Senate President Ahmad Lawan has said the Ninth National Assembly will give maximum support to President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

He said this would enable it to achieve a better, prosperous and secured Nigeria for the good of the citizens.

In a statement yesterday in Abuja by his Media Adviser, Ola Awoniyi, the Senate President said the Assembly would give the President the support needed to achieve the Next Level agenda in the interest of the people and country.

Lawan spoke on Tuesday at in his country home, Gashua, Yobe State, during his two-day visit to his constituents.

“Though there are pockets of opposition from other sides, I assure you all that we won’t fail the President.

“I solicit your prayers for all members of the National Assembly. I recall that I got 79 votes out of 107 senators who voted during the Senate presidency election. This is above the All Progressives Congress (APC) votes.

“This shows that there is a cordial relationship along party lines, and that senators are ready to work for the progress of Nigerians and Nigeria.

“In the current Senate, I have the full cooperation of the senators from the opposition parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), because of the tremendous love and trust shown to us by President Buhari,” the statement quoted Lawan as saying.

The Senate President got cheers from the crowd that welcomed him home.

He called for patience among the people, saying there is no perfect human being.

“Where we haven’t performed well, I encourage you all to draw our attention to it. As your representatives, we will work with the President to meet your expectations,” he added.

Lawan announced a donation of N10 million to victims of a flood in his local government area, Bade, pending the intervention of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

The Senate President assured his constituents that he would strengthen his efforts to meet their expectations.

He promised to double his intervention in education for poor families by paying the tuition of anyone who secures admission into a tertiary institution.

Lawan visited six local government areas under his Yobe North Senatorial District.

He returned to Abuja yesterday with assurances to his people that his colleagues in the National Assembly would ensure good representation to achieve set goals.

Bode Abiodun became the first Nigerian to bite the dust in the men’s singles event of table tennis at the 12th African Games holding in Rabat, Morocco.

After the exit of Abiodun, Cecilia Akpan, Ajoke Ojomu, Fatimo Bello and Taiwo Matti also played their last matches at the multi-sports championship.

Abiodun’s exit from the tournament was made possible by the superb performance of Senegal’s Ibrahima Diaw who to avenged his quarterfinal loss to Aruna Quadri at the 2019 ITTF Africa Cup in Lagos a few days ago.

From the start of the match, it was clear that Diaw knew what he wanted and he followed to the latter event when Abiodun was having an edge in most of the games.

Abiodun was leading 8-3 in the first game, but Diaw won nine points to defeat the Nigerian 11-8.

The same scenario panned out in the second game and the Senegalese capped it up. And without much ado, Diaw demystified Abiodun 4-0 to book a place in the last 16.

Unlike Abiodun who could not win a set against the Senegalese, Akpan put up a good show against Cameroun’s Sarah Hanffou but her over-reliance on her shot cost her the tie. And Akpan was also humbled by the Cameroonian 4-1.

Ojomu and Bello became their enemies in the encounters against their Algerian and Egyptian counterparts. Despite leading 3-1, Ojomu and Bello squandered their lead to surrender to their opponents at 4-3.

Mati, the youngest member of the Nigerian team was taken through the basics of the game by veteran Egyptian star, Ahmed Saleh with a 4-0 bashing by the experienced opponent.

But the likes of Aruna Quadri, Olajide Omotayo, Segun Toriola, Edem Offiong and Olufunke Oshonaike worked their way into the last 16 and quarterfinal rounds of men and women events.

Nigerians resident in South Africa have been advised to avoid the Pretoria Central Business District (CBD) until the Police authorities certify the area safe for foreign nationals.

The Nigerian Union in South Africa (NUSA) gave the counsel in the wake of xenophobic attacks early yesterday following the torching of a shop belonging to a Nigerian in the business district.

NUSA’s warning came on a day South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa said that his administration was upset about the protracted killings of Nigerians in the former apartheid enclave.

Ramaphosa spoke in Yokohama, Japan, after holding a bilateral talk with President Muhammadu Buhari on the sidelines of the ongoing seventh Tokyo International Conference for Africa Development (TICAD7) in Yokohama, Japan.

According to him, the trend had necessitated the call for a meeting of the leaders of both countries on how to promptly nip the matter in the bud.

In a statement yesterday, NUSA’s President, Adetola Olubajo said: “Violent looting and burning of foreign-owned businesses started in the early hours of today, Aug. 28, at the Pretoria CBD. The foreign-owned shops and offices were targeted by angry taxi driver rioters.

“The violent revolt and looting have been fueled by the death of a taxi driver allegedly by Tanzania nationals on Tuesday at Pretoria CBD.

