>>> GENERAL NEWS <<<

>>> General news 1 <<<

China’s biggest bank ICBC hit by ransomware attack

The US arm of China’s largest bank said Thursday that it was hit by a ransomware attack, forcing clients
to reroute trades and disrupting the US Treasury market.

State-owned ICBC is the biggest of China’s “Big Four” banks and the world’s largest lender by assets,
according to S&P Global.

ICBC Financial Services, which is headquartered in New York, said in a statement that the attack, which
happened on Wednesday, had been reported to law enforcement. ICBC Financial Services added that it
was in the process of investigating the incident and trying to recover from the cyberattack.

“We successfully cleared US Treasury trades executed Wednesday … and [repurchase agreements]
financing trades done on Thursday,” it said in the statement.

A ransomware attack is a type of malicious software that encrypts a user’s files or system, rendering
them inaccessible.

The systems of ICBC’s head office in Beijing and other domestic and overseas units were not affected by
this incident, nor was the ICBC New York Branch, the statement said.

On Friday, China’s Foreign Ministry said the bank was paying close attention to the incident.

It “has completed emergency handling and supervision to minimise risk impact and losses,” ministry
spokesperson Wang Wenbin told reporters at a regular press briefing.

Global financial regulators are assessing the fallout.

“We are aware of the cybersecurity issue and are in regular contact with key financial sector
participants, in addition to federal regulators. We continue to monitor the situation,” a Treasury
spokesman said.

The bilateral trade volume between China and Nigeria in the first three quarters of 2023 stood at
$17.25bn, Consul General of China in Lagos, Yan Yuging said this week.

Nigeria has become China’s second-largest trade partner in Africa, and China is Nigeria’s largest global
source of imports.

The Financial Times and Reuters quoted some market participants as saying trades going through ICBC
were disrupted, which affected market liquidity. It’s unclear whether the incident contributed to the
weak 30-year bond auction conducted by the US Treasury Thursday.
There was a “sharp selloff” in Treasuries after the auction, Senior Analyst at Swissquote Bank, Ipek
Ozkardeskaya wrote in a Friday note to investors, saying yields rose for a range of different bonds.

“Of course, the sudden jump in US yields hit appetite in US stocks yesterday,” she said. “The US bond
auction brought along a lot of volatility, questions, and uncertainty.”

>>> General news 2 <<<

Industrial court stops NLC, TUC from going on strike

The National Industrial Court has restrained the Nigeria Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress as well
as their affiliates from embarking on any strike or industrial action.

The unions had after an extraordinary National Executive Council meeting on Tuesday in Abuja declared
a total nationwide strike from November 14, 2023.

The unions took the decision following the alleged assault on the NLC National President, Joe Ajaero, last
week in Imo state.

However, the Federal Government and the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice
filed an ex-parte application praying the court to stop the unions from embarking on the planned strike.

In the application, the FG and AGF told the court that the planned strike would inflict untold hardship on
law-abiding citizens and their businesses.

Counsel for the Federal Government and the AGF, Tijani Gazali, SAN, during the proceedings on Friday
argued that many Nigerians suffered when the labour unions during their protest on Thursday blocked
the entrances to the main airports in the country.

He pleaded with the court that unless the planned strike action is stopped, there may be a likelihood of
a breach of peace and tranquility in the country.

In his ruling, the President of the court, Justice Benedict Kanyip, cited Sections 17 and 19 of the National
Industrial Court Act and ordered the unions to stop their nationwide strike.

“It is within the power of the court to intervene by way of restraining order to ensure peace and
tranquility, ” he said.

Kanyip directed that the restraining order be pasted on the wall of the Labour House, which is the last
known address of the two defendants, to draw their attention to the court’s position.

The judge also directed that the order, along with the originating and other processes, be served on the
defendants by publication in two major national dailies.
>>> General news 3 <<<

Tinubu mourns Nigeria’s first female Major-General, Kale

President Bola Tinubu on Friday described the death of Nigeria’s first female Major-General, Aderonke
Kale, as a painful loss to the country.

