NEWS
Police Officers’ Mess, Onikan Not for Sale, Says IGP
By Gom Mirian, Abuja
The Inspector – General of Police, IGP Mohamed Adamu has denied the purported report alleging of plots by the Force to sell the multi billion naira police officers’ mess located at Onikan in Lagos, said the edifice is not for sale.
The IGP who described the story as a complete false in a statement issued by the police spokesperson, CP Frank Mba yesterday in Abuja, said the edifice is undergoing remodeling and reconstruction for the benefit of Police personnel.
According to him, “The attention of the Nigeria Police Force has been drawn to a publication in some sections of the media dated 17th January, 2021 alleging plots by the Inspector-General of Police to sell-off the Nigeria Police Officers’ Mess located at Onikan, Lagos.
“The Nigeria Police Officers’ Mess, Onikan, conceived decades ago, was built to cater for the welfare of Police Officers, provide transit accommodation for Officers on transfer or on special assignments and provide a conducive social environment suitable for their relaxation.
“Over time however, the property has degenerated and shown structural defects requiring a massive renovation or outright rebuilding.
“In a bid to restore its lost glory, provide a modern and befitting Officers’ Mess and tackle the defects of the old structure, the IGP and the Management Team took a decision to upgrade the existing Officers’ Mess to a world-class edifice.
“The new project will in addition to a standard Officers’ Mess include the development of a world-class three-star hotel, modern office spaces for lease, and a modern and easily accessible shopping complex.
“The new Mess will not only cater for the welfare of the Officers but will also provide an alternate stream of income for its maintenance and sustenance.
“Upon completion, the project which is wholly owned by the Police and financed by the Police Cooperative Society, would improve the aesthetic value of the Onikan waterline, provide one of the best water view facilities on the Lagos Island and serve to improve social interaction between members of the Police Force and the general public.
“It is also expected to generate additional employment opportunities for teeming Nigerian youths, boost the internally generated revenue of Lagos State and generally improve the economy of the State.
“It would have been unnecessary to respond to the deliberate misinformation, falsehood and outright mischief by the authors of the publications but the need to set the records straight and halt the intended damage to a well-thought-out project necessitated this response,” he said.
The IGP therefore enjoins well-meaning Nigerians to disregard the misinformation while members of the press should beware of rumour-mongering and the activities of those who aim to disparage and discredit well-thought-out projects.
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Operations Unit Zone C, says it intercepted contrabands with a Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N510.92 million between July 15th and September 15th, 2024.The zone covers the six states in the South-South geopolitical zone and the five states in the Southeast geopolitical zone.
This is contained in a statement signed by Jerry Attah, Public Relations Officer, NCS, Zone C, and made available to journalists on Wednesday. According to the statement, Comptroller Michael Ugbagu, NCS, Zone C, gave the statistics while showcasing the seized contraband to relevant regulatory agencies at the Government Warehouse in Edo.Ugbagu said that the zone also recovered the sum of N25.57 million from demand notices raised based on some infractions noticed, making a cumulative sum of N536.49 million recorded within the months under review.“The DPV was derived from our seized goods, which include 49,699 sachets of various brands of tramadol and 3,350 bottles of various cough syrups with codeine without an NAFDAC number.“1,015 sacks of dry donkey meat and skin, 75 jumbo bales of second-hand clothing, 463 cartons of foreign spaghetti, 269 pieces of used pneumatic tires, and 56 cartons of smuggled foreign tomato paste.“More worrisome is the interception of 49,699 sachets of various brands of tramadol and 3,350 bottles of various cough syrups with codeine without NAFDAC registration numbers.”He noted that the cough syrup with codeine and tramadol without NAFDAC registration numbers, if not intercepted, could have had adverse effects on youths.He added that the items were mostly intercepted along the Ewu-Okada/Benin expressways based on credible intelligence. (NAN)
The Forum of Stakeholders of the All Progressive Congress (APC) has decried the deplorable condition of some federal roads in Nigeria. Alhaji Saleh Zazzaga, the North-Central Chairman of the forum, said this in an interaction with newsmen on Wednesday in Jos. Zazzaga described some of the federal roads as ”death traps”, particularly those within the north-central region.
He said that some of the deplorable roads in the region include Jos-Akwanga, Makurdi-Oturkpo-Otukpa, Makurdi-Ankpa, and Jos-Saminaka. Other roads that needed urgent attention, he said, included Suleja-Minna, Ejule-Otukpa, Ganawuri-Manchok, Lokoja-Abuja, Lapai-Agaie-Bida, Birnin-Gwari-Bokani-Mokwa, Minna-Zungeru-Tegina-Kontagora. ”Currently, the north-central region has the most deplorable roads and highways in the country. ”These deplorable roads have brought severe hardship on the people and lost lives and property through preventable road traffic crashes. ”We call on President Bola Tinubu to intervene and ensure the rehabilitation of these roads because good roads are vital enablers of development,” he said. The chairman also called on governors of states within the region to reconstruct the dilapidated roads and seek refunds from the federal government. ”Though these are largely federal roads, they are located within states, and the beneficiaries are the people of these states. ”So we call on state governments to reconstruct these roads and seek refunds from the federal government,” he added. (NAN
The central parity rate of the Chinese currency renminbi, or the yuan, strengthened 160 pips to 7.087 against the dollar on Wednesday.This is according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System.In China’s spot foreigners exchange market, the yuan is allowed to rise or fall by two per cent from the central parity rate each trading day.
The central parity rate of the yuan against the dollar is based on a weighted average of prices offered by market makers before the opening of the interbank market each business day. (Xinhua/NAN)
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