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NDLEA Raids Warehouse in Lagos, Recovers N4.8bn Worth of Drugs

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The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recovered hard drugs worth N4.8 billion from a warehouse in Lagos. Its spokesman, Mr Femi Babafemi stated on Sunday in Abuja that the warehouse is tucked in the popular International Trade Fair Complex, Alaba, Ojo area of Lagos.

He added that NDLEA operatives raided the warehouse owned by a wanted billionaire drug baron on Saturday, Aug. 19. He stated that the raid yielded 1.4 million pills of tramadol (225mg), weighing 826kg and 3.2 million pills of codeine with a gross weight of 3,360kg.

Babafemi stated that 2,841 cartons of codeine syrup containing 28,410 litres of the substance in 284,100 bottles were also recovered from the warehouse.

“The drugs have a combined street value of N4,820,500,000,’’ he stated. Babafemi stated also that during the operation that lasted hours, a suspect, Paulinus Ojukwu, the Chief Security Officer to the wanted drug baron was arrested and was assisting in an ongoing investigation.

“The wanted drug baron and operator of the warehouse parades himself as an automobile spare parts dealer.

“The latest drug warehouse bust is coming on the heels of the arrest of a drug baroness, Faith Nwankwo who was nabbed on Wednesday, Aug. 9 with 2.8 million pills of `tramaking’.

“`Tramaking’ is a brand of tramadol in 225mg and 250mg

“Some of the drugs were recovered from Faith’s residence at House 6, C close, 3rd Avenue, FESTAC Town area of Lagos.

“Others were recovered from her warehouse located at Plot 3432 Sola Akinsola Street, Divine Estate, Amuwo Odofin, Lagos,’’ Babafemi stated.

Tinubu Swears In Wale Edun, Wike, Others as Ministers

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President Bola Tinubu, on Monday, August 21, swore in 46 Ministers at the State House Conference Center, Abuja.

Last week, President Tinubu released the portfolios for the appointees, including Mr Wale Edun (Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy), Mr Bosun Tijani (Communication, Innovation, and Digital Economy), Dr Muhmmad Ali Pate (Health and Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare), former Rivers State governor Nyesom Wike in charge of the Ministry of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and Mr Festus Keyamo (Aviation).

On Sunday, he made some changes as he redeployed the ex-Governor of Osun State, Mr Adegboyega Oyetola, from the Ministry of Transportation to the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy. The President also redeployed Mr Abubakar Momoh from the Federal Ministry of Youth to the Federal Ministry of Niger Delta Development.

The swearing-in of the cabinet members today was attended by dignitaries such as Vice President, Mr Kashim Shettima, Senate President, Mr Godswill Akpabio, Speaker of the House Representatives, Mr Tajudeen Abass, and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr George Akume.

The Ministers were sworn in in batches but were all inaugurated on Monday.

See the full list below:

Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani
Minister of State, Environment and Ecological Management, Ishak Salaco
Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy Wale Edun
Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Bunmi Tunji
Minister of Power, Adedayo Adelabu
Minister of State, Health and Social Welfare, Tunisia Alausa
Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake
Minister of Tourism, Lola Ade-John
Minister of Transportation, Adegboyega Oyetola
Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Doris Anite
Minister of Innovation Science and Technology, Uche Nnaji
Minister of State, Labour and Employment, Nkiruka Onyejeocha
Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy
Minister of Works, David Umahi
Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo
Minister of Youth, Abubakar Momoh
Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu
Minister of State, Gas Resources, Ekperikpe Ekpo
Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri
Minister of Sports Development, John Enoh
Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike
Minister of Art, Culture and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa
Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru
Minister of State Defence, Bello Matawalle
Minister of State Education, Yusuf T. Sunumu
Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed M. Dangiwa
Minister of State, Housing and Urban Development, Abdullah T. Gwarzo
Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu
Minister of State, Federal Capital Territory, Mairiga Mahmud
Minister of State, Water Resources and Sanitation, Bello M. Goronyo
Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyar
Minister of Education, Tahir Maman
Minister of Interior, Sa’Idu A. Alkali
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf M. Tuggar
Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Ali Pate
Minister of Police Affairs, Ibrahim Geidam
Minister of State, Steel Development, U. Maigari Ahmadu
Minister of Steel Development, Shuaibu A. Audu
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Muhammed Idris
Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi
Minister of Labour and Employment, Simon B. Lalong
Minister of State, Police Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim
Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs, Zephaniah Jisalo
Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Joseph Utsev
Minister of State, Agriculture and Food Security, Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi
Minister of Environment and Ecological Management, (Kaduna)

Oyetola, Momoh Get New Portfolios as Tinubu Reshuffles Ministries

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[tags Oyetola Momoh Get New Portfolios as Tinubu Reshuffles Ministries, Tinubu reshuffles ministries]

Some hours before swearing in his ministerial cabinet, President Bola Tinubu has approved the reshuffling of the ministerial portfolios of a few of the recently-announced ministers-designate.

The Ministers-Designate allocated to the Federal Ministries of Transportation, Interior, and Marine and Blue Economy have been reshuffled with former Osun governor, Mr Adegboyega Oyetola, redeployed as the Minister of Marine & Blue Economy from the Minister of Transportation.

This is in addition to a new minister-designate for the Niger Delta, Mr Abubakar Momoh, who has been moved from the Federal Ministry of Youth to the Federal Ministry of Niger Delta Development.

In a statement released on Sunday night, signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Ajuri Ngelale, it was disclosed that the Minister of Youth would be announced soon.

