Tony Kanu's blog

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, has assured Nigerians that the ongoing reconstruction of the Ajebandele-Sagamu section of the Benin-Ore-Ofosu highway would soon be completed. Fashola stated this during the construction and asphalt underlay of the dual carriageway, Phase IV. He said the contract, which was awarded by the President Jonathan administration in 2014 was abandoned due to lack of fund. He said since President Buhari’s administration came on board, with the intervention of Sukuk fund in 2017, the progress of work has improved significantly towards the October 2018 completion date. The Minister, who was represented by the South West Director, Federal Highway, Engr. Emmanuel Adeoye, confirmed that about 17.3km has been completed from the 98.1km, representing 15.92 per cent of the job. He said about N18b has been released to the contractor from the N71,648,176,867.38 budgeted for the project, pointing out that the Federal Gov...

Senior lawyers have expressed reservations on the new bill passed by the Senate on hate speech. The bill, if eventually assented to by President Buhari, stipulates that any person found guilty of any form of hate speech resulting in the death of another person shall die by hanging upon conviction. The bill also proposed a jail term not less than five years or a fine of not less than N10 million, or both for harassment on ethnic grounds or racial contempt. Some lawyers, including Chief Sebastine Hon and Kayode Ajulo, expressed concerns over what they described as extreme punishment for offenders. Hon contended that capital punishment is highhanded. He observed that in line with the provisions of the penal and criminal codes of other countries, death penalty, as proposed by the National Assembly, should be opposed by all Nigerians. He said: “I do not, with respect, support the anti-hate speech Bill recently passed by the National Assembly, especially the punishment proposed ...

Nigeria Info 99.3 has become the first FM station to introduce Visual Radio to the country’s broadcast landscape. Visual Radio is meant to afford listeners the opportunity to watch their favourite local FM radio presenters in action on computers and mobile devices. It’s a new dimension in radio broadcasting with interactive content and services for mobile radio listeners. With this new development, listeners can enjoy engaging and exciting contents, visuals, information and entertainment. They can also participate in the radio station’s promotions, polls, contests, and interact with the show hosts and their special guests. According to the radio network’s CEO, Serge Noujaim: “We now live in an instant and content-hungry world. Modern radio must compete with multiple attention-grabbing sources, to engage, maintain and grow audiences. This must not be at the expense of making great radio. It should be an addition to it. And we are proud to be the first in Nigeria to do so.”

The United States (US) Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, would visit Nigeria and four other African countries from March 6 to 13. According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), spokesperson for the department, Ms. Heather Nauert, said Tillerson would also travel to Ethiopia, Djibouti, Kenya and Chad. During his visit to Abuja, Tillerson is expected to meet with President Muhammadu Buhari and other top government functionaries. Nauert said: “On his first official trip to Africa, Tillerson will travel to N’Djamena (Chad); Djibouti (Djibouti); Addis Ababa (Ethiopia); Nairobi (Kenya) and Abuja (Nigeria), March 6 to 13. “Secretary Tillerson will meet with leadership in each country, as well as the leadership of the African Union Commission (AU), based in Addis Ababa. “This is to further our partnerships with the governments and people of Africa. “In particular, he plans to discuss ways we can work with our partners to counter terrorism, advance peace and security, pro...

Hoodlums today invaded the venue of the empowerment programme, organised by Senator Ahmed Ogembe for women in Okene, Kogi state. The Afims Hotel venue was already filled up by guests , party members and the would-be-beneficiaries of the empowerment programme, when the hoodlums came calling, wielding dangerous weapons, attacking people and disrupting the seating arrangement for the event. The few security men at the hotel were said to have been overwhelmed by the thugs, who scattered tables and chairs and triggered a bedlam. The thugs said to be armed with dangerous weapons searched frantically for Ogembe who is representing Kogi Central Senatorial district but could not lay hands on him. Ogembe of the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) was said to be a few meters away from the hotel when the thugs came. However, many guests, some political associates of Ogembe and beneficiaries of the empowerment programme were injured during the bedlam. Ogembe who later showed up at the ve...