₦airaland Forum

presidency:
*Adds: It’s a testament to the possibilities in the Nigerian economy

Coca Cola’s plan to invest $1 billion in Nigeria in the next five years testifies to the possibilities in the economy despite challenges, according to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.

Prof. Osinbajo stated this Monday evening at the 70th anniversary gala of the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC).

According to the Vice President, “your ongoing investment in the country, which I am told will be in the order of $1billion in the next five years, testifies to your faith in the possibilities of Nigeria.”


“And you can rely on the partnership of the Nigerian government, (and i dare say the Nigerian people too) as you make these great strides,” Prof. Osinbajo assured.

While narrating his personal and family stories about drinking Coke, including how he drank two bottles of Coke a day up until 2017, the Vice President reiterated that the Buhari administration’s commitment to “creating an environment that allows the private sector innovate and thrive remains active and sincere, despite the challenges.

“And we will continue to work with businesses across the broad spectrum of our dynamic economy to ensure that we do this with a clear view of the opportunities and problems of the day.”

Prof. Osinbajo further stated that in the 70 years that the company has operated in Nigeria, it has demonstrated “commitment to the Nigerian people with repeated investments, in the building of production facilities across the country, in creating thousands of jobs but also in your active support of every aspect of our national life, from health to education, from women and youth empowerment to sports. All done with conscious respect for the environment.”

Continuing, Prof. Osinbajo said “I think it is fair to say that the commitment has been met with the enthusiastic patronage of generations of Nigerians; families who have been supported by the stable careers of staff who have grown with the company through the years.”

He explained that “young people who have found successful careers in sports and entertainment inspired by your support; consumers from Lagos to Kano, Rivers to Plateau, linked by distributors in every region of the country, who have built enduring businesses getting Coca Cola into the hands of millions; a robust value chain that includes service providers and marketing agencies, creators of the iconic Coke adverts that have formed part of our individual and collective memories all these years.”

The high point of the event was the presentation of awards to distinguished staff and partners of the company across the country.

On his part, Board Chairman of NBC, Amb. Segun Apata recalled the company’s growth and contribution to the economy and noted that the company will continue in its 70 years tradition of investing in the economy as well as impacting its host communities through several initiatives, especially for the youths.

Nigerian Bottling Company also known as NBC was incorporated in 1951 but started production in 1953 at the basement facilities of the mainland Hotel, owned by Leventis Group, producing Coke licensed by the Coca Cola Company.

The gala night was also attended by the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat.


Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity
Office of the Vice President
November 23, 2021

ijustdey:
https://punchng.com/lagos-wont-submit-endsars-report-to-fg-says-presidency/

FreeStuffsNG:
What kind of question is this? Please let her report to the police so the police can investigate and arrest for prosecution anyone involved in it. Why should I deny or confirm what I don't know beyond what I read here on Nairaland.

My point of focus is the ungodly manner fictitious names were inserted into the Lekkilies EndSars report. Most taxpayers are interested in that. Who inserted falsehoods into the report?

FreeStuffsNG:
This should be the easiest report to implement if it had not been filled with fictitious names. That's why the Lekkilies promoters are still not giving answers to direct question of why do we have fictitious names in the report. Is it right to lie on oath and go scot free ?
If the punch writes 100 pages of editorial and still can't answer such a simple and direct question then they are not serious because they have something to hide.


They are the journalists who should have now gotten us the evidence that those fictitious names exist or not.
Thank God the report is in black and white so the people who inserted fictitious names in the report will answer.

GreatTormentor:
Alright

bobowaja:
The liar is using emotional blackmail to sweep up sentiments against the govt. And to cover for his lack of accountability when the white paper finally exposes him.

Dude is scared of his own doing.

I wondered how this man got his SAN. He is a disgrace to everything he represents.

You don't fight a suppose murderous govt my manufacturing your own murders and formulating deceits for public consumption hoping that will shield you against accountability.

