₦airaland Forum

Nigeria officially joined the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as President Muhammadu Buhari signed the Agreement Sunday in Niamey at the opening of the African Union (AU) Summit.


He told the Summit that Nigeria will build on the event by proceeding expeditiously with the ratification of the AfCFTA.

‘‘Nigeria wishes to emphasize that free trade must also be fair trade.

‘‘As African leaders, our attention should now focus on implementing the AfCFTA in a way that develops our economies and creates jobs for our young, dynamic and hardworking population.

‘‘I wish to assure you, that Nigeria shall sustain its strong leadership role in Africa, in the implementation of the AfCFTA. We shall also continue to engage, constructively with all African countries to build the Africa that we want,’’ President Buhari said.

Read Also: Buhari vows punishment for murderous herdsmen, terrorists
The Nigerian leader also congratulated Ghana on being selected to host the Secretariat of the AfCFTA.

President Buhari stated further: ‘‘I have just had the honour of signing the agreement establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), on behalf of my country, the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

‘‘This is coming over a year since the AfCFTA Agreement was opened for signature in Kigali, Rwanda, at the 10th Extraordinary Summit of the African Union, on 21st March 2018.

‘‘In fact, you will recall that the treaty establishing the African Economic Community was signed in Abuja in 1991.

‘‘We fully understand the potential of the AfCFTA to transform trade in Africa and contribute towards solving some of the continent’s challenges, whether security, economic or corruption.

‘‘But it is also clear to us that for AfCFTA to succeed, we need the full support and buy-in of our private sector and civil society stakeholders and the public in general.

‘‘It is against this background that we embarked on an extensive nationwide consultation and sensitization programme of our domestic stakeholders on the AfCFTA.

‘‘Our consultations and assessments reaffirmed that the AfCFTA can be a platform for African manufacturers of goods and providers of service to construct regional value chains for made in Africa goods and services.

‘‘It was also obvious that we have a lot of work to do to prepare our nation to achieve our vision for intra-African trade which is the free movement of ‘made in Africa goods’ ”.

‘‘Some of the critical challenges that we identified will require our collective action as a Union and we will be presenting them for consideration at the appropriate AfCFTA fora.

‘‘Examples are tackling injurious trade practices by third parties and attracting the investment we need to grow local manufacturing and service capacities.’’ he said

President Buhari noted that Nigeria’s signing of the AfCFTA and its Operational Launch at the 12th Extraordinary Summit was an additional major step. forward on the AU’s Agenda 2063.

With Nigeria and Benin Republic signing the Agreement at the Summit, 54 out of 55 African countries have signed the world’s largest free trade area deal, encompassing 55 countries and 1.2 billion people.

Eritrea is the only African country yet to sign the agreement.

A total of 26 African countries have deposited instruments of ratification, with Gabon being the latest after depositing her instrument of ratification during the Extraordinary Summit.

The AfCFTA Agreement entered into force on May 30, 2019 thirty days after having received the twenty-second instrument of ratification on 29 April, 2019 in conformity with legal provision.





Read more here https://thickmatch.com/free-trade-must-fair-trade-says-buhari/

President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday signed the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement.

He gave the endorsement in Niamey, Niger Republic, making Nigeria the 53rd state on the continent to append its signature to the document.

Buhari signed the agreement around 10.48 am local time, as the first event at the opening of the 12th Extra Ordinary Summit of the African Union on launch of the Operational Phase of the AfCFTA.

The President had delayed in signing the agreement to give room for extensive consultations with stakeholders.

The Presidential Committee on Assessment Impact and Readiness had submitted its report last week.

The committee had recommended that Nigeria should sign the agreement.

Twenty four countries have already ratified the AfCFTA which is expected to be the world’s largest free trade area since the formation of the World Trade Organization with a potential market of 1.2 billion people and a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $2 5 trillion, across all 55 member states of the African Union.



Read more here https://thickmatch.com/breaking-buhari-signs-afcfta-agreement/

The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has ordered the “immediate release of details of payments to all defaulting and allegedly corrupt electricity contractors and companies by the governments of former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, former President, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, former President, Goodluck Jonathan, and the government of Muhammadu Buhari.”

