Blood Politic: Just 1 week after Taraba speaker died, his deputy escape assassination

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Hardly a week after the death of Speaker of Taraba State House of Assembly Haruna Tsokwa under circumstance that is however generating different understandings in their state, his deputy Adamu Tanko Maikarfi in addition has escaped being killed by as yet not known assassins who trailed him to a particular area in Jalingo. SaharaReporters proved the history from the Deputy Speaker through our source.

Maikarfi who seemed courageous said,

President Goodluck Jonathan to visit China next week

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Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan will visit China next week in a trip aimed at signing infrastructure deals and boosting trade between the Asian power and Africa’s biggest oil producer, officials said Wednesday.  Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, has borrowed money from China to finance infrastructure projects, and Beijing has shown increasing interest in Nigeria’s oil industry.

Jonathan is expected in China from July 9-12.

“We want to build trade and economic relationships and we want to have a good exchange of knowledge,” Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala told reporters.

She said that the visit aims to “increase trade, get them to increase investment in Nigeria and get a strategic long-term relationship”.

“We want to up our trade volume with China of non-oil goods. This is our objective because we want to diversify our economy,” she said. Oil accounts for some 80 percent of government revenue in Nigeria.

Trade and Investment Minister Olusegun Aganga put trade volume between the two countries at $13 billion dollars (10 billion euros) in 2012, up from about $2 billion in 2005. Deals involving loans amounting to some $1.3 billion for areas including electricity and airport construction are expected to be signed during the visit.

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Marginalisation: S/West PDP leaders to meet Jonathan next week

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As ACN accuses PDP of playing ethnic card…

ABUJA—Leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, from the South West Zone of the country have resolved to meet with President Goodluck Jonathan next week over perceived gross marginalisation of the zone in appointments and political recognitions.

This came as Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, has said the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, is exposing its own folly by blaming the glaring marginalisation of the Yoruba by the Jonathan Administration on ACN, saying, “PDP has nothing but total contempt for the Yoruba in particular and Nigerians in general.”

It's Four-Day Week In Gambia

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Unlike in the rest of the world, employees in a tiny nation on Africa's west coast can now enjoy an extended weekend of three days, beginning Friday.

The reform introduced in the public-sector by Gambian President Yahya Jammeh came into force on February 1 ignoring Opposition protest.

From now on, employees need to work only on four days, Monday to Thursday, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. It means they will get an additional off day, but will have to work two hours extra on working days. The Gambian government employees have been working five days a week, from 8 in the morning to 4 in the evening. The change in schedule does not reduce the total number of 40 working hours a week.

Prosecutor: Farouk Lawan’s Trial Starts This Week

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After several months of delays, criminal charges will be filed against the former Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Education, Farouk Lawan, the prosecutor, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), has informed THISDAY.
Lawan, who was also the Chairman of the House Ad Hoc Committee on the Monitoring of the Fuel Subsidy Scheme, had been accused by the Chairman of Zenon Oil and Gas Limited, Mr. Femi Otedola, of demanding and accepting a bribe of $620,000 to alter the report of the committee, in which Zenon had been indicted.