Mr Bunmi Tunji-Ojo, according to the statement, has been moved to the Ministry of Interior, while Mr Sa’idu Alkali is redeployed to the Ministry of Transportation.

It was also revealed that both ministers of state in the oil and gas sector are now domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, with Mr Heineken Lokpobiri getting the title of Minister of State (Oil), Petroleum Resources and Mr Ekperipe Ekpo as the Minister of State (Gas), Petroleum Resources.

In addition, President Bola Tinubu also approved the renaming of the Federal Ministry of Environment and Ecological Management as the Federal Ministry of Environment.

The 47 ministers will be sworn in on Monday, August 21.

EU lawmakers remove Eva Kaili from office amid Qatar scandal

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Greek politician Eva Kaili has been ousted from her position as the European Parliament’s vice president. She faces accusations of accepting bribes from Qatari officials.

An overwhelming majority of European Parliament members voted to strip Eva Kaili of her position as the body’s vice president on Tuesday. The motion to end her term early was backed by 625 MEPs, while one voted against and two abstained.

A two-thirds majority was required for her to cease being one of the body’s 14 vice presidents.

Who is Eva Kaili?
The 44-year-old Greek Social Democrat was arrested in Belgium on Friday over allegations she was part of a group accepting bribes from Qatar in exchange for promoting policies friendly to the Gulf state.

Kaili has already been suspended from her duties and is in police custody. More information about specific criminal charges against her are due to be announced on Wednesday, Belgian officials have said.

The Greek politician and her three alleged co-conspirators are accused of accepting lavish gifts and large monetary sums from Qatari agents.

What is Kaili’s stance?
Both Qatar and the lawmaker have denied any wrongdoing. Kaili’s lawyer Michalis Dimitrakopoulos said on Tuesday that her position was that she “had nothing to do with Qatari bribes.”

Speaking on Greek television, Dimitrakopoulos said he would not confirm or deny that large sums of cash were found at her home. Belgian prosecutors have said that they found hundreds of thousands of euros at the homes of multiple suspects as well as in a hotel room.

Several European lawmakers have called for Kaili to quit. “Given the extent of the corruption scandal, it is the least we could expect of her,” MEP Manon Aubry, who co-chairs the Left group, told the Reuters news agency.

Manfred Weber, of the conservative European’s People Party, said: “Our colleagues at the European Parliament have been deeply shocked. These developments represent a heavy burden.”

European Parliament has ‘subpar integrity and anti-fraud rules,’ Transparency International tells DW
02:31
What’s the impact on parliament?
The scandal has hit the reputation of the European Parliament hard. The body is the EU’s only institution comprised of officials elected directly in the 27 member countries.

It has also rocked the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) group in the assembly, the second-biggest grouping in the 705-member body that brings together center-left parties from across the bloc.

Several EU states, including Germany, said the 27-nation union’s credibility was at stake.

Asked whether the European Parliament can repair the situation, Erik Marquardt, an MEP from the Green Party, told DW that “this damage cannot be repaired.”

“It’s very easy to lose trust and very hard to regain it. And now I think we cannot ask for the trust of the people, we have just to do our homework,” he said, adding that it was time to check which rules should be strengthened and enforced better to prevent such scandals in future.

Transcorp Acquires 60% Stake in AEDC

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Transcorp Power Limited has consolidated its position in Nigeria’s power sector as it acquired a 60 percent stake in Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC).

The group has made significant inroad in the sector towards improving Nigeria’s epileptic power supply which has been the bane of the nation’s poor economic development.

Following the acquisition, Christopher Ezeafulukwe, the managing director/CEO of Transcorp Power Limited, has been appointed as the new Managing Director/CEO of AEDC.

Transcorp Group, whose biggest shareholder is businessman Tony Elumelu, is one of Nigeria’s leading conglomerates with investments in the hospitality, power, and oil and gas sectors.

In a strategic move that further consolidates Transcorp’s position within the Nigerian power sector, Mr Ezeafulukwe’s appointment follows the acquisition of the stake in AEDC by a Transcorp-led consortium.

Prior to his appointment as the MD/CEO of AEDC, Mr Ezeafulukwe was the MD/CEO of Transcorp Power Ltd, Ughelli, a 972-MW thermal plant.

Under his leadership, the company said Transcorp Power Ltd consistently led the Nigerian power sector, being the first successor power company from the 2013 power privatisation program, to be discharged from post-privatisation monitoring by the National Council on Privatisation, having surpassed the
expectations of the Council.

The Ughelli Power plant, which Transcorp Group acquired during the privatisation of the power sector in 2013, demonstrates the group’s transformative prowess, the company said.

“The plant’s available capacity, which stood at 160MW on acquisition, increased by 227 per cent to 680.83MW in 4 years, surpassing the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) five-year target of 670MW.

“With Ezeafulukwe’s proven capabilities and extensive experience, he will play a pivotal role in rejuvenating AEDC, the supplier of power to the nation’s capital,” it added.

Transcorp Group said its commitment to improving lives and transforming societies remains resolute. The Group’s subsidiaries, include Transafam Power Limited and Transcorp Hotels Plc, owners of Transcorp Hilton Abuja, have demonstrated continued value creation and a dedication to creating both economic and social wealth.

With a combined market capitalization exceeding N540 billion, the Group continues to demonstrate the Africapitalism philosophy of its Group Chair – Tony Elumelu.

AEDC was among the 11 electricity distribution companies that emerged from the 2013 privatisation of the sector following the unbundling of the state-owned Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).

Since coming on stream, the AEDC, like most other distribution companies, has struggled to improve power supply to its consumers and failed to break even.