Reviw of Nigerian Newspapers: 10 things you need to know Friday morning

Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers:

1. President Bola Tinubu has expressed displeasure with the approach of a section of the Organised Labour. He said calling four strikes within nine months of a new administration was unacceptable. Tinubu spoke on Thursday in Lagos where he inaugurated the first phase of the Lagos Rail Mass Transit, LRMT Red Line project, a 37km project expected to reduce travel time and improve transportation and logistics in the State.

2. The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike has commenced the enrollment of all vulnerable pregnant women in the Federal Capital into the Federal Capital Territory Health Insurance Scheme, FHIS. The Mandate Secretary of Health Services and Environment of the Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, Dolapo Fasawe, revealed this on Thursday, in Abuja during the flag-off ceremony of the enrollment, where she disclosed that all pregnant enrollees would receive a free safe delivery kit at no cost.

3. Group Executive Director (GED) of BUA Cement Plc, Kabir Rabiu yesterday reaffirmed the company’s commitment to lowering the price of cement from between N9, 000 and N15, 000 to between N7, 000 and N8, 000. He however hinged the company’s commitment to the pledge cement manufacturers made during their meeting with the Federal Government on the nearness of the markets to their plants nationwide.

4. Benue State Governor, Hyacinth Alia has banned political meetings/gatherings in the state till further notice. Alia said the ban followed intelligence on the security situation in the state. The decision, contained in a statement by Paul Biam, Chief of Staff to the governor, made specific reference to the presence of armed herders in the state.

5. The Senate has urged the Police Service Commission, PSC, to recruit a minimum of 10 candidates from each of the 774 local government areas, LGAs of the country. This followed the adoption of a motion by Senator Udende Memga (APC, Benue) on Thursday at plenary.

6. The Nigeria Customs Service Area Controller, Oyo/Osun Area Command, Dr Ben Oramalugo, has said the command intercepted fake pharmaceuticals comprising Augmentin tablets, Ampiclox and Amoxicillin capsules concealed in 53 sacks with a Duty Paid Value of N1,739,000,000.00. Oramalugo made the disclosure on Thursday at the 2024 second press conference which was held at the operational headquarters of the command in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

7. The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, has said that foreign exchange backlogs have been cleared in all the banks except for five of them. Cardoso said this on Thursday during an investor call facilitated by the Nigerian Exchange Group, during which he said that the remainder of the banks’ FX backlogs would be cleared in the next few days.

8. There was chaos at the Benin-Asaba Expressway, by Iguomo Junction on Wednesday evening, when a stray bullet allegedly fired from a police gun hit and killed a resident in the area. The yet-to-be-identified victim was said to have been hit by the stray bullet in front of the house of a PoS operator where he had gone to send N4000 to his wife in his village.

9. The Niger State Police Command, on Thursday, disclosed that it had arrested four suspects in possession of 295 rounds of AK-47 rifles live ammunition. The state Police Public Relations Officer, Wasiu Abiodun, made this known in a statement in which he said another suspect confessed that the ammunition was bought in Kaduna State.

10. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed cement companies to go back to the status quo as regards to the price of the commodity. Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, revealed this to newsmen shortly after inspecting BUA cement factory in Sokoto on Thursday.