The judgment was delivered last Friday by Justice Chuka Austine Obiozor, a Professor of Law, following a Freedom of Information suit number FHC/L/CS/105/19 brought by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP).

Justice Obiozor also ordered: “the full disclosure and publication of the names of companies and the whereabouts of the contractors paid by successive governments since the return of democracy in 1999 to carry out electricity projects across the country but disappeared with the money without executing any projects.”

This development was disclosed today in a statement by SERAP deputy director, Kolawole Oluwadare.

The court also ruled in the suit brought against the Federal Government and the Ministry of Power, that: “the failure by the government of President Muhammadu to provide SERAP with the details of payments made to contractors by each government since 1999 is a breach of the Freedom of Information Act, 2011.”

The court also ordered the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to “urgently disclose if there is an ongoing investigation or prosecution of contractors and companies paid by successive governments since 1999 to carry out electricity projects but failed to execute the projects for which public funds were collected.”

Justice Obiozor in his judgment granted the following reliefs:

A DECLARATION is hereby made that the failure and/or refusal of the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power] to provide SERAP with documents and information containing the specific names and details of contractors and companies that have been engaged in the power sector by successive governments since 1999, details, of specific projects and the amounts that have been paid to the contractors and companies, details on the level of implementation of electricity projects and their specific locations across the country, and failure to widely publish it on a dedicated website, any of such information, amounts to a breach of the obligations under the Freedom of Information Act 2011
A DECLARATION is hereby made that the failure and/or refusal of the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power]to provide SERAP with specific documents and information containing the specific names and details of contractors and companies that allegedly collected money for electricity projects from successive governments since 1999 but failed to execute any of such projects, and failure to widely publish it on a dedicated website, any of such information, amounts to a breach of the Respondent’s responsibility/obligation under the Freedom of Information Act 2011
AN ORDER OF MANDAMUS is made directing and compelling the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power] to urgently compile and make available to SERAP documents and information containing the specific names and details of contractors and companies that have been engaged in the power sector by successive governments since the return of democracy in 1999 to date, details of specific projects and the amounts that have been paid to the contracts and companies, details on the level of implementation of electricity projects and their specific locations across the country and to publish widely including on a dedicated website, any of such information
AN ORDER OF MANDAMUS is made directing and compelling the Respondent[Federal Government/Ministry of Power]to urgently compile and make available to SERAP documents and information containing the specific names and details of contractors and companies that allegedly collected money for electricity projects from successive governments since 1999 but failed to execute any projects
A DECLARATION is hereby made that the failure and/or refusal of the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power] to urgently disclose if there is an ongoing investigation or prosecution of allegedly corrupt contractors and companies in the electricity sector, amounts to a breach of the Respondent’s responsibility/obligation under the Freedom of Information Act 2011
AN ORDER OF MANDAMUS is made directing and compelling the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power] to urgently disclose if there is an ongoing investigation or prosecution of allegedly corrupt contractors and companies in the electricity sector.
SERAP deputy director, Kolawole Oluwadare said: “We welcome the ground-breaking judgment by Justice Obiozor as a victory for transparency and accountability of public officials, electricity contractors and companies and their shareholders. It is an extremely important step toward tackling the impunity in electricity sector, which has for many years forced ordinary Nigerians to stay in darkness, but still made to pay crazy electricity bills.”

“SERAP commends the Court, and Justice Obiozor for this brilliant judgment, which will surely command respect and adulation from far beyond the legal profession.”

“During the 20 years of Nigeria’s democracy successive governments have failed to increase power generation and provide Nigerians with regular and uninterrupted electricity supply, with many electricity contracts shrouded in secrecy, and trillions of Naira going down the drain.”

“The enforcement of the judgment could potentially reveal individuals, contractors, and companies allegedly responsible for squandering over N11 trillion meant to provide regular electricity supply under successive governments, lead to the prosecution of suspected perpetrators, and recovery of stolen public funds.”

“SERAP calls upon the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to demonstrate his oft-repeated commitment to the rule of law by immediately obeying and respecting the judgment of the Court.”

“SERAP has applied for the certified true copy of the judgment, which we will share widely once it’s obtained,” Oluwadare stated.

