₦airaland Forum

Ekiti State governor and Chairman of Nigeria Governors Forum(NGF), Dr Kayode Fayemi recently completed two years in his second tenure in office and spoke on various issues. In an interactive session with some journalists in Lagos, he cautioned that restructuring of the country is the way to go.

What would you consider the gains, challenges, constraints of governing Ekiti State in the last two years of your return to office ?



I’m in a fairly unique position in the sense that I’m not a new kid on the block so, I cannot be excused from lack of knowledge of the challenges of office. If you all recall what I said during the campaigns in 2018, I said I had unfinished business which was the reason I was returning to Ekiti, not that I didn’t have an alternative or I just wanted to be Governor for its own sake. I was a minister at the time I chose to go back, because of the circumstances of my exit from office. I wanted to ensure that we win the state back and then complete many projects embarked on in my first term as well as entrench an irreversible development trajectory. In the four years that I was out of office, there was widespread suffering and poverty in the state. Ekiti, many will still argue, is essentially a civil service state. Payment of workers’ salaries should not be considered as an achievement. However, when you are a civil service state and you are operating in a situation where people have not been paid for almost a year, then it becomes a big deal when you take that burden off those directly affected, not to mention the multiplier effect on others in the state. It’s therefore clear that we needed change of leadership in order to get good governance back on the agenda and a sense of purpose back to government.

You can recall, my campaign focused on restoring the values and reclaiming the land of Ekiti. What was to be reclaimed? Take the social intervention programmes that we had in the state when I was governor. They were all cancelled by my successor. There was no longer free education programme up to senior secondary level as we used to have in my first term. The monthly stipend for the elderly citizens, “owo arugbo” and the Food Bank, “Ounje arugbo”, as we call it in Ekiti also disappeared. The free health programme for the under-five, over-65, the pregnant women and people with disability were also cancelled by the previous government. Now, all these are back in Ekiti and our people are enjoying them.

Given our parlous financial state, we figured out a way to run an economy that has also generated more investments for the state. If you look at our agricultural sector, we decided, policy- wise, that the only way we can transit from being a subsistence agricultural state was to find a mechanism to attract more commercial investment to the agriculture sector in the state. We have brought such critical players to the Agric sector like Terra Agric, Dangote Farms, Stallion Farms, FMS, Promise Point and Cowbell (Promasidor) to Ekiti and in another three months, Promasidor would have reached full scale production of dairy products. This is something that has led to the revival and resuscitation of the Ikun dairy farm that has been moribund for over two decades.



We are establishing a special agriculture processing zone supported by the African Development Bank, AfDB and the World Bank. We are in partnership with the World Bank on rural access to farms to aid agric marketing process. Basically, what that does for us is open up the state by fixing the feeder roads, linking the farms to the market. Roughly, 1,000 kilometres of rural roads in addition to other agricultural infrastructures have been done.

In terms of roads, one of the most critical roads we have, that some of you have passed and complained about, is the Ado- Akure road. When you go on that road, you will know the problem we have with the so- called federal roads. One of the very first things I did on coming back was to secure support of the African Development Bank to fix the road, then we ran into a hitch with the Federal Government, when they insisted that we should not fix their road, that they would fix the road themselves. So, the governor of Ondo State and I had to approach the AfDB with the support of the Minister of Works, Babatunde Fashola to relocate the funds to the Federal Government. The road is now ready for construction and the contractor – Dantata and Sawoe is mobilizing to the site as I speak. We hope they will finish it in good time for the people to really benefit from it.

We have our legacy projects, which for me are the ones that, over the long term, can be treated more as the gains of the state and the restoration of values I was talking about.

Our knowledge zone, which is basically an aggregation of opportunity in the knowledge service industry, is a special economic zone, probably the first in the country that is focused on intellectual capital. This is informed by who we are as Ekiti people, it is what we are known for- our intellect, our passion for education. How do we turn this to wealth rather than just reading for the sake of getting degrees? That was what informed this special zone we created in our education quadrangle, where we have about four higher institutions feeding this zone in biomedical, health, agric technology, and information technology.

About a month ago, I was at the “Nigerian Export Promoting Zone Authority, NEPZA, to discuss with them the granting of the status of a special economic zone for the sector. We are also working on an airport for the state, an agric cargo airport, which is something that in the short term appears a luxury in the state but over a long time, the economic trajectory will become more sensible to those who are accessing the state. We have the best hospital in Nigeria in Ekiti. The airport will also make the hospital accessible because of Ekiti’s landlocked nature.

So, what you can see as challenges for us of course include resource constraints. Ekiti, as I said is not exactly a buoyant state. If you look at the ladder of states, we have just N3.3billion coming from the federation account monthly. When you earn N3 billion and you spend N2.6 to 2.8 billion on recurrent expenditure, you have to be more creative, in order to deliver on the promises you made to the people.

We have been fortunate because we have international partnerships that we are benefiting from. So, we have been able to fill the gap a little bit.

What about the constraints?

Constraints, I think, is something that is worth reflecting on. I think we are fast getting to a point in which we must confront our reality as a federation. Finance is always a constraint at the state level. There is what I call the tyranny of unfunded mandates. We can’t continue to run an economy the way we are doing. We have to figure out a structure, a formula that will enable us generate more funds internally and at the same time ensure equitable and fair distribution of what’s available in the Federation coffers. We need a formula that is more responsive to the yearnings of the population. The current structure obviously favours those who are more associated with the unitary structure that privileges concentration of powers and resources at the Centre rather than a genuine federal structure of federation units that is more accountable to the people and responsive to the challenges that the people have.

Are you making a case for Fiscal Federalism ?

We have always made a case for fiscal federalism. I am a known advocate of fiscal federalism but I’m also saying even those who are reluctant and ambivalent about fiscal federalism are being confronted daily with these challenges in their states and they are asking themselves how long can we continue to do this, am I elected just to pay salaries and not raise funds to do more for my people? And it is not just about sharing revenues, it is also about creating the enabling environment that would allow investment to thrive in our various states.

On APC governors’ stand on restructuring, are you getting the cooperation of the National Assembly?

I am not the chairman, APC Governors’ Forum by the way, I’m Chairman of Nigeria Governors’ Forum, which is non-partisan. But I’m a member of the APC Governors’ Forum. These issues are raised daily but the point I’m trying to make is that, I don’t see a conflict between the pursuit of fiscal federalism and devolving more powers to the lower levels. In fact, they are two sides of the same coin whether you call it restructuring, devolution or constitutional reform, that’s just an issue of nomenclature.

For us in APC, we have taken some bold steps. We have a comprehensive report which I’m sure many of you would have come across- the Nasir El-Rufai committee has not only articulated in clear terms what our views are on what you call restructuring but also attached proposed bills which we then took as APC governors to the leadership of the National Assembly- President Ahmed Lawan, and Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila, handed it over to them: We do not have the powers as governors to make laws, these are our proposals as governors of the APC, and we believe that when they start a constitution reform process, this will be one of the materials they would treat as a formal memorandum from us.

I heard they have started the process now led by Deputy Senate President, Omo-Agege; it is our hope that it will not go the way of previous constitution reform process. The challenge is if we do not have the powers, we can propose and encourage our members but ultimately, the power resides in our National Assembly. I think the National Assembly really ought to spend time pulling together various constitutional reform processes, the Jonathan process, the 1995 Justice Niki Tobi process, the one by President Obasanjo, our own proposals as outlined in the El- Rufai report and several others with a view to harmonizing them and come up with a single document, subject it to a national referendum and then we have a constitution.

I don’t think it’s a rocket science but maybe there are impediments which the National Assembly may have, but they cannot say it’s President Buhari or APC governors that have stopped them from accelerating the constitutional reform process.

Is 2023 possible without restructuring given agitation for Biafra Republic, Oduduwa Republic, Kwararafa Republic etc ?

