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NDLEA plans tracking drug baron with immigration database

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency says it will make use of the database of the Nigeria Immigration Service to track drug barons and traffickers.
The NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen Buba Marwa (retd.), said this on Monday during a courtesy visit to the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Muhammed Babandede, in Abuja.
After a tour of the NIS database facility, Marwa commended Babandede for deploying technology to keep data for the use of the nation’s intelligence community.
The NIS boss said Marwa was the right Nigerian to handle the kind of task NDLEA was saddled with given his past records, experience and competence.
He added that it was not enough to send those caught with drugs to jail, membership of any drug cartel must equally be regarded and treated with similar measure.

FG approves survival fund payment for transporters

The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Mariam Katagum, on Monday said since the enumeration of the first set of beneficiaries on January 17, 2021, a total of 155,920 beneficiaries in the transport track of the Federal Government’s Survival Fund have been approved for payment.
According to a statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Publicity, Laolu Akande, the minister disclosed this at two separate virtual interactive sessions Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo had with the beneficiaries.
According to the statement, the minister noted that the education sector alone had about 850,000 applications during the one week the survival portal was reopened, compared to about half of the number when the portal was first opened for six weeks.
She was further quoted as saying that so far, 43 per cent of the Survival Fund beneficiaries were females.

The Police Command in Adamawa has confirmed the recovery of Cameroonian national flag and nine Military camouflage uniforms at Lamunde Hill in Gumti National Park in Toungo Local Government Area of state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Lamunde hill is part of Gashaka-Gumti National Park located along the Nigeria-Cameroon border.
Mr Aliyu Adamu, the Commissioner of police in the state, confirmed the development in a statement issued on Monday in Yola.
He explained that the joined operation chased the suspected criminals into their hideout in a gun fire exchange.
The police commissioner said that the suspected criminals escaped with gunshot wounds into Cameroon after exchange of gunfire.
He commended the Toungo Divisional Police Officer and his gallant officers for a well-done job.
He assured the good people of Toungo and Adamawa as a whole of the command’s commitment to keeping the state safe.

Wife of a former Surveyor-General of Ekiti, Mrs Funmilola Osalusi, has been abducted by gunmen and taken to an unknown destination.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Osalusi, whose husband, Mr Felix Osalusi, died recently, is a staff member of Ado Local Government Council.
NAN also reports that the Police Command in the state confirmed the kidnap on Monday, saying that the incident occurred at about 9:20 pm. on Sunday.
The command’s Public Relations Officer, ASP Sunday Abutu, said that the woman was abducted by three gun- wielding men at her residence, behind Nigeria Immigration Service, Federal Polytechnic road, Ado-Ekiti.
He added that the policemen would work with operatives of Amotekun corps, local hunters, Vigilante Group of Nigeria and other stakeholders to rescue the widow from captivity.

Catering services, suspended at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic are to resume on domestic flights immediately, the Federal Government declared on Monday.
Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, disclosed this at the briefing of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in Abuja.
He said the decision was taken in consideration of the businesses involved in the provision of in-flight refreshments who had been adversely affected by the suspension.
A statement issued in Abuja by the aviation ministry’s Director, Public Affairs, James Odaudu, stated that the minister, however, noted that modalities and protocols for the resumption of the services would be worked.
Sirika said the modalities would be rolled out by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority and would be in line with international practices.
He also reiterated the plan to resume international flight operations at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, the Akanu Ibiam International Airport Enugu and the Port Harcourt International Airport.
According to him, members of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 would be visiting the airports for simulation exercises to ascertain their readiness for international operations.
Sirika also stated that a technical working group comprising of agencies involved in the facilitation of passengers had been set up ahead of the planned resumption of international operations at the facilities.