Oduduwa News

The Lagos state government has made it known that it will enforce monthly rental payments. In a recent press briefing, Barakat Odunuga-Bakare, the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Housing, shared exciting news about the upcoming monthly rental system.

Set to be implemented by the end of 2024 or early next year, this initiative aims to transform the way rent is collected in Lagos.

Barakat emphasized the inspiration drawn from other countries where rent is collected regularly, and the plan is to follow suit. According to her, monthly leasing will be rolled out based on tenants’ earnings, making it more adaptable and fair. The first phase will be a trial run within the public sector, ensuring a smooth operation before extending it to private rentals.

Reassuring the public, Barakat mentioned that the N5 billion allocated for the monthly rental plan remains untouched. She explained that the slow start is a sign of the government’s dedication to perfecting the system, emphasizing that the initiative is progressing steadily despite the challenges. The overall goal is to bring positive changes to the housing sector in Lagos.

She stated, “The previous government that launched the monthly leasing program was about to end when the system was to be implemented. Now that we have a new administration, the governor wants the program to go into action by the end of the year or early next year.”

A Bus Rapid Transit driver, Sunday Bukola, has reportedly crushed a five-year-old simply identified as Malik to death at Palmgroove in the Onipanu area of Lagos State.

We gathered that the incident occurred at about 1:30 pm on Saturday.

According to an eye witness, the driver crushed the victim, his brother, and his mother as they attempted to cross the BRT lane.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has strongly criticized President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his recent comments, accusing him of being disconnected from the daily realities faced by Nigerians.

In response to Tinubu’s remarks during the commissioning of the Lagos railway red line project, where he questioned the moral ground of the organized labour to challenge his administration’s policies, the NLC urged the president to prioritize addressing the ongoing hardships faced by citizens.

The NLC, through its president, Joe Ajaero, expressed deep concern over Tinubu’s focus on partisan issues and future elections rather than the pressing needs of the populace.

Ajaero emphasized that the NLC’s primary objective is advocating for effective governance that prioritizes the welfare and security of all Nigerians rather than seeking political positions.

Ajaero urged Tinubu to redirect his efforts toward fulfilling the fundamental duty of public office, addressing substantive issues under discussion since June 2023, including wage increases, social welfare programs, infrastructure development, and the revitalization of critical sectors like education and healthcare.

Ajaero said: “It is regrettable that the president seems oblivious of the profound hardship endured by millions of Nigerians. The pervasive hunger, unemployment, housing insecurity and escalating cost of basic necessities, such as food and health care, demand immediate attention and decisive action.

“Yet, instead of addressing these pressing concerns, President Tinubu appears preoccupied with political calculations and future electoral prospects.

“The NLC wishes to emphasize that our primary objective is not to vie for political positions, including that of the president; rather, our sole focus is on advocating effective governance that prioritises the welfare and security of all Nigerians.

“We urge President Tinubu to redirect his efforts towards fulfilling this fundamental duty of public office rather than engaging in political rhetoric.

“It is imperative that we refocus our collective energy on addressing the substantive issues that have been the subject of engagement between Labour and the government since June 2023.

“These include critical matters such as wage increases, social welfare programmes, infrastructure development and the revitalisation of key sectors, such as education and health care.

“In any case, to avoid the dissipation of energy, it is important that we focus on the real issues because we have engaged the government since June 2023 after the ‘subsidy is gone’ statement.

An Ejigbo magistrate court in Lagos has remanded four residents of the state who were attacked by police officers for “gambling”.

On Thursday, some police officers on mufti from the Area P command in Lagos state had stormed a shop in the area to arrest some youths who were playing ludo.

The officers, who were armed with Ak-47 rifles, invaded the area with a yellow commercial bus to arrest the youths, but some residents resisted the arrest, saying the officers were not identifiable and playing ludo was not a criminal offence.

The police officers, however, phoned their colleagues at the Area P command around the Gate bus stop in Ipaja, alleging they were under attack.

A few minutes later, about 15 police officers stormed the area in three yellow commercial buses and attacked the residents with machetes and bottles.

A police officer had broken an empty bottle on a car mechanic’s head. The mechanic, who was repairing a vehicle in his workshop, was carted away with some other residents.

A police officer also hit a lady with a machete on her buttocks.

Four of the residents were, however, released before others were taken to court. A resident who spoke with this reporter said they were released after they parted with N80,000 at the police station.

On Friday, the court remanded the remaining four residents in prison till March 25.

The Nigeria Customs Service, Oyo/Osun Area Command, has intercepted sacks of counterfeit pharmaceutical drugs valued at over N1.8 billion.

This was made known by the Customs Area Controller Comptroller Ben Oramalugo during a press briefing at the Command headquarters on Thursday, February 29.

The Nigerian Customs issued a statement on its X handle on Friday, March 1, to make this known.

Part of the statement reads:” The Nigeria Customs Service, Oyo/Osun Area Command, has intercepted sacks of fake Pharmaceutical drugs worth over N1.8billion.

“Customs Area Controller Comptroller Ben Oramalugo disclosed this to reporters during a press briefing at the Command headquarters on Thursday, February 29, 2024.

“Comptroller Ben stated that the Commands anti-smuggling activities have been strategically positioned to ensure the Federal Government’s policy on border closure is totally enforced by preventing the importation of prohibited items harmful to the great citizens of Nigeria. He also expressed the effort to prevent the exportation of essential food resources for individual economic gains by some economic saboteurs.”

The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has revoked the licenses of 4,173 Bureaux De Change Operators.

According to the apex bank, the affected institutions failed to observe regulatory provisions.

These, according to the bank, include payment of all necessary fees, including licence renewal, within the stipulated period in line with Guidelines, rendition of returns in line with the Guidelines, and compliance with guidelines, directives and circulars of the CBN, particularly Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Countering the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) and Counter-Proliferation Financing (CPF) regulations.

This was made known in a statement by Sidi Ali, Hakama, the Acting Director, Corporate Communications.

CBN said the action is in exercise of the powers conferred on it under the Bank and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) 2020, Act No. 5, and the Revised Operational Guidelines for Bureaux De Change 2015 (the Guidelines).

President Bola Tinubu will, today, inaugurate the Lagos red line train project.

A statement by the Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, said the train is the first phase of the project, which will run from Agbado, in Ogun State, to Oyingbo, in the heart of Lagos.

Omotoso said: “The train, when fully operational, will run 37 trips and convey about 500,000 passengers daily.
“The commissioning will signal the take-off of another major game changer in the state’s transportation infrastructure.

“It brings to two the rail lines owned and operated by the Lagos State Government. The first, The Blue Line, runs from Marina to Mile 2.

“The first phase of the Red Line has eight stations, namely Agbado, Iju, Agege, Ikeja, Oshodi, Mushin, Yaba and Oyingbo.

“The train will reduce drastically travel time on the corridor, abate stress-induced health challenges and increase the productive capacity of the economy. It will also reduce traffic gridlock and road accidents, and ensure the safety of commuters.

“As part of the inter-modal connectivity of our public transportation infrastructure, the Red Line is integrated with Bus Terminals at Ikeja, Oshodi, Oyingbo, Yaba and Iju.

“To guarantee the safety of commuters and Lagosians, the rail corridor has 10 vehicular overpasses and pedestrian bridges to separate the train from vehicular and pedestrian traffic.”