News

By Muhammad Sabiu

Reports reaching The Daily Reality have indicated Justice Tanko Muhammad, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, has resigned.

According to sources, Justice Muhammad announced his resignation on Sunday night and gave his reason as being ill.

Arrangements are reportedly being made to appoint Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, the next-highest ranking justice on the Supreme Court, as interim Chief Justice of Nigeria.

Sources disclosed that there would soon be a formal statement about the resignation.

By Muhammadu Sabiu

Residents living in the Mada district of the Gusau Local Government Area, Zamfara State, have lamented that gunmen operating in the area have now taken complete control of the region.

According to available information, the district’s residents had abandoned their communities as a result of the men of the underworld’s relentless terror strikes.

A source states that numerous peasants have set up camp along the route between Kotorkoshi and Mada town as refugees after the robbers defeated the security personnel.

“We have not taken our baths for some days now because the notorious bandits have hijacked the entire area as they have overpowered the security operatives.

“As I am talking to you now, I don’t know the whereabouts of my two wives and children and I don’t know whether they have been kidnapped or they escaped to another area.

“We have no other means of livelihood except farming but we have been banned from our farming activities by bandits. The only wife and children with me now have entered Kotorkoshi village to beg for food for us to survive,” a resident identified as Mallan Ibrahim Mada was quoted as saying.

Recall that the Zamfara State government through its commissioner of information, Hon. Ibrahim Magaji Dosara and that of Security and Internal Affairs confirmed that Mada district has been witnessing incessant terror attacks.

This forced the government to close all the markets and gas stations in the affected areas due to the increasing frequency of banditry operations in the axis.

“The State government is aware of the plight of the people due to banditry activities bedevilling the entire area; we, therefore, decided to shut down all the markets and filling stations to reduce the incessant terror attacks in the axis.

The incessant attacks appear to be one of the reasons the Matawalle-led administration seeks the Federal Government’s approval to legalise the use of firearms by residents of the affected communities.

The commissioner said, “We engaged the Federal Government into dialogue so that it can approve our request for everyone that is qualified to be carrying weapons for self-defense to reduce the tension.”

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

A young man reportedly passed away after donating kidney to his ailing mother who needed a transplant.

According to Ahmed Muntaqa, who announced the young man’s demise on Facebook, the mother is doing well after the transplant but the young man died.

“This young man died shortly after donating kidney to his mother. What a heart touching death. 💔💔The mother survived the surgery and she’s alive as we speak now. May the soul of this gentleman rest in peace and may Jannatul Firdaus be his last abode..” Muntaqa wrote on Facebook.

The identity of the donor who is now reportedly dead is sketchy at the time of fielding this report, however, many have taken to their social media account to pray for the dead donor and commend the wonderful gesture.

Baffa Sanusi, a lawyer who shared Muntaqa’s post prayed that God should give people the strength to take care of their parents.

“Ya Allah give us the strength to take care of our parents, like they took care of us when we were little,” Sanusi wrote.

By Muhammad Aminu & Uzair Adam Imam

Kano State students from public secondary schools may not write the 2022 Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE) due to the failure of the Kano State Government to settle outstanding debt of N1.5bn to the National Examination Council (NECO).

Sources familiar with the matter in the Kano Ministry of Education and NECO office confirmed to The Daily Reality.

The examination body has been in touch with the Kano State Government for the settlement of the debt, but the feedback remained negative.

At least 15000 students from Kano State public secondary schools are expected to sit for the examination, whose fees are paid by the Kano State Government.

Insiders in the NECO Office said that due to the indebtedness, which affects logistics and other obligations, it is less likely for the exam to commence tomorrow, June 27, as scheduled nationwide.

Earlier, Permanent Secretary Kano State Ministry of Education, Hajia Lauratu Ado, told Solacebase that the state government is already discussing with NECO.

Hajia Lauratu said the state government had paid NECO N356m last week. Still, the examination body insisted that N700m must be paid before the state students would be allowed to write the examination.

“We are surprised with the stand of NECO because apart from the payment of N356m, the state government also wrote a commitment letter to the body stating that N50m would be released to the examination body monthly.

“The examination body did not inform us that it did not accept our commitment and the payment of the N356m not until yesterday. Since then, we have been in discussion with NECO so as to address the issue,” quoting the Permanent Secretary.

Hajia Lauratu said the state government is committed to releasing another N300m to enable Kano students to participate in the examination, but the NECO’s portal was not available as at Sunday evening.