Posturing is part of politics and people will always posture and use that to gain the headline. Those people talking about Oduduwa Republic or Kwararafa Republic, who are they speaking for? Who gave them the mandate to speak for Yoruba? Did they consult the Yoruba people and the Yoruba people told them that they want Oduduwa Republic? If you have Oduduwa Republic, where will the capital be? That is just a tip of the iceberg. You can be sure that all Yoruba people are not on the same page, neither are all Jukuns or Hausa on the same page despite efforts to maintain the impression of a monolithic Yoruba, Igbo or Hausa-Fulani identity. If you bring IPOB, you will get the same feedback. I think the one Nigeria I want is the Nigeria that serves everybody and works for everybody. I don’t know any reasonable Nigerian who wants Nigeria to break up. People just believe that Nigeria is not working in the way and manner it should work for them. So if they are agitating, I don’t think they are agitating for a break- up. They just want the powers that be to hear and listen to their pains and take some action.

Some extremists would go in the direction of unilateral declaration of independence or secession and its within their right to do that as long as they conduct themselves within the ambit of the law, it’s a democracy, but most reasonable, most serious Nigerians don’t play this game.

Do you think the people being attacked in the Middle Belt and other places repeatedly by bandits and herdsmen share this your optimism and belief?

It’s not about belief, they are Nigerians. Apart from the fact that they were born here, they live here and whether you are a resident or a full blooded citizen, you want peace, you want security. It really doesn’t matter, Nigeria is not just a geographic space but also a living space and you want to derive benefit from it, but the reality is that, if we do not fix this country in the manner that responds to the yearnings of the citizens, it will consume all of us. It will not just consume those who are kidnapping and killing, yes people have deserted their homes because of insecurity, but it’s not the solution, the solution is that we must make our country livable, and in making our country livable, security cannot be unitarised. That is one of the things that must be devolved so that we can respond adequately to the immediate challenges in our community. If a stranger enters your village, within five minutes the local chief would know. But if someone comes to Ikeja, unless the community police system is developed, you won’t be able to manage it, and I think the Nigerian police as currently structured is not. You know my views on this, that’s why we started Amotekun and thank God the Federal Government has deemed it fit to commence a community policing arrangement. It speaks to the fact that everybody realizes that you cannot effectively manage security and safety from the confines of Abuja; it won’t work and it has not worked. So, let us look for creative mechanism that would make it responsive to the immediate needs of the people in every community. If we don’t do that, we won’t even know the connection between the bandits, who they claim have come from some places outside Nigeria and the network they have in Nigeria. You will not know, you will just be assuming why it’s happening, but there is a network, they know the terrain. We have discovered for example in Ekiti that whenever we have kidnapping incidents, and we follow the trail into the various forests, we have some of our locals who collaborate with them by taking food to them or selling recharge cards to them, and you will not be looking for those ones, you will be looking for the “herdsmen”. So, we need to really study our situation, develop a security mechanism that is localised and then we begin to address this problem holistically.

https://www.sunnewsonline.com/nigeria-ll-consume-all-of-us-iffayemi/

New Guidelines For Safe Reopening Of Schools
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has released new guidelines for the safe reopening of schools to ensure that the impact of COVID-19 virus, especially among pupils, students and school staff, is mitigated.

The guidelines, which can be found on the agency’s website, contains detailed information on what to do and who to inform in the event of an outbreak. It also recommends regular risk assessments and sharing of the medical status of every pupil.

These guidelines include strong recommendations around regular risk assessments; sharing updates of the medical status of every student; a clear communication plan so that when there is an outbreak or a cluster of cases, schools know exactly what to do, who to inform and how to respond; advice on designated hand washing areas; triage of patients; sample collection etc., and the critical questions that every school in Nigeria will be asking.

Director-General of the NCDC Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu stated these on Monday in Abuja, during the briefing of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19.

He said: “Right now, we are focusing on mitigating the impact of COVID-19 on many aspects of our economy. Working together with the Aviation Ministry, we have more or less successfully reopened that industry and now working towards reopening it fully. But there are still some limitations on certain flights.

“The next critical walk of life that we have been working on is education. We are working closely with the Ministry of Education and states. We understand the implication of education to our national development and have continued to carry the country along in all our plans to ensure we bring a safe reopening of schools.

“Our aim has been and remains to halt the spread of this disease in Nigeria, while ensuring that sectors recover quickly and we can move forward as a country. Therefore, the PTF has ensured the safe and gradual reopening of various sectors continues, including the education sector.

“As Nigeria’s national public health institution, we are aware of our responsibilities and have continued to provide guidelines in line with global best practice to ensure Nigerians are safe and can adapt to the new normal.

“Reopening of schools will unquestionably bring benefits to students who have been at home for many months and to the wider economy. In the past few months, we have been working with the Ministry of Education, schools and states and many other stakeholders, critically parents, to ensure that the reopening of schools is as safe as possible for children.

“I want to reassure Nigerians that as schools reopen in various states, the safety of our children and school staff stands as a priority to the Federal Government of Nigeria.”

Ihekweazu added: “This virus behaves differently from most other viruses that we know where transmission has always been primarily driven by children. But now, we are better informed and have continued to adapt our guidelines as new knowledge emerges.

“Drawing from what we now know in our country, we have worked with the Federal Ministry of Education to develop new guidelines for the safe reopening of schools across the country. We have put this in a very simple format so every school can pick this up across the country and adapt to its own uses.”

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/10/13/ncdc-released-guidelines-for-safe-reopening-of-schools/

Mujihad Asari-Dokubo founder of the Niger Delta People’s Volunteer Force (NDPVF) has, again, attacked the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, saying he has derailed the Biafra struggle.

Dokubo, who said he’s a Biafran and believes in Biafra struggle, maintained that the IPOB leader was not in any struggle for the restoration of Biafra republic.

The ex-militant fighter, who spoke exclusively to Sunday Vanguard in his country home, Buguma in Kalabari Kingdom, Rivers State, opined that associating with Kanu was his greatest regret.

“It gives me regret that in my life, I ever associated with a person called Nnamdi Kanu. That when he was in crisis, I came out to defend him. In fact, my greatest regret is associating with Nnamdi Kanu. I can’t make peace with somebody like him. It’s a foreclosed issue because he has nothing to offer other than to derail our struggle,”he stated.

“With Nnamdi Kanu, there’s no hope for Biafra. Those of us who get close to him know he’s not fighting for any Biafra. Nnamdi Kanu is just one individual in Biafra, so, we shouldn’t make him important, he’s not. He’s just like everyone one of us.

“He’s not in any struggle. Whatever spell he has cast on the Igbo will be removed very soon and their eyes will open. When he was in trouble, all of us came out to defend him because an injury to one is an injury to all. We risked our lives by speaking in support of him, for him to be released from prison and for him not to be killed.

“Now, he sees those of us who fought on his behalf for his freedom as his followers. Some of us regret ever lending our voice. We would have left him to rot in jail because he’s caused more harm to Biafra struggle than anyone else.”

When asked how Kanu has caused more harm than good to the Biafra struggle, the former President of the Ijaw Youth Council retorted, “Listen to him! Don’t you listen to his broadcast? His insults to every Igbo person that disagrees with him? He has also extended his insults to other tribes including the Ijaw people.

“He’s attacking Ralph Uwazuruike and Nnia Nwodo (Ohanaeze leader). Now, he’s attacking Pa Edwin Clark who’s not a Biafran. Biafra is the former Eastern Region. Pa Clark has never been an Easterner but from the Western Region to Mid-Western Region. So he’s gone outside the Igbo to abuse Pa Clark, Isaac Boro, Ken Saro-Wiwa.

“How can you bring unity to the people by abusing and attacking their leaders? Is Biafra struggle an Igbo struggle? He’s making it an Igbo struggle. The Biafra Nnamdi Kanu is pursuing will be worse than Southern Sudan if he wants to promote Igbo hegemony over and above Ijaw hegemony, Ibibio hegemony, and so on.

“He’s power-drunk. We are not even done with the struggle, he’s assumed the position of leadership, calling himself the supreme leader.”

Speaking on how he fell out with the IPOB leader, Asari explained: “It was during the Anambra governorship election when he said there would be no election in the state and I disagreed with him. I said it would be a fatal mistake not to participate in the election. I told him it will be better to elect somebody who will have some form of sympathy, even if the person is not totally in the struggle, than to elect an open enemy, who will use the state resources to support our enemies. He said no and declared that day ‘Ofe nsala’ day.

