Independence Day: We have distributed N330 Billion to poor households and vulnerable Nigerians— President Tinubu. President Bola Tinubu has announced that his administration has disbursed N330 billion to about eight million households under the government’s social investment programme, aimed at assisting poor and vulnerable Nigerians. The President disclosed this during his 65th Independence Anniversary broadcast on Wednesday, noting that the initiative was designed to provide direct relief to struggling families. “Under the social investment programme to support poor households and vulnerable Nigerians, N330 billion has been disbursed to eight million households, many of whom have received either one or two out of the three tranches of the N25,000 each,” Tinubu stated. Reflecting on Nigeria’s journey since independence, he highlighted the nation’s resilience, saying that despite decades of challenges, Nigeria has continued to endure & record significant economic growth. #nigeriannews# fintternews #independenceday #tinubu

Oyo Gov. Seyi Makinde Gifts Car To Gospel Singer Yinka Ayefele Gospel singer and music producer, Yinka Ayefele, has received a black SUV gift from Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde. A video showed Ayefele surrounded by government officials as the vehicle was presented to him. The gesture comes shortly after a fire incident damaged two of Ayefele’s radio stations, Fresh FM 105.9 and Blast FM 98.3, destroying offices, transmitters, and equipment. 📸: Seyi Makinde/Facebook, Oyo Affairs/Instagram #gift #fintternews #YinkaAyefele

IBB not statesman, stop lying to yourself Farotimi counters Adesina. Human rights activist and lawyer, Dele Farotimi, has faulted the description of former military president, Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (rtd), as a statesman. Farotimi, in a post on X on Tuesday, said celebrating Babangida with such titles only helps to normalize the “evils” he claimed the former leader visited on Nigerians. “Not telling these ruinous cretins exactly what they are, contributes towards the normalization of the evils that they have visited on the people, and this mutual affirmation strategy is what has helped to sustain the evil. IBB is no statesman, and you can stop lying to yourself,” he wrote. His reaction followed a congratulatory message by the former president of the African Development Bank, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, who had hailed Babangida as one of Nigeria’s “foremost elder-statesmen” in a birthday tribute. Adesina praised the former Head of State’s “patriotic fervor, devotion and commitment to Nigeria’s peace, unity and progress,” while wishing him continued good health as he marked his 84th birthday. DAILY POST reported that Babangida, who ruled Nigeria from 1985 to 1993, celebrated his 84th birthday recently. #fintternews #farotimicounteradesina

Wike: FCT Local Contractors Cry Out Over Unpaid ₦5.2 Billion. Local contractors in the Federal Capital Territory stormed the gate of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, on Monday over alleged unpaid contract bills said to total about ₦5.2 billion. Wike's PDP Membership Comes With Some Disadvantage, He'll Soon Be Shown The Way Out - Deputy National Publicity Secretary Some of the protesters claimed that individual debts owed ran into hundreds of millions, appealing to Wike to meet them directly to understand their plight. One of the contractors, Okeke Benardine, told Punch that, “The thing is that we’ve done jobs with the FCT over the years. When the minister came, he paid us some. Most of our liability presently are from the present administration. But we have not been paid for almost two years now. “And if you look there, those are some of the ACs I installed. Some of the offices, I did inverters, I did boreholes. And all we are doing is begging the minister. We don’t know the problem; he should just pay us. That is the essence of all this.” He put the total claim at ₦5.2bn, adding that his personal outstanding was about ₦270 million. “I have met one or two people who said their bills are not here, so I am sure it’s more than ₦5.2bn. I know some of our members are saying their bill is before 2023. But I can assure you that 70 per cent of the bill is from 2023,” Bernardine added. Another contractor, Adebola Benson, claimed he was arrested after sending a text message to the minister to inquire about the delayed payments. “Like in my own case, I was arrested because of this matter. I sent him a text, asking why we are having this issue. And the next thing I saw was a police officer calling me… But I do not know why the police did that,” he said. He urged Wike to “listen to us directly, not from people around him. We want him to talk to us one-on-one. Let us know what the problem is, and why he is not paying.” #Fintternews #NyesomWike #LocalContractorsCryOutOverUnpaid₦5.2Billion.

Lagos: Robber shoots ex-computer village chair, steals N40m necklace. Armed robbers struck about 2: 00 p.m. Monday in front of Treasureland Cottage, No. 1 Gbajobi Street Ikeja, Lagos, close to Blueprint Newspapers’ office. The victim, Mr. Gbenga Marose, popularly known as Obama or King of Boys Ikeja, and former chairman of Computer Village, Ikeja, was attacked while conversing with two other people. A middle-age man, dark in complexion armed with a pistol confronted Mr. Marose and ordered him to hand over a gold necklace worth about N40 million. When he resisted, the robber shot him in the thigh before snatching the jewelry. Mr. Marose was immediately rushed to the New Ikeja Hospital on Gbajobi Street, where initial treatment was administered. Shortly after, operatives from the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC), Ikeja Division, Anti-Crime Base 13, arrived at the crime scene and later proceeded to the hospital to monitor the situation. Following preliminary care, the hospital referred Mr. Marose to Ikeja General Hospital for an X-ray and further treatment. He was escorted by police officers for security. #fintternews #Lagosrobbersshootxcomputervillage