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Insecurity: Airlines Hike Airfares By 100% As Operating Costs Rise, Nigerians Kick

The cost of air tickets along several routes have doubled due to the high demand for air travel in light of the rising insecurity in the country and cost of flight operations, findings by The PUNCH have shown. Checks on several airline websites showed that even intending passengers, who booked their flights days ahead of departure, were also affected. A check on Friday on the website of Max Air showed that a one-way ticket from Maiduguri to Lagos for Saturday was put at N100,000 while the same flight costs N70,000 for Monday. A flight from Kano to Abuja on Azman Air on Friday was put at N85,000; the same route for Saturday was put at N61,000. A flight from Lagos to Abuja via Max Air on Monday was put at N80,000 while the same flight on Aero was fixed at N107,000. Travelling to Kano State from Lagos on Arik Air on Saturday, cost about N70,618 while the flight would cost N65,564 for the same route on Tuesday. It was also observed that the Lagos-Port Harcourt route, which is

Police Arrest Lagos Hotel Manager As Lodger Kills Friend, Flees

The Lagos State Police Command has arrested a hotel manager, Grace Olobia, after the strangled body of a lodger, Chinedu Hillary, who was allegedly killed by his friend, was found in the room. According to a police report made available to SaharaReporters, the incident occurred around 11 pm last week Thursday, at the Hellios Hotel at Adenle Street, Okunola, in the Egbeda area of the state. The matter was reported at the Gowon Estate Police Station in the area. It was learnt that the two friends had lodged in the room, before 33-year-old Hillary was found dead the following morning on his bed, with bloodstains in his mouth, while the other person, whose name had yet to be ascertained, had disappeared into thin air. The police detectives visited the scene, taking photographs as evidence, while the corpse had been deposited at Mainland General Hospital, Yaba, for an autopsy. The police report partly reads, “One Grace Olobia, the manager of Hellios Hotel, Adenle Street, reporte

Killings: Nigeria May Face Severe Food Crisis As Farmers “Abandon” Harvest

Destroyed rice farm The brutal murder of over 43 farmers in Borno State by suspected members of Boko Haram will worsen the agricultural instability in the state, farmers from the state said on Sunday. According to them, the number of farmers massacred in the attack could be more than 43, as many persons were still missing. Destroyed rice farm They disclosed this in a statement issued to journalists in Abuja as a reaction to the death of 43 rice farmers who were killed on Saturday while harvesting their crops at Garin-Kwashebe rice field, about 20km north of Maiduguri. The statement signed by the Managing Director, Wal-Wanne Group, Abiso Kabi, said the sad incident would not only cause instability in the zone but would lead to poverty and make the people be over-dependence on aid. Kabi said the Koila Agro-Allied Nigeria Limited was the most affected company, as it lost many of its farmers to the attack. He called on the Federal Government to recruit more persons into the ci

Drama As Kidnapper Mistakenly Boards Vehicle Owned By One Of His Victims

There was a drama at the Kwannawa motor park in the Dange-Shuni Local Government Area of Sokoto State on Sunday as a commercial driver identified one of his abductors amongst his passengers. According to Daily Trust, the victim, a driver, was kidnapped along Kankara in Katsina State while returning from Kano about two months ago. He reportedly spent three weeks in captivity and was released after paying an undisclosed amount of money as ransom. “The driver was quick to identify him because the incident happened not too long ago. After identifying him, he alerted our leaders who in turn informed the nearest police outpost,” one of the National Union of Road Transport Workers’ members told the newspaper. It was said that the leaders had changed the driver of the vehicle with another person after the car was loaded with passengers, and the new driver started driving the car towards Shuni town. It was gathered that the car was blocked by the police who arrested the suspect and

Borno Massacre: NHRC Advises Nigerian Government on Security

The Executive Secretary of the National Human Rights Commission, Tony Ojukwu, has called on the Federal Government to adopt a policy for the protection of civilians in Nigeria. He said the government must do more in protecting the lives and property of Nigerians, especially those living within the conflict regions. Ojukwu made this call on Sunday in Abuja while reacting to the killing of over 40 rice farmers in Borno State.  He described the killings as too many, adding that it was not only a great loss to Borno State but the entire country. He said the commission was heartbroken to hear that people were killed while trying to fend for themselves and other people. “There is an urgent need for the government to double its efforts in protecting the citizens, especially those who are unfortunate to find themselves in the volatile areas of the North-East that have been destroyed as a result of the operations of the insurgents,” he added. Ojukwu, who said the commission has a m