“Again, during the 2019 elections, I said let’s vote out President Buhari and let the person we will vote for also know that we are the ones that supported him, so that when the person is there, even if he’s not with us, he will know that we contributed to the removal of Buhari. He said no and started calling me saboteur. At the end of the day, Nnamdi Kanu came and said people should go and vote. He said he had signed, sealed and delivered documents. Over one year and five months after the election, we have not seen the signed, sealed and delivered documents.

“He didn’t tell us whom he signed the documents with and he did not do anything to apologize to those of us who believed that we had to participate in that election. Rather, he continued calling us names. I’m not a member of the PDP but what would have made me happy is that all of us worked together to remove Buhari. We did not do that, we failed.

“The truth is that the vast majority of Biafrans don’t want anything to do with Nigeria. Majority of us want to leave Nigeria. So, Nnamdi Kanu through Radio Biafra has been able to reach out to some of these people and has changed the Biafra struggle into a cult struggle, who go about attacking people who are opposed to them. Before my quarrel with him, nobody was against him but now, people are no longer afraid of him.”

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/10/05/my-greatest-regret-is-associating-with-nnamdi-kanu-with-him-theres-no-hope-for-biafrans-asari-dokubo/

The Federal Government of Nigeria has recovered over N700 billion from its Whistle Blower Policy.

Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning Zainab Ahmed made this disclosure when she spoke with journalists at the national conference on the whistle blower policy in Nigeria on Tuesday in Abuja.

Ahmed said the government was able to recover the huge amount of money from the activities of whistleblowers who came forward with actionable claims of corruption.

According to her: “There were recoveries and the cleaning of the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS); stoppage of non-compliance with the Treasury Single Account (TSA) and violations of the procurement Act 2007, etc”.

The Minister lamented that “at inception there was widespread enthusiasm as Nigerians volunteered numerous actionable information”.

Such information or tips, she said, were referred for further investigation by the EFCC, ICPC, NFIU or DSS.

“However, after sometime, interest in the implementation of the policy nosedived. Our attempt to reawaken public interest on the policy did not quite materialize.

“It was then we realised that there was apparent confusion in the public mind on several issues,” she said.

To address these issues, a Committee with representatives from anti-graft and security agencies chaired by a representative of the Federal Ministry of Justice was set up to draft a Whistle Blower Bill, taking into account all the complaints received from the public and the observations of the various stakeholders.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said the whistle blower policy “was developed as a tool towards the exposure of corruption and corrupt actors in Government.”

Osinbajo urged developers of the new whistle blower bill to expand “the scope of wrongful acts that may be reported by whistleblowers”.


https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/09/29/fg-recovers-700bn-with-the-aid-of-whistle-blowers/

Vice-Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2019 general elections, Mr. Peter Obi, has disassociated him- self from the 2023 presidential campaign posters being circulated on the social media.

The posters which surfaced online in the early hours of yesterday also bore the image of the former governor of Kano State, Alhaji Rabi‘u Musa Kwankwaso, as his running mate.

But reacting to the development, Obi dissociated himself from the campaign posters, saying he knew nothing about them.

The former Anambra governor, who described the development as the handiwork of mischief makers, said he neither produced the posters nor contracted anyone or group to produce the same on his behalf to circulate online.

“I was not even contacted and I do not know the group that made the poster,” he said.

He advised Nigerians to focus more on the socio- economic issues troubling the country with a view to proffering solutions and advising the government appropriately. He said that building a better Nigeria should be the priority of every Nigerian now rather than being preoccupied with the next election or who occupies certain political office.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/09/27/obi-distances-self-from-2023-presidential-campaign-posters/

Rising from an emergency meeting on Tuesday , the OUK movement Nigeria, a sociopolitical Ideological group on Tuesday dissolved its executives and reconstituted new ones.

The meeting held at the Igbere residence of the Chief Whip of the Senate , Senator Orji Uzor Kalu had in attendance the board of directors of the group and patrons . The motive according to the Board of Directors was part of group’s rebranding strategies to achieve it’s aims and objectives.

The group held that it was poised to restrategize its operations and activities which also includes expanding to other states in the country through the creation of more state chapters.

The group in a statement signed by it’s Director General Mrs. Jemaimah Kalu, a former Chief of Staff to Abia State Government, said that the group’s decision to dissolve the former executives and reconstitute new ones , was to strengthen the group and to also give room for more capable persons pilot the affairs of the group.

The statement read in parts;

“As part of the decisions reached following the meeting of the Board of Directors held today 23rd September 2020, the list of the new executives of the OUK movement are as follows;

State Chairman – Engr. Ndukwe Orji Agu
Deputy Chairman Abia North – Barr. Helen Okoroji
Deputy Chairman Abia Central – G.O.C. kanu
Deputy Chairman Abia South – Hon Alex Nwaigwe
Secretary- Uzoma Emezue Nneka
Assistant Secretary- Hon. Nnamdi Egege
Woman Leader – Ijeoma Okorie
Youth Leader- Dom Ofoji
Organization Secretary- Orji Sunday Emmanuel
Publicity Secretary- Barr Sam Ogbonma
Patron – Elder Agu U. Agu
Parron – Senator Nkechi Nwaogu
Patron – Chief Mark Nwagbara

According to Mrs. Jemaimah the inauguration of the new executives will hold on November 27, 2020.

The OUK movement is bipartisan sociopolitical group which promotes the ideologies of Senator Orji Uzor Kalu.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/09/23/breaking-ouk-movement-dissolvesreconstitutes-new-executives/

A former Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidates Atiku Abubakar has reacted following his party’s victory at the Edo governorship election yesterday.

Atiku has congratulated Governor Obaseki on his victory, adding that the end of Godfatherism has come in Nigeria.

In his series of tweets, he wrote;

“I look forward to the continuation of four more years of tangible development, and people centered leadership from Governor Obaseki.

In good times, we will walk beside you. In bad times, we will be your loyal ‘comrade’. We will never be a turncoat. We will never abandon the principles we once espoused so that we can dine with our nemesis. Democracy has no nemesis. And this, the PDP has again proved.

The End of Godfatherism Has Come in Nigeria.

There is a new dawn in Edo State, and the hard-won victory of @GovernorObaseki is not just a victory, but a Declaration of Independence from the anti-democratic forces of godfatherism and militarism. #EdoDecides2020.

I also seize this opportunity to thank His Royal Highness, the Oba of Benin, Omo N’oba N’Edo Uku Akpolopkolo, Ewuare II, for the fatherly role he played as a neutral catalyst for peace.

That this election was, by and large, free from violence, is a testament of the long and effective shadow he casts over his domain.

From personal experience, I know Governor Obaseki to be a magnanimous man, and I urge Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu to accept the right hand of fellowship that is likely to be extended to him.

The leprous hand he is now holding can only lead to a destination of barrenness. He is amongst strange bedfellows, & I remind him that no matter how far one has gone on a wrong road, it is never too late to turn back & head in the right direction. The PDP is the right direction.

And to the good people of Ondo state, my message to you is that freedom from the oppressive grasp of godfathers and external forces that seek to dominate your will and eviscerate your treasury, is possible. Edo has done it. You can do it too!

There is a new wind of democratic change now blowing all over Nigeria. The forces of despotism, nepotism, and interlopers cannot successfully withstand this force.

Nigeria shall soon be totally free from these forces, from Kaura Namoda, to Lagos. The only power that will stand in Nigeria is people power, not the power of godfathers, or despots.

May God bless the good people of Edo State and may God bless Nigeria.”

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/09/21/atiku-abubakar-brakes-his-silence-after-obaseki-emerged-winner-of-edo-governorship-election/

Daar communications crew heading to Edo election in fatal accident, many in critical condition.
Daar communications team heading to Edo state to cover governorship election has been involved in a fatal accident around Auchi.

Three of the operatives, including reporter, Omor Bazuaye, is reported to be seriously injured.

Details loading…


https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/09/17/edo-polls-ait-staffs-others-involved-in-ghastly-auto-crash/

House of Representatives spokesman, Hon. Benjamin Kalu has dismissed media reports that the reason behind Tuesday's visit of the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio to the National Assembly was to settle issues with regards to the probe of the Niger Delta Development Commission.


Hon. Kalu explained that there was no way the Minister could interfere with the probe, stating that the investigation had already been concluded and the report had been submitted by the committee.


The Minister on Tuesday, paid a visit to the newly appointed clerk of the National Assembly, Ojo Amos Olatunde, in his office at the National Assembly Complex.


