THE Ambassador of Finland to Nigeria, Pirjo Soumela-Chowdhury, has asked Nigeria to reduce dependency on oil, explaining that the drive to diversify the economy is what every country, including Nigeria has to look towards to.

A factory worker, Hadi Isa, 23, who allegedly defiled his neighbour’s 10-year-old daughter, was, yesterday, charged before an Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court, Lagos.

We are doing a lot to tackle the issue of domestic violence against women. One of the things the Lagos State Command, for example, has done is to create a Gender Desk at the police command which is directly under the supervision of the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, CP Owoseni Fatai. Officers attached to this department have been trained on how to handle, investigate and prosecute cases of domestic violence.

Nobody will lose their jobs. What we stand to gain is this: every agency takes administrative fees. You pay 5,000 here and there; at the end of the day if you are clearing one container administrative fee will be up to a hundred thousand. What we are saying is, when it’s a one-stop shop you pay administrative fee of 5,000. They don’t need to see the customer. You submit your paper to the first desk until it reaches the end, and you just go and pick up your cargo. If there is an issue a query will be sent to your mail.

Last week, I wrote about meeting President Muhammadu Buhari in London and hearing him make a speech (and answer questions from the audience) when he came to London to attend anti-corruption conferences that were hosted by Patricia Scotland, the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth and British Prime Minister, David Cameron.

SINCE the army swooped on the members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, popularly called shittes, in what the media and the political establishment including the army authorities mis-represently referred to as “clash” last December, there has been no let up in the smear campaign to tarnish these simple and ordinary Nigerian Muslims.

ABOVE are some very common, yet upsetting news headlines read almost on a daily basis. The spate of domestic violence in Nigeria is so rife that even its various penalties seem incapable of serving as deterrents to offenders.

A 32-year-old woman, Patience Samuel, yesterday, dragged her ex-husband, Mr Barnabas Bala, to a Mararaba Upper Area Court, Nasarawa State, for allegedly denying her access to see their child.

THE organisation for Greater Edo Project has cautioned some Benin chiefs against dragging the palace of the Oba of Benin into politics.

C & I Leasing Plc has explained that the drop in its Profit After Tax, PAT for the first quarter ended March 31, 2016 was as a result of the macro economic challenges occasioned by fuel shortages and inflationary threats.

Delta State Government has restated it’s commitment to the welfare of students originating from the state in tertiary institutions within and outside the country.

CROSS River State Police Command, yesterday, dispatched a team of anti riot policemen to Ugep, headquarters of Yakurr Local Government Area of the state to quell the violence which erupted in the area on Tuesday and Wednesday, following the killing of a local businessman by suspected assassins.

A 27-year-old man, Sikiru Rashidi, who reportedly stabbed his friend, a bricklayer, to death at a beer parlour in Imude Ajangbandi area of Lagos, said he did so in self-defence.

There was pandemonium, yesterday, in Kogi State, as gunmen reportedly abducted two court judges in the state, just as two officers were reportedly killed as gunmen attacked Osara Police Station.

Nigeria has added several high profile names to the Dream Team VI squad that’ll participate in a tourney in preparation for the 2016 Olympics.