Top Nigerian Newspaper Headlines For Today, Thursday, 1st December, 2022
Good morning Nigeria, welcome to Naija News roundup of top newspaper headlines in Nigeria for today, Thursday, 1st December 2022
The Federal Government has blamed the state government for being the cause of the rising poverty level in the country.
Naija News reports that Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, Clement Agba made this allegation in Abuja on Wednesday after the week’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa.
According to him, the surge in the poverty level in the country is because state governments have failed to contribute their quota of development responsibilities to the grassroots where the major production activities take place.
Agba, while fielding questions from State House Correspondents on how he and his counterpart the Minister of Financial, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, were doing to cushion the current hardship faced by Nigerians, noted that state governors are busy building flyovers, airports and other projects that are visible in the state capitals rather than investing in areas that directly uplift the standard of life of the people in the rural areas.
He advanced that state governments have consistently received their shares of national resources, but have misdirected the resource to projects that have almost no direct effect on the needs of the people.
Some loyalists of the former Ondo Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko have reportedly betrayed him by attending the People Democratic Party (PDP) campaign rally that was held on Wednesday in Akure the Ondo State capital.
Naija News gathered that the former governor who is a PDP chieftain was absent at the event, however, some of his loyalists were seen at the rally to show support for the party’s flag bearer, Atiku Abubakar.
Some of Mimiko’s stalwarts who were seen at the event include the former Deputy Governor, Agboola Ajayi, a former Chairman of the PDP, Engr. Clement Faboyede and others who had defected from the Zenith Labour Party.
Speculations are that the appearance of some of Mimiko’s allies at the PDP rally today might indicate there is a split in his camp over support for Atiku.
The former Governor is a member of the Integrity Group of the PDP G5 Governors, led by the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, who has continued to clamour for the resignation of the party’s National Chairman Iyorchia Ayu for a person of southern extraction.
The National Chairman of the Labour Party, Julius Abure has declared that the party doesn’t have any stronghold because Nigerians in totality are its strongholds ahead of the 2023 general election.
Abure noted that Labour Party’s strongholds are its supporters that are oppressed, the downtrodden, and those who have been denied education and health care.
Naija News reports that Abure told Punch that Labour Party enjoys support from the people across the federation, be it north or south because people are no longer playing politics of tribalism and ethnicity.
He, however, admitted that the party enjoys more support from the south, adding that the average voter in Nigeria today is more enlightened than people think.
According to him, hunger knows no tribe, and those in the North do not buy garri cheaper than those from the South, citing that the number of out-of-school children is higher in the North today than even in the South.
He advanced that politics in Nigeria today is not about where you are coming from and that there is no doubt politicians have used in time past to create an ethnic and tribal divide, but the situation he said would change in 2023.
4. Atiku Is Fulani But He’s Not A Killer – Wife
The wife of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Titi Abubakar has submitted that her husband, Atiku Abubakar is not a killer.
She observed that her husband is truly a Fulani man but is not a killer in any way.
Naija News reports she made her point while speaking on Wednesday at the campaign rally held in Akure, the Ondo State capital.
Addressing the crowd of supporters at the event, Atiku’s wife added that the former Vice President won the 2019 presidential election in Nigeria but was robbed.
Also at the same event, Titi promised the Ondo people that her husband will defeat Boko Haram and provide scholarships to students.
wo governorship candidates in Lagos State on Wednesday cleared the air on stepping down for the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olajide Adediran, popularly known as Jandor.
There had been reports that the governorship candidates of Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), Adenipebi Adekunle and his Action Peoples Party (APP) counterpart, Adeyemi Abiola withdrew from the race to support Jandor.
The report had it that the PDP flagbearer also received the support of leaders and members of other political parties under the aegis of the Conference of Registered and Deregistered Political Parties (CPP).
The political group that spread across Lagos State with structures in 20 Local Government and 37 Local Council Development Areas, LCDAs, had decamped and endorsed the candidacy of Jandor.
According to The Nation, the candidates on Wednesday denied the report, noting that they are still in the governorship races.
The Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government has reportedly paid lecturers under the aegis of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) their full salaries for the month of November 2022.
It was however gathered that the eight month arrears remained withheld by the Federal Government.
A senior member of the union at the Bayero University Kano confirmed this to The PUNCH in Abuja on Wednesday.
“Some of our members have started receiving salaries and I can confirm to you that we received our full salaries for the month of November. However, the arrears are still withheld,” he said.
Naija News reports that the Buhari administration had refused to pay the striking lecturers for the eight months which the union embarked on strike.
The lecturers, in October 2022 were also paid pro-rata (half-pay) according to the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige.
Lecturers across the country have been protesting against this decision by the Federal Government.
A top commander of the Islamic State of the West African Province (ISWAP), Muhammed Malik, has been killed by troops of the air task force of the Nigerien military.
According to a Counter Insurgency expert, Zagazola Makama, Malik died on November 29 from the fatal injuries he sustained during the attack in the Lake Chad region.
Naija News learned that the attack, which led to the killing of scores of ISWAP fighters, was launched by Nigerian troops.
The troops launched a coordinated intelligence-led aerial and ground operation and targeted the jihadist group’s location in the Sabon Tumbun area of Lake Chad on November 24.
Malik is said to have been a member of the Shura Council in Marte before he went for a course in computer engineering and improvised explosive device (IED) making, sponsored by ISIS in Somalia.
On his return, he reportedly established IED training units where fighters were trained in deploying explosives during attacks.
An Abuja-based activist, Deji Adeyanju has opined that the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu stands a better chance at the polls next year with the release of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
Naija News reports that Adeyanju told Daily Post that if Kanu is released it will increase the ruling party’s chances of getting a favourable vote outcome in the Southeast.
According to him, Kanu’s release can be an advantage for politicians to strategise on how to mull more votes in the Southeast.
The Abuja-based activist noted that the release of the IPOB leader would boost the morale of supporters of both the APC and the PDP.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has on Tuesday said that the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi would only be able to debate with his counterpart in the ruling party, Bola Tinubu, after sending his manifesto.
The APC insisted that they would send one of Tinubu’s media aides to have a debate with Obi after he must have presented his manifesto and showed his political achievements as a governor.
A spokesperson of Tinubu/Shettima Presidential Campaign Council, Festus Keyamo said this on Tuesday.
Keyamo accused Obi of not showing his manifesto to Nigerians ahead of the 2023 general elections.
Keyamo, then, gave conditions for the LP presidential flagbearer to fulfil before he could engage in a debate with the former Lagos state governor.
The APC Campaign spokesperson asked the former Anambra Governor to name those he has mentored from the time he held office till present day.
He said if the conditions are fulfilled, the APC will send one of its spokespersons to have an open debate with Obi.
The wife of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Titi Abubakar has submitted that her husband, Atiku Abubakar is not a killer.
She observed that her husband is truly a Fulani man but is not a killer in any way.
Naija News reports she made her point while speaking on Wednesday at the campaign rally held in Akure, the Ondo State capital.
Addressing the crowd of supporters at the event, Atiku’s wife added that the former Vice President won the 2019 presidential election in Nigeria but was robbed.
Also at the same event, Titi promised the Ondo people that her husband will defeat Boko Haram and provide scholarships to students.
Those are the top Nigerian newspaper headlines for today. Read more Nigerian news on Naija News. See you again tomorrow.