Akpabio had initially met with the NASS clerk ,told reporters that the purpose of the visit was primarily to familiarize with the National Assembly clerk and to solicit continuous cooperation of the National Assembly towards the development of the Niger Delta region.


However, Reps Spokesman Benjamin Kalu while shedding more light on the motive of the Minister's visit said that Akpabio embarked on a friendly visit to the National Assembly.


He said “As representatives of the people, our doors are open to everyone inclusive, Ministers as they are part of the people we represent. If they knock on our door, we must open it and hear them out.”


“The Honorable Minister supervising NDDC was at the National Assembly today to familiarize with the new clerk of the National Assembly. It has nothing to do with the House of Representatives or the Senate. As a former member of the National Assembly, Akpabio has access to the National Assembly at all times because once a senator, always a senator. “


Speaking further , Kalu confirmed that the report of the investigation had already been submitted.


In his words “The agency under Akpabio's ministry has undergone an investigation, and a report on the concluded NDDC probe is currently before the House of Representatives for consideration. His visit today has nothing to do with the finished investigation but to fine-tune the relationship moving forward for the interest of the Niger Delta region.”


“The National Assembly has been asked severally if it supports the idea of the party legislature and executive coming together to discuss from time to time about issues of national importance, the answer is yes, we are in support of this; that is why the leadership of the two houses, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila (Speaker of the House) and Sen. Ahmad Idris Lawan (President of the Senate) are key partners of President Muhammadu Buhari’s new project of the tripartite committee.The purpose is to make sure the dividends of democracy reach the people.”


Kalu assured that members of the ruling All progressive's congress (APC) in the National Assembly were working in unison with the Executive arm to achieve the party's manifesto.


He said “All the same, the manifesto of the party that brought the Government into place is pursued and protected by the three Arms of Government though they may differ, yet the purpose of Government should remain the same and be the focal point.”


“Our assurance to Nigerians is that we understand the mandate of section 88 and 89 of the oversight functions, and we will never sacrifice it on the grounds of relationship. Although it is good to have relationships within the arms of Government, no Arm of Government should sacrifice her independence based on a cordial relationship with the other Arm of Government.”


All the principles of separation of power are following our relationship with the Arms of the Government. The visit of any Minister to the National Assembly will not stop the legislative functions of the House."

https://www.sunnewsonline.com/nass-akpabios-visit-had-nothing-to-with-nddc-probe-reps-spokesman/

The South East caucus of the All Progressives Congress ( APC ) in the National Assembly under the leadership of the Chief Whip of the Senate , Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, passed a vote of confidence on the interim leadership of party led by Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni on Monday in Abuja.

The Senator Kalu led federal lawmakers from the South East on the platform of APC, arrived the national headquarters of the party by 12:30 pm and passed the vote of confidence in the office of the Secretary of the Buni led National Caretaker Committee, Honourable  James Akpan Udoedehe.




Kalu during the meeting, extolled the leadership qualities of the Mala Buni led committee , saying " his leadership would bring about required unity among the various members and chapters of the party"



According to him, so far , so good, the Governor Buni led National leadership of the party , has restored peace into the party at the National level and in most of the State chapters.


He however on behalf of the caucus, admonished the Buni led National leadership to instill transparency , fairness and justice across the all strata of the party before emergence of substantive executives at the national level .





His words : "We need more openness in the party, in order to promote transparency within the party because once the party has transparency in operating in all their activities , things would be easier 


"It is easier to win election with popular candidates . It is  difficult to win elections when people are imposed . We should avoid imposition of candidates.



"You are a very experienced party administrator and Governor of the state and you are also very experienced in handling party matters .


"The caucus of the Southeast APC want to congratulate you , to enjoin other party members and to reassure you that we are going to work with you and infact, pass vote of confidence in this working national executives".



He assured the National leadership of the party of better electoral performances in subsequent elections from the South Eastern Geo- political zone .



" I want to specially congratulate  and to tell you that we are solidly behind you and we shall support you in your quest to do everything transparently . It is important to have transparency in our party congresses, this will make the party have a big footing in the area. We assure you that we from the Southeast  shall do better in the next elections than we did in past.


"We believe that with your honest leadership , the party will go to further heights . How I wish you are not the Governor of a state , we shall not be looking for another National Chairman because we have trust in you and I know you very well and even your  capabilities", he said .



Also speaking during the meeting was the Deputy Chief Whip of the House of Representatives Hon. Nkeiru Onyejeohca who on her own  part advocated for the  encouragement and inclusion of women in the party's activities and elective  positions.


She said"We are going to embark on constitutional review and I want you to use your office to ensure that you  carry everyone along because there is no way we can continue living the way we are living.


"Women are helpmates to the men and in politics if we don't have enough women coming up on board,  that means we are not doing what God says.


"From my experience, women  don't have the strength that the men have , so if we continue to leave the constitution the way it is there would be discrimination so we appeal that you give the women more number of slots in terms of political offices ".



Responding, the Caretaker Chairman of the party, Mr. Buni, thanked Senator Kalu for the visit .


He restated the committee's willingness to work with the South East caucus . He extolled Kalu's efforts and contributions to the party's growth and urged him to continue his good work for the party .


He also called on women to take up the responsibility of contesting in elections rather than waiting to be given such positions on platter of gold .




" I disagree because most times our sisters will come from the position of weakness . In  APC there was a time we decided to give free nomination forms to women we did that but there was a very superior argument that came up ; which said that the women should come from the position of strength, because you can pay for the forms just the way a man can also pay.



"When we are talking about democracy, democracy is about contests . You have to contest , there are more women that I know that perform more than men . Even in the National Assembly you can attest to that .


"There are capable hands, even in my state there have never been a time that we didn't have a woman in the House of Representatives and they are performing and most times even better than men.


"You can see as none of them ever came from the position of weakness, they contest , won elections and even have more followers than men , women are naturally compassionate. 


"Sometimes what they go out to do for the vulnerables out there men don't even care to do that. So when we are talking about gender issue we have to be more pragmatic we have to come from the position of looking for ways to encourage women to participate in politics .



"But when it comes to appointment I agree with you . Appointment is something that either the President, Governor or a local government chairman can do, but its not about election but when it comes to election I know you won your election I have been following you up and I see you travelling all over canvassing for votes, you didn't sit in the comfort of your bedroom claiming you are a woman", he said.



https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/09/14/kalu-leads-nass-south-east-apc-caucus-to-national-chairman-passes-vote-of-confidence-on-leadership/

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has taken another look at the Nigerian State and reached the scathing conclusion that the country is crumbling and drifting to a failed State under the watch of incumbent President, Mohammed Buhari.

Obasanjo’s latest assessment of the State of the Nigerian Nation was contained in a speech titled “Moving Nigeria Away From Tipping Over”, delivered at a Consultative Dialogue in Abuja on Friday.

The former President said Nigeria has never been as divided as it is now, blaming the division on “a manifestation of recent mismanagement of diversity and socio-economic development of the country”.

ObJ has been critical of Buhari’s administration especially in the run up to the General elections in 2019.

On Friday, the former President took another swipe at Buhari’s government when he said “it will amount to dangerous and destructive self-delusion for anybody to claim that all is well in Nigeria today”.

Obasanjo however explained that Nigeria can be saved from disintegration if everyone is ready to live together in understanding, mutual respect, love with equity, justice and inclusiveness.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/09/12/nigeria-crumbling-under-buhari-obasanjo/

Two suspected members of a notorious child trafficking gang have told the police how they killed a mother of a three-month-old child, sold the baby and shared the proceeds before luck ran out on them shortly after.

The duo, Mary Ishmael (68) and her foot soldier, 23-year-old Chinedu Nwachukwu, were among the 15 suspects paraded by the Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Joseph Mukan, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on Thursday as part of the achievements recorded by the police command in the last three weeks.

Mukan said that Nwachukwu was arrested by men of 48 PMF who were on stop-and-search duties at Omerelu Nipping Point near Owerri, Imo State while carrying a five-month-old baby he allegedly could not explain how he came about.

He was detained at Elele Divisional Police Station and later transferred with the child to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) where he allegedly confessed to have stolen the baby after killing the mother and pushing the body in a pit in an uncompleted building around Igwuruta, Ikwerre Local Government Area of the state.