It would be called that SERAP had in February filed the FOI suit against the Federal Government and former Minister of Power Mr Babatunde Fashola. The former minister then responded, saying that: “the Ministry has searched for the requested information on details of alleged contractors and companies but we could not find it from our records.”




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/court-orders-release-payment-details-runaway-electricity-contractors-obasanjo-jonathan-others/

Broadcaster, Ifedayo Olarinde, aka Daddy Freeze, has ruffled more than a few feathers with his brand of evangelism. Much to the annoyance and consternation of conventional clerics, the OAP has consistently stated that the payment of tithes is not Biblical. According to him, it is just a way that ‘men of God’ use to fleece their congregations of their hard-earned money.

Because of his controversial stance, some have accused him of waging a war against the church, even to the point of labeling him as the Antichrist. In a chat with Sunday Scoop, Freeze said he wasn’t bothered about such appellation.

On how he feels whenever he is called the Antichrist, Freeze said,

“Christ Himself was called the Antichrist; so, who am I to care? Christ was so controversial that in just His third year of ministry, He was killed.

He entered the temple and flogged people out for misusing the building. Do you know how controversial that was? I haven’t even flogged anyone yet and they are already calling me the Antichrist. The real Antichrists are on the pulpit; you go and pay them visits every Sunday. If you have a message that is against Christ’s message, you are the Antichrist. If you are preaching (about) tithes and first fruits, you are the Antichrist.

If you are looking for the real Antichrists, check your churches and pulpits. People go to worship in the church of the Antichrists and call me the Antichrist, not realising that I’m the one reminding them of what Christ actually wants. That’s hypocritical.”




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/dont-care-im-called-antichrist-freeze/

A former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Timi Alaibe, has declared to run in the next governorship election in Bayelsa State.

Alaibe disclosed on Thursday that he will run a Blue Ocean Economy and invite private sector capital for sustainable development in the State.

He has also obtained the relevant form from the National Secretariat for the governorship race.

The former NDDC boss, who unveiled his ambition to reporters in Abuja, said, ” I have had many consultations before declaring my interest.

“The consultations are still ongoing. “Essentially, my vision for Bayelsa is that of a shared economic prosperity for the people of the state.

”The vision is about the government as a social investor and the government as an enabler to invite private sector capital…”




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/bayelsa-guber-ex-nddc-boss-timi-alaibe-declares-ambition-governor/

Popular musician, Timi Dakolo, whose wife is currently in a controversy over her alleged rape has reacted to the recent allegation by a former staff of Commonwealth of Zion Assembly, COZA, that Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo raped her.

The former staff of the church who pleaded anonymity on Thursday said Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo raped her sometime in 2017 at the pastor’s house.

At the time, she said she was an employee of COZA who worked directly with the pastor and was also a member of the church.

According to her, Pastor Fatoyinbo asked her to come to his house outside Nigeria on the particular day (a Thursday morning) to take some instructions and go for an errand but the scenario changed after he stopped discussing the church and grabbed her towards him.

Reacting to the recent interview, Timi Dakolo took to his Instagram page, describing the interview as truth and not an attack on the church.

According to him, the revelations are not to attack the church but an ‘attack against an individual using the church as an avenue to ruin women.’

“Then another person found her voice and boldly steps forward. This time a former church member and staff is here to tell her truth. This isn’t about the church, it has never been, so don’t get it twisted.

“Nobody can fight the church of God. We are against individuals using the church as an avenue to ruin women. Let us not expect to do what God expects us to do! This truth is not going anywhere. Must we continue in evil so that grace may abound? God, forbid!




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/timi-dakolo-reacts-former-coza-staff-accuses-pastor-biodun-fatoyinbo-raping/

it is true
Chelsea Welcomes Back, Frank! Lampard Officially Returns As New Chelsea Manager

see more of the transfer details here
https://thickmatch.com/chelsea-welcomes-back-frank-lampard-officially-returns-new-chelsea-manager/

There are indications that close to 80 migrants including Nigerians may have died after a detention centre was hit by an airstrike early Wednesday, July 3, 2019, an official of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) was quoted as saying.

IOM is an intergovernmental organization that provides services and advice concerning migration to governments and migrants, including internally displaced persons, refugees, and migrant workers.

