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Tax evaders that fail to key into the Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS) window by March 31, 2018, will be liable for interest on overdue tax balances, forfeiture of assets, as well as imprisonment of up to five years, Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, has said.

Speaking at a one-day stakeholders meeting on VAIDS in collaboration with the Kaduna State Government yesterday in Kaduna, the minister alluded that Nigeria had just 14 million tax payers out of 70 million who were economically active.

She frowned at the fact that so many people who should be paying taxes were not, adding that, “It is the development of taxes that will help the States and the Federal Government to achieve their true potentials.

“In addition to the above, the scheme also offers tax defaulters the option of spreading payment of outstanding liabilities over a maximum period of three years as might be agreed with the relevant tax authority.

“Job creation is one of the spin-offs of the VAIDS initiative, with the scheme expected to create a total of 7,500 opportunities for Nigerians as Community Tax Liaison Officers (CTLOs) through the N-Power scheme of the Federal Government,” she said.

She added that predictable tax revenue inflow would lead to more investment by the Federal and State Governments in infrastructure and job and wealth creation across the nation.

On his part, the Executive Chairman, Kaduna State Internal Revenue Service (KDIRS), Mukhtar Ahmed said the state generated more than N200 million from the Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS) between June 2017 and now.

“Kaduna State has benefited from the initiative, as some individuals and companies have taken advantage of the amnesty and declared their income and assets,” he said.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/tax-evaders-ll-face-full-wrath-of-law-after-deadline--minister.htmlnister

Senate President Bukola Saraki yesterday explained the reasons why he was absent at key meetings of the All Progressives Congress (APC) held last week.

Saraki’s absence at both the National Caucus and National Executive Council (NEC) meetings of his party heightened speculations of his plan to dump the APC.

Saraki in a statement by his media aide, Yusuph Olaniyonu, said his absence was as a result of his ongoing trial at the Code of Conduct of Tribunal (CCT) and tight schedules.

The statement reads: “On Monday, the Senate President was in Benin from morning till 6.15pm, attending the Senate Roundtable on Migration and Human Trafficking, one of the interventions by the lawmaking body to source for legislative and policy solutions to one of the major problems plaguing the youth in our country.

“Dr. Saraki and his delegation, including senators, returned to his Abuja home at 7.45 pm, while the APC National Caucus meeting was scheduled to begin by 8.00 pm on the same night. Clearly, there was no way he could have arrived at the venue on time, especially as it would be a breach of protocol to do so at a meeting presided over by the President.”

Olaniyonu said on Tuesday when the NEC meeting was holding at the APC national secretariat, the Senate President was at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) where he was fighting to clear his name as the defendant in an ongoing case.

“Dr. Saraki did not fix the date of the adoption of briefs by prosecution and defence lawyers. The Tribunal did, and by law, Saraki must be physically present at the Tribunal as the defendant.

“It stands to reason that he cannot be in two places at once, and so he was unavoidably absent at the NEC meeting.”

According to the spokesman, “ Let me also state clearly here that Dr. Saraki is not one to sneak into a room via the window. He would rather enter through the front door so that his entry is well noted and acknowledged. Nigerians know that when he joined the APC, he did not sneak in. Therefore, no one should attach any mischievous or inaccurate interpretation to his absence at the two meetings held at times when his whereabouts were a matter of public record.

“Sponsors of misinformation as to why Saraki was not present at the Caucus and NEC meetings should be clear that there is no special reason behind the absence. The Senate President is not a coward. When he left the PDP in 2014, he was bold enough to inform the then president of his decision and left openly with his supporters. He therefore has no reason to be sneaking or hiding now.

“It is incontrovertible that he is a leader, major stakeholder and founding father of the APC. Nothing has changed with regard to all these. I hope this clarification will halt the speculations, misinformation, misinterpretation, mischief and fake news about the ‘Why’ and ‘What’ of his absence at the APC National Caucus and NEC meetings,” he said.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/why-i-was-absent-at-apc-meetings-saraki.html

Plateau State Governor Simon Bako Lalong has sworn in 23 commissioners of the state executive council and three newly appointed permanent secretaries at the new Government House in Little Rayfield, Jos.