The suspects were also allegedly linked to the disappearance of a single nursing mother in Nwachukwu’s neighbourhood, Chinonye Queen Uzoma and her three-month-old daughter, who were said to have been declared missing for several weeks before Nwachukwu’s arrest.

According to the police, Nwachukwu confessed during interrogation that he also killed Uzoma, disposed her body in a forest and sold her baby to Ishmael in the sum of N250,000, while the latter sold the baby to a Benin, Edo State resident in the sum of N350,000.

Corroborating the state police boss, Nwachukwu said: “This woman (pointing at his 68-year-old accomplice), was the one that sent me to snatch the babies. After killing the first woman, I sold her baby to this woman in the sum of N250,000 and she resold the baby to somebody in Benin in the sum of N350,000.

“But while the first woman I sold her baby died in the process and I threw her body into a forest at Igwuruta where we live, the woman whose baby I was also going to sell to Mama (Ishmael) before I was arrested survived despite pushing her into a pit.”

Narrating how he was able to successfully snatch the babies from their mothers, Nwachukwu said: “For the first woman, I hit her with a club in the back several times and she fell down and died. I then took the body and dumped it in a forest at Igwuruta.

“I have taken the police to where I threw her body. But before we got there, her flesh had decayed, leaving only the bone. This happened since June. It is now three months since I killed her.

“The second woman survived the attack. What happened was that I hit her once in the back of her head, quickly pushed her into a pit in an uncompleted building and ran away with her baby. It was while I was going to take the baby to Mama where she asked me to bring the baby that I was arrested by the police.

“When I was arrested, the police asked me the whereabouts of the mother of the baby and I told them that she has died, narrating how I killed her and pushed her into a pit.

“I thought that like the first woman, she would die in the pit. But when I took the police to the pit, she was still alive but very weak. The police brought her out and took her to the hospital, and she survived.”

On her own part, 68-year-old Ishmael said: “I am a nurse. I carry out child delivery for pregnant women. I work in a hospital and also operate a shop. I am very popular in my neighborhood.

“It was Chinedu (Nwachukwu) who approached me, saying that his girlfriend gave birth to a baby and ran away. He said he lacked the capacity to nurture the baby, so he wanted to give her to a couple that was looking for children for a fee.

“He said there is no cause for alarm, that the baby’s mother was aware of the decision to sell her.

“I was skeptical initially and did not want to get involved, but he persisted. It so happened that a family in Benin had some time ago approached me to look out for such babies for them; that they would be interested in raising such babies for themselves.

“I called the lady and told her of the available child. She came down here and I gave it to her in the sum of N350,000, out of which I gave Chinedu N250,000.”

Asked the role she played in the snatching of the second baby, she said she knew nothing about it. But Nwachukwu insisted that she was the mastermind and that he was on his way to where they had agreed to meet for the transaction when he was arrested.


https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/09/06/how-we-killed-nursing-mothers-snatched-their-babies-child-traffikers-narrates/

Mr Adamu Usman, the Commissioner of Police told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Minna on Tuesday that the scam was uncovered during the ongoing verification exercise in the state.
He said that the committee discovered that a staff of the ministry allegedly surreptitiously added his brother’s name to the list of people shortlisted for employment into the state civil service in 2009.
According to the CP, the committee discovered that one of the brothers had been employed into the civil service without any valid qualifications on Grade level 11.
Usman said that the committee discovered that the employee of the state Ministry of Health facilitated the employment of his brother, a commercial motorcycle rider without any valid credentials, into the service in 2009.
“Mohammed Ndanusa confessed to the crime saying that he fraudulently employed his brother on Grade level 11 in 2009 and had subsequently facilitated his promotions to his current position of Grade level 14,’’Usman said.
The CP said that the suspects would be charged to court as soon as investigation was concluded. ( NAN)

https://www.sunnewsonline.com/police-nab-2-brothers-over-alleged-employment-scam-in-niger/

Buhari approves transfer of identity management agency to Communications ministry
Nigeria may enforce mandatory use of national ID numbers by January 2019
Buhari appoints new NIMC director general
NIMC harmonises 30 million identities of Nigerians – DG
National ID card is free, but only 19% Nigerians are registered - Official
President Muhammadu Buhari has granted approval for the transfer of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy.

A statement by the ministry’s spokesperson, Uwa Suleiman, sent to PREMIUM TIMES Monday morning, said the decision was to ensure “synergy and effective ministry supervisory mechanism is put in place to coordinate, monitor and track the progress of Federal Government’s digital transformation initiatives.”

Transferring the identity commission to the ministry, according to the statement, will aid the harmonisation of citizens’ data which will aid planning, the economy and security.

The commission which is in charge of managing national identity database for Nigerians was hitherto domiciled under the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

Mrs Suleiman in her statement said in granting the approval, Mr Buhari considered the role of NIMC in achieving the objectives of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy for a Digital Nigeria (NDEPS).

She said the presidential directive for NIMC to be under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy is an illustration of Mr President’s vote of confidence on the minister, Isa Ibrahim (Pantami), “based on an unprecedented performance.“

The statement noted that the minister had “within his first year in office, amongst others, resolved the ICT sector’s decade-long dilemma of Right of Way charges.

“He was also able to secure Mr President’s approval for the provision of security as well as designation of Telecommunications Infrastructure as Critical National Infrastructure, regularization of improperly registered SIM cards and deactivation of unregistered ones, the deployment of over 250 digital projects across the country under his policies and supervision as well as built the capacity of over 36,000 Nigerians.”

It may be recalled that NIMC is mandated to create, manage, maintain and operate the National Identity Database established by the NIMC Act, 2007.


In an effort to realise this, the commission has so far registered around 41 million eligible enrollees for the National Identity Number (NIN).

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on the other hand has details of over 191 million mobile subscribers.

Furthermore, the National Information Technology Development Agency has recorded huge successes in the development and implementation of the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR), the country’s first codified data protection regulation. The Agency has also reached an advanced stage on the implementation of the National Public Key Infrastructure (NPKI). Galaxy Backbone Limited (GBB) also provides services to Government Agencies – Infrastructure-as-a-Service, Platform-as-a-Service and Software-as-a-Service. The need therefore for NIMC, NCC, NITDAand GBB to work closely together under the supervision of one Ministry towards harnessing what has already been achieved cannot be overemphasised.

The NIN, considered as a social security as well as civil number, is very important for economic planning and social intervention.

“With Federal Government’s digitalisation initiatives in line with the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy, access to services and interventions will require it.

“We therefore urge all eligible individuals to enrolles soon as possible. Furthermore, the Honourable Minister is assuring Nigerians as well as residents that appropriate measures will be put in place to ensure that opportunities for enrollment are provided to all.

”https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/411694-buhari-approves-transfer-of-identity-management-agency-to-communications-ministry.html

The Chief Whip of the Senate and former Governor of Abia State, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu has arrived Minna,Niger state for his visit to his political leaders.

Kalu, arrived the power state at exactly 2 pm alongside political friends, associates and aides .

The Senate Chief Whip is currently with the former Military head of state, General Ibrahim Babangida (IBB) , after which he will proceed to the homes of former President of Nigeria and Military General, Abdulsalami Abubakar, Governor of Niger state Abubakar Sani Bello and Emir, Etsu of Lapai,Niger State,

Details of the meeting are still being gathered as at the time of filing this report.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/08/31/breaking-orji-kalu-arrives-minna-to-visit-ibbabdulsami-niger-governor-others/

The Lagos State Government (LASG) says it will start the dislodgement of illegal slabs as well as the monitoring of all veterinary premises from Sept. 1, across the state.

The State Acting Commissioner for Agriculture, Ms Abisola Olusanya, said this on Sunday during the re-inauguration of the Monitoring, Enforcement and Compliance (MEC) Team of the ministry.

Olusanya said that the dislodgement was in furtherance of the sanitisation and reform of the red meat value chain.

She noted that the exercise would also involve the monitoring of meat transportation as well as stray animal control.

She added that the dislodgement is necessary especially as the state was particular about producing wholesome and healthy meat for its residents while simultaneously ensuring that the streets were free of stray animals.

She recalled that the dislodgement of illegal slaughter houses had been an on-going exercise for about three years now.

