NAIJAFEED

Thursday, October 5, 2023

Gunmen kidnap five university students in Nigeria

Gunmen in Nigeria kidnapped five female students from a university in the northwestern Katsina state on Wednesday, the police said, the second such abduction involving students in the region within a month.

Kidnapping for ransom by armed gangs is rife in northwest Nigeria due to high levels of poverty, unemployment and the proliferation of illegal firearms.

Katsina police spokesperson Abubakar Sadiq, in a statement, said the incident occurred early on Wednesday at the Federal University in Dutsin-Ma town.

The police have "deployed all its tactical and operational assets with a view to rescuing the victims unhurt", he said, adding one suspect is already in custody.

On Sept. 22, at least 24 female students were abducted from their hostel at the Federal University Gusau, in Zamfara state. Sixteen of them were freed three days later following a rescue operation by security forces.

By Ahmed Kingimi, Reuters

Video - Is Nigeria's security crisis out of control?

Wednesday, October 4, 2023

Video - 40 people missing from boat accident in Nigeria

Nearly 40 people are missing and presumed to have drowned in Nigeria after a passenger boat capsized in strong currents, according to a local official. The Monday accident took place in the northwestern state of Kebbi. Authorities are searching for the passengers with the help of local divers.

CGTN

Blast at illegal oil refinery leaves at least 18 dead

At least 18 people, including a pregnant woman, have died in southern Nigeria when an illegal oil refinery exploded into flames, a security official and residents said.

The blaze took place early on Monday in Rivers State’s Emohua district when a homemade refinery ignited a nearby oil reservoir, leaving victims severely burned, according to a report by AFP news agency on Tuesday.

“The fire outbreak started at a very late hour … 18 victims were burnt beyond recognition while 25 injured persons were rescued,” said Olufemi Ayodele, spokesman for the local Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.

“Most of the victims were youths … a pregnant woman and a young lady getting ready for her marriage ceremony next month were all casualties,” he said.

In another report, the Reuters news agency, citing a local Ibaa community leader, said as many as 37 people died in the blaze.

“Thirty-five people were caught in the fire. Two people who were lucky to escape also died this morning [Tuesday] in hospital,” Rufus Welekem, the head of security in the community, told Reuters.

Illegal refining is common in the oil-rich Niger Delta region of Nigeria as impoverished locals tap pipelines to make fuel to sell for a profit. The practice, which can be as basic as boiling crude oil in drums to extract fuel, is often deadly.

Nigeria – an OPEC member and one of Africa’s largest petroleum producers – has for years tried to clamp down on illegal crude refineries, with little success, in part because powerfully connected politicians and security officials are involved, local environmental groups say.

Crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism and legal battles over oil spills are pushing oil majors operating in Nigeria to sell their onshore and shallow water assets to concentrate on deepwater operations.

Al Jazeera

The Criminals Undercutting Nigeria’s Oil Industry

Tuesday, October 3, 2023

Video - 20 people feared dead following tanker explosion in Nigeria

The tanker overturned along the Sapele-Benin road on Sunday night causing a spillage. It's understood that locals, mostly young people, flocked to the scene to fill containers with the spilled fuel, despite warnings. A spark then ignited a fire causing the deadly explosion.

CGTN

Fuel truck blaze kills nine in Nigeria

Labour unions of Nigeria suspend indefinite strike

Nigeria's biggest labour federations on Monday said they were suspending an indefinite strike that was set to begin on Tuesday after last minute talks with President Bola Tinubu's government, which had warned that the action could damage the economy.

Tinubu is under pressure to ease economic hardships after he scrapped a decades-old petrol subsidy and allowed the naira currency to depreciate, leading to soaring prices in Africa's biggest economy and major oil producer.

The government agreed a temporary wage increase for government workers, a three-month income subsidy for 15 million poor households and a pause in a value-added tax on diesel, among several concessions to prevent the strike.

In return, unions will suspend the strike for 30 days while negotiations continue, including on a new minimum wage for all Nigerian workers.

"After 30 days if these issues are not implemented ... it will show bad faith on the side of government," Joe Ajaero, the leader of Nigeria Labour Congress, the country's largest federation, told reporters.

By Felix Onuah, Reuters