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BREAKING: Pastor Taiwo Odukoya, Senior Pastor of Fountain of Life Church, Is Dead

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The Senior Pastor of Fountain of Life Church, Pastor Taiwo Odukoya, is dead.

His demise was confirmed via the officially Facebook page of the church.

He was said to have died on Monday, August 7, in the United States of America (USA).

His first wife, Pastor Bimbo Odukoya, was among the passengers who boarded the ill-fated Sosoliso Airlines Flight 1145 going to Port Harcourt from Abuja in 2005.

The plane was involved in a crash while landing at Port Harcourt International Airport on December 10th. Although the female cleric survived the initial impact, she died from injuries on December 11, 2005.

He later married another woman, who died in November 2021 after battling with cancer.

May his soul rest in peace.

BIG STORY

New Port Harcourt Refinery Over 90% Completed — Mele Kyari

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The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has announced that the new “Port Harcourt refinery” is over 90 percent complete.

The “Port Harcourt Refining Company” (PHRC) operates two refineries: the old plant, which has a capacity of 60,000 barrels per stream day (bpsd), and a new facility with a capacity of 150,000 bpsd, bringing the combined crude processing capacity of the refinery to 210,000 bpsd.

Mele Kyari, the group chief executive officer of NNPC, made the statement on Monday during a visit to the facility by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) labour leaders in Rivers State.

Represented by Isiyaku Abudulai, NNPC’s executive vice president of downstream, Kyari mentioned that the new “Port Harcourt refinery” is undergoing rehabilitation and will be updated soon.

“When the rehabilitation is completed, it will be up and running and state-of-the-art, comparable to any refinery around the world. So, there will be compliance to “health and safety compliance” (HSC),” he said.

“All the assurances of compliance will be made. That is why a total rehabilitation is being carried out. According to the contractor, Tecnimont SPA, and the reports they send us, they are over 90 percent completed, and we will address that as soon as possible.”

“We are also following up to ensure we get value, and with the combined 60,000 bpsd and 150,000 bpsd, totaling 210,000 bpsd, it will support our refining processes, our products, and the multiple benefits we aim to achieve with our refined products in the country.”

  • ‘NEW PORT HARCOURT REFINERY WILL PROPEL EXPORTS’

Kyari stated that once the rehabilitation is complete, the refinery will boost sufficiency, exports, imports, and local consumption of petroleum products, especially petrol.

He further explained that the NNPC has ensured the establishment of a professional and technical operations and maintenance (O&M) team that will continue to operate and maintain the facilities.

Kyari noted that globally, if proper rehabilitation, including turnaround maintenance, is not conducted, issues are bound to arise.

“And that also involves looking at the processes and assets, replacing aging items that need to be changed, and ensuring the refinery is operational,” he said.

“That’s fundamental, and as I said, we are engaging the best O&M teams worldwide to support this process.”

The GCEO added that the company would intensify monitoring to ensure that “we comply with the best practices around the refinery across the world.”

On November 26, the old “Port Harcourt refinery” resumed crude oil processing after several years of inactivity.

The state-owned plant also began loading petroleum products for trucks.

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BIG STORY

BREAKING: Court Declines Yahaya Bello’s Bail Request Amid Alleged N110b Fraud Case

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A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Maitama has rejected the bail request by former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello.

Bello is standing trial, along with two others, on an alleged N110bn money laundering charge brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Justice Maryanne Anenih, in a ruling on Tuesday, faulted the competence of Bello’s bail application, stating that it was filed prematurely.

Justice Anenih held that, since the application was made when Bello was neither in custody nor before the court, it was deemed incompetent.

She said: “Consequently, the instant application, having been filed prematurely, is hereby refused.”

 

More to come…

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BIG STORY

3,270 Nigerians Gained American Citizenship Via Military Service — US

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Nigeria ranked fourth among countries whose citizens were granted U.S. citizenship through military naturalization between 2020 and 2024.

During this period, the United States naturalized over 52,000 military service members from various countries.

According to data obtained from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on Monday, 3,270 Nigerian-born service members were granted U.S. citizenship, trailing only the Philippines (5,630), Jamaica (5,420), and Mexico (3,670).

“Service members born in the Philippines, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, and Ghana — the top five countries of birth among those naturalized — comprised over 38% of the naturalizations since FY 2020.

“The next five countries of birth — Haiti, China, Cameroon, Vietnam, and South Korea — comprised an additional 16% of military naturalizations from FY 2020 to FY 2024,” the analysis of the data partly read.

The data revealed that the number of Nigerian service members gaining U.S. citizenship has steadily increased over the past five years. From 340 in 2020, the figure rose to 630 the following year, 680 in 2022, 690 in 2023, and 930 in 2024.

The Army accounted for 60% of all military naturalizations during this period, followed by the Navy (20.4%), Air Force (10.6%), and Marine Corps (6.6%). Less than 1% of naturalized service members served in the Coast Guard.

“Service members from the Army (including National Guard and Reserves) comprised almost two-thirds (60%) of all military naturalizations from FY 2020 to FY 2024. Service members from the Coast Guard comprised less than 1%. The Navy accounted for 20.4%, the Air Force for 10.6%, and the Marine Corps for 6.6%,” the report stated.

Age-wise, half of the service members were between 22 and 30 years old when they naturalized.

“Half of all service members were between 22 and 30 years old when they naturalized. The median age of all service members who naturalized between FY 2020 and FY 2024 was 27. More than 17% were 21 and under, while almost 5% were older than 40,” the analysis revealed.

Regarding gender distribution, 73% of the naturalized service members were men.

“Men comprised 73% of all service members naturalized between FY 2020 and FY 2024. The proportion of female service members slightly increased across the years,” the report added.

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