According to her, the need to strictly enforce meat transportation using only the designated vehicles and stray animals’ control which have lately become more rampant cannot be over emphasised.

“The need for continuity and sustained effort against perpetrators of illegalities in the state informed the re-inauguration of the MEC unit by the current administration.

“You will agree with me that the menace of illegal slaughter slabs is rearing its ugly head in the state again with attendant negative public health impact on the over twenty million populace of our dear state.

“The government of Lagos State under the leadership of Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu seriously frowns at such public health risk to Lagosians, hence, the reconstitution of this unit,” she said.

Olusanya noted that the team would monitor the existence of illegal slaughter slabs as well as ensure proper regulation of veterinary activities in the state.

She added that the state would also monitor the activities of the Lagos State Private Veterinary Premises Registration Authority.

She also said that all aspects of veterinary premises regulations, veterinary standards, compliance, monitoring and enforcement would be covered by the team.

She added that issues concerning transportation of live animals and meat from government approved abattoirs to the market would also be looked into.

The acting commissioner said that only the Eko refrigerated meat vans and the Eko live animals transport were permitted to move meat from one place to another.

“The MEC team is also expected to monitor the standards of operations of all approved slaughter houses statewide in order to ensure compliance with professional best practices.

“Also, all illegal and unapproved modes of meat transportation and live animals’ transportation will be dully curtailed as only approved modes will be allowed.

“The modes are the Eko refrigerated meat-vans and the Eko live animals transport.

“Its aim is to further sanitise the red meat value chain and improve the quality and wholesomeness of the meat consumed by the people,” she said.

Olusanya also said that ongoing rehabilitation works were being undertaken in the 20 approved slaughter slabs in the state in a bid to improve their present states to meet international standards by converting some of these slabs to semi-mechanised abattoirs.

She said that the government had been monitoring and regulating the affairs of premises where veterinary activities such as treatment of animals, sales of drugs and biological activities take place.

She said that the menace of stray animals on major roads and streets was on the high.

She said that such animals, by destroying various ornamental plants, shrubs and trees of aesthetic value within the metropolis, had increased the risk of accidents and environmental degradation.

She said that the prevalence of the outbreak of zoonotic diseases which pose major threats to human health had increased.

“In addition, the team is also to monitor and control the menace of stray animals statewide by extensive intermittent raiding of these animals off Lagos metropolis.

“Lagosians should by this re-inauguration expect a better service delivery in terms of hygiene, safety and wholesomeness of meat products as only approved slaughter houses are to release duly certified and inspected meat to the populace.

“The standard of veterinary regulation and service delivery statewide will definitely be up scaled and maintained,” she said.

The acting commissioner said that since the inauguration of the stray animal control, several animals had been confiscated, owners fined to recover the animals while unclaimed ones were donated to orphanages within the state.

Olusanya said that all stakeholders including members of the Lagos State Butchers Association, Abattoir Concessionaire Forum, Lagos State Sheep and Goat Association and Lagos State Ram and Goat Sellers Association would been carried along for an effective operation of the MEC unit.

She listed other members as Eko Refrigerated Meat Van, Eko Live Animal Transport and the Lagos State chapter of the Nigerian Veterinary Medical Association.

The Chairman of the state Butchers Association, Mr Bamidele Kazeem, pledged the association’s full support for the state government’s initiative to sanitise the red meat value chain.

Kazeem said that registered abattoirs and meat markets were already in compliance with all the laws by the state government concerning the reform of the red meat value chain.

“My members in Lagos State are very much ready we have been clamouring for the re-inauguration of the enforcement team because of the many illegal slaughter houses in the state.

“We have to control the nemesis caused by these illegal abattoirs and sales of meat.

“Some people now have even taken the laws into their hands; when the state gives a law about something, they do the opposite which our association is not happy with.

“That was why we appealed to the state government to revive the monitoring, enforcement and compliance team so that these measures will be totally complied with,” Kazeem said.

Mr Hamzat Kareem, the Secretary of the Lagos State Abattoir Concessionaires Forum, noted that the re-inauguration of the monitoring, enforcement and compliance team was a welcome development.

“We hope that this will curb the menace of illegal abattoirs because they are posing a huge threat to our businesses as legal operators.

“It will also help in ensuring that wholesome meat is produced for the populace,” he said.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/08/30/lagos-state-government-to-dislodge-illegal-slaughter-slabs-starting-on-sept-1/

North American Intelligence Agencies and West Europe Intelligence Agencies have revealed that Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote and Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu are the three persons penciled down to rule Nigeria when the tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari ends in 2023, reports from the agencies stated.

The report revealed that the consideration of the three was based on their strength, reliability , qualification and national acceptance, adding that one out of the three persons will be the next Nigeria President.

The report also said the trio will slug it out among themselves with consideration of their pedigrees

A similar source from the North American agency disclosed that Dangote’s experience in economy is what Nigeria need going forward , adding that “Nigeria being the largest country in Africa need stable economy to fight insecurity and insurgency in the Sub-Sahara region. ”

“However , his non political alignment will be a stumbling block since he must need political structures to prosecute the election. His individualistic lifestyle may also pose a big challenge for his nomination. Reports on him is that he is very elitist , has no marital life and unreachable to the masses.” This attitude of his , according to the source said would most likely work against him .

The report suggested that Orji Uzor Kalu and Ahmad Lawan are better options due to their political exposure.

The report further noted that majority of Nigerians will express fears over Dangote’s candidature due to the fact that he may have been a beneficiary of the mismanaged sum of 16 Billion Dollars, being the fund which was initially meant for Nigeria’s power project under the tenure of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

In 2003 Dangote almost filed for bankruptcy before getting assistance from Olusegun Obasanjo who was the then president.

The damaging reports on Dangote is that of receiving stolen public funds and the relationship between him, Olusegun Obasanjo, Julius Makanjuola and the 16 billion dollars spent on the defunct Nigeria Electric Power Authority ( NEPA)

The Northern American intelligence also made known that the Governors of Kebbi state, former Governor of Borno state and governor of Ekiti state have intentions to contest but lack the requisite.

Orji Uzor Kalu’s record shows that of an ex-covinct, even though findings are that his incarceration was political

It also noted that Former President George Bush and Tony Blair had in the past, resisted several attempts by Former President Obasanjo to arrest Orji Kalu in London. The former Leaders noted that Kalu was absolved from any form of corruption after thorough investigation and has also described Kalu’s incarceration as a big mistake.

The Agencies rated Ahmed Lawan as the most clean candidate with an untainted record in public service, adding that should the zoning arrangements fails, Lawan should be topping the list. Otherwise if it goes down to the South East, Orji Kalu will be most preferred as he would bring his business acumen, exposure and political clout to restore the economy.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/08/29/2023-lawan-dangote-kalu-most-preferred-candidates-foreign-intelligence-agencies/

Senate Joint Committee on Finance and National Planning have directed the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Ahmed Idris, to investigate the payment of $18.323billion being dividends accrued from the Nigeria Liquified Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited, between 2004 and 2020.

Chairman of the Committee, Senator Solomon Adeola, gave the directive following disclosures from NLNG officials during the panel’s stakeholders’ interactive session on the 2021-2023 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP), in Abuja.

Adeola, according to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Kayode Odunaro, said the AGF was mandated to investigate if the amount was actually remitted to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and how much was actually remitted to the Federation Account.

The AGF was also to determine if there was any deduction by NNPC, how much was deducted, and who authorized the deductions as well as the exchange rates that applied for the amount that was remitted over the years under reference.

According to the statement, Mrs. Eyono Fatai-William, the general manager (External Relations and Sustainable Development) of NLNG had presented a financial summary of the company from 1999-2019 and said the NLNG had paid a dividend of over $18 billion to Nigeria between 2004 and 2019.

Fatai-William also insisted that the NLNG is committed to a culture of transparency and integrity.

However, when Adeola asked the Accountant General of the Federation, to confirm if the dividend was actually paid into the Federation Account, he said it was difficult to immediately determine if it had been paid because the dividend is usually paid to the NNPC – that represents the Federal Government in the NLNG.

Adeola, therefore, directed the Accountant General to investigate the payment and report back to the Senate within two weeks.

