By xStanley Nwanosike

Enugu: Troops of the Joint Task Force, South-East, code-named Operation UDO KA II, has cleared four notorious camps of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and its armed affiliates, Eastern Security Network (ESN), in Imo State.

The troops, in the course of the clearance, neutralised two IPOB/ESN members and four of the criminals were arrested.

This is contained in a statement issued on Monday in Enugu by Lt.-Col. Jonah Unuakhalu, acting Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, 82 Division, Nigerian Army, for the Joint Task Force Operation UDO KA II.

Unuakhalu said that the camps cleared are located in three communities – Ihube, Aku and Umulolo – in Okigwe Local Government Area of Imo State.

He said that the clearance and recovery was carried out on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023.

The army spokesman said that during the clearance operation, troops encountered many Improvised Explosive Device (IEDs) deployed enroute to the camps.

According to him, however, due to superior firepower, the irredentist group members fled into neighbouring forests with gunshot wounds.

“It was discovered that the camps were being used to perpetuate atrocities such as cannibalism, occultic practices and ritual killings to instill fears into law-abiding citizens.

“These were evident from many fresh and old corpses discovered while clearing the entire camps.

“Also, the houses of the two spiritual leaders and herbalists that took to their heels were destroyed.

“Furthermore, the shrine of the wanted terrorist, Amobi Chinoso Okafor, alias Temple, where human sacrifices are being made was destroyed,” he said.

Unuakhalu said that the items recovered from the camps included different denomination of the Biafra currencies, one new power bike, four motorcycles and solar panels.

Others items recovered are POP cements and a petroleum tanker suspected to have been hijacked from hard working Igbo owners (indigenes) trying to make a living.

“Operation UDO KA II will continue combating crime and criminality in accordance with the extant rules and regulations guiding its operations.

“All law-abiding and good citizens of the South-East are enjoined to act against these devilish terrorists by providing timely, credible and reliable information which will lead to ending the menace of insecurity occasioned by activities of the terrorist group in the region.

“Do not be a victim of this sacrilegious. These criminals are desecrating Igboland,” he said. (Flowerbudnews)

 

 

By Biola Lawal
Abuja (Flowerbudnews): The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has achieved total domestication of the analyses of micronutrients in food and in other parameters of regulated products.

Prof. Mojisola Christiana Adeyeye, the NAFDAC Director General, who disclosed this in a press briefing on Monday in Abuja said that since she assumed office as NAFDAC Chief Executive Officer, the agency had never contracted out such analysis..

”I wish to state here that, NAFDAC do not and had never contracted the analyses of its micronutrients or any parameter of it regulated products to private laboratory since my assumption of office as the Director General,” Prof Adeyeye declared.

The NAFDAC Boss was reacting to a news story by Flowerbud NEWS on a reported non-establishment of testing laboratory for fortification by the Agency.

The NAFDAC Boss declared further, ‘:I wish to state unequivocally that NAFDAC has laboratories for analyses of micronutrients in food and had been conducting annual survey on food fortification in Nigeria for the past years”.

Prof Adeyeye stated that in Particular, NAFDAC Central Food Laboratory had international accredited micronutrient laboratory units with the state-of-the-art equipment.

The NAFDAC Boss stated;

”The laboratory has the Vitamins units for testing of vitamins in food which include Vitamin premix and fortified food vehicles.

”Vitamins tested include fat soluble- Vitamin A; water soluble thiamine, riboflavin, biotin, pyridoxine hydrochloride, cyanocobalamin, folate.

”This unit is equipped with latest versions of Agilent and Chromaster brands of High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC).

”The Laboratory has the Metal unit equipped with latest models of Atomic Absorption Spectrometer (AAS), Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometer (ICP-OES), Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS).

” The metal unit analyses all the nutritional and heavy toxic metals in food including the fortification vehicles.

”These units have well trained staff that are technically equipped to handle these equipment in the analyses of micronutrients using internationally accepted protocols.

”The test scopes of these units are accredited by American National Accreditation Board (ANAB) since 2018 and this has been sustained and renewed annually. This fact can be verified from the ANAB website” .

Prof. Adeyeye disclosed that the laboratory, along with other NAFDAC laboratories in other parts of the country handled over 10,000 samples of fortified food in the 2023 Food fortification survey.

She said that the result of the samples was presented to the National Fortification Alliance (NFA).

The NFA consist of representatives of the industries Flourmills, Sugar processing, Vegetable oil,etc., government and regulatory agencies, and donor partners. (Flowerbudnews)

 

President Bola Tinubu has approved N35,000 as a provisional wage award for all treasury-paid federal government workers for a period of six months.

 

Malam Mohammed Idris, Minister of Information and National Orientation, announced this in a statement on Sunday in Abuja.

 

He said that this followed consultations between the federal government and the leadership of the labour unions at the Presidential Villa.

At the meeting, the Federal Government also pledged its commitment to fast-track the provision of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses to ease public transportation occasioned by subsidy removal on PMS.

 

The Federal Government also committed to the provision of funds for micro and small-scale enterprises as well as waivers on VAT on diesel for the next six months.

 

It also announced the payment of N75,000 to 15 million households at N25,000 per month, for a three-month period from October to December

 

Labour Unions made a case for higher wage awards.

 

A sub-committee will be constituted to work out the details of implementation of all items regarding government interventions to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy removal.

 

The lingering matter of Road Transport Employees Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) and National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in Lagos State will be addressed urgently.

NLC and TUC will consider the offers by the Federal Government with a view to suspending the planned strike to allow for further consultations on the implementation of the agreed resolutions.

 

Gov. Abdulrazak Abdulrahman of Kwara and Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) and Gov. Dapo Abiodun of Ogun, participated virtually in the meeting, chaired by the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila.

 

Also in attendance were the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Simon Lalong, the Minister of State, Labour, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, and the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Bagudu.

 

Others are the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Doris Uzoka-Anite, the Head of Service of the Federation, Dr Folasade Yemi-Esan and the National Security Adviser (NSA), Malam Nuhu Ribadu.

 

The labour delegation was led by NLC President, Joe Ajaero, Dr Tommy Okon, Deputy President, TUC, NLC General Secretary, Emma Ugboaja, and the TUC General Secretary, Nuhu Toro

 

Information and National Orientation Minister Mohammed Idris said this in a statement on Sunday after a meeting between government officials and labour unions over the latter’s planned industrial action.

 

“VAT on diesel will be waived for the next 6 months,” he said, noting that it was part of the resolutions reached during the meeting with organised labour in Abuja.

 

While one of labour’s demands is the cushion the rising cost of transportation via the use of alternative energy sources, the minister the government is “committed to fast-tracking the provision of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses to ease public transportation difficulties associated with the removal of PMS subsidy”.

While one of labour’s demands is the cushion the rising cost of transportation via the use of alternative energy sources, the minister the government is “committed to fast-tracking the provision of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses to ease public transportation difficulties associated with the removal of PMS subsidy

 

Apart from this, the government said it is committed to the provision of funds for micro and small-scale enterprises.

 

“NLC and TUC will consider the offers by the Federal Government with a view to suspending the planned strike to allow for further consultations on the implementation of the resolutions above,” the statement further added.