According to Radio 2000, it was gathered that “the death toll from an airstrike in Libya could be much higher than originally reported.”

The source also quoted the Director, Media and Communication Division of IOM Leonard Doyle as saying, “up to 80 Africa migrants could have been killed when the airstrike hit a detention centre on the outskirts of the capital Tripoli.”

An initial report on the incident confirmed that 40 people mostly from Africa countries including Nigerians were killed by the attack at early morning Wednesday.

IOM Mission in Nigeria that confirmed the figure as reported by the Vanguard said the attack occurred at the Tajoura Detention Centre in Tripoli, Libya.

Chief of Mission, Mr Franz Celestin, who didn’t disclose the number of Nigerians that were killed by the deadly attack said he was appalled to wake up to the news of an air strike in Libya that killed at least 40 migrants, including Nigerians.

He called on the Libyan authority to discontinue further detention of migrants in the war-torn Arabian country so as not to endanger their lives.

At the time of this report, Washington Post has officially confirmed that the number of casualties has risen to 44.

It isn’t the first time the refugee/migrants detention camp would be attacked. There have been cases of multiple airstrikes on or near detention centres across Tripoli since the conflict started in the city in early April.




See more here https://thickmatch.com/80-migrants-including-nigerians-may-died-libya-bomb-attack/

The Federal Government has begun interrogation of those implicated in the alleged fraud that left over 65,000 Nigerian shareholders losing two billion dollars worth of shares.

According to NAN, those invited for interrogation were former minister of Budget and National Planning, Sen. Udo Udoma and his counterpart in the Ministry of Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah.

Chukwuemeka Obasi, the legal representative of a whistle-blower, disclosed this to newsmen on Wednesday in Abuja.

Obasi said that the General Managing Director of Union Bank Nig Plc, Mr Emeka Emuwa was also questioned.

According to him, the various representatives of all private and public institutions linked with the fraud were also invited and quizzed.
Obasi said the establishments mentioned in the petition included the Chapel Hill, National Security Exchange (NSE), Security Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The interrogation hinged on a petition reporting the alleged fraud submitted to the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami, SAN, dated April 3, 2019.

The petition is titled “Official corruption, misuse of FGN USD two billion, fraud and unjust enrichment of persons who dispossessed more than 65,000 Nigerians and conferred ownership of the Bank on few Nigerians and their foreign accomplices’’.
The petition did finger former Central Bank Governor, the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Sanusi Lamido Sanusi II, under whose watch the alleged fraud was perpetuated.

Also accused of alleged complexities in the transactions were the two former ministers.

Enelamah was particularly fingered as the mastermind of the transaction by allegedly leading Africa Capital Alliance to form the Mauritius shell company to house Nigerians pretending to be foreign investors.

The transactions allegedly dispossessed Nigerian shareholders and investors in order to transfer ownership of the bank to a few persons including insiders, chieftains of competitor banks and others who would not pass CBN’s “fit and proper’’ test for bank ownership.

The petition claimed that Enelamah allegedly organised the registration of the offshore shell company in Mauritius called Union Global Partners Limited for the purpose of disguising the true majority ownership of Union Bank shares concealed in the offshore company.

The petition also alleged that the transactions commenced under Udoma’s supervision as Chairman of Security and Exchange Commission and sealed up when he became the Chairman of Union Bank of Nigeria Plc.

“The circumstances can best be described as official corruption and insider trading’’, the petition alleged.

The petition further alleged that Udoma and other officials illicitly granted a renewable five-year waiver to Union Bank of Nigeria to remain listed on the exchange in spite of being owned by a few private equity firms till today.

According to the petition, the alleged unlawful action is to ensure the more than 65,000 Nigeria former shareholders whose shares were diluted from 85 per cent to less than 15 per cent of public float to still be listed on Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

“It is to be recalled that 49% shares of Union Bank of Nigeria plc is now majority owned and controlled by London listed Atlas Mara, the investment company led by Robert Diamond Jr.

“Mr Diamond is a former Chief Executive Officer of Barclays Bank who was sacked for his involvement in manipulating Libor.