“Not less than two buildings were burnt by the angry mob. This was done after the stocks in the various shops were looted by the rioters. “The situation was very volatile this morning but the joint efforts of South African Metro Police and South African Police Service members helped to curb the violent looting and attacks, although the situation is still tensed at the area as several roads were blocked for motorists.’’

According to him, only two Nigerian-owned businesses were identified to be affected when he issued the statement. The affected stores were identified as Furniture/Electronics shop on Sisulu Street and Gold Exchange Business on Lillan Ngoyi Street. They were looted before being set ablaze by the rioters.

He said: “Information reaching us is that some foreign-owned businesses have been marked to be attacked over the night.

“The marked foreign-owned businesses include a Nigerian-owned Private Clinic, Nigerian-owned Motor spares shop and a Nigerian Church among others.

“The Nigeria High Commission in Pretoria has been informed of the planned overnight attacks and looting of foreign nationals businesses.”

Ten suspects have been arrested for possession of suspected stolen items, while an additional seven have been arrested for public violence, the statement added.

Over the years, Nigerians in South Africa have become victims of xenophobic killings by citizens of their host countries who often unjustifiably accuse them of robbing them of job opportunities in their own countries.

The killings prompted some Nigerian students to recently stage a range of protests at the premises of some companies linked to South Africans, threatening to shut them down if the killings of their fellow citizens in South Africa do not stop.

Ramaphosa said his country’s justice system had already taken up the matter.

He said he was not in support of the killings, and insisted that there was no justifiable reason for anybody to be killed.

He described the meeting he had with Buhari as a good forum for South Africa and Nigeria to renew the bond of unity between them and simultaneously share together issues of common interest in the overall interest of the African continent.

Ramaphosa said: “Well, no, no, we are going to be discussing all that because we have very good relations. We’ll talk about the issue of Nigerians who are dying in South Africa. We feel very upset about that.

“Obviously, our criminal justice system is working on it. We don’t support killings. Nobody should ever be killed, but it’s also good to use this opportunity here in Japan to renew the bond between us, to talk about common things between South Africa and Nigeria. We know we have to play key roles in the overall development of the continent.”

The police on Wednesday released the founder of Commonwealth of Zion Assembly (COZA), Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo, after two days of grilling.

He is expected to return today to the Force headquarters for further interrogation.

The pastor, who is being interrogated by detectives from the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) in Abuja, on allegation of rape by Mrs. Busola Dakolo, wife of popular musician, Timi Dakolo, was released on Wednesday.

He had returned to the FCID office for the continuation of the interrogation, which started on Tuesday.

The police said Fatoyinbo was granted bail on Wednesday after meeting its conditions.

It was also learnt that Mrs. Dakolo was invited for an interview with the Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Mike Ogbizi.

Confirming this yesterday to The Nation, the Force spokesman Frank Mba, a Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), said: “He was released in the early hours of this morning (Wednesday), but he is back to the Force CID. The witnesses we were expecting from Port Harcourt (Rivers State) and others were also interviewed yesterday before his release. “At the end of the day, we granted him bail, but he is back to Force CID now.

“So, Fatoyinbo is back and we are still continuing our work. He is most likely going to be grilled today (yesterday).”

On whether or not Mrs Dakolo was also invited for interrogation, Mba said: “She is at liberty to come to the FCID because the case involves her.”

The Federal Government has approved a reduction in visa charges payable by United States (U.S) citizens from $180 to $160

The Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, explained on Wednesday that the Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Muhammad Babandede, had been directed to implement the decrease in the visa charges with effect from today.

The development followed the new visa regime announced by the U.S Government on Tuesday.

It said Nigerians applying for U.S visas would be required to pay a visa issuance fee, or reciprocity fee, with effect from August 29.

The U.S Mission in Abuja had said the reciprocity fee would be charged, besides the non-immigrant visa application fee, also called the Machine Readable Visa fee, which all applicants pay.

By the new policy, applicants are required to pay $110 for B1, B2, B1/B2; F1 and F2 while H1B and H4 visas attract $180. I visa applicants are to pay $210, while L1, L2 applicants will pay $303 and R1 and R2 $80.

The Mission explained that both reciprocity and MRV fees are non-refundable, and their amounts vary based on visa classification.

In a statement by its Director Press, Mohammed Manga, the ministry said a committee set up to conduct due diligence in line with the ministry’s extant policy on reciprocity of visa fees had engaged the U.S Embassy on the issue.

It added that the implementation of its recommendations was delayed due to “transition processes in the ministry at the policy level”.

The statement said: “The committee had concluded its assignment and submitted a report. But the issuance of authorisation for its recommendations was delayed due to transition processes in the ministry at the policy level.

“The Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has approved the decrease of visa charges payable by U.S citizens in line with reciprocity policy as recommended by the committee.

“Accordingly, the Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service, Muhammad Babandede, has been directed to implement the decrease in Nigeria’s visa charges to U.S citizens with effect from August, 29.”

