TOP 10 NEWS MAKING THE ROUNDS IN NIGERIA TODAY,  MONDAY 

TOP 10 NEWS MAKING THE ROUNDS IN NIGERIA TODAY,  MONDAY 

1. CBN Bows To Pressure, Extends Old Notes Deadline

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has finally extended the deadline for the exchange of old Naira notes by 10 days.

The CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, in a statement on Sunday says it has the permission of President Muhmammadu Buhari to effect the extension.

Emefiele stated that, so far CBN has collected 1.9 trillion and is left with 900 billion to achieve effective implementation of policy.

According to the apex bank chief, the extension, was as a result of measures put in place to ease the scarcity.

The decision is coming after CBN had previously insisted that it would not extend the deadline.

2. Ganduje Makes U-turn, Says Kano Ready To Receive Buhari

Governor Umar Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State has backtracked, saying the state is now ready to receive President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Kano State government had written to the president seeking a postponement of the visit over the “suffering” caused by the deadline for the old naira notes.

However, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in a statement on Sunday, announced that it has extended the deadline for the validity on the old naira notes till February 10.

Speaking to newsmen on Sunday after leading a delegation to Daura, Katsina State, to meet Buhari, Ganduje said the president can now come to the state to commission some projects.

“We are very much ready to receive him and we have a lot for him to commission, including federal government projects and state government projects. They are state-of-the-art projects,” he said.

According to the governor, the state is satisfied with the president’s response to the concerns raised over the visit.

3. President Buhari Appoints New NYSC DG

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Brig. Gen. Y. D. Ahmed as the Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

The Army General will take over on Monday from Christy Uba who has headed the NYSC for about three months.

Recall that Buhari had appointed Christy Uba, the first woman to be appointed to NYSC since its establishment about 50 years ago, following the sacking of Brig. Gen. Mohammed Fadah over alleged incompetence and poor performance.

Uba, the most senior director and Director, Information and Communications Technology, was appointed on November 22, 2022.

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The NYSC Director of Press and Public Relations, Eddy Megwa, had said the appointment followed the sacking of Brigadier General Muhammad Kaku Fadah as DG by Buhari.

4. Nnamani Speaks About Why He Is Supporting Tinubu, Says PDP Breached Constitution

A former governor of Enugu State, Chimaroke Nnamani, has given his reasons for supporting the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu.

Nnamani alongside other chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ekiti and Imo states were suspended from the party for alleged anti-party activities.

Subsequently, the PDP chieftain’s posters with Tinubu and different slogans were sighted online showing his alleged full support for the APC flag bearer.

Giving his reason for supporting Tinubu, Nnamani claimed that the PDP had breached its constitution to disallow the South the opportunity to run for the presidency.

According to him, the PDP constitution specifies that key political offices be rotated between the North and South to ensure equity, justice and fairness.

The former Enugu State governor explained in a statement made available to pressmen on Sunday in Abuja that the PDP constitution was clear about adherence to the policy of rotation.

5. Old Naira Notes: House Of Representatives Rejects CBN Extension

The ad hoc committee on the new naira redesign and naira swap policy of the House of Representatives rejected the extension of the deadline for the exchange of old naira notes.

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele on Sunday announced that the deadline has been extended by ten days.

Recall that the apex bank had fixed the 31st of January as the deadline for the exchange of the old naira notes; N200, N500 and N1000.

Emefiele, however, on Sunday said President Muhammadu Buhari gave permission for the deadline to be extended to February 10.

The ad-hoc committee chaired by the leader of the House, Alhassan Ado Doguwa in reaction to the development rejected the extension, insisting that the CBN must comply with sections 20 sub 3, 4, and 5 of the CBN act.

The House on Tuesday constituted the ad hoc committee to look into the deadline set by CBN.

6. Top Boko Haram Commander, Abu Illiya Is Dead

A top command of the dreaded Boko Haram terrorist group, Abu Iliya, has reportedly died.

Troops of Operation Hadin Kai, in collaboration with hybrid forces of the Civilian Joint Task Force, killed the terrorist.

