News
Oyo govt. confirms Ibadan explosion, calls for calm
The Oyo State Government Tuesday evening confirmed what it described as “an uncommon explosion” which rocked some parts of Ibadan around 8 p.m.
The state’s Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Prince Dotun Oyelade, gave the confirmation in a statement.
He however acknowledged that there were various interpretations of the incident.
“But it is important for us to state categorically that the state government has taken over and in the full control of the unfortunate occurrence in order to mitigate the incident,” the Commissioner said.
Oyelade disclosed that security service chiefs, including those of the para-military, as well as Fire Service operatives, have been deployed by the state governor, Mr Seyi Makinde.
”This is to rein in the spill-over from the explosion,” he added.
The Commissioner said Gov. Makinde has implored citizens to calm down and be rest assured that their interests are being looked after.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the explosion was said to have occurred at a private building at Dejo Oyelese street, Adeyi area of Bodija in Ibadan.
Unconfirmed reports say the explosion affected about four buildings in the area, with windows shattered and walls brought down and a number of injuries recorded.
The impact of the explosion was also said to have affected dozens of buildings in nearby areas such as Sango, Mokola, University College Hospital (UCH), Agodi and Ojoo.
Other areas in Ibadan such as Eleiyele and Ologuneru also felt the impact of the explosion.
Already, bomb detectors of the Nigeria Police Force, as well as men of the Nigerian Army, Fire Service and other security bodies are presently at the Adeyi area.
Meanwhile, the city is awash with reports that some persons injured as a result of the explosion have been rushed to some hospitals.
News
Stop using repressive laws to intimidate journalists – SERAP, NGE tell FG
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, and Nigeria Guild of Editors, NGE, have called on Nigerian authorities at all levels of government to stop using repressive and anti-media laws to target, intimidate and harass journalists, critics and media houses.
The groups made the demand after an interactive session on ‘the state of press freedom in Nigeria’ held at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Ikeja.
In a joint statement, SERAP and NGE said that, “the government of President Bola Tinubu, the country’s 36 governors and FCT minister must now genuinely uphold press freedom, ensure access to information to all Nigerians, obey court judgments, and respect the rule of law”.
They expressed concerns about the escalating crackdown on the right to freedom of expression and media freedom and the flagrant disregard for the rule of law by authorities at all levels of government.
The groups note that the suppression of the press in recent times takes various forms ranging from extrajudicial to unlawful detentions, disappearances, malicious prosecutions and wrongful use of both legislation and law enforcement.
The statement read in part: “We would continue to speak truth to power and to hold authorities to account for their constitutional and international obligations including on freedom of expression and media freedom.
“Nigeria as a country has a long and unpleasant history of press gagging and clampdown on media freedom, which is evidence of extensive state censorship of media and in some cases, the utter control of state-owned media houses.
“This position has not changed considerably despite almost 25 years of unbroken democratic rule in the Fourth Republic.”
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FG adds 625MW to national grid – Minister
News
Tax: Court orders FCT-IRS agency to seal off defaulting coys
A Magistrate Court sitting in Wuse Zone 2, Abuja, on Friday, ordered the Federal Capital Territory Internal Revenue Service (FCT-IRS) to seal off a company, Ifedi A.K. Nigeria Ltd, over allegations bordering on non-filing of annual returns.
The Magistrate, Janada Balami, gave the order after lawyer to FCT-IRS, Michael Towolawi, moved the application to the effect.
Towolawi told the court that the company had failed to file its annual returns from 2019 to 2023 in breach of Section 81 of the Personal Income Tax Act, LFN, 2004, and amended in 2011.
He said all efforts to make the company comply with the law proved abortive.
The lawyer, therefore, applied that the company be compel to appear before the court to explain why it acted in breach of the law.
Balami, who held that the application by the agency against the company had merit, accordingly granted same to seal the No 6, Rudolph Close, Off Katsina-Ala Street, Maitama, Abuja.
She, consequently, ordered the company, the sole defendant in the matter, to appear before the court on May 16.
The Director, Legal Services of the FCT-IRS, Festus Tsavar, told journalists after the proceeding that the service would move against companies that do not file their annual returns as provided by law.
“You know that we have a new minister in FCT that is doing a lot of projects and that hinges on money.
“And of course, you are aware that FCT has come out of TSA.
“So it is the internally generated revenue that will make the government of FCT to be able to do those projects completely within required time,” he said.
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