Also, the U.S Embassy in Abuja has denied blocking appointment dates for visa interviews of Nigerians seeking to travel to that country.

The Public Affairs Department of the Embassy stated this yesterday in response to a question by a correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

The embassy said: “There has been no block on visa interviews. There are interview appointment opportunities available.”

NAN reports that a visa interview is intended for a more in-depth communication between the applicant and the representative of a diplomatic office.

A citizen of a foreign country who wishes to enter the U.S is expected to first obtain a visa, either a non-immigrant visa for temporary stay or an immigrant visa for permanent residence.

Citizens of qualified countries may be also able to visit the U.S without a visa under the Visa Waiver Programme.

NAN reports that on August 20, some social media platforms reported that Nigerians who had applied for U.S visa could not get an appointment for an interview, despite the payment of visa fees.

According to the reports, after payment, once an applicant attempted to make an interview appointment, the applicant was informed through the U.S Embassy’s consultant website, CGI INC, that there were no available dates for visa appointments.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has said that more suspects will be uncovered as investigation into the 80 Nigerians recently indicted for internet-related crimes by the US Federal Bureau of Investigations continues.

Mr Friday Elebo, the Ibadan Zonal Head of EFCC, told newsmen on Wednesday in Ibadan that the commission had commenced investigations on the Nigerians indicted by FBI.

“I want to assure you that by the time we conclude our investigations, we will unravel bigger suspects because the figure currently released by the FBI is like one per cent of the cycle of persons involved in the cybercrime network.

“Just yesterday (Tuesday), we arrested a banker who was involved in converting foreign currencies to Naira at a local bank in Nigeria. He is currently helping the commission with information on our investigation,” he said. Ebelo said that the commission was in collaboration with some international agencies with similar mandates, especially FBI, to curb internet crimes and illicit funds transfer.

According to him, as a responsive organisation, the EFCC will do everything within its constitutional powers to ensure that the interests of hardworking and law-abiding Nigerians are protected.

“We will ensure that Nigerians are not denied the fruits of their labour by the recalcitrant few.

“We will work assiduously to ensure that those who engage in acts capable of tarnishing the good image of the country are prosecuted,” he said.

Ebelo said that Nigerians were known to be creative, hardworking and intelligent, saying that these had been effectively proven by the records of many groundbreaking achievements attributed to them across the world.

“We cannot pretend to be oblivious of the nagging impact of illicit activities of a few who have chosen to be black sheep within the fold,’’ he said.

The EFCC chief said that the zonal office, from January till date, had arrested 263 suspected internet fraudsters out of whom 111 were convicted and sentenced to various jail terms.

“The zone has also recovered huge sums of money in local and foreign currencies. The currencies are 52,702 US dollars, 2,400 Euro, 400 Canadian dollars and 60 pounds.

“We also got the nod of the court for some of them to forfeit valuable items established to have been proceeds of internet-related crimes.

“These include landed properties, vehicles, laptops, phones and many others,” he said.

He also said a suspected internet fraud kingpin was arrested during a recent operation in Ado-Ekiti.

“This suspect, according to our investigation, works with other cybercriminals abroad in a highly sophisticated web of conspiracy designed to illegally access accounts and defraud individuals as well as organisations.

“We were able to establish a number of illicit transactions through his Nigerian bank account amounting to over N223 million.

“He serves as a conduit pipe through which proceeds of crime reach members of the syndicate. His cuts in the deals totalled over N75 million.

“The suspect is still helping the commission in its further investigations and will be prosecuted as soon as investigations are concluded,’’ he said.

Ebelo called on parents to always counsel their children on the consequences of crime so that they could desist from it.

Following the Federal High Court ruling on Wednesday which refused to grant Omoyele Sowore’s motion, human rights lawyer, Mr Femi Falana, SAN, has said he would consult with his client on the next step.

Falana made the remark in an interview with newsmen shortly after Justice Nkeonye Maha of the Federal High Court, Abuja, refused to grant a motion filed to challenge the detention of Sowore, Convener, #RevolutionNow protests, for 45 days by the Department of State Services.

Justice Taiwo Taiwo had, in a ruling on Aug. 8 in an exparte application, ordered Sowore’s detention for the said period to enable the DSS carry out and conclude its investigation on allegations levied against him.

Falana, who had asked the court to set aside the exparte order granted by Justice Taiwo, also applied for oral bail when Justice Maha rejected the earlier application.

Justice Maha, however, referred the matter back to Justice Taiwo for further hearing, ruling that it was not in the act of the court to overrule the decision of court of cognate jurisdiction.

Responding, Falana said, “We are going to consult our client with respect to our next step.

“The court has just delivered its ruling and we are going to meet with our client today in order to take a decision on the matter.

