The Nigerian media industry has called on the House of Representatives to step down a bill seeking to amend the Nigerian Press Council Act, saying it is still a subject of litigation at the Supreme Court.

This message was given by the Nigerian Press Organisation (NPO), which covers the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria (NPAN), and the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), at the House Committee on Information, National Orientation, Ethics and Values organised public hearing on the bill. The House, however, insisted on going ahead with the exercise.

In recent time, several media organisations and groups have criticised various clauses in the bill as possibly discouraging Freedom of Speech in the country.

The committee had organised the hearing on five bills that include the ‘Bill for an Act to Amend the Nigerian Press Council Act, CAP N128, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, to Remove Bottlenecks Affecting Its Performance and Make the Council in Tune with Current Realities in Regulating the Press and for Related Matters (HB 330).’

Olusegun Odebunmi, chairman of the committee, apologised to the Nigerian media, especially NPAN that protested on Wednesday over exclusion from the exercise, saying an open invitation to the event was extended to all stakeholders.

Odebunmi said, “So, I am sorry if there is anybody who thinks we did not invite them. It is not by intention; it was definitely a mistake. Notwithstanding, we have covered everybody through our advert.”
However, Azubuike Ishiekwene, editor-in-chief of Leadership Newspapers, who represented the NPO, said contrary to the claim of an open invitation by the committee, the organisation did not receive any notification that would have enabled it engage the lawmakers and Nigerians robustly on the bill.

A Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) tanker explosion at Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way, opposite Sheraton Hotels and Towers, Ikeja, Lagos on Thursday night has left no fewer than 13 persons with various degrees of injuries and about 25 cars destroyed.

The tanker conveying LPG exploded and caught fire at about 10.32 pm on Thursday, throwing the environment into a panic.

Ln247 learnt that all the guests at Sheraton have been evacuated and the incident is causing heavy traffic in the Ikeja GRA axis.

Ibrahim Farinloye, acting zonal coordinator, South-West Zonal Office of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ikeja on Friday that the explosion was alleged to have been caused by leakage while the LPG tanker was in motion.

“The resulting fire travelled with the wind to the premises of Ogun State Property Investment Company (OPIC) Plaza besides Sheraton Hotels, which houses different commercial outfits including a Chinese Restaurant,” Farinloye said.

He said the fire was extinguished at about 12.30 am after concerted efforts of five fire trucks from the Lagos State Fire Service and two trucks from the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency Response Unit.

President Muhammadu Buhari on an official visit to the Armed Forces and other security agencies in Operation Hadin Kai, at the Maimalari Cantonment in Maiduguri, Borno State, assured that the Federal Government will provide more arms and ammunition for the military in the fight against Boko Haram terrorists in the northeast.

President Buhari at the official visit on Thursday affirmed that the government will sustain its investment in the Armed Forces. He further promised better welfare for the military personnel in the battlefield with the terrorists, including ‘insurance’ cover for families of demised soldiers in the battle.

The President added that the nation will remain indebted to the patriotic commitment of personnel of the Armed Forces and security agencies, to the defence of the fatherland against insurgency and criminality.

He acknowledged all the security personnel who made the supreme sacrifice in ensuring that Nigeria remains one indivisible and secure entity.

President Buhari promised: “This administration will spare no effort or resources to ensure that the widows and children of our fallen heroes who paid the supreme price in defence of our beloved country are well catered for.”

The President noted that several interventions by the federal government have led to the procurement and delivery of large consignments of critical combat enablers, including high calibre weapons and ammunition.

He assured, “Much more equipment will be procured for the Armed Forces to cater for both the short and long term requirements.”

President Buhari encouraged the Armed Forces and other security agencies that there is still a lot of work to be done to completely restore peace to the northeast, stem banditry in the northwest and North Central, as well as deal with other security challenges across the country.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has slammed President Muhammadu Buhari for weak prosecution of the anti-corruption war in the country. The opposition PDP berated the President for partisan sympathy, subtly shielding members of his political party, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), accused of corruption from proper investigation or prosecution.

The PDP in a statement by the National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbodiyan, emphasized that President Buhari’s fight against corruption in the country is a circus show in which looters are allegedly permitted to go untainted and free after fleecing public funds.

The PDP pointed out the case of a recent indictment of an unnamed female minister who was accused of purchasing a property worth $37.5 million who was not made to account for the alleged impropriety.

The party also challenged the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, “to without delay name the culprit and stop the famous process of easing out corrupt persons in President Buhari’s cabinet.”

The party urged the EFCC to be transparent in its operations.

The PDP further scolded President Buhari for the failure of the federal government to pay the 774,000 youths it recruited across 774 local government areas of the country under the Extended Special Public Works (ESPW).