Nigeria has about 53 percent shares in the NLNG, according to the statement.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/08/26/senate-directs-agf-to-investigate-18bn-nlng-dividends/

The All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the Sept. 19 Edo Governorship election, Mr. Osagie Ize-Iyamu has promised to set up a functional disease control agency in the state, if elected governor.

Mr. Ize-Iyamu said the agency would be responsible for surveillance, monitoring and evaluation of diseases such as HIV and AIDS, Tuberculosis and leprosy amongst others.

This agency to be called the Edo State Centre for Disease Control will help the state, among others, to set targets for intervention to reduce the prevalence of communicable and non-communicable diseases as well as the prevalence of child and maternal morbidity and mortality.

Ize-Iyamu while explaining the healthcare plan of his manifesto, the Simple Agenda on the sidelines of the tour of Ugboko, his home ward, added that the new
“Simple Strategic Health Development Plan” of his government will be formulated and implemented to replace the current healthcare system of Edo State that is in shambles.

He said, “We shall harmonize the Federal, State and Local Government health care plans and incorporate the National Strategic Health Development Plan (NSHDP) II, 2018-2022”.

The overall objectives of the Simple Strategic Health Development Plan will be to, “increase life expectancy through an integrated, reformed, restructured and functional health care system and provide the personnel, manpower and institutions that will assist our people by ensuring access to good healthcare delivery”.

In addition, the policy he said will seek to, “encourage public/private partnership by promoting private sector participation, standardization and compliance (and) establish appropriate regulatory institutions to set standards, monitor and enforce compliance”.

The APC candidate added that “to ensure that the good effect of all these services are felt by all, irrespective of their location and socio-economic status”, all of the State’s Healthcare centres will be reorganized.

For Primary Health Cares situated in rural communities, he said they, “will be equipped, adequately staffed with qualified personnel and made functional”, so they can, “provide continuous education concerning prevailing health problems and the methods of preventing and controlling them”, to residents.

Mr. Ize-Iyamu also said that these centres will help provide maternal, newborn and child health care, family planning, effective prevention and control for locally endemic and epidemic diseases, appropriate treatment for common diseases and injuries as well as the provision of essential drugs.

“There will be provision of an enabling environment and strategies to include community mobilization and advocacy, service integration, health research, capacity building, and international and non-governmental collaboration”, he said.

To ensure that the sick get required attention at record time, the APC candidate promised to provide a system whereby sick patients can be transferred to secondary and tertiary healthcare systems (provision of ambulances and motorboat ambulances especially for those in the riverine communities).

He said, “Our government will set up the Edo State Ambulance Service for emergencies and accident responses and ensure that it is functional and effective”.

To make healthcare accessible to all, he said 18 mobile health service buses for people in rural towns and villages in partnership with Local Government authorities will be provided.

According to Mr. Ize-Iyamu, the Simple Strategic Health Development Plan envisage that Cottage Hospitals located in Local Government Headquarters can deal with cases that are referred and cannot be treated at the Primary Healthcare centres.

He said the LGA cottage hospitals can also refer such patients to the General or Specialist Hospitals located in senatorial zones to which he will be great improve for expert care.

Meanwhile, the APC candidate has said that the, “present General Hospitals all over the state will be given face lifts to meet the increasing health challenges faced by our people”.

On the problem of inadequate manpower in the health sector and improved working conditions of doctors, nurses and other health workers, he promised, “to motivate them and improve their service delivery capabilities”, while providing drugs and other hospital equipment to ensure that the health sector meets the new Sustainable Development Goals”.


https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/08/24/ize-iyamu-promise-to-establish-centre-for-disease-control-in-edo/

Chief whip of the Senate and former Governor of Abia State, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu on Saturday paid an unscheduled visit to the Kuje correctional center,Abuja.

Kalu who arrived the correctional centre at about 1pm , inspected the lightening project which is extended to both the churches and mosques to enhance the worship as well as other daily activities of both the inmates and the staff.

The lightening project is reported to cost over 4.9 million naira , Kalu who spoke with some staffs reiterated his commitment to reforms as well as welfare of the correcional centre.

Kalu's arrival erupted joy amongst both the inmates and staff, with many of them chanting "Kalu for President 2023" . Many of the imates hailed his continued welfare initiatives despite leaving the correctinal centre.

Some of the staffs and inmates who spoke in annonimity, expressed their desire for the Senate Chief become the next Nigerian President in 2023, regardless of any party . The excited inmates described Kalu as true nationalist who carries the welfare of all Nigerians at heart.

Recall that , Senator Kalu spent six months incarcerated at the Kuje correctional centre , the Supreme Court had nullified the conviction of Kalu.

Justice Amina Augie who led a seven-man panel of Justices held that the trial Justice Mohammed Liman Idris of the Federal High Court in Lagos acted without jurisdiction.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/08/22/kalu-visits-kuje-spends-n4-9-m-to-light-up-church-mosque/

Today the Chief Whip of the Senate, Distinguished Senator Orji Uzor Kalu joined the President of the Senate, Senator Ahmed Lawan and other notable Senators to attend the ongoing Five Days Public on the 2021-2023 Medium - Term expenditure framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy paper.

The public hearing is organised by the Senate Committee on Finance and National planning , Chaired by Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola.

Also present at the hearing heads of Federal Government parastatal and Ministries which include; The Hon. Minister of Finance,Budget and National Planning Zainab Ahmed represented by the Minister of State ,Budget and National Planning Prince Clem Ikanade Agba, Group Managing Director Nigerian National Petroleum Coporation (NNPC) Mele Kolo Kyari represented by the Chief Finance Officer,Finance & Accounts NNPC Umar Ajiya,Comptroller-General of the Nigerian Customs Service Col. Hammed Ibrahim Ali and the Executive Chairman Federal Inland Revenue Service Muhammad M. Nami.


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https://www.instagram.com/p/CEHibqNhNUT/?igshid=11gpskzgm9tl4

EIGHT pupils are writing the West African Senior School Certificate Examinations (WASSCE) in isolation centres in Gombe and Kwara States.

Seven of them from Government Girls’ College, Doma, Gombe State, have tested positive for the Coronavirus (COVID-19), while one female student is from Kwara.

The Federal Government had permitted schools to reopen partially on August 4 for graduating classes to write their examinations.

Speaking on Wednesday, Habu Dahiru, commissioner for education, said the government had conducted 1,100 tests on the final-year students following their resumption.

On Monday, an unnamed student of Government Science Secondary School (GSSS) in the state wrote his first paper for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) from the isolation centre.

The commissioner said the seven new patients are also candidates writing the WASSCE.

In Kwara State a female 16-year-old COVID-19 patient is sitting for her senior secondary school certificate examination at the Kwara State COVID-19 Infectious Disease Centre in Ilorin, the state capital, an official said on Wednesday.

The patient(whose name and school were withheld to avoid stigma)wrote her Agricultural Science paper yesterday, under close supervision by an official of the West African Examination Council (WAEC).

Team Lead/Manager Case Management Team, Kwara COVID-19/Infectious Diseases Centre, Dr Kudirat Oladeji-Lambe, told reporters that the candidate is asymptomatic, stable, and fit to write the exams.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/08/20/eight-students-in-kwara-isolaton-centers-as-they-write-waec/

Salawat Ibiwunmi Abeni has been making waves in the Nigerian music industry since the ‘70s. Her music, through which she entertains her fans, informs and educates them about current affairs, has evolved over the years.

In this chat, the singer famously known as Salawa Abeni opens up on her recent blackmail experience, what she’s doing to give her career a boost and challenges, among other issues. Please enjoy it.

Cases of rape are on the increase these days, as a mother what would you say to that?

It is very touchy and very bad. Not only in Nigeria, it also happens all over the world. As a musician, I’m working on it and would release a song on it very soon. I am doing a song on child abuse and rape. Raping a three-year-old child is very sad. I don’t know why some men do it. How can a man rape a three-year-old baby? May God help us in this country!

How has COVID-19 affected you as a musician?

It has affected everyone. I have been home since March 15; it’s almost five months now. I have been in my house, not being able to work. But I thank God for life. I’m releasing songs on rape and COVID-19 very soon. I have been doing voices on my Instagram page, but this time, I’m going to release an album. There are so many bookings lined up, but there’s nothing one can do about it. It’s not my fault. We have to wait till when everything is over. My son went abroad since March 5, and he’s supposed to be there for three weeks. It’s already five months and he’s still in London. COVID-19 has affected everybody.