“In the interim, we are back to Hon Justice Taiwo as per the ruling of the court.”

On how he felt on the ruling, Falana said, “My feeling is irrelevant.

“I take instructions from clients and I am going to discuss the ruling with my client so that we can take appropriate decision.”

The Management of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria in Kaduna State has confirmed the abduction of three of its final-year law students.

According to a statement by the Director of Public Affairs, Dr. Ismail Shehu, the students were kidnapped along the Abuja-Kaduna highway.

The statement read, “Three students of the Faculty of Law were kidnapped on the Kaduna-Abuja Expressway.

“Yes, it is true that our students, three of them, from the Faculty of Law have been kidnapped.

“But efforts are being made by the University, and parents of the affected students to secure their immediate release.”

Jos—The Vice-Chancellor of University of Jos, Professor Sebastian Maimako has announced the development of anti-snake venom vaccine known as COVIP-Plus, developed after 24 years of intensive research by a team at the African Centre of Excellence in Phytomedicine Research Development (ACEPRD) in the university.

Maimako, represented by the Director of the Research Centre, Professor John  Aguiyi disclosed the breakthrough yesterday at a briefing at the New Senate Chamber at the Naraguta Campus (Permanent Site) in Jos, the Plateau State capital.

According to him, “An essential approach to tackling snakebite is to prevent or neutralise snake venom on its arrival at human and animal tissue or blood and the requires a prophylactic agent or a vaccine. At present, such a vaccine against snakebite venom does not exist; COVIP-Plus is an anti-venom vaccine. It is derived from the seed of a plant traditionally used by the Rukuba (Bacche people of Bassa in Plateau State, Nigeria) to prevent snakebite envenoming without any anecdotally reported adverse effects.

“The vaccine which has already been tested on animals is to undergo the human test in three different phases in meeting with the standard of the World Health Organisation (WHO) in making the product a globally certified and accepted vaccine in the world though capitally extensive. I am also worried with the capital-intensiveness in conducting clinical trials of drugs, vaccines and devices. I am made to understand by the Researcher that N200 million is required for the phase-one clinical trials. The phase-two clinical trials will also require close to N400 million and the phase-three will require much more.”

ABUJA— In what appears to be a retaliatory move, the United States government has announced a hike in price for all classes of visa for Nigerians, effective August 29, 2019.

In a statement, yesterday, the US Embassy in Nigeria decried the cost of visa imposed on US citizens visiting Nigeria, saying it was currently higher than the total cost of visa for Nigerians visiting the US.

But spokesperson to the Ministry of Affairs, Ferdinand Nwonye, said in a reaction to the US government’s action that the decision to increase visa fee didn’t emanate from the ministry but the Immigration Service.

“I am aware that single entry for three months visa for US citizens is $100, while 12 months is $270,” he said. However, the US government said the new reciprocity fee for Nigerian citizens was meant to eliminate the cost difference between that charged by Nigeria and US. The embassy statement read:

“Since early 2018, the US government has engaged the Nigerian government to request that the Nigerian government changed the fees charged to US citizens for certain visa categories.

‘’After 18 months of review and consultations, the government of Nigeria has not changed its fee structure for US citizen visa applicants, requiring the US Department of State to enact new reciprocity fees in accordance with our visa laws.

“The reciprocity fee will be required for all Nigerian citizens worldwide, regardless of where they are applying for a non-immigrant visa to the United States.

‘’The reciprocity fee is required for each visa that is issued, which means both adults and minors whose visa applications are approved will be charged the reciprocity fee. The fee can only be paid at the US Embassy or the US Consulate General.

The reciprocity fee cannot be paid at banks or any other location. “Effective worldwide on August 29, 2019, Nigerian citizens will be required to pay a visa issuance fee or reciprocity fee, for all approved applications for non-immigrant visas in B, F, H1B, I, L, and R visa classifications.

“The reciprocity fee will be charged in addition to the non-immigrant visa application fee, also known as the MRV fee, which all applicants pay at the time of application.

“Nigerian citizens, whose applications for a non-immigrant visa are denied will not be charged the new reciprocity fee. Both reciprocity and MRV fees are non-refundable, and their amounts vary based on visa classification.

‘’US law requires US visa fees and validity periods to be based on the treatment afforded to US citizens by foreign governments, insofar as possible.’’

It explained further that visa issuance fees were implemented under the principle of reciprocity when a foreign government imposes additional visa fees on US citizens, the United States will impose reciprocal fees on citizens of that country for similar types of visas.

“For class B1, the reciprocity fee is $110; B2 ($110); B1/B2 ($110); F1 ($110); F2 ($110); H1B ($180); H4 ($180); I ($210), L1 and L2 ($303); R1 and R2 ($80),” it read further.