“Not only is Mr Diamond not a fit and proper person to own a bank according to the rules of Nigeria, he had also been blacklisted by the Bank of England as a result of the Libor manipulation.

“One wonders how the former CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi authorised the Union Bank change of ownership transaction and bridged it with USD two billion national patrimony, in spite of glaring evidence of fraud and the nature of the ultimate foreign owner who was already known and waiting in the wings.


https://www.google.com/amp/s/dailypost.ng/2019/07/04/fg-commences-investigation-two-ex-minister-billions-dollars/amp/

THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday demanded the immediate prosecution of former Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, over his alleged role in the reported National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) N2.5 billion fraud.

The party also demanded the prosecution of the sacked Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Prof. Usman Yusuf, over alleged misappropriation of N919 million, as reported by a ministerial panel.

In a statement in Abuja by its spokesman Kola Ologbondiyan, the PDP said the duo “must not be left off the hook” because of their affinity with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Presidency.

The party insisted that Mohammed should be prosecuted alongside the Director General of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Alhaji Modibbo Kawu.

Kawu is facing trial over an alleged N2.5 billion Digital Switchover deal, which was investigated by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).




Read more here https://thickmatch.com/alleged-fraud-pdp-seeks-prosecution-lai-mohammed-usman-yusuf/

Prek dey bad shaa

Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last general elections, Atiku Abubakar and his party have approached the Supreme Court to grant them access to a supposed server purportedly used to transmit election results by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) in a ruling on June 24, 2019 had rejected a similar request they made in a motion on notice that was dismissed, a decision Atiku and the PDP have now appealed before the Supreme Court via a notice of appeal filed on June 26, 2019.

Atiku and his party want the Supreme Court to allow their appeal and set aside the June 24, 2019 ruling of the PEPT.

In rejecting the application, the PEPT had held, among others that granting their request would amount to pre-judging the issue in the substantive case, which is whether or not INEC has a central server, which it deployed for the purpose of transmitting results during the last presidential election.

The PEPT was of the view that granting the reliefs sought by Atiku and the PDP at the pre-hearing stage, when parties have joined issues on the dispute over the existence and use of a central server, would amount to agreeing with the petitioners (Atiku and the PDP) that a INEC had a central server which it deployed to transmit results during the election.

The preponderance of the claim by Atiku and his party is to the effect that they won the last presidential election going by the results they claimed to have got from the said central server allegedly owned and deployed for the election by INEC.

In the notice of appeal which The Nation sighted in Abuja yesterday, Atiku and the PDP are attacking the tribunal’s ruling on four grounds, the first being that the PEPT was in error when “contrary to the provisions of Section 151 (l) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) they refused to grant the application of the Appellants on the ground that it will amount to pre-judging the issue in the substantive case.”

They argued that their application was legitimately brought within the confines of Section 151(1) of the Electoral Act,’2010 (as amended), which allows for an order for an inspection of a polling document or any other packet in the custody of the Chief National Electoral Commissioner or any other Officer of the commission for purpose of, inter alia, maintaining the election petition.

The appellants argued that their request was simply to be allowed to access and inspect “the information stored in the database packets in the 1st respondent’s (INEC’s) central server, such that all the parties were to be given an opportunity to participate in the inspection.”

On the second ground, they argued that the tribunal was in error when it failed to exercise its discretion in their favour despite placing sufficient materials placed before it.



Read more here https://thickmatch.com/atiku-pdp-urge-supreme-court-grant-access-inec-server/

Something spectacular happened today as the Ebonyi State governor was on project inspection across Ebonyi State. He has kept on making people to understand that being a governor is not about sitting down and giving directives but leading by example. He was captured today, performing a high technical and professional engineering duty in one of the industrial clusters in Ebonyi State.

In the pictures is the governor performing the practical of confirming water level in the visited site. The above task was a tedious job for the site engineers. It was tough for them until the governor came and showed them the way. He does it while engineers watch in excitement.

Even myself as a layman; I watched in excitement and was proud to see that my governor is not governor of just pen and paper but governor of action and practicality. See, I just have to say this without mincing words, man pass man and governor pass governor and Gov. Umahi pass governor.