Kale, also the first female Commander of the Nigerian Army Medical Corps died on Thurday at the age of
84.

Tinubu, in a condolence statement signed by his Special Adviser (Media and Publicity), Ajuri Ngelale, also
sympathised with the Kale family, the Nigerian Army, and the society of medical practitioners in Nigeria
on the passing away of one of their own.

President Bola Tinubu stated that as a pioneer in her field, the late Major General ” embodied the
courage, professionalism, capacity, and resilience of the Nigerian woman”

The President prayed for the repose of the soul of the late officer and encouraged her beloved family to
take solace in the peerless legacy she left behind.

>>> POLITICS NEWS <<<

>>> Politics news 1 <<<

APC tackles PDP’s rigging allegations against Uzodimma

The ruling All Progressives Congress on Friday said there was no iota of truth in the allegation of the
Peoples Democratic Party that Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State plans to rig Saturday’s election.

The rebuttal is coming in the wake of an appeal for the Independent National Electoral Commission to
disqualify the APC candidate in Imo for allegedly sponsoring a video against the PDP candidate, Sam
Anyanwu, in a bid to mislead the electorate.

The appeal was made in a statement issued by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba.

A viral video circulating on social media on Thursday claimed that Anyanwu had collapsed his structure
and asked his supporters to vote for Uzodimma in Saturday’s governorship poll.
Ologunagba, who described the video as fake, berated the Imo State governor for allegedly resorting to
such an underhand strategy to gain an undue advantage.

Reacting to the PDP’s claim, the National Publicity Secretary of APC, Felix Morka, described the
allegation as the ‘latest advertisement of crass irresponsibility’ by the opposition PDP.

His reaction was contained in a statement titled ‘Re: Fake Video – Your fear of Governor Hope
Uzodinma’s popularity won’t stop his re-election.’

Morka disclosed that the PDP based its call on a concocted allegation, saying neither Uzodimma nor the
APC has an input in the viral video clip breeding the bad blood.

He said, “To be crystal clear, neither Governor Uzodimma nor our great party had any hand in making or
procuring the making of that video. Our governor and party have been hard at work campaigning to
persuade the good Imo electorate to renew our mandate to have any interest or time for such a piece of
frivolous and unhelpful propaganda.

“At the end of any credible investigation into the video’s origins, we will not be shocked to discover that
it was a malicious creation of the PDP in a calculated but futile attempt to smear Governor Uzodimma
and our party, exactly as this baseless and senseless allegation sought to do.

“Clearly, the unmatched track record and popularity of our candidate makes the PDP quiver in
desperate panic. We are confident that no last-minute antics of the PDP will deter the good people of
Imo State who are poised to reelect our governor to finish the good work he has started.”

>>> Politics news 2 <<<

NSA assures Kogi, Bayelsa, Imo voters of safety

The National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, has assured residents of Kogi, Bayelsa, and Imo states of
their security during the governorship elections in the states.

This is as he warned political actors against any act of violence in the states.

Ribadu stressed that there would be ”severe consequences” for anyone found trying to disrupt the
elections in the three states.

According to a statement on Friday by the Head, Strategic CommunicationOffice of the National Security
Adviser, Zakari Mijinyawa, Ribadu noted a monitoring system had been established with monitors
deployed to the field to collect any evidence of violence and irregularities.

The statement read, ” The National Security Adviser assures residents of Kogi, Bayelsa, and Imo states of
security preparedness during the off-cycle elections coming on Saturday.
“He warns against violence by political actors and charges security agencies to adhere to a professional
code of ethics during the conduct of the exercise.”

The NSA assured all that in line with the directive of President Bola Tinubu, security agencies have made
adequate preparations to ensure safe, secure, and transparent elections.