Lalong said his decision to dissolve his cabinet in early February was never an indictment or punitive measure to show his displeasure with the cabinet; rather, he said it was a period for the re-ordering of priorities and the strategic rethinking of the governance direction of his administration.

He said though the selection may not have served all shades of opinion, it had in the best of his estimation and fairness of judgement, “served the broad spectrum expectation of our citizens and the critical consideration of stakeholders whom we have entrusted the Rescue Project in their hands for the good of all, in the various constituencies that they represent.”

The governor stressed that he had ensured that constitutional representation by State Character is complied with, while special consideration for group interest and political balance which falls within his purview as Governor to exercise, have been exercised in limited instances for the collective good of the state.”

He said the newly appointed Permanent Secretaries would be assigned their Ministries by the Head of Civil Service.

The commissioners and their portfolios are as follows:

· Yakubu Datti - Information;
· Luka Madaki - Housing and Urban Development;
· Chrisanthus Ahmadu - Attorney General;
· Ezekiel Daju - Mineral Development;
· Ahmad Muhammad Nazifi - Transport;
· Tamwakat Weli - Tourism and Culture;
· David Jafaru Wuyep -Water Resources and Energy;
· Hitler Dadi -Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs;
· Usman Yakubu Idi -Commerce and Industry;
· Victor Lapang - Youths and Sports and
· Sylvester Wallangko -Economic Planning.
· Abdullahi Garba Abbas - Environment,
· Dayyabu Garga - Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs;
· Kuden Deyin -Health;
· Festus Fuanter -Lands and Survey;
· Dan Manjang -Science and Technology;
· Hosea Istifanus Finangwai -for Agriculture and Rural Development;
· Bulus Bot - Physical Planning and Urban Development;
· Anna Talatu Izam -Women Affairs and Social Development;
· Pam Bot-Mang -Works;
· Dakur Jude Eli -Secondary Education;
· Regina Soemlat -Finance and
· Elizabeth Wapmuk - Higher Education.

The wife of the senate president, Toyin Saraki, has called on every Nigerian to be more involved in security situation around them as part of measures to check insurgency.

She made this remark while speaking with journalists in Ilorin on Wednesday after an advocacy visit by the Wellbeing Foundation Africa (WBA) her nongovernmental organization, to the Kwara state House of Assembly.

Saraki lamented the recent abduction of 111 young school girls in Dapchi, Yobe state saying that Nigerians never believed another abduction could happen again in the country.

"No one ever actually believed that we will still see another forcible abduction again in the country again after all the sufferings, tears, lamentation and efforts taken to rescue some of the Chibok girls. It's very hard to describe how I feel as a woman and mother about the development.

"I want to recall what my husband said in that every head must be counted and accounted for. And having registered some success by the release of some Chibok girls, it gave me the hope that we will get back the Dapchi girls and reunite them with their family.

"I want to ask every Nigerian to be vigilant. If you notice that there are strange faces in your community that were not there before, or somebody buying more food than they buy normally, or you notice somebody sowing more materials than they sow normally, please contact the security authorities. The sooner we can find them, get them back, the better for the humanity", she said.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/nigerians-never-believed-another-abduction-could-happen-saraki.html

The Federal Government has released a new directive on how President Muhammadu Buhari should be addressed at formal functions.

This was as the President also directed ministers to inaugurate Federal Boards of agencies.

The two policies were contained in separate circulars by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Mr Boss Gida Mustapha.

“Government has observed with concern the inconsistent manner in which the President, Federal Republic of Nigeria is addressed during official and private functions. It has therefore become necessary to have a standard format for addressing him at such formal occasions,” Mustapha said in one of the circulars dated 26 January, 2018.

He said, “To this end, Mr President shall henceforth be addressed as “Muhammadu Buhari, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria” except in purely Armed Forces Programmes, where “Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces of Federal Republic of Nigeria” will be added.

According to him the new directive indicates the president, though a retired Major General is not to be addressed by that military rank at formal functions.

