Govt, abductors negotiate, set to release 317 Zamfara girls

• The abducted schoolgirls of Government Girls Secondary School, Jangebe, Talata-Mafara Local Government Area of Zamfara State, may regain freedom today.

• A very competent source informed our correspondence on Saturday that negotiations with the bandits who kidnapped the schoolgirls had reached a very advanced stage, saying “they may be in Gusau (Zamfara State capital) today.”
• Nevertheless, the Nigeria Police Force has said it will not suspend the ongoing joint rescue operation with the military and the Department of State Services to rescue the schoolgirls from their abductors’ hands.

• Bandits on Friday morning kidnapped over 300 schoolgirls at Jangebe.
• The girls were believed to have been taken to a forest by the gunmen, who abducted the schoolgirls by reportedly disguising as security personnel.

Reps fault plan to invite 50 expatriates over $2.6bn contract

• The House of Representatives Committee on Local Content has faulted the plan for the Brentex CPP, the consortium handling construction of the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano gas pipeline construction, to bring 50 expatriates from China, against the five approved by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board.
• The committee also resolved to investigate the companies that formed the consortium, asking Brentex Petroleum Services Ltd, the lead partner, to provide the names of the companies that form the consortium, while the Corporate Affairs Commission would unveil the owners.
• This is just as Bablink Resources Nigeria Ltd told the committee how Nigerian companies were allegedly short-changed in the multibillion-dollar deal.

Legal aid council receives 45 cases in 1 month

• The Legal Aid Council of Nigeria, Kano State Chapter, said on Saturday that the council received 45 cases in January.

The State Coordinator of the council, Labaran Kabo, made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kano.

• Kabo said that out of the 45 cases, 40 were criminal matters, while five were civil cases.
• According to him, during the period under review, the council completed 15 criminal cases, while 25 are still pending in court.
• He further explained that the five civil cases are still pending in court.
• The coordinator said that the council is giving voice to the voiceless and advised those who could not afford to pay for such services to feel free and contact the council.