You want to turn a goodwill given to you to a political witch-hunt hoping to reap social media following at the detriment of your own career. Who in his right senses will now hire you for a good job seeing how you flop in the national arena?

I hope you won't shout the govt is stopping you from getting golden clients in the future.

nzeobi:
Am sure he was attacked by BMC crew members like seunmsg, mannabbwgrill, slydev,freestuffng, helinues and others for exposing them


Zombies don't know that there are people who still have honour, shame and integrity unlike them

THE ignoble attempt by the authorities to cover up the October 20, 2020 slaughtering of unarmed #EndSARS protesters at the Lekki toll plaza in Lagos was recently exposed in the report of the Lagos State Judicial Panel of Inquiry on Restitution for Victims of SARS Related Abuses submitted to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, but which has since been leaked.

Headed by Doris Okuwobi, a retired judge, the nine-member panel found that there were 48 casualties of which nine were confirmed dead on the night soldiers stormed the toll gate and the world watched in horror the dispersal of peaceful protesters who were waving the national flag and singing the national anthem to protest police brutality and extrajudicial killings. The panel described the incident as a “massacre in context.”

The 309-page report provided graphic details of how after soldiers exited the scene, the Nigeria Police Force followed up with the killing of the protesters, shooting directly at fleeing demonstrators, who were running into shanties and the lagoon. Officials of the Lagos State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit reportedly evacuated dead bodies and deposited them at various hospital mortuaries in the state. The report shockingly averred that some trucks with brushes underneath were brought to the Lekki Tollgate in the morning of October 21, to clean up the scene and conceal evidence. This is nothing short of evil.

The entire saga was brutal suppression of the fundamental right of citizens to stage a peaceful protest. In a bid to bring an end to the incessant killings and extortion of innocent youths by officers of the dreaded Special Anti-Robbery Squad of the police, youths had taken to the streets in major cities to demand an end to police brutality. Though the immediate demand of the protesters was the disbandment of SARS, they also initiated a ‘Five-for-Five Demand,’ calling for an increase in police salaries, and a psychological evaluation of police personnel, among others. While the protests at the Lekki Tollgate and Alausa were peaceful, thugs, some of whom were ferried in official government vehicles and police vans, hijacked the protests in other areas, attacking demonstrators, looting, and invading prisons and police stations.

Sanwo-Olu eventually imposed a curfew on the state, but the protesters remained resolute. Before nightfall, the Lekki Concession Company, which operates the tollgate on behalf of the state government, turned out the lights that gave the murderous soldiers and bloodthirsty police officers the cover to perpetuate the dastardly act. While indicting the LCC, the panel found that the firm hampered the panel’s investigations by refusing to turn over some useful and vital evidence as requested, even where such information and evidence was by the company’s admission, available. It accused the LCC of manipulating the incomplete CCTV video footage of the Lekki Tollgate on the night of October 20, 2020, which it tendered before the panel.

Thankfully, some of the protesters were able to record the shootings at the tollgate in real-time. Apart from the LCC, the National Broadcasting Commission must also be called out for its shameful role in trying to suppress the news on the #EndSARS protests. The NBC, which has become the government’s willing tool for stifling the press, fined Channels, Arise and AIT TV stations for using what it termed “unverified footage” of the tollgate incident even though it was obvious that the videos were authentic and have not been discredited till date.

Under the supervisory purview of a lapdog Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, NBC now issues fines arbitrarily under the guise of curbing “fake news.” This undermines the role of the media as watchdogs of society as enshrined in Section 22 of the 1999 Constitution, which states that “the press, radio, television and other agencies of the mass media shall at all times be free to uphold the fundamental objectives contained in this chapter and uphold the responsibility and accountability of the government to the people.”