In another circular dated 26 February, 2018 by the SGF, the President directed all ministers to inaugurate the boards of various parastatals under their supervision.

President Buhari had in December 2017 appointed 209 board chairmen and 1,258 board members.

The circular which directed all ministers to conclude the inauguration of the boards on or before Friday, March 9 added that the reports of the inauguration exercise were expected to reach the Office of the SGF not later than March 16.

He said the directive was given following the approval of President Buhari for the Federal Government to publish the membership of boards of parastatals under various Ministries, Departments and Agencies.

“Where the law provides Institutional Representatives should be Civil Servants not below the rank of Director in relevant MDAs, for effective reporting,” the circular said.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/fg-declares-new-format-of-addressing-buhari.html

The military and the police in Yobe State are currently embroiled in recriminations over the events that led to the abduction of students from a boarding school.

Governor Ibrahim Gaidam two days ago said military withdrawal from Dapchi made it possible for Boko Haram insurgents to attack Government Girls Science and Technical College and abduct 110 students.

The Army described the allegation as not only “unfortunate, but also very far from the truth.”

Col Onyema Nwachukwu, Deputy Director Public Relations, Theatre Command Operation Lafiya Dole, in a statement yesterday said the Army handed the security of the town to the police when troops left to support another military formation that came under insurgents attack.

However, the police in Damaturu said the statement by the military “is not correct and untrue.”

The Army’s reaction yesterday first dwelt on its achievements in the counter insurgency war being waged under Operation Lafiya Dole.

The statement by Col Onyema Nwachukwu said: “Several communities and Local Governments that were hitherto under siege of the insurgents have been liberated and the insurgents pushed out.

“While troops continue to trail and decimate the remnants of the insurgents in the hinterlands, the security of the liberated communities and towns fall in the hands of the sister security agencies.

“The recent dislodgement and further decimation of the insurgents from their enclaves in the Sambisa and the Lake Chad Islands are testimonials to the effective operations of troops against the insurgents. “Additionally, troops are regularly conducting long range patrols, raids and ambushes to canalise and take out fleeing insurgents.

“Given all these efforts, it is very astonishing and shocking that such unfortunate comment and allegation is been touted against the loyal and dedicated troops of Operation Lafiya Dole.

Contrary to the comments being circulated, troops earlier deployed in Dapchi were redeployed to reinforce troops at Kanama following attacks on troops’ location at the - Nigerien border.

“This was on the premise that Dapchi has been relatively calm and peaceful and the security of Dapchi town was formally handed over to the Nigeria Police Division located in the town.

“Troops’ redeployment was therefore done in tandem with the exigencies of operation and not as misconstrued.

It is thus obligatory, to state that the allegation reportedly attributed to the Governor of Yobe state is misleading and misinforming.

“We reiterate our commitment and determination to carrying out our mandate to fight Boko Haram terrorists in the north east.

“We also implore members of the public to continue to support us with credible information on the whereabouts of the Boko Haram terrorists.

“We would also like to assure the parents, government and the good people of Yobe State and indeed members of the public that we will not rest on our oars in the search and rescue of the abducted school girls and any other persons held captive by the terrorists”.

Military didn’t formally handover to us – Police

The Commissioner of Police Yobe State, Mr. Sumonu A. Abdulmaliki, however denied there was a formal handing over of Dapchi town to the Nigeria Police Division in Dapchi.

Mr. Abdulmaliki in a signed stamen in Damaturu yesterday said: “It is not correct and untrue, as there was no time that the military informed the Police of their withdrawal consult or handed over their locations in Dapchi town to the Police.

“The whole of Yobe State is still under Security Emergency which the Police, the Military and other security agencies are battling to ensure lasting peace.

“Members of the public in Yobe State are implored to disregard and discountenance this claim that the Military formally handed the security of Dapchi town to the Nigeria Police as untrue, unfounded and misleading.

“The Yobe State Police Command will continue to cooperate with other security agencies in ensuring safety and protection of lives and property of people of Yobe State.”