The NSA added that the Federal Government has mobilised all the required resources for the smooth
conduct of the elections and called on all election managers to adhere strictly to the instructions given
by the President.

Ribadu further warned that a monitoring system has been established with monitors deployed to the
field to collect any evidence of violence and irregularities.

“The NSA vows that there will be severe consequences for anyone who is found to have disrupted the
conduct of elections or abused his authority, ” the statement added.

Ribadu also urged the security agents deployed for the elections to be of good conduct.

“The NSA, who is the Co-Chair of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security charged
all security, intelligence, and law enforcement officers deployed on election security duties to conduct
themselves creditably.

“He admonishes voters in the three states to come out en masse to exercise their franchise assuring
them of adequate protection, “the statement added.

>>> Politics news 3 <<<

Bayelsa poll: APC, PDP supporters fight over electoral materials, one injured

Less than 24 hours to Saturday’s governorship election in Bayelsa State, violence has reportedly erupted
at the Twon-Brass jetty in the Brass Local Government Area of the state.

The Informant learnt that the supporters of the All Progressives Congress and the ruling Peoples
Democratic Party clashed over electoral materials meant for voting in the area.

The officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission deployed in the area were trying to
offload the electoral when the violence occurred.

It could not be confirmed if the electoral materials were sensitive or non-sensitive items.

The supporters of both parties were said to have disagreed over when the electoral items would be kept
ahead of tomorrow’s governorship polls.
Some sources alleged that Brass LGA PDP chairman identified as Bara Daniel was injured in the head
during the scuffle that ensued.

It was also alleged that a former council chairman, Victor Isaiah, was also involved in the fracas.

Isaiah, a chieftain of the APC, however, denied involvement in the assault of the PDP stalwart, saying he
intervened to diffuse the tension.

He claimed that the PDP chieftain was intimidating APC supporters in the disagreement over how to
secure the electoral materials.

He said, “I was there actually to monitor the process of the materials offloading but the PDP chairman
kept making derogatory statements which unsettled some people, but I was able to calm the situation.”

However, some military personnel eventually intervened and restored normalcy.

The chairman of Brass Local Government Area, Mr Hanson Karika, has strongly condemned the attack on
the PDP chairman of Brass LGA.

He called on security agents to be on alert to prevent further violence.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, Bayelsa Command, Asinim Butswat, said the DIG in
charge of election security in the state, DIG Daniel Sokari-Pedro, would address a conference at 4 pm
later today.

>>> CRIME NEWS <<<

>>> Crime news 1 <<<

Ex-student stabs teacher to death in Taraba

A secondary school teacher at the Government Model School, Jalingo, Taraba state capital has been
stabbed to death by his former student now at large.

Police Public Relations Officer, SP. Abdullahi Usman, confirmed the incident, on Thursday saying the
teacher was attacked while in a tricycle following an earlier altercation with the student.

Usman said, “A former student conspired with his cohorts to stab his teacher, who was inside Keke
NAPEP.

“They had an altercation with the teacher and in the process stabbed the teacher. While taking him to
hospital, he was confirmed dead”
Governor Agbu Kefas in a statement released by his Special Adviser on Media and Digital
Communication, Mr. Emmanuel Bello mourned the tragic death of the teacher and directed a ban on
assault weapons such as knives, machetes, daggers in Jalingo and its environs.

This is even as the governor directed an investigation into the incident and security surveillance to
prevent such attacks in the future.

On her part, Commissioner for Education, Dr. Augustina Godwin, condemned the attack saying “The
security of staff and students of Science School Jalingo and other schools have been a source of concern
for us at the Ministry of Education.

“We need armed and unarmed security agents such as; Civil Defence/ Peace Corps in our schools more
than ever, especially around Jalingo,” she said.

The commissioner explained that the deceased teacher was assigned to organise one of the four groups
of students near the school gate before the inspection team could arrive.

>>> Crime News 2 <<<

Police parade suspected ritualist with human head in Ibadan

The Police in Oyo State, on Friday, paraded a 45-year-old suspected ritualist simply identified as Hassan
Kolawole with a fresh human head in Ibadan, the state capital.

Kolawole was paraded at the Command Headquarters at Eleyele in Ibadan North-West Local
Government Area of the state, alongside nine others who were arrested for various crimes at different
locations within the state.

They were paraded by the state Commissioner of Police, Adebola Hamzat, through the Police Public
Relations Officer, Adewale Osifeso.

Items found in their possessions include fresh human head, hands, and one HP Laptop.

Details later…

>>> Crime News 3 <<<

Kano NSCDC arrests 11 suspects for vandalism, phone snatching

Operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Kano State Command, have arrested 11
suspects for committing various crimes ranging from vandalism and theft to phone snatching and other
criminal acts.

The command’s Public Relations Officer, Ibrahim Abdullahi, confirmed the arrest of the suspects in a
statement on Thursday.

He said five of the suspects were arrested by men of the anti-vandalism unit of the command in
connection with vandalising armoured cables worth hundreds of thousands of naira and phone
snatching in broad daylight along Kofar Mazugal Abattoir Road in the metropolis.

The statement read, “The suspects Jibril Shamsu, 21; Saidu Musa, 18; Saifullahi Musa, 18; Tasiu Salisu,
16; Àbdurrahman Dahiru; are now in the custody of the Corps undergoing investigation at the end of
which they will be prosecuted.

“Similarly, four other suspects nabbed by officers at Gezawa and Garun malam Divisions with an alleged
vandalisation of electricity and street lights installations are also being thoroughly investigated with a
view to take legal actions against them,” he said.

“In the same vein, the Corps had arraigned two before a court with an alleged theft of 18 solar power
panels belonging to Kano State School of Management Studies.

“Moreover, the Corps had also succeeded in confiscating 13 bags of a harmful herbal mixture popularly
known as Akuskura, which the State government banned its sales and usage owing to its risk to public
health and safety.”

Abdullahi said an investigation was being intensified to trace and arrest the owner of the products to
face the full wrath of the law.

“The fight against crimes and criminality especially vandalisation of public infrastructure is being
intensified to rid the state of such criminals,” the statement added.

>>> METRO NEWS <<<

>>> Metro news 1 <<<

OAU hospital workers protest 10 months’ unpaid salaries

Some medical workers of the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, Ile-Ife, Osun State have
tackled the management for allegedly subjecting them to penury over 10 months of unpaid salaries.
The employees, who spoke with The Informant in different interviews on Wednesday 8th of November
2023, lamented that they had resorted to begging to feed their families due to the hardship the non-
payment of salaries subjected them to.

One of the employees who identified himself simply as Ben decried that he had become incapable of
feeding his family because of the non-payment of his salary since he joined the service of the OAUTH on
December 13, 2022.

“I was given an appointment letter on December 13, 2022, after the completion of my medicals. I was
posted to the place of my primary assignment. Since then, we have been in this sorry-case situation; no
salary was paid to me as a staff member. I have rented an apartment and did a lot of things with my
savings in the hope of recovering it when they would start paying me, but nothing came out from it,” he
lamented.

Another employee, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of being penalised, stressed that the
non-payment of salary and some unfair policies ravaging the health sector in Nigeria were factors
forcing brains out of the country.

He said, “Some of the reasons why our medical practitioners such as doctors, pharmacists, nurses,
medical laboratory scientists, physiotherapists, radiographers etc. are leaving the country to the US,
other European and African countries is because the ones that are working in Nigeria are suffering.

“Imagine a medical staff member working in a Federal Government teaching hospital for over 10 months
without being paid one kobo because we have not been captured by the IPPIS due to one or two
reasons best known to the ministry and the hospital management. Many lives are already miserable,
Staff members are living in debt, families are breaking, many are not able to pay their children’s school
fees, and some are depressed. How do you want that same worker to attend to a patient?”

He noted that all efforts to ensure that their pleas were attended to proved abortive while appealing to
the relevant authorities to come to their aid.

“In the past, various health unions such as JOHESU had embarked on strike actions in solidarity with the
newly employed staff to persuade the management to pay salaries but these steps yielded no positive
result because the employees were always forced or threatened back to work by the ministry of health.

“In September 2023, some officials of the Ministry of Health came to the hospital to carry out a
verification for the new staff members. It’s two months ago and till this moment, we have not heard
anything from them. The staff members are still working, suffering and smiling.

“To well-meaning Nigerians and the constituted authorities, please save the soul of the newly employed
staff of the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital,” he concluded.

When contacted, the Chief Medical Director of OAUTH, John Okeniyi, directed to the informant
correspondent to a tweet by the Minister for Health, Muhammed Ali Pate, while stating that he could
not make an official comment on the matter.
“I am not able to grant you any interviews formally or otherwise at this time because the Hon. Minister
of Health (FMoHSW) has waded into this matter and I can only direct you to see his response to the
issue on his Twitter (X) handle. I am awaiting directives from the FMoHSW.”

Pate had in a tweet on his verified X handle on October 13, noted that the investigation had been
completed and the issue would be resolved soonest.

“We are addressing the OAUTH situation. The investigation has just been completed on this unfortunate
situation. We understand the difficulties being faced by numerous innocent health workers and will do
our best to resolve it equitably,” he had tweeted.

>>> Metro News 2 <<<

Abuja youths threaten to shut council over bad road

Some youths in the Gwagwalada Area Council of Abuja, Federal Capital Territory, have threatened to
shut the council’s office over the deplorable state of the Gwagwalada Market Road.

Some of the youths in the area who spoke with The Informant on Tuesday 7th of November 2023 said
the bad road had caused severe hardship for commuters and residents for a long time.

One of the youths, Manasseh Paul, told The Informant that the youths were giving the council
authorities an ultimatum of seven days to attend to the road or they would paralyse activities on the
road and also storm the council office.

Manasseh said, “Gwagwalada Market Road, once a lifeline, now lies in ruins, strangling local businesses
and burdening the people it should serve. The path to redemption must begin with the reconstruction of
this vital road. We, as citizens of Nigeria, assert our right to free movement, as enshrined in the Nigerian
constitution, and we call for the prompt restoration of this fundamental right.”

Speaking further, Manaseeh, who doubles as the coordinator of the youths in the area, said, “That road
has been bad for like three to four years. Every chairman used it to campaign when contesting. It is a
major road that links Gwagwalada to other areas.”

“We’re shutting the area council down after seven days. We will also shut the road,” he added.

Another youth, Promise Abubakar, said shop owners in the area had abandoned their shops because
people were finding it difficult to navigate the area and patronise them.

“Many people who have shops there are suffering. Some people have left their shops. It’s not easy to
navigate the road. Our demand is that they should fix the road,” Abubakar said.
Another resident, who asked not to be mentioned, said, “It’s sad. I don’t know why they decided to
ignore the road. It’s like people don’t matter to them. A whole FCT, and the road is terrible like this.
They should fix the road.”

Also, a civil society group, Take It Back Movement, in a letter dated Monday, requested the area council
to provide it with details of federal allocations received by the council from 2022 to date and how they
had been spent.

Quoting the Freedom of Information Act in the letter posted on its verified X handle, @TIBmovement,
they sought “A detailed and up-to-date record of federal allocations received by the Gwagwalada Area
Council from 2022 to date; an elaborate breakdown of the expenditure and use of the federal
allocations received by the council from 2022 to date; an elaborate breakdown of the expenditure and
use of the internally generated revenue received by the council from 2022 to date.”