Far away from the above, you will observe that the governor commands the air to sing hosanna each time he passes by. He blesses Tom, Dick and Harry. Today was not an exception as he was going about changing lives.

See, It has become like a tradition that people now roll out their troubles on hearing that Gov. Umahi is passing.

At my last count, the governor blessed about 200 persons in some of the construction sites in different capacities. Among those worthy of note was a pregnant woman who was working at one of the industrial clusters visited by the governor today, he did not waste a minute before calling on her and sending her for medicals with package made of hug amount of money. The next was a little girl with fresh burn in her hand, she was immediately sent to the hospital with huge sum of money to take care of her hospital bill. It was a day of blessing and blessing the people.

Umahi is now your brother, he thinks good and means well for us all. He is your friend in the next door. Let join hands and make Ebonyi great.



Read more here https://thickmatch.com/gov-umahi-captured-camera-performing-engineering-practicals/

The Sarkin Fulani of Lagos State and the Chairman of the Association of Fulani Chiefs in the South-West Nigeria, Alhaji Mohammed Abubakar Bambado has debunked the insinuations making the round that has plan to transmute to an Emir in Lagos State saying, “The insinuation is far from the truth.” He warned that the cordial relationship between the good people of Lagos State and the Fulani residents which have been in existence for over a century should be preserved.

The monarch disclosed that the rumours emanated from an interview he granted some foreign media personnel doing a documentary on Nigeria, saying the documentaries are not secret documents as they are already published and in public domain for whoever has interest to go through. According to the worried monarch, the aims of those peddling the unfounded rumours are actually targeted at polluting the cordial relationship between President Muhammadu Buhari and the people of the south-west with a view to scoring cheap political goals towards 2023.

While asserting that His Royal Majesty, Oba Rilwan Akiolu of Lagos, is like a father to him, Bambado pointed out that, “having a Sarkin Fulani in any state is like having Eze Ndigbo as well as Yoruba Obas in other state across the nation,” emphasising that, “there is no way these tribe leaders can claim equality with the owners of the land.” He challenged anybody to show any insignia around his palace that suggests that he is planning transformation to the status of an Emir in Lagos to come out with proof just as he urged the good people of Lagos State, South-West and the whole country to disregard the erroneous insinuations from the people he describes as, “the enemies of Nigeria.”

While assuring that the latest insinuation would not alter the peaceful coexistence and good neighbourliness the Fulanis are enjoying in Lagos and the south west, the monarch warned the rumour mongers and insinuation peddlers to desist from their divisive antics, asserting that, “they will fail woefully in their attempts to destroy this country that belong to all of us.” God bless our country Nigeria.



Read more here https://thickmatch.com/im-not-emir-lagos-sarkin-fulani-clears-air/

A spokesman for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) declined to comment, saying: “Due to law-enforcement sensitivities and the safety and security of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel, the agency will not offer specific details related to enforcement operations before the conclusion of those actions.”

The Acting Director of ICE, Mark Morgan, said the agency would target for deportation families that have received a removal order from a US immigration court.

Morgan said ICE wanted to deport undocumented families who had recently arrived in the U.S. to discourage more Central Americans from arriving.

Trump had tweeted, before the formal kickoff of his 2020 re-election campaign, that ICE would begin removing “the millions” of undocumented immigrants in the US.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the country’s top Democrat, responded, saying, “The president’s new threat of a mass deportation dragnet is an act of utter malice and bigotry, designed solely to inject fear in our communities.”



Read more here https://thickmatch.com/trump-us-start-deporting-migrants-july-4/

A businessman and philanthropist, Mr. Keniebi Okoko, yesterday became the first aspirant in the party to pay N21million to secure the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Expression of Interest and Nomination forms ahead of the party’s primary for the November 16 governorship election in Bayelsa State.

The ruling party in Bayelsa at the end of its 86th Emergency National Executive Council (NEC) meeting pegged the nomination form at N20million and the expression of interest form at N1million.

Speaking after picking the forms, Okoko, an alumnus of the Harvard Business School and the University of Port Hacourt, cowed to sustain and expand the achievements of Governors Seriake Dickson in the educational sector.

Okoko, an indigene of Obunagha in Yenagoa said having served his people through the Keniebi Okoko Foundation; it was time to extend his service to the public.

