Newspaper review – 10 Things You Need To know This Friday Morning

Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers:

1. The Naira on Thursday exchanged for 380 to a United States dollar on the parallel market. This indicates a massive rise from 390 it closed on Wednesday.

This came hours before the Central Bank of Nigeria sold $20,000 each to Bureau De Change operators.

2. The Nigeria Customs Service Thursday announced a major re-shuffle of its management. A statement by the Customs spokesperson, Joseph Attah, said the the Comptroller-General, Hameed Ali, has approved the immediate redeployment of 48 Comptrollers. The statement says the redeployment is in line with the ongoing reforms of the service.

3. Following the suspension of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Babachir Lawal by the Federal Government, the most senior Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF), Dr. Habibat Lawan, has now taken over as the Acting Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF). and will remain in charge until investigation is concluded.

4. Two Air Peace aircrafts were grounded at the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos on Thursday morning, after they collided on the departure ramp. One of the aircrafts, a Boeing 737 with registration mark 5N-BQR, was being towed for departure, before it made contact with the stabiliser of another Air Peace – B737 aircraft with the registration mark 5N-BQP. Spokesman for the airline, Chris Iwarah, confirmed the incident in a statement.

5. Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has told Governor Akinwunmi Ambode-led Lagos State government to convert the death penalty passed on death row inmates in the state to life imprisonment, warning against any attempt to execute them. In his letter of April 19 2017, and addressed to the office of the governor of Lagos State, Falana argued that the planned execution of death row inmates in the state, including Reverend King would violate a judgment delivered in 2012 by the High Court of Lagos State which ruled that it’s unconstitutional to execute the inmates on death row.

6. President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Abubakar Abba Bello as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive of Nigeria Export-Import Bank.

A statement issued in Abuja on Thursday evening by the Director of Press and Public Relations in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Bolaji Adebiyi, said his appointment and that of others were with immediate effect.

7. About 50 shops were in the early hours of Thursday razed by fire in a community Market at Gwargwaje in Zaria local government area of Kaduna State. Report says the inferno started between 2.30 and 3am in the morning. An eye witness and one of the victims, Mallam Musa Urwatu, explained that property worth millions of Naira were lost to the inferno, but with no loss of life.

8. Report says the journalist with Leadership newspaper arrested by the police allegedly in the order of the governor of Kaduna State, El-Rufai, has remained in detention after 24 hours. The report says Mr. Midat Joseph was arrested following a report he published that was critical of the Kaduna State government.

9. Officers of the Nigeria Police Force on Thursday evening invaded the home of former Gombe State Governor, Danjuma Goje, a Senator, is being prosecuted for money laundering. The outcome of the search has not been made public yet.

10. Senator Ahmed Makarfi-led National Caretaker Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has said President Muhammadu Buhari should have ordered immediate arrest of suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir David Lawal and the Director General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ambassador Ayo Oke. The party wondered why the duo were yet to be quizzed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).