For over a year, several witnesses to the Lekki killings came forward, insisting that people were murdered at the tollgate. Amnesty International estimated that at least 12 persons were killed. CNN, in a detailed investigative report, narrated how soldiers fired live bullets at protesters, but the government persisted in its denials. Mohammed persistently tried to hoodwink and bamboozle Nigerians into thinking otherwise. He infamously dismissed the incident as a “massacre with no bodies,” and scoffed at #EndSARS protesters. With his penchant for tagging every unfavourable report as fake news, the minister endlessly adopted subterfuge to discredit the entire #EndSARS protests even while the panel had yet to turn in its report.

After continually demonising the protesters, he shifted his attacks to Twitter until the social media platform was suspended by the repressive and authoritarian regime of the President, Major-General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.). He accused the networking service of funding the #EndSARS protests, among others. Mohammed stated that Twitter must bear vicarious liability for the damage that ensued after hoodlums hijacked the protests. Rightly too, human rights groups have now called for the sacking of Mohammed for his role in the #EndSARS protests.


Whether now or in the future, public officials who were directly or indirectly linked to the horrors of Lekki Tollgate should be made to face justice. The massacre is not only of government savagery but also of unparalleled courage on the part of the Nigerian youth who welcomed soldiers’ smouldering bullets with the national flag and anthem while breathing their last. We certainly hope that they will never be forgotten. The dishonourable role played by the Central Bank of Nigeria cannot be forgotten. The CBN deviated from its statutory role of monetary policy and regulating banks to delve into politics. Persons who played key roles in the protests by sending or receiving funds had their accounts frozen by the CBN on the bizarre pretext of terror financing. Illegally, the protesters were denied access to their accounts for 90 days until the court lifted the ban after discovering that the CBN’s case had no substance. The CBN’s disreputable conduct demonstrates how low the apex bank has sunk under the leadership of Godwin Emefiele.

The Buhari regime also placed protesters on a watch list, seizing their passports and refusing to issue new ones to some others. To date, some protesters are still being victimised by the government. The indiscriminate arrest of protesters last month during the anniversary of #EndSARS shows that clearly, the autocratic regime has learnt no lessons from the demonstrations. Buhari must be reminded that the right to protest is guaranteed by Nigerian law.

Diplomats say the damning report of the #EndSARS panel wherein soldiers killed unarmed protesters, now puts Nigeria at a renewed risk of an arms embargo by the United States under the Leahy Law, and American rights law that prohibits the US government from providing military assistance to foreign security force units that violate human rights with impunity. Already, the US, the United Kingdom, the United Nations, and others have called for a transparent implementation of the report, even as the Buhari regime awaits the white paper to be issued by the Lagos State Government.

The panel’s report must not be confined to the archives like others before it, including the Kaduna State Commission of Inquiry into the December 2015 clashes between the members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria and the Nigerian Army, which recommended the prosecution of the soldiers who participated in the massacre of 347 Shiites, including women and children. The failure of the government to ensure justice has led to continuous protests by Shiites over five years later. Already, officials are shamelessly frenziedly trying to discredit the #EndSARS report.

The Lagos State Government can play its part by preferring charges against the soldiers, police officers and others indicted by the panel, while compensation should be swiftly handed to victims. All those languishing in detention for taking part in the protests in the past year should be released; the identified criminals among them should be swiftly tried.


Buhari, who claims to be a “born again” democrat, must now prove to the world how reformed he truly is. Justice is the basis of any democratic government. The military authorities must ensure that the soldiers who were indicted are made to face the law while genuine and quick police reforms should be implemented to not only honour the memory of those killed but to avert another round of #EndSARS protests. Anything short of this is unacceptable.

APCNig:
Sack them all. For several decades, they were collecting Salaries without doing any work. Some were even employed and from his employment date till his retirement, he did not do any work because the Rail Transport
was grounded. Small work now, they are asking for increase in Salaries

faithfull18:
Which man

Scores of intending passengers were turned back from the Obafemi Awolowo Train Station Moniya and also at the Ladoke Akintola Train Station at Omi Adio in Ibadan, Oyo State on Thursday following the strike embarked upon by railway workers.