The Nigerian Army and the collaborating bodies recorded success in a recent operation in the Konduga Local Government Area of Borno State.

A counter-insurgency expert, Zagazola Makama, confirmed the development in a report on Sunday, January 29. He revealed that 31 other terrorists were neutralized during the operation.

According to the report, the terrorists were killed during intelligence-led aggressive fighting patrols in Boko Haram hideouts in Kayamari, Habasha, and Yuwe villages.

Makama confirmed further that the gallant security men contacted the terrorists during a counter-offensive patrol in Yuwe, resulting in a heavy gun battle.

Some of the terrorists reportedly escaped after seeing the superior firepower of the troops, leaving their properties and weapons with at least 50 bicycles recovered during the raid.

Meanwhile, the army also confirmed the latest victory on its verified Twitter page on Sunday afternoon, describing the development as an additional victory over the terrorists.

It confirmed that there was an ambush operation in the early hours of Saturday, 28 January 2023, around Yuwe village in Konduga LGA of Borno state.

7. 11 Burnt To Death In Ondo Tragic Road Accident

There were mixed reactions on Sunday morning after eleven people were killed in a tragic road accident in Ondo State.

Reports made available revealed that the tragic incident happened in Ore town along the Benin-Shagamu Expressway in the Odigbo Local Government Area of the state.

The Ondo Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Ezekiel Son’Allah, confirmed the incident to newsmen, noting that the accident involved a Marcopolo bus and a truck.

He revealed that the victims were burnt beyond recognition as the vehicles involved caught fire. The accident reportedly occurred as a result of excessive speeding on the part of the drivers of the vehicles involved.

8. Atiku Reacts, Gives Fresh Advice As Buhari Approves New Deadline For Old Naira Notes

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar has commended the decision of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to extend the deadline for the swap of old naira notes in the country.

The former Vice President in a statement on Sunday said the extension would minimize the adverse effect of the policy on Nigerians.

He further advised the CBN to encourage banks to step up their mobile banking activities so that Nigerians in remote and rural areas would benefit from the extension.

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Atiku ended his statement by urging Nigerians to take advantage of the new window brought into play by the extension.

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9. Sanwo-Olu Won’t Debate With Me Because He Has Failed – Jandor

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate for Lagos State, Olajide Adediran, popularly known as Jandor, has said he would still participate in the Lagos governorship debate.

The Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu stated that he won’t be attending a scheduled debate ahead of the governorship election because he does not want to share the same stage with Jandor.

This was when the Lagos State Government condemned the recent clash between armed men suspected to be members of the PDP and some hoodlums in the Aguda, Surulere area of the state.

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It was gathered that the state government was reacting to a viral video which emerged capturing the moment gunmen exchanged fire in broad daylight in the metropolis.

In a statement by the state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, the Lagos State Government called on the police to apprehend and prosecute the perpetrators.

However, Jandor has come out to react, saying the real reason why Sanwo-Olu pulled out of the debate was because of his alleged failures in the state.

The PDP chieftain at a world press conference on Sunday cited the spiral unemployment numbers which has risen from 14% when he took over four years ago to more than 30%, and poverty level which doubled from 4% to 8% at the same period as part of the alleged failures of the governor.

10. Details Of CBN Gov, Emefiele’s Meeting With Buhari Over Old Naira Note Emerges

On Sunday, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) released a document containing details of the meeting between the apex bank’s Governor, Godwin Emefiele and President Muhammadu Buhari.

There has been an outrage over the deadline for collecting old naira notes and swapping them for newly redesigned notes.

CBN had earlier maintained that old N1000, N500, and N200 notes would seize to be valid as legal tender on Tuesday, January 31st, 2023. It urged Nigerians to visit the bank branches and money agents to swap their notes ahead of the deadline.

There were, however, a series of lamentations by Nigerians as the new naira notes are yet to circulate. To ease the tension and allow those who are yet to get exchanged do so, the CBN announced on Sunday (today) that President Buhari has approved the extension for the collection of the old naira notes.

According to the apex bank, the development resulted from the Sunday meeting between Emefiele and President Buhari.