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/military-police-trade-blame-over-missing-dapchi-schoolgirls.html

Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State has created six additional ministries to the 17 ministries in the state, bringing the total to 23. Five of the ministries were carved out from the existing ones.

Mr Rufus Bature, Secretary to the Government of Plateau, announced the creation of the new ministries in a statement made available to newsmen yesterday in Jos.

Bature said that the creation of ministries was in line with government’s determination to reinvigorate its machinery to deliver on the five policy thrust of the administration.

The statement said that a Ministry of Transport has been carved out from the Ministry of Works and Transport.

“The Ministry of Mineral Development is to be excised from the Ministry of Environment and Mineral Development.

“The Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development has been carved out of the present Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.

“A Ministry of Economic Planning has been created out of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and State Planning Commission”.

According to the statement, a Ministry of Science and Technology has been created out of the present Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.

Bature added that an entirely new Ministry of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs has also been created.

He said that the new ministries will take off immediately.

It would be recalled that before the creation of the ministries, Gov Lalong had submitted a list of 23 commissioner nominees to the Plateau State House of Assembly for approval instead of the 17 nominees he submitted in 2015. (NAN)

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/lalong-creates-6-new-ministries-in-plateau.html

The storming by suspected Boko Haram elements of Government Girls Science and Technical College in Dapchi, Yobe State last Monday was a very big setback in the war against terrorism and a big hole in official claims that the terrorists had been defeated and are only being mopped up. Also inexplicable has been the confusing information served to the public by different officials, leading to the very embarrassing claim that the abducted girls had been rescued, which turned out to be false.

That Boko Haram could strike a girls’ school and cart away over a hundred schoolgirls nearly four years after the Chibok tragedy raises many troubling questions. Since 2015 the Buhari regime has engaged in intensive secret negotiations, assisted by international NGOs and the Swiss Government, that resulted in freedom for several dozen Chibok girls in two batches. Even though the government never disclosed the exact terms of the deal to free the girls, there are indications that some terrorist commanders were freed and money was paid in exchange.

Cruel, ruthless, unscrupulous and amoral that Boko Haram is, government and the security agencies would or should have known that it was only a matter of time before the terrorists try to restock their store of abducted schoolgirls as bargaining chip to extract more money and other concessions from government. In the Chibok girls, Boko Haram held its biggest psychological trump card against this country. More than one hundred of the Chibok girls are yet to return home; we do not know for sure how many of them survived the ordeal after nearly four years. It is not for nothing that, painful though it is, some governments never pay ransom to terrorists because they would simply grab more hostages.

It is difficult to understand why the girls school at Dapchi was operating almost without any security, save for one or two elderly gatemen. The terrorists just drove in, fired a few shots and carted away so many hostages. Even less difficult to comprehend was the confusing official information that followed. At first Nigerians were told that no one died, no injuries were sustained and no one was abducted. That all the students and teachers fled into the bush and the terrorists were only after food supplies. Though many students later turned up at their parents’ houses, it became clear that over a hundred were missing.

Yobe State Government said on Wednesday that the Army had rescued the girls, only to say the next day that had been misinformed. For President Buhari, this is the defining challenge of his tenure. It is a make or break event. Since Boko Haram is no longer as invincible as it once was, with no Sambisa, Alagarno or Lake Chad sanctuaries, with the Army and Air force much better equipped than they were a few years ago and with the northern Yobe terrain being vast but open, we expect the Dapchi girls to be liberated quickly from their captors. No other explanation is tenable.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/rescue-the-dapchi-girls-quickly.html

On the evening of February 19, students of Government Girls Technical College Dapchi, about to have breakfast, heard a deafening sound, accompanied by gunshots. In the ensuing confusion, students scattered, making the situation difficult for parents, and the government to have clarity on the whereabouts of many of them. Though state government and security operatives said they couldn’t establish any case of abduction, parents, teachers and students have many stories to tell. At the scene, residents, school staff and weeping parents could be seen.