He recalled that the foundation brought succour to the people by providing aids during the perennial floods, granting scholarships, payment of hospital bills for the underprivileged among others.

Okoko said that as an aspirant he was aware of the supremacy of the party adding in following the rules of the party he decided to be the first to pick the forms in the entire state.

Describing the PDP as the beacon of the revival of democracy in the country, he expressed confidence that the process of nominations during the primaries would be free and fair.

Keniebi, who is the son of foremost educationist and Ijaw leader, Prof. Kimse Okoko, said when elected, he would ensure that investment flows into the state.

He said: “With the right infrastructure in place, good roads, steady power supply, reliable security in place, good hospitals, good and quality education, captains of industries and entrepreneurs will be comfortable and willing to come to Bayelsa and invest and jobs will be created through the private sector participation.

“Dickson has done very well in changing the face of education in Bayelsa state and one of the major things I want to do is to build on that. The educated mind is a liberated mind. We also want to increase the quality and number of companies that come into the state and create the right environment for business to thrive”.

In his remarks, the Director-General of the Keniebi Okoko Campaign, Chief Darius Obiene, described Keniebi’s decision to buy the form in the state as an expression of his seriousness in the governorship race.


Read more here https://thickmatch.com/bayelsa-guber2019-okoko-picks-n21m-pdp-forms/

lalasticlala mynd44

The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) on Wednesday met with the World Bank to review the bank engagements in the country and at sub-national level.

NGF Chairman and Governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi disclosed this while addressing newsmen after the meeting that was held in Abuja, NAN reports.
Fayemi said that the World Bank had been a major partner of the forum in the development programmes of all the states.

He said that the governors at the meeting looked at its engagements with the bank, especially subsisting portfolio and reviewed things that they were doing right.

He said that the meeting also reviewed thing the state governors needed to improve on and how they needed to accelerate deployment of resources available within the portfolio for states.

According to him, the bank is spending somewhere in the region of $4 billion in states. Some of our states are benefiting from a range of grants, even loans on the basis of the bank’s investments in our states.

“These are with long term moratorium and with low interest over a long period of time to offset those loan portfolios.

“So, it is important for us to work on that engagement both in terms of the lending operations, in terms of adversary activities, and in terms of the concrete action in our states.

“I don’t know of many developments partners that have programmes in 36 states, the world bank does,” he said.

Fayemi said that the bank had extensive discussion on how to improve on existing relationship and how to build on those projects that had transitioned from one governor to the other.

According to him, it is absolutely important that we treat government as a continuum and address whatever gaps existing without throwing the baby away with the bath water.

He said that the NGF also proposed a range of suggestions, which the bank had taken up and would be implementing in order to improve the relationship the governors and the bank had built over the years.

According to him, there is a question of course of also not having enough resources and the need to expand the lending portfolio from what it is now, both to the federal government and the sub-national entity.

“It is absolutely important that those vehicles are not closed because if we can borrow from the world bank at one per cent interest it is always going to be better for us than for us to be borrowing at 25 per cent commercial lending rate.”

Fayemi described World Bank as a critical partner that the governors really needed to work with in order to improve quality of life and living conditions of Nigerians.

Fayemi assured the World Bank that its fund would be judiciously utilised, adding that the NGF was returning its Peer Review Mechanisms programme as a way of strengthening peer learning.

On his part, the World Bank Country Director in Nigeria, Rachid Benmessaoud, said the bank’s mission in the country was to fight poverty and build prosperity.

“Our priorities, during our engagement with the governors was around investing in human capital, investing in people to have access to basic education, health services, social protection.

“However, we do recognise that the development challenges also require investing in infrastructure and filling the large infrastructure gaps.

“We want to make sure that those infrastructure gaps are filled by bringing more of the the private sector that will create the physical space for governors to invest in human capital including financing from development partners like the World Bank.

” But most importantly to increase the domestic revenue mobilization for providing primary spending on the social sector,” he said.

Benmessaoud added that the World Bank investment portfolio covered health, education, soil erosion and water.

“Like the chairman has said, better education, reducing the number of out of school children, the states fiscal performance, providing basic primary healthcare, a range of activities already implemented.



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