Some of the workers, who were seen at the station in Moniya, were armed with placards with various inscriptions denouncing the way they were being treated.

The protesters refused to grant interviews. They said it was a nationwide strike and their leaders at the national level had been mandated to speak with journalists on the matter.

It was gathered that the train was supposed to leave by 8am but did not because of the strike embarked upon by the Nigerian Union Railway Workers.

The place was deserted when our correspondent visited the station. Taxi drivers who usually park waiting for the arrival of the train from Lagos around 11:30am had also deserted the car park.

The ticketing office, departure and arrival were all deserted.

Some of the Okada riders who usually make brisk business by conveying passengers from Moniya to the village where the train station is located also lamented that they had been affected by the strike.

One of them, who identified himself as Ayo Adebowale, said the workers scheduled the strike for when passengers would feel its effects more.

He said, “Weekends are the busiest time at the train stations. I will have to go by road and this will affect many others. I just pray that the issue causing them to strike will be resolved.”

The Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, says the contractors handling the Lagos-Ibadan expressway construction would be held accountable for accidents on the road for failing to provide safety signs.

Abiodun, while conducting an on-the-spot assessment of the Ogere toll gate end of the reconstruction work on Wednesday, read the riot acts, saying the failure of the contractors to put safety signs on the road had in recent times led to the unfortunate but preventable loss of lives and carnage of the country’s busiest route.

The road, which witnessed another accident in the early hours of Wednesday, claimed five lives. Another accident a few hours later also claimed three lives while 15 persons sustained varying degrees of injuries.

Abiodun commiserated with the affected families and said he would take the issue up with the Minister of Works, Babatunde Fashola, to ensure expeditious completion of the rehabilitation works that has been on for decades.

He said, “I am going to take this up with the Minister of Works. This contractor has to be held accountable; we cannot continue to pussyfoot around a project that is so important, particularly around this corridor.

“I want to call on the contractor handling this project to expedite action. We cannot take any more excuses on this project. We are going to be holding them responsible for any accident because safety measures are not in place; no safety signs and this is just an unnecessary loss of lives for us.

“We have had too many of these types of sad days on our major highways in Ogun State, but of particular note is the recurrence of this type of incidents around this corridor of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway.”

Abiodun, while noting that the drivers of the trucks involved in the accident could not be totally blamed for the accident as a result of the inability of the contractor to provide all the necessary safety signs, added that the construction had “been too protracted.”

He added “These people (drivers alone) cannot be faulted; construction is ongoing, there are no proper safety signs. Anywhere in the world, there would be enough signs that would tell whoever it is that is on the road that the road is now a dual carriageway.

“Obviously, the man coming from Ibadan assumed that he was the only one headed in the direction and was not expecting the tanker that pulled out of the fuel station.”

Abiodun further urged road users around the corridor to take their time while driving through the area.

GardenOfGod:
A listening leader he was.

clarocuzioo:
APC, the only ruling and opposition party.

APC conducted state Congress in 36 states and produced over 90 state chairmen for the party.

It's indeed the seventh wonder of the world.

Fabkeyz:
Hello Nairalanders

If you are an instrumentalist or musician in the Gospel genre, there’s an 80% chance that you know Mr Mcquine Williams

Sadly, we have been looking for him for days now. His Facebook account has been deleted and he was last seen at EPUTU LAKOWE AJAH on November 7th

If found or you have any information please call 08130695361

Kokadomfreedom:
Good day, please, i will need your advice on this two options available to me at the moment. I am a graduate of Accounting in a state of dilema on which of these two options to choose. I have an offer to work as teller in a bank with #80k plus as salary and also to work in an Accounting/Auditing firm with a take home pay of #50k with an option of enrolling for ICAN in the next diet. I am confused on which one to go for career wise. Your advice needed urgently!