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JUST IN: Tinubu Will Get Nod For Presidential Jet If Requested – Akpabio

Published

12 months ago

June 27, 2024

The Senate has said that no ‘anticipated’ blackmail can stop it from approving the purchase of the presidential plane if the need arises.

The Senate also clarified that there was no request for the approval of the purchase of a presidential jet before it.

This was made known at the plenary on Thursday by the Senate President, GodsWill Akpabio when he clarified social media news on his comments on the purchase of the plane.

He said, “We care about the president and we care about the Nigerian people. We will approve things that will benefit the Nigerian people.

“We will approve things that would improve the living standard of the people. At the same time, we will also take cognizance of the duties of the president.

“If his vehicle is bad, we will repair the vehicle. If his plane is bad, we will approve money for the repair of the plane. So that is not an issue. There is nothing before us.

“I don’t think you should worry about it.”

The Senate President also said, “Somebody called me from BBC, that what I said in Senator Mongunu’s house, was false and should be disregarded, that I was now saying that I will not approve.

“That is what you can call anticipated blackmail. The professors of the story know very well that maybe there is a problem with the presidential fleet and that where they will go will be the parliament.

”And so they are now trying to do anticipated blackmail to tell us if they bring it, do not look into it.

“So I think that we should ignore them because of what we are doing here. I read the president’s correspondence to us. Nothing was touching on a plane or no plane, but I can tell you that when you hear stories such as the death of the vice president of Malawi as a result of a defective plane. And then you hear students such as the death of the president of Iran as a result of defective aircraft.

“We shouldn’t ever sit and allow such to be at the ocean. It wouldn’t be. The Senate is very responsible. The National Assembly is very responsible. We will look into issues that will benefit the governance of the country.”

Akpabio added, “Irrespective of anticipatory blackmail, because those people know very well that something like that might come in the future. And if it’s a necessity, the Senate will look into it. But there is nothing like that before us now.”

Before Akpabio’s comment, the Senate leader had earlier raised the issue stating that some elements in the fifth columnist were dishing out propaganda to the public about the Senate as it regards the purchase of the presidential fleet

Headline

Turkish President, Erdogan Calls Putin, Accused Israel Of Threatening Regional Security

Published

4 hours ago

June 16, 2025

Editor

…says “lawless attitude” of Netanyahu’s govt “poses threat to international system

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Israel of threatening security in the Middle East during a phone call with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Monday, his office said.

“The spiral of violence that began with Israel’s attacks on Iran has put the security of the entire region at risk,” Erdogan was quoted as saying.

His office said he told Putin that the “lawless attitude” of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government “poses a clear threat to the international system”, adding that the Middle East “cannot tolerate a new war”.

The Kremlin said Putin and Erdogan used the conversation to call for an “immediate” end to fighting between Israel and Iran.

“The leaders called for an immediate end to hostilities and the settlement of contentious issues, including those related to Iran’s nuclear programme, exclusively through political and diplomatic means,” the Kremlin said in its readout of the call.

Turkey has stepped up its diplomacy since Israel launched aerial attacks on Iran last Friday and Tehran struck back on the weekend, in their most intense confrontation in history.

Headline

Iran, Israel Need ‘To Fight It Out’ To Reach Deal – Trump

Published

5 hours ago

June 16, 2025

Editor

US President Donald Trump on Sunday urged Iran and Israel — who are locked in an exchange of military strikes — to “make a deal,” but suggested they might need to “fight it out” first.

“I think it’s time for a deal,” Trump told reporters, as Israel and Iran exchanged a fresh barrage of missile strikes and threatened more devastation in a conflict that appeared to be intensifying.

“But sometimes they have to fight it out, but we’re going to see what happens,” Trump said, speaking at the White House before heading to Canada to take part in a G7 summit.

After decades of enmity and a prolonged shadow war fought through proxies and covert operations, the latest conflict marks the first time arch-enemies Israel and Iran have traded fire with such intensity, triggering fears of a lengthy conflict that could engulf the entire Middle East.

It began Friday, when Israel launched attacks that have killed top military commanders and nuclear scientists, and struck military bases, nuclear sites and residential areas across the country.

Trump refused to answer a question about whether he had asked Israel to pause airstrikes on Iran.

Earlier, a senior US official told AFP that Trump had vetoed an Israeli plan to assassinate Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that he believed the two sides “should make a deal, and will make a deal.”

There are “many calls and meetings now taking place” on the issue and peace could be achieved “soon” between the longtime adversaries, he said.

Headline

Trump Orders Deportation Drive Targeting Democratic Cities

Published

6 hours ago

June 16, 2025

Editor

US President Donald Trump on Sunday directed federal authorities to ramp up deportation efforts in Democratic-led cities, doubling down on a politicized anti-immigration drive after major protests in Los Angeles.

“We must expand efforts to detain and deport Illegal Aliens in America’s largest Cities, such as Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, where Millions upon Millions of Illegal Aliens reside,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.

“These, and other such Cities, are the core of the Democrat Power Center,” he claimed, citing debunked right-wing conspiracy theories that undocumented immigrants are voting in US elections in significant numbers.

Trump has made deporting undocumented immigrants a key priority for his second term, after successfully campaigning against an alleged “invasion” by criminals.

Raids by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in Los Angeles sparked unruly protests, prompting Trump last week to deploy 4,000 National Guards and 700 Marines, against the wishes of local and state authorities.

California has sued to regain control of the National Guardsmen from Trump, arguing he overstepped his authority. That suit is working its way through federal court.

In a long screed on Truth Social Sunday, the Republican president charged that “every day, the Brave Men and Women of ICE are subjected to violence, harassment, and even threats from Radical Democrat Politicians.”

But, he insisted, “nothing will stop us from executing our mission… ICE Officers are herewith ordered … to do all in their power to achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History.”

Trump insisted that “Radical Left Democrats are sick of mind, hate our Country, and actually want to destroy our Inner Cities — And they are doing a good job of it!”

“There is something wrong with them,” he said, listing a litany of grievances, including charges that Democrats “believe in Open Borders, Transgender for Everybody, and Men playing in Women’s Sports.”

That, he said, was why he wanted ICE and other law enforcement agencies “to FOCUS on our crime ridden and deadly Inner Cities.”

Doubling down on his characteristic bluster, Trump seemed to compare migration to the United States with weapons of mass destruction.

He said he had directed his entire administration “to put every resource possible behind this effort, and reverse the tide of Mass Destruction Migration that has turned once Idyllic Towns into scenes of Third World Dystopia.”

With his typical divisive rhetoric, Trump said he wanted “our Brave Officers to know that REAL Americans are cheering you on every day.”

“To ICE, FBI, DEA, ATF, the Patriots at Pentagon and the State Department, you have my unwavering support. Now go, GET THE JOB DONE!” he wrote.