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50 Passengers Rescued As Fire Guts Aircraft Tyres In Port Harcourt

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At least 50 passengers were rescued when fire gutted the tyres of an aircraft operated by Dana Airlines Limited in Port Harcourt.

The incident occurred on Monday evening at the Port Harcourt airport, our correspondent learnt.

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It was also gathered that no life was lost and no passenger was injured as first responders including operatives of the fire service at the airport moved in to control the situation.

In a statement on Tuesday morning, Dana Air spokesman, Kingsley Ezenwa,

It was titled, ‘Press statement on Port Harcourt Incident of 2/5/22’ said the aircraft had been grounded pending the conclusion of their investigations.

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It partly read, “Our aircraft with registration number 5N JOY operating flight 9J 344 from Port Harcourt to Lagos on 2nd of May 2022, was set to take off when the pilot in command noticed an anomaly which he queried with the Air Traffic Control before embarking on a ramp return in line with our strict safety operating procedures

“However, the impact on the brakes as a result of the aborted take off affected the aircraft tyres which sparked off while the aircraft was taxiing to repark.

READ ALSO: Taskforce Officials, Soldiers Clash In Port Harcourt Over Food

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“All 50 passengers onboard the aircraft disembarked safely and our maintenance team have immediately grounded the aircraft pending the conclusion of their investigations.

“Once again, we sincerely apologize to all the passengers on the flight for the inconveniences caused due to the eventual cancellation of the flight.”

The Nigerian civil airspace has maintained a relatively safe record in about a decade now which has increased passengers’ confidence in air travel. The last air crash in the country involving a commercial airplane was in June 2012 when a Dana Air MD-83 aircraft from Abuja crashed near the Lagos airport while attempting an emergency landing, killing all 153 souls on board and six on the ground.

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Tragedy As Erosion Sweeps Away Motorcyclist In Edo

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Photo: file copy

Tragedy struck Ekpoma, Esan West Local Government Area of Edo State, as a motorcyclist, popularly known as Okada, was swept away by erosion.

The tragic incident which reportedly happened after a heavy downpour on Tuesday evening, has sparked renewed concern over the worsening case of erosion in most parts of Edo State.

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The incident was captured in a viral video that is circulating widely across social media platforms.

In the video, an individual was heard narrating that the incident occurred at Uwenlenbo Road, near Zekor Hotel in Ekpoma.

The narrator in the video
described the scene as horrifying, adding that the powerful rush of water overwhelmed the rider.

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READ ALSO: Scientists Find Proof That Breast Cancer Recurrence Can Be Eliminated

According to the voice, the rider was carrying a female passenger, before he was swept away by the furious erosion, which had a free day due to lack of proper water channel in most parts of the state.

Another voice was heard in the video asking people to assist the bike rider who was struggling with the wave of water until he was swept away.

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The victim’s bike plate number was thereafter displayed by sympathizers who begged those who know him to come up to identify him.

the sympathisers in the video called for urgent intervention by both state and federal government agencies, lamenting that erosion continues to threaten lives and property in the state.

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Customs Unveil E-clearance Platform To Decongest Apapa Port

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The Nigeria Customs Service has launched Overtime E-Clearance System, an automated platform aimed at improving cargo management and reducing port congestion at Apapa Port.

According to the Service, the platform, unveiled on Monday, will address a staggering 15-year backlog of abandoned cargo and tackle corruption in the system.

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Customs announced this in a statement on its X handle on Tuesday.

Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, officially introduced the system during a sensitisation exercise in Lagos.

READ ALSO:10 Things Candidates Should Know About Customs Recruitment CBT Exams

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He said the platform will enable consignees to submit and track applications remotely, cutting repeated visits to Customs offices and limiting manual interference.

The system builds on an earlier policy that extended cargo dwelling periods from 30 to 120 days to give stakeholders more flexibility. The focus is transparency, integrity and adherence to the law. We urge stakeholders to test the system and provide feedback ahead of full deployment,” Adeniyi said.

NCos boss warned against attempts to abuse the process, citing a 15-year-old overtime cargo case still under investigation as an example of why loopholes must be closed.

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READ ALSO: Customs Appoint New Controller For Ondo/Ekiti Command

He added that deliberate abandonment of cargo to evade duties would attract tougher sanctions, with intelligence units monitoring misuse.

Under the rollout plan, Customs will hold further sensitisation sessions this week with terminal operators, shipping companies and other stakeholders before expanding engagement to additional commands.

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Deployment will follow once feedback is reviewed and legal queries addressed, the statement added.

According to The PUNCH, this development comes shortly after Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, directed Customs to suspend the implementation of the 4% Free on Board levy on imported goods.

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DSS Sues Sowore, X, Meta Over Anti-Tinubu Post

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The Department of State Services has filed a five-count charge against former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore, alongside social media platforms X Corp and Meta Incorporation, over posts critical of President Bola Tinubu.

The suit dated 16th September,2025, was lodged at the Federal High Court in Abuja after Sowore allegedly refused to delete certain posts about the President.

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The charges were brought on behalf of the DSS and the Federal Government by M.B. Abubakar, Director of Public Prosecutions at the Federal Ministry of Justice, alongside four other counsel to the DSS –M.E. Ernest, U.B. Bulla, Dr. C.S. Eze, and E.G. Orubor.

Confirming the development in a Facebook post on Tuesday , Sowore wrote, “The State Security Service, alias @OfficialDSSNG today filed a 5-count charge at the Federal High Court in Abuja against ‘X’ (formerly Twitter Facebook, and myself. They claimed that because I called Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu a criminal, I have somehow committed a set of ‘novel’ offences they invented and spread across five counts.

READ ALSO:Rivers: 70 CSOs Ask NASS To Summon Ibas To Give Account

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It’s hard to believe there’s anyone sensible left in these offices that should be making Nigeria work. Regardless, I will be present whenever this case is assigned for trial. #RevolutionNow.”

The human rights activist and African Action Congress candidate in the 2023 election had vowed not to delete the controversial tweet, despite a request from the DSS to X demanding its removal.

Restating his stance, Sowore wrote, “This morning, X (formerly Twitter) officially contacted me about the despicable threat letter they received from the lawless DSS over my Tweet on Tinubu. One option I will NOT be taking is deleting that Tweet. Thank you, @X.”

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He also published the message sent to him by X, which confirmed that the platform had received a legal request from the DSS concerning his post.

READ ALSO:Alleged Infidelity: Soludo’s Wife Issues Senator Ekwunife Ultimatum To Apologize

The message from X read, “Hello @YeleSowore. In the interest of transparency, we are writing to inform you that X has received a request from the Department of State Services regarding your X account, @YeleSowore, that claims the following content violates the law(s) of Nigeria. @YeleSowore, we have not taken any action on the reported content at this time as a result of this request.

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“As X strongly believes in defending and respecting the voice of our users, it is our policy to notify our users if we receive a legal request from an authorised entity (such as law enforcement or a government agency) to remove content from their account. We provide notice whether or not the user lives in the country where the request originated. This page provides more information

“We understand that receiving this type of notice can be an unsettling experience. While X is not able to provide legal advice, we want you to have an opportunity to evaluate the request and, if you wish, take appropriate action to protect your interests.

READ ALSO:DSS Gives X Ultimatum To Pull Down Sowore’s Tweet

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“This may include seeking legal counsel and challenging the request in court, contacting relevant civil society organisations, voluntarily deleting the content (if applicable), or finding some other resolution.

“For more information on legal requests X receives from governments worldwide, please refer to this article on our Help Centre and our biannual Transparency Report.”

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