The Big 5: Dalung dares Presidency on NFF crisis; New minimum wage not feasible now – Ngige | More stories

These are the stories you should be monitoring today:

The Federal Government has blamed the delay in the approval of a new minimum wage for workers in the country to the inability of the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) to come up with an agreed figure.

Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, who stated this at a press briefing in Obosi, in the Idemili Local Government Area of Anambra, said the governors were critical partners in wage determination, adding that it is no longer tenable to have a new minimum wage by September because the committee is yet tp be done with certain areas.


The Minister of Sports, Solomon Dalung has insisted that he will only stand with the rule of law in the leadership crisis rocking the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), despite Monday’s presidential recognition of the Amaju Pinnick-led executive. 

In a statement released on Tuesday, Dalung said the crisis cannot be solved with a temporary measure or scratched on the surface, explaining that the intervention of the Vice President should not be viewed as different from an attempt to abate an escalating situation, noting that the matter has a subsisting judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

“As a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, who took oath of office to protect and defend the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I will prefer to stand with the Rule of Law instead of the opinion of me,”  he added.


The Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, says he is being pressured by his constituency to run for the Senatorial seat in next year’s elections.

Ngige who disclosed this at a news briefing in Obosi, Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra, added that he will make an official declaration regarding his intent and his portfolio as minister in two weeks.

“The people who are pressurising me are my constituents; the people of Anambra State and some prominent people from the South-East,” Ngige said.


Former Inspector General of Police, Mike Okiro, has commended the Presidency over the directive for an overhaul of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), saying it was timely because the police unit had deviated from its founding principle.

Okiro, who spoke in Abuja on Tuesday, said the unit was formed in 1991 to contain the effect of robbery, car snatching and kidnapping but deviated to getting involved in mundane cases of bank cheques, land disputes and cases involving families, as he urged the leadership of the police to ensure that they go back to the reasons why they were created, rather than being scrapped ultimately.

“Government should not succumb to the #EndSARS protest because they have a role to play. As far as criminality is in the society, there should be an agency that should confront it. Let us go with what the presidency has done. They should review their activities,” he added.


The Nigerian Air Force on Tuesday said that it had again bombed a training facility of the Boko Haram terrorists located in parts of Lake Chad, killing scores of the insurgents during the air interdiction.

A statement by the spokesman of the Nigerian Air Force, Ibikunle Daramola, noted that “the air strikes at Zanari were planned and executed based on intelligence reports indicating that the Boko Haram terrorists had established a training camp in the village and were converging in an area prior to departing for an attack on own troops’ locations around the Lake Chad area,” the NAF said.


And stories from around the world:

Michael Cohen, the former personal lawyer of US President Donald Trump, has on Tuesday pleaded guilty to campaign-finance violations and other charges, before a federal court in Manhattan, saying he made payments to influence the 2016 election at the direction of a candidate for federal office. (Al Jazeera)


A major earthquake of magnitude 7.3 struck Venezuela’s eastern coast, home to largely poor fishing communities, on Tuesday afternoon, shaking buildings as far away as Colombian capital Bogota and knocking power out in parts of Trinidad. (Reuters)


Uganda’s army has made a rare apology after soldiers were caught on film beating up a journalist who was covering a demonstration supporting detained MP Bobi Wine on Monday. (BBC)


At least 10 ministers have offered their resignations as a leadership crisis in Australian politics deepened Wednesday with another challenge against Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull appearing inevitable. (AFP)


China expects self-ruled Taiwan’s last diplomatic ally in Africa, the Kingdom of eSwatini, will switch to Beijing soon, a senior Chinese diplomat said on Wednesday, a day after China won over the third Taipei ally in a year. (Reuters)

 

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