What kept you busy during the lockdown?

We quarantined ourselves in the house. I jogged, using my facemask, returned home and sanitised my hands. It’s been hectic. If everyone survives this year, there’s going to be a special thanksgiving. The little I could afford I gave out as palliatives, but I didn’t want to make noise about it. I don’t have other means of income than music. And when you keep spending and nothing comes in, that is bad. I have families and friends looking up to me. That’s why I also need palliatives from the government. I catered for about 500 people during the lockdown and also during Ramadan. I would still love to do more because a lot of people are suffering. That is why I said if you survive this year, it would be a big celebration. COVID-19 has really humbled everyone.

What lessons have you learnt about life?

I’ve learnt a lot of lessons. I have not heard of any disease troubling the whole world like COVID-19.

How do you relax?

Since COVID-19, life has been boring, no activity. So, I do workout, go round my house. And I play with my grandchildren.

Your son, Big Chef, is equally a musician; did you influence him?

Big Chef, his dad and I are musicians. Immediately after secondary school, he wanted to go fully into music, but I advised him to get his degree first. I believe it would give him more opportunities and confidence. When he completed his (degree) projects, he said he has fulfilled my dreams, and I assisted him and his dad assisted him too, music-wise.

What’s your favourite holiday destination?

Funny enough, I don’t go on holidays, I only go abroad to work. I observe most of my holidays in Lagos. But sometime ago, I travelled to Dubai for my health. I love all the countries I have travelled to. Despite the fact that I cannot speak French, I love France.

If there were to be reincarnation, would you still want to come back as a musician?

Yes, of course. But I’ll like to be more educated because I didn’t have the opportunity of going to school. My parents didn’t have money to send me to school.

How was life growing up, any memorable experience?

My father is from Ogun State, while my mother is from the Odufoworo family in Epe, Lagos State. I started my career in 1974. I lived with my guardian, Mr and Mrs Otun. I have always wanted to be a musician. I was 13 going to 14 and I always listened to the music of King Sunny Ade, Ebenezer Obey and Sikiru Ayinde Barrister on radio. In those days, I usually peeped from a neighbour’s house to listen to the music of these artistes on the radio. That was what motivated me to become a singer. I did my first album in 1978, singing about the late Murtala Muhammed. My dad died at the age of 78, on April 14, 1990. My mum died five years ago at the age of 98.

You marked your birthday during the lockdown…

Yes, I did, but there was no party. By the special grace of God, I will celebrate my birthday big next year when I clock 60.

You posted your nude pictures on social media recently, Could you tell us what led to that?

I give thanks to Almighty Allah and the Nigeria Police, especially the RRS Squad. I reported to them on April 1, when the boy first called me around 9:00a.m. He said, ‘Good morning madam, I have your nude pictures’. That was what he said. He began to send the pictures to me. At a point, he made a video call, but I didn’t pick it. After that, he said I should get back to him so that we can negotiate. It was then I decided to post the pictures online by myself, after consulting my children. Till today, I don’t know where I took the nude pictures he’s talking about. But I decided to post them on my page. Maybe I took the pictures in the hospital or while I was with my partner, because that’s what he wanted to hammer on. But because he wanted to spoil my career, which God built since I was a child, I decided to act fast; and God saw me through the ordeal.

Where is the boy now, did you eventually meet him?

I finally met the boy in the police station. I was dumbfounded to see a small boy, he is 19 years old. And his mother said she is 40 years old, which means I’m old enough to be his grandmother. I felt so bad. I said, ‘you this small boy, what is my offence? What did I do? Who sent you? What did you want to achieve by doing this?’ He said he saw my memory card on the floor in his school at Yaba College of Technology. I scolded him that he is not thinking of building his career in order to encourage other youths. I reported the case on April 1, and two days before Ramadan, the boy was caught.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/08/16/how-i-was-blackmailed-by-a-teenager-to-post-my-nude-pictures-online/

The Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai has accused some clerics of instigating violence in the State.

El-Rufai said the clerics use their platforms to preach disunity rather than peace which would benefit the state.

He spoke yesterday at the state’s government House while playing host to the Primate of Anglican Church, Henry Ndukuba.

The governor, however, insisted that his administration has been able to contain violence at its point of origin.

He also disclosed that his administration is doing the best it can to find a solution to the violence in Kaduna.

According to El-Rufai: “Our study of the situation over four decades has shown that the main drivers of this violence are a few clerics that use their platforms, not to preach peaceful co-existence or promote our common humanity.

“Rather, they use their platforms and revered positions to divide and incite violence. I was sad to hear from the primate that he was a victim in 1987, when his house was burnt down in Wusasa, Zaria.

“In those days, the primate will recall that this sort of violence starts from one part of the state and spreads all over the state.

“One credit that this government gets from everyone, including our adversaries, has been our ability to contain these outbreaks to their points of origin.”

Kaduna State has witnessed some measure of violent conflict with the Southern part of the state being the most hit.

Only recently, some gunmen believed to be Fulani herdsmen had invaded communities in Southern Kaduna and killed over 20 people while several others were injured.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/08/14/el-rufai-accuses-clerics-of-instigating-violence-in-kaduna/

THIS is the moment an overweight Chinese man was saved from plunging down a well by his large stomach.

The man, who was identified only by his surname Liu and weighs 19 stone, became wedged in and had to be rescued by firefighters.

Liu got stuck in the well at his home in Yichuan County in Luoyang, a city in central China’s Henan Province, according to a Luoyang fire service report.

The report said the man, aged 28, had been helping his parents to fill in the well by throwing wood and other rubbish inside.

He had been standing on something in order to force it into the hole when it suddenly gave way and he almost followed after it.

The family said the well had been used for years but after it dried out, they decided to fill it in so it was not dangerous and that their son had been tasked with the job.

Firemen said that when they arrived, they realised he was stuck tight and needed to tie a rope around him as well as a rescue belt in order to pull him free.

The man, who sat calmly wedged in the hole with his arms folded, was then lifted free with no obvious injuries apart from some abrasions on his skin.

https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/08/13/bizarre-moment-as-belly-of-an-overweight-man-help-him-escape-from-death/

Abia’s most busiest city was enveloped with frenzy as the Chief Whip of the Senate and former governor of Abia State,Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu arrived the popular city of Aba on Monday.

Kalu who grew up in the city was greeted to a tumultuous welcome by supporters and well wishers from across party lines. The Senate Chief Whip was in Aba to attend a requiem mass in honour of late billionaire and oil magnate, Chief Anthony Enukeme (Tonimas).

Earlier, Kalu’s convoy was ambushed by massive supporters from Isiala Ngwa North who blocked his convoy to exchange greetings with him.

Arriving Aba, the excited and jubilant supporters lined up along the road side to welcome Kalu which temporarily caused a grid lock as they blocked Kalu’s convoy which was heading to Christ the Kings Catholic Church Aba where the requiem mass was scheduled to hold.

The excited supporters expressed their joy at the sight of Orji Kalu with various form of displays; some women were spotted spreading their wrappers on the road.

The crowd numbered in thousands beckoned Kalu to stop , however Kalu acknowledged the crowd and kept moving to avoid crowd gathering in line with the COVID-19 lock down regulations.

This would be Kalu’s first visit to his boyhood city two months after being released from the Kuje Correctional Centre.

THE NIGERIA DAILY recalls that Kalu was greeted to similar welcome when he arrived the state two weeks ago. He was received by the leadership of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Youths, the leadership of different social-cultural groups and thousands of supporters who came to the airport wearing branded face masks.

Kalu told journalists at the airport that he was happy to be home and that his constituents didn’t lose anything since the roads and other projects he attracted were going on with any hindrance.

The convoy of senator Kalu passed through the Abia State capital, Umuahia where he acknowledged greetings from residents who cheered endlessly as he made his way to Igbere, his home town.


https://thenigeriadaily.com/2020/08/10/breaking-orji-kalus-arrival-shuts-down-aba/

Breaking!!! Thousands of supporters ambush kalu's convoy at Isi ala Nwga North on his way to ABA to attend the requim mass in honour of the late Tonnimass.

#OUKNwaAba


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGwWupqMJNI