The Nigeria Immigration Service(NIS),has sacked four of its personnel and demoted 14 others for various offences for which they appeared before the Orderly Room Trial Committee of the Service.

DCI Tony Akuneme disclosed this in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday.

Four other personnel who were accused were discharged and acquitted of the allegations, while one offender was compulsorily retired from the service,he said.

He said that two immigration personnel were redeployed to other locations while 11 others were issued warning letters . Eleven others he said are awaiting trial.

He added, the Comptroller General of Immigration is poised to rid the service of bad eggs , as he assured members of the general public that there are no sacred cows in the NIS.

He said all offenders would be appropriately sanctioned as he urged members of public to be vigilant and support the Service to deliver more on its mandate by contacting the service for feedback, inquiries and complaints.

The Nigerian Economic Summit Group will hold a series of dialogues on the Nigerian economy with presidential candidates that will accentuate discussions on the roadmap towards an inclusive and prosperous Nigeria.

The gesture,according to the group,is part of its commitment to national development and our principle to provide an economic foundation for democracy.

Mr. ‘Laoye Jaiyeola,CEO, Nigerian Economic Summit Group,in a statement sent to Premium News,said Nigeria is at a decisive point in its history as it prepares for the 2023 polls.

He said it is critical to nudge Nigerians towards making informed voting choices.

He added:”The challenge before us, therefore, is to ensure the evolution of a process towards a leadership with a broad knowledge of the issues and the political will to steer the ship of our great nation towards shared economic prosperity.

“In a bid to live up to our mandate to foster the establishment of an economic foundation for democracy, we will actively seek independent direct engagements with the presidential candidates on critical economic policy reform issues and prescriptions, in the national interest.

“The presidential dialogue series is geared towards sensitising stakeholders and citizens of Nigeria on peaceful, informed and accountable democratic participation and would provide a unique platform and opportunity for presidential candidates to discuss their economic agenda in an environment of civil discourse.

“The Presidential Dialogue on Economic Policy will seek to curate content that focuses on the state of the economy and addresses the concerns of the citizens before the 2023 presidential elections”

The House of Representatives member from Oluyole Federal Constituency, Tolulope Akande-Sadipe,has commissioned constituency projects in Oluyole, Ibadan, bringing the number of boreholes by the Representative since June 2019 to 21.

According to her,so far she has facilitated 188 solar lights, construction of 12 schools and 23 new transformers.

The new commissioned transformers are in Ologede Estate; Irepodun Abbey Technical; Ile-Anu community; Ajinde community; Idi ishin community.

Others are located in Ifelodun, ward 4; Orisunmibare Pegba, ward 3; Adeiye Irewole community, ward 3 and Egbeda Atuba community, ward 3.

She also commissioned another school project Ajogbelede Basic Primary School, one of the 12 she facilitated along with Boreholes in Babalola and New garage.

She described the projects as the real dividends of democracy.

She said: “It is my duty as a Legislator to represent the people; both those who voted me in and those that did not. That’s what I ’ve been striving to do over the years and I will not stop doing this for the love of my people as it’s not the primary function of a legislator.

“So far, in Oluyole I have facilitated 188 solar lights, construction of 12 schools and 23 new transformers and 21 boreholes. In fact, if you count from when I was first elected to the House of Representatives, it goes way beyond that.

“This is the real dividends of democracy. When I was campaigning, I based my campaign on WREEPP and I promised to deliver my service on these pillars. I have done these and more; facilitating, construction of roads and different projects that can be seen, some of which we are commissioning today. We will continue to do more, it’s just never enough.”

The General President, Ayegun, Mr. Olapade Olaide thanked Akande-Sadipe for the value-adding projects.

He added that since she started representing Oluyole, the constituency has experienced a great turnaround with many projects. “Oluyole people have felt a great change”, he said.

Governor of Osun State, Sen. Ademola Adeleke has condoled with the victims of the unfortunate fire incident at the popular Idiseke Market, Osogbo last Saturday,describing the incident as unfortunate.

In a statement signed by the spokesperson to the governor, Mallam Olawale Rasheed,he prayed for the affected traders to have the fortitude to bear the loss.

He commended the timely intervention of the gallant men of the Osun State Fire Service for their timely intervention and prevent further spread across the market.

“I sympathize with my people that were affected by the fire incident. It is unfortunate to experience such at this critical time of global economic crisis. I urge all the people of Osun State to continue to take precautionary measures and put in place necessary apparatus to prevent incidence as related to Fire outbreak”, he added.

A Rivers state-born scientist, Ricky Alioma Owunari Brown,claims his oil technology product has been stolen by an American firm.

He has petitioned President Muhammadu Buhari and the International Criminal Court of Justice, ICCJ, at the Hague, over claims that a technology he invented to ease the transportation of oil and gas products in wells and pipelines, has been hijacked.

He also petitioned the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission,ICPC,urging the agency to investigate his claims and ensure that justice is served.

At a press conference in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, Brown said the stolen technology, known as Paraffin Control System or de-waxer flow enhancer, is his brain child and product of years of intense research.

Brown, a Director in Grand Check Limited, an oil and gas firm headquartered in Port Harcourt, said the De-waxer Flow Enhanser is a patented product of Grand Check and it’s sister company, Loving Brothers Limited and their American partner, Ener Tec Inc. USA.

According to him,he had established a conspiracy between a Nigerian chemicals dealer and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) as well as the Federal Ministry of Industry using an American company, Paraffin Melting Tool, to steal what he claimed was his intellectual property.

He said his claim came on the heels of the fact that the regulatory bodyfailed to address the complaint which he raised in a petition made to the body, but rather used the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) to “legitimize’ the alleged IP theft.

He added that Paraffin Melting Tool had a similar technology to what he invented, and that while the name of one is Paraffin Melting
Tool his own technology is Paraffin Control System.

He disclosed that the problem begun in year 2000,while Grand Check and sister companies, Ricano Oil and Gas Company and Loving Brothers Company were trying to firm up the technology and in the process, invited an American company, Cal Dive International, to Nigeria to help out in deployment of the technology in Nigeria.

He said:”But rather than keep to terms of our agreement, Cal Dive went behind
to the regulatory body, collecting our jobs, so much so that Ricano became bankrupt as all investors left the company, a development that resulted in the death of its Director, Mr. Larry Braide. It was because they killed Ricano that we brought our sister company, Loving Brothers.

“We reported to the US Embassy and they asked us to register with the Consulate, which we did. We were given some magazines from where we got in touch with Ener Tec. Inc. USA.Ener Tec Inc. USA is an American company that appointed us as Sole
Distributor of Paraffin Control System. We had a deal with them tohelp us deploy our technology because at that time we didn’t have the deployment skills

“So, we invited Ener Tec. Inc. USA. They came to Nigeria and we gave them everything and they gave us a letter that they’re going to work
with us. We will work with them as partners in terms of deployment,both offshore construction and others so that we can develop our people”, he said.

“To our greatest surprise, we now saw an American company which came up with the name ‘Paraffin Melting Tool, a technology
similar to what we have. The idea is to export ours to America and then return it as a foreign technology and claim to have been in existence from 2016, forgetting that our technology has been under incubation since 2003”.

He added that he got to know what the “IP thief” was up to through a publication in a national newspaper of November 24, 2021 where the chemicals dealer claimed that he has invented a new technology called Paraffin Melting Tool.

By Omobolanle Shosanya

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday,says he was an orphan and had no idea about who his father was.

He spent nine years in a boarding school to acquire education, which in turn enabled him to get enlisted into the Nigerian Army,he said at the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign rally at August 27 Stadium in Damaturu on Tuesday.

He urged the crowd at the Stadium to ensure they send their children to school and make them understand that whatever they have in this world can be taken away except the knowledge they have acquired.

He said a vote for both party flagbearers, would guarantee the sustenance of progress made in the security, economy and education sectors of the country.

Speaking on his achievements against terrorists in the region,hethat the APC-led government is more than ever before energized to defeat whoever threatens the unity of Nigeria.

Addressing the crowd in Hausa language, Buhari recounted how Boko Haram inflicted damage on the people, their property and the economy, before the intervention of government led to their decimation by Nigeria Armed Forces and security agencies.

He added:‘‘Make sure you send your children to school and make them understand that whatever you have in this world can be taken away from you except the knowledge you have in your head. I was an orphan; I did not know my father. I spent nine years in a boarding school and because of education, I was enlisted into the Nigerian Army.

‘‘I want you to strengthen your faith, try your best to uphold the children and family God has entrusted to you. Do not betray that trust,” Buhari revealed.

Admonishing the APC flagbearers in the forthcoming general elections, President Buhari challenged them to ensure good governance when elected and not to disappoint the electorate.

He declared that the governing party has done its utmost in the last eight years at the Federal level and would continue to ensure the progress, prosperity and stability of Nigeria.

The presidential candidate of APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, urged Nigerians to reject the lies peddled by the opposition parties on the Buhari-led administration.

Tinubu,who lauded Buhari for the return of peace and normalcy in the Northeast region of the country, promised that his government would turn the region into the Agro-allied processing centre of Nigeria.

‘‘We will give you good jobs that you can depend on. Agriculture will come back. Hunger will go away. We will give you what is necessary, consumer credit to build houses and roofs over your heads,’’ he said.

Tinubu also promised to make the perennial ASUU strikes history, adding that undergraduates will not need to spend extra years in the university beyond the standard duration of course of study.

He urged the people of Yobe and Northeast Nigeria to vote APC candidates in the general elections, assuring that Nigeria economic prosperity will blossom under his watch.