The Special Adviser to the council chairman’s secretary, Abdulrahman Saba, said although he could not
speak for the chairman, he acknowledged the deplorable state of the road and admitted he was also
suffering from it.

He said, “I can only share my own idea and understanding of that road. I commend your efforts; it’s a
good one because that road is a major road in the Gwagwalada Area Council. We’re suffering; because
I’m a resident in that area. But that road is not under the area council. It is (under) the area council, it is
for the FCDA majorly.”

When contacted on Tuesday, the Chairman of the Gwagwalada Area Council, Alhaji Abubakar Jibrin,
directed our correspondent to the FCDA. “Please, you can go to the FCDA,” he said in a terse response to
a text message from the informant correspondent

But when eventually contacted, the spokesperson for the Federal Capital Development Authority,
Richard Ndul, said, “Gwagwalada Road is under the area council.”

When told that a source in the area council said it was not under the council, he further revealed, “If it is
not in the area council, it is (under) the satellite towns.”

>>> Metro News 3 <<<

Pedestrians condemn motorcyclists plying Ogun footbridge

Pedestrians have decried the incessant shunning of the highway by the motorcyclists who instead ply
the footbridge constructed for the convenience of foot walkers and Persons Living with Disabilities at
Ibafo, Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State.
The pedestrians, who spoke with The Informant on Thursday 9th of November, lamented that
commercial motorcyclists, dispatch riders, police and military men with their private motorcycles would
use the wheelchair ramp part of the pedestrian bridge to speed up their movement.

It was alleged the cyclists exchanged words with them whenever they were confronted and that their
movement provoked the pedestrians using the footbridge, who protested at the sound of their honk.

The Informant correspondent who visited the Ibafo pedestrian bridge observed that both private and
commercial motorcyclists alongside their passengers used the bridge to cross to the other lane of the
Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. Cyclists were seen struggling with pedestrians to use the narrow foot passage
over the highway.

A pedestrian, simply identified as Mariam, said that it was dangerous for motorcycle riders to ply a
bridge meant for individuals on foot noting that security operatives involving themselves was a shame.

“I relocated from Abuja, so when I saw bike men plying the footbridge, I was surprised because it was
not there. Some ‘area boys’ were deployed to stop them and impound their bikes, but this operation
lasted for a short period of time.

“The government should find a lasting solution to stop this act and the military and policemen should
not be excluded because we see them pass here too and no one is above the law,” she said.

A trader, Omolola Ademide, said she was arrested for defending an aged woman who was almost hit by
a motorcyclist on the wheelchair ramp and was informed by some police officers that it was meant for
motorcyclists.

“After he almost hit the woman with his motorcycle, he now pushed her from the way when she was
trying to stand, so we dealt with him. The motorcyclist reported us to the police, and we were arrested
for assault because we fought for the woman.

“The policemen told us the wheelchair ramp part of the pedestrian bridge was meant for motorcyclists,
so we were wrong. This does not happen on other pedestrian bridges; the government should come to
our aid in Ibafo,” she said.

In a chat with the informant correspondent, a pedestrian, Adebimpe, said the government should
impose a fine on any motorcyclist who was caught on the bridge.

“It is risky and can cause accidents that may affect those selling on the bridge, pedestrians cannot walk
freely all because of these bike men. People are also afraid of using the bridge at night because thieves
use motorcycles to rob. The government should impose a fine on the law breakers,” she said.

Another pedestrian, Ayomide Motunrayo, said, “The government should create a U-turn spot nearby on
the expressway because the bike men find it difficult to go as far as Magboro and Asese before they can
switch to the opposite lane. The pedestrian bridge has been favourable to them.”
Another pedestrian who spoke on the condition of anonymity said, “Elderly people often use the
wheelchair ramp part of the bridge, and they disturb them a lot. An accident may occur anytime soon if
something is not done to this effect.”

All efforts to contact the Ogun State Chief Press Secretary, Lekan Adeniran, proved abortive as of the
time of filing this report.