Senate threatens to shut down Bet9ja

The senate committee on youth and sports has threatened to order the shutdown of Bet9ja office if the company failed to honour its invitation for a second time.

Bet9ja is one of the most popular online bookmaker companies operating in Nigeria that offer betting on major sporting events.

Obinna Ogba, the chairman of the committee, made the remark, on Tuesday, at the national assembly, during the verification of lotto companies with license to operate in Nigeria.

Ogba (PDP Ebonyi central) said it was unfortunate that Bet9ja refused to honour the committee’s invitation.

“Clerk, write to Bet9ja again. If they did not honour our invitation, we will ask the National Lottery Commission to seal their offices,” he said.

According to him, the senate is making efforts aimed at assisting the lottery commission to generate money for the federal government.

”We want to see bet9ja. They can’t run away,” he said.

The chairman explained that the verification followed series of complaints against the betting companies. He added that “some don’t even have offices while others have not been making remittances to the government.”

”Some got the licences but they are not operating. The new regulation only give them one year to start operations,” he said.

Meanwhile, about 20 other betting companies appeared before the committee for the verification exercise.

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PDP protesters pass ‘no confidence’ vote on panel handling Atiku’s petition

The national secretariat staff of the PDP, yesterday, staged a peaceful protest in Abuja where they passed a vote of no confidence on the Presidential Election Tribunal handling the petition of the party’s candidate for the February 23 election. The protesters who demanded the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa, to quit the panel handling the petition, said there was no possibility of Atiku “reclaiming his stolen mandate” with Justice Bulkachuwa as member of the panel.

They carried placards and banners with different inscriptions such as “Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa, you can’t preside over your own case. Your husband is a senator-elect under APC”, “Justice is not for the most powerful, it must be seen to be right and done”, and “On moral grounds, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa, excuse yourself from the presidential petition tribunal”, among others. Addressing newsmen at the premises of the Wadata Plaza, where they protested, the Chairman of PDP Staff Welfare Association, Mr. Clement Nwankwo, claimed that Atiku won the February 23 presidential election but was allegedly rigged out by the APC which he claimed worked closely with the INEC. The protesters also expressed worry over the worsening security situation in the country, adding that the nation’s economy under the current government was nothing to write home about.

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NLC threatened Ngige ask Buhari to Sack him

By Chimezie Godfrey

#TrackNigeria – Following the recent attack on its officials by suspected thugs at the residence of the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) has called for the sack of the minister and for justice to be done.

In a mega rally at Abuja Monday, organised in protest against the alleged attack on its members, NLC and other affiliated unions called on President Buhari for the removal of Dr. Chris Ngige as the Minister of Labour  and Employment.

They equally demanded that justice should be done.

Newsdiaryonline correspondent gathered that the NLC officials had recently visited the Minister’s residence to discuss issues relating to the implementation of the national minimum wage, only to be assaulted by thugs suspected to be deployed by the minister.

NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba said the action of Ngige against the workers amounts to a desecration of the office of the Minister of Labour and Employment, and therefore deemed him no longer fit to continue to occupy that office.

Wabba  listed the reasons for the protest  to include the  alleged attack on the workers by the minister, the exposure of the falsehood surrounding the replacement of Frank Kokori as NSITF board chairman, and allegations of corruption against the minister.

He said, “Ngige cannot sit on our minimum wage because we are told he is sitting on the implementation guidelines because he does not like Nigerians workers.

“I therefore hold him responsible.. for sitting on our minimum wage.

“So, we have said that Ngige has desecrated his office by attacking workers with  thugs, he has desecrated the office of the minister of labour and we have removed the word honourable from his name.

He also sympathized with those workers that were injured.”We thank God Almighty because we have open mind that is why nobody was injured to the level of incapacitation.

“He thought they have killed some of us, that is why he went to the hospital, to think that the god of Okija can drink the blood of Nigerian workers, it has proven that nobody has died, no blood was spilled.

“The God of Nigerian workers will continue to protect us particularly in the holy month of Ramadan, and all the prayers we have offered by the special grace of God, will fall on his head.

“As I have said, our next line of action is to document a formal letter to the President. And we want our voice to be heard, we have to be given opportunity to be heard,” he said.  

On the allegation of corruption against the Minister, the NLC President said he wants the truth to be told to Nigerians on the issues of corruption.

“We Challenge the Federal government not to hide anybody that has issues, let their names be published.

“We are aware when Ngige managed the place as a sole administrator for two and half years corruption also took place, and we are demanding for a commission of enquiry to find out what has happened.

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I have no regret in my godfatherism views –El-Rufai

John Ameh, Abuja

The Kaduna State Governor,  Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, said on Monday that he had no apologies for  his views on how to retire godfathers from politics in Lagos State.

The governor stated that his views were his views and would not retract them or tender an apology because anyone felt offended by them.

El-Rufai spoke with State House correspondents after he visited President Muhammadu Buhari to give him an update on the security situation in Kaduna State.

“If I was asked a question and I gave an answer, anyone that feels offended by the answer, it is his own business.  I have no apologies, I don’t apologise for my views.

“I don’t have to explain anything to anyone. This is a democracy and in a democratic space, there must be room for people to express their views,” he said.

Recall that last week in Ikoyi, while speaking at an event in Lagos, the governor recounted how he retired godfathers from Kaduna politics.

He advised the people of Lagos State to apply his model to sack any godfather holding the state down.

It is widely believed that el-Rufai was referring to the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

When asked a specific question on whether he had any issues with Tinubu or the party generally, he said, “There is no dispute between me and anyone in the APC; the APC is one family; I don’t dispute with my own party.”

On his visit to the Villa, el-Rufai said he came to brief Buhari on the various security measures introduced by security agencies to confront criminalities in the state, especially kidanappings on the Abuja-Kaduna Highway.

Also, the Governor of Benue State, Mr Samuel Ortom, was at the Villa.

He denied that Benue was insolvent or that the Internally Generated Revenue of the state was below 10 per cent of its share from the Federation Account in 2018.

However, he admitted that for the state to afford to pay the new N30,000 minimum wage, it must cut costs.

The governor mentioned one Gana as the leader of a criminal gang terrorising Benue and some neighbouring states like Taraba.

Ortom said,  “The three local government areas of Katsina Ala, Ukum and Bukun are not safe. No educational, farming, commercial activities are going on; the Igbo that are major traders have vacated the place.

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