NECO’s Public Relations Officer, Azeez Sani, said he is unaware of the development between NECO and Kano State Government.

Meanwhile, parents and teachers lament the lackadaisical attitude with which Kano State Government is handling the education sector in the state.

“Look, I paid the fees for my children and I was told they may not be allowed to write the examination starting tomorrow due to the government owing NECO, how is that my problem?

“As I speak with you, my children are disturbed about the situation,” said a parent.

A secondary teacher who spoke in confidence to The Daily Reality said: “The development is very traumatic. The Kano State Government has failed both teachers and students, let alone parents.

“Government shouldn’t have allowed this to happen. The debt of about N1.5bn should be paid, so our students do not miss this year’s exams.”

It can be recalled that NECO withheld the 2021 results for Kano students due to the outstanding debt the state owed the Council.

Similarly, in 2022, Kano State Government drew public outcry for declining to pay NECO fees for students that failed the Qualifying Examination.

By Muhammad Sabiu

Contrary to rumours claiming that the exam had been postponed to a later date, the National Examination Council has declared that the 2022 Senior School Certificate Examination would begin on Monday, June 27, 2022, for school-based applicants.

Azeez Sani, the council’s head of information and public relations, revealed this information in a statement to journalists in Minna on Saturday.

Sani urged interested parties to reject rumours that the examination would be delayed.

“State Ministries of Education, Principals, Commandants and all stakeholders are enjoined to disregard any speculation on the alleged postponement of the examination,” Sani said, adding that “the Council has put all necessary measures in place to ensure a seamless conduct of the 2022 Senior School Certificate Examination.”

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

Nigeria’s former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, said his choice of Atiku as a running mate during the 1999 general election was a mistake. 

Obasanjo disclosed this on Saturday, June 25, while addressing students in Abeokuta at a leadership and entrepreneurship mentoring session. 

The former president admitted to having made many mistakes in his life. He also disclosed that one of such mistakes was his choice of running mate in the 1999 presidential election.

“I don’t say I don’t make mistakes – I made many of them,” Obasanjo said.

“But one thing that has happened to me is that God has never disappointed me. And that is very important.

“For instance, one of the mistakes I made was picking a number two when I was going to become President.

“But because it is a genuine mistake, God saved me out of it.”

The presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, contested alongside Obasanjo in the said election.

By Uzair Adam Imam

Tension rocks the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the party’s presidential candidate, Ahmed Bola Tinubu, allegedly obtained no primary and secondary school certificates. 

However, Tinubu insisted that he had two degrees from two American universities. Yet, he stated that the certificates were stolen by unknown soldiers during the military junta of the 1990s.

The Daily Reality gathered that the information was in an affidavit submitted by Tinubu to the INEC office as part of his eligibility filings for the 2023 presidential elections.

The documents released Friday by the electoral body showed that Tinubu completely left the columns for his primary and secondary schools unmarked.

Additionally, the latest claims by Tinubu in his submission to INEC reportedly contradicted the previous submissions of 1999 and 2003 when contested as a governorship candidate in Lagos state.

It was gathered that Tinubu allegedly claimed in 1999 and 2003 that he attended primary and secondary schools.

He indicated that he attended St. Paul Children’s Home School, Ibadan, between 1958 and 1964 and secondary school at the Government College, Ibadan, between 1965 and 1968.

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

The United States Supreme Court in a draft opinion voted against the nearly five decades-old precedents in the landmark abortion case of Roe V Wade on Friday. The court held that there is no longer a federal constitutional right to an abortion.

The judgement overturned the decision in Roe V Wade. The majority of the justices of the court are of the opinion that the decision in the old case of Roe V Wade was reached in error and the American constitution did not expressly contemplate such rights.

“Roe was egregiously wrong from the start. Its reasoning was exceptionally weak, and the decision has had damaging consequences. And far from bringing about a national settlement of the abortion issue, Roe and Casey have enflamed debate and deepened division,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote in an initial draft majority opinion.

The opinion of the US Supreme Court has elicited condemnation from leaders around the globe.

President Joe Biden has described it as “a tragic error” and urged states to enact laws to allow the procedure.

Former President Barack Obama described the judgement as an attack on the freedom of Americans

“Today, the Supreme Court not only reversed nearly 50 years of precedent, it relegated the most intensely personal decision someone can make to the whims of politicians and ideologues—attacking the essential freedoms of millions of Americans.

Across the country, states have already passed bills restricting choice. If you’re looking for ways to respond, Planned Parenthood, The United State of Women, and many other groups have been sounding the alarm on this issue for years—and will continue to be on the front lines of this fight, ” Obama posted on his Facebook page.

Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, on Friday joined other leaders in condemning the judgement. He described it as horrific.

“The news coming out of the United States is horrific. My heart goes out to the millions of American women who are now set to lose their legal right to an abortion. I can’t imagine the fear and anger you are feeling right now,” Trudeau tweeted.

Trudeau further explains that the decision of what a woman does with her body is solely hers, and not for the government or anyone.

“No government, politician, or man should tell a woman what she can and cannot do with her body. I want women in Canada to know that we will always stand up for your right to choose,” He explains.

The British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson said the judgement is a big step backwards.

“I think it’s a big step backwards. I’ve always believed in a woman’s right to choose and I stick to that view, and that’s why the UK has the laws that it does.”

French President, Emmanuel Macron also pledged solitary with American women after the Supreme Court Overturned Roe V Wade.

“Abortion is a fundamental right for all women. It must be protected. I express my solidarity with the women whose freedoms are today challenged by the Supreme Court of the United States of America,” Macron said.

By Muhammad Aminu

Experts have advised women and young girls, particularly in northern Nigeria to make judicious use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to better their lots and change society for the better.

The experts gave the advice at a roundtable discussion on the Challenges of Seeding and Nurturing Creativity and Innovation Among Young Women Organised by the Center for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) in Kano.

Aliyu Aliyu, an Independent Consultant, decried that socioeconomic and cultural barriers as well as inadequate role models to emulate are stifling women and young girls from actualising their full potentials in Nigeria.

Aliyu contended that women and girls are creative and problem solvers and that all they need are inspiration and mentorship to leverage digital technology to unleash their potential for their success and societal development.

“Young women need to use their time in a way that will better their lives, use social media in an effective and rewarding way, set their priorities and know how to achieve them, he added.

According to Dr Sana Muaz of the Department of Software Engineering, Bayero University, Kano, there are challenges for young women but with passion and zeal to excel, they can create a niche for themselves in society.

She advised girls to always understand a business idea well before venturing into it so that they can not just start a business but can build a sustainable brand in business against all odds.

She called on the participants to always remember their important position as women that other girls would look up to as role models.

In her contribution, Malama Aisha Bako, Chief Executive Officer, Onyx Investment Advisory Limited, challenged the participants to penetrate the ICT sector to make their contribution to society instead of wasting their resources on fruitless activities on social media.

“Platforms like TikTok and Instagram are paying huge amounts of money to those that know how to use them well,” she added.

The Chairman of the discussion, Prof. Asabe Mohammed while commended CITAD for the Initiative called on the participants to make the best use of the “unique opportunity” to improve their lives and society.

Earlier, CITAD’s head of Digital Creativity and Innovation for Girls (DICIG), Kamaluddeen Umar, said the programme is aimed at empowering girls to have access to digital skills in order to address the gender digital divide in Northern Nigeria.

He said: “The aim is to provide digital skills training for 200 girls (100 per year), to produce 80 digital entrepreneurs (40 per year) and create 160 new digital jobs for girls (80 per year).

“Selected participants were: girls between the ages of 18-30 who have a minimum secondary school education and are from Bauchi, Gombe and Kano States in addition to having an interest in building and running their business.”

According to Umar, the participants will undergo five phases of training basic, advanced, business ideation, business development support services market transition which some participants will be selected on the merit of their performance and business idea for awards.

By Uzair Adam Imam

A Police Constable, Nura Mande, has been honoured by Katsina State Police Command for finding and returning the missing 800 dollars to its owner in the state.

The Daily Reality learnt that the money belongs to a female intending pilgrim, Hajiya Hadiza Usman.

Mande was reportedly presented with a letter of commendation and N30,000 by the Commissioner of Police, Idris Dabban.

SP Gambo Isah, the Command’s Spokesperson, disclosed this in a statement, stating that the constable was on official duty at the state Pilgrims Welfare Board Hajj camp when he found the money.

He added that “while discharging his duty at the Hajj camp, PC Mande found the 800 dollars on the ground and returned it to the board’s Director of Administration, Alhaji Sada Salisu-Rumah.

“PC Mande disclosed that it was his fear of God that made him to return the money to the board’s official so that it could be returned to the owner.

“Salisu-Rumah commended the police constable for his good behaviour and honesty,” he added.

Isah added in the statement that the Police Commissioner was very excited over the display of honesty by Maude.

He, however, called on other police personnel in the command to emulate him.