to recover in very short notice.<\/p>\n
10. After five months of her sack from office, President Muhammadu Buhari has finally approved the \u201cretirement\u201d of Mrs Winifred Ekanem Oyo-Ita as Head of the Civil Service of the Federation. The president, however, appointed Dr Folasade Yemi-Esan as the substantive Head of the Civil Service of the Federation. Permanent Secretary (General Services Office) in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation OSGF, Olusegun Adekunle announced this in a statement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
1. President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday, commissioned \u2018OPERATION SWIFT RESPONSE\u2019 as a border drill exercise to checkmate the illegal activities of smugglers across the nation\u2019s borders. His spokesman, Femi Adesina, in a statement, explained that this is part of the Federal Government\u2019s effort to ensure food security and improve local production of goods at competitive […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":5842,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,19],"tags":[34,248,65],"class_list":["post-22045","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-beyond-the-news","tag-apc","tag-newspapers-of-nigeria","tag-pdp"],"yoast_head":"\n