Briefing the Yobe State Police Commissioner, the Principal of the school, Hajia Adama Abdulkareem, who could not account for the number of missing students, said she was at home when some frightened students came and told her that the school was under attack. “Before we came out, the insurgents were already in the quarters. Students and teachers were all jumping over the fence,” she said.

A schoolteacher, Malam Auwal, currently battling with a fracture on his thigh, which he sustained when the insurgents struck, said he was home when the attack began. “We started running. My wife was sick then, so she could not run very fast. I tried to lift her so that we could run faster, but a bullet from behind grazed my thigh. I asked my wife to run, so that one of us will be safe, but she refused. She was shouting at them to kill her and spare me. When they came closer, one of them told her to stay calm, that they will not kill her. She lay completely on my body to prevent another shot, and they left us.”

Auwal’s wife dragged him into the school mosque, where they hid until the insurgents left. Around 12:15am some military men arrived the school and gave them first aid, then transported the couple to a hospital in Damaturu. He told Daily Trust that he heard some schoolgirls crying “Mun shiga uku!” (Hausa for ‘We’re in trouble’) and the insurgents yelling at them to keep quiet.

Auwal said the attack confirmed fears, as for a very long time there has been no security personnel attached to the school. “Some weeks ago, military presence disappeared from a nearby checkpoint. I believe the insurgents must have been monitoring that.”

Hadiza Jibo, School Matron, said when they came out during the attack, students and staff were running helter-skelter. “It was total chaos,” she said, adding: “We don’t know how many students got missing, but according to the grapevine, the figure is over 50.

Hassana Mohammed, 13, said she was holding her sister’s hand when the insurgents struck, and came face-to-face with the armed men. They threatened to shoot, and somehow in the ensuing melee Fatima managed to escape, even if her 10-year-old sister, Fatsuma, is still nowhere to be found.

One Malam Dadin-Kowa helped save many of the schoolgirls, practically tossing an estimated 50 of them over the school fence, to relative safety.

Malam Idi Adamu, whose 13-year-old daughter is among the missing girls, said she was in the company of her sisters when the insurgents struck. “They were about to escape through the gate, when insurgents accosted them. Three of the sisters ran away, but two others, including my daughter, were captured by the terrorists, who forced them into a waiting vehicle,” he said.

A tea seller, Mohammad Kabo, said a fleet of vehicles drove past him suddenly that morning. “They asked me to pack up and leave, and asked a man to show them where ‘Makarantar Boko’ (Western school) is. After an hour or so, I heard their vehicles coming back, with girls wailing for help. I was dying within, but there was nothing I could do. In the morning, we heard that the schoolgirls went missing,” he said.

“It’s painful - and shocking - each time we hear the government say the case of abduction hasn’t been established,” Kabo told Daily Trust.

The school guard, Muhammad Baakoro, said he was standing by the school water pump when he heard a gunshot. His initial thought was that police fired a warning shot to disperse opposing football fans, from some competing clubs in viewing a center, but the gunshots continue coming towards the school. Later, an explosion rent the air, and the chaos began.

Baakoro narrated: “The children initially thought the insurgents were soldiers that came to rescue them, but seeing their appearance, dusty and unkempt, with rickety vehicles, I knew then that they were insurgents. They had red lances, wearing dirty military uniforms, yelling at children to get into a Tata truck. ‘Ku zo ku shiga, mu taimake ku’ (loosely meaning ‘Get in, let’s help you’).” He said the only option for him then was to run for his life.

Baakoro made it over the school fence and began to run. “About ten students were also running with me, crying for me to help them. We ran together, and I stopped after reaching a safe distance and took them to friend’s house at a nearby village. That was how we escaped,” he said, adding: “To me, they targeted this school.”

At the dining hall, Daily Trust met Malama Fatu, a caterer at the school’s kitchen, who said on the fateful day, the insurgents whisked many kids who were yet to eat breakfast. “Some of the children are below 10. Ever since this incident, I haven’t been able to eat or sleep well because the memories keep coming back,” she said, adding that she fears what could happen to some of the schoolchildren in the desert.

“I remember how I spoke with some newly-admitted students, who are among the ones currently missing. I feel for their parents, honestly. These are children, girls between the ages of ten to twelve, for Allah’s sake,” she sighed.

Yobe State government apologized for issuing to the public, information concerning the alleged abduction and rescue of 111 schoolgirls at Government Girls Science Technical College, Dapchi. The government described the information as “unreliable”. The press release was signed by the state’s Director-General Press Affairs, Malam Abdullahi Bego.

Bego’s statement read: “We issued the statement on the basis of information provided by one of the security agencies that is involved in the fight against Boko Haram and which we had no reason to doubt. We have now established that the information we relied on to make the statement was not credible.”

The statement added that Governor Gaidam shares deeply and personally in the grief about the unfortunate event.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/dapchi-schoolgirls-staff-parents-locals-narrate-harrowing-ordeal.html

About 15, 000 women in the country die of breast cancer annually, a medical oncologist, specialized in breast cancer, Dr Bisi Ademuyiwa has said. She disclosed this yesterday during a seminar organized by AXA Mansard HMO in collaboration with the African Women’s Entrepreneurship Program (AWEP) in Abuja.

Dr Ademuyiwa who is ranked by Forbes as one of the top 27 breast oncologists in the United States of America (USA) said about 27,000 to 30, 000 women in the country were diagnosed with breast cancer every year.

She said there were more cases of cancer in the country because Nigerians were taking more western habits and changing diet.

“We are no longer eating directly from the farm. We are eating more refined food, things in packs, frozen foods and less fresh foods,” she said.

She said there was need for government, health agencies and non-governmental organizations to work together towards supporting and easing the financial burden of cancer treatment for patients.

The National President, African Women’s Entrepreneurship Programme (AWEP) Angela Ajala said the seminar tagged “Current trends in the management of breast cancer” was organized because of the effect of the disease in the country and to disabuse the minds of the general public about the many myths surrounding it.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/-15-000-nigerian-women-die-annually-from-breast-cancer.html

It is a form of contraceptive methods that don't use chemical or foreign material or devices to prevent pregnancy. The religious beliefs may prevent some individuals from using hormonal or internal contraceptive devices. Others just prefer a more natural method of planning or preventing pregnancy. For most natural family planning methods, the individual's fertile days must be calculated so that she can abstain from intercourse on those days.
Various methods are used to determine the individual's fertile period.
·The effectiveness of these methods depends on the person's and person's willingness to refrain from sex on the individual's fertile days.
Failure rates vary from 10% to 20%.
Natural family planning methods include the rhythm, or calendar method.
Rhythm Method
It is also known as the calendar method;
Requires that the couple refrain from intercourse on these days the individual is most likely to conceive based on her menstrual cycle; and
This fertile period usually lasts from 3 to 4 days before until 3 to 4 days after ovulation.
Advantages
1. No drugs or devices needed;
2. It is free;
3. It may be acceptable to members of religious groups that oppose birth control;
4. It encourages couples to learn more about how the female body functions;
5. It encourage communication between partners; and
6. It can also be used to plan a pregnancy.
Disadvantages
1. It requires meticulous record keeping as well as ability and willingness for the individual to monitor her body changes;
2. It restricts sexual spontaneity during the person's fertile period;
3. It requires extended periods of abstinence from intercourse;
4. It is reliable for individual with regular menstrual cycle; and
5. It may be unreliable during periods of illness, infection, or stress.
Implications
1. Teach the person to keep a diary of her menstrual cycle (for six consecutive cycles) to determine when ovulation is most likely to occur;

2. To calculate her safe periods, tell her to subtract 18 from the shortest cycle and 11 from the longest cycle that she has documented;
3. For instance, if she had 6 menstrual cycles that lasted 26 to 30 days, her fertile period would be from the 8th day (26 minus 18) to the 19th day (30 minus 11);
4. To ensure that pregnancy does not occur, she and her partner should abstain from intercourse during days 8 to 19 days of her menstrual cycle; and
5. During those fertile days, she and her partner may also choose to use contraceptive foam.

Source: http://women-ng..com.ng