₦airaland Forum

The Senate has asked the Nigeria Police to carry out a thorough investigation into the murder of Professor Jerome Elusiyan of the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, Ile Ife, Osun State.
According to a statement by the Special Assistant (Press) to Senate President, Ezrel Tabiowo, the upper chamber is demanding that the killers of the slain professor are apprehended and brought to justice.

While paying tribute to the teacher, the lawmakers noted that the deceased died in active service to the fatherland and thereafter observed a minute silence in his honour.

They also want the Federal Government to place a high priority on the safety of Nigerians during and after the festive period.
Speaking on Wednesday, the Senator representing Osun East Senatorial District in the National Assembly, Senator Francis Fadahunsi regretted that Professor Tabiowo was attacked and killed on December 13 on his way to Benin at Iruekpen, Esan West local government in Edo State.
“The erudite scholar was killed by unknown gunmen while he was in active service of imparting knowledge to the incoming generation may send fears into others who are in similar activities all over the country and other nationals who may be interested in coming to Nigeria now and in future,” Fadahunsi said.
Meanwhile, the Senate received the report of its Committee on the Federal Capital Territory on the 2020 FCT Appropriation Bill, 2019.

The Committee’s report was laid at the commencement of plenary by the Committee Chairman, Senator Abubakar Kyari (APC, Borno North).

The Senate Deputy Chief Whip, Senator Sabi Abdullahi has said that the renovation of the National Assembly complex is long overdue, 20 years after it was built in 1999.

Speaking to Channels Television’s on its Politics Today programme, Senator Abdullahi stated that not much has been done to upgrade the building, owing to the level of legislation that is going on in it.
“When we came on board in this particular republic in 1999, the structures and every other thing that was put in place came in with the transition and since that time till now, it is on record that not much has been done to upgrade, renovate and to continually add value to that institution even as the legislature continues to evolve in terms of what it requires to carry out its democratic function.

“The idea of rehabilitating that particular complex is long overdue because this is 20 years now and there was no major rehabilitation done to the structure and it has been serving Nigeria from that period up till now.”

He insisted that the earmarked N37 billion is not on the high side because the appearance from the outside is contrary to what the inside looks like and the outcry by Nigerians is not relevant.
“What people see from the outside is not what that building is alone; you need to go inside to understand what that building is before you can think maybe what is being done is on the high side.
“Nigerians do not value the democratic process we have. If they do, they won’t be saying what they are saying.”

Holding a contrary view, a legal practitioner, Jiti Ogunye, who was a guest on the same programme, stressed that the proposed sum is a sheer waste of resources, owing to the infrastructural challenges facing the country.
Mr Ogunye, while reiterating Senator Abdullahi’s claim that no major renovation has been done on the complex, gave examples of South Africa, the United States of America and the United Kingdom, whose legislative buildings have been existing long before the National Assembly complex.
“What is being proposed is sheer waste, profligacy, irresponsibility and I am saying this with all sense of responsibility.
“The deputy chief whip was referencing 1999 it has not been renovated, so we need this humongous amount, N37bn to renovate it and because they are legislators, that’s the nerve-centre of governance.
“This is wastefulness, what we are being told is just a metaphor, a national calamity; this Lagos-Ibadan expressway that has been stopped for years. This is not our priority; the money is going to be wasted. We don’t need that N37 billion,” he stressed.

A file photo of Senator Sabi Abdullahi
When asked if the Senate plans to reduce the N37 billion for the renovation of the complex, Senator Abdullahi stated that it is not the responsibility of the legislature, insisting that the duty lies with the Federal Capital Development Agency (FCDA) who was mandated by President Buhari to carry out the renovation.
“When we complain, we have a right to do so. The National Assembly is not the one that put the budget there; it is the responsibility of the FCDA.
“I was in the eight Assembly and we were complaining that the structure is due for renovation. We couldn’t do anything because it’s not in our mandate to do that, it is the mandate of the FCT and FCDA.
“Mr President, seeing that this ninth Assembly is ready to work, was magnanimous in saying the FCDA should examine the complaints we are making and that’s what led to that particular budget,” he added

Two blind people in Nigeria's northern state of Kano want members of the public to stop using proverbs which they say discriminates against the visually impaired.
Saifullah Mukhtar and Bilkisu Ibrahim say some proverbs "insult blind people" and make many of them cry in private.
The pair are distributing hand-written messages on the streets, highlighting the proverbs they want people to stop using.
“One such proverb, 'All is same for a blind man that visits at night', disrespects the fact that a blind person might never see the light in his life," Mr Mukhtar told the BBC.

Ms Ibrahim who is a teacher at a special needs school, said people needed to change their mindset.
"We started a long time ago and stopped, but now we have come back with full energy.
"These proverbs deprive blind people of their confidence, that's why we are begging people to stop. Think of young people coming up," Ms Ibrahim said.
The pair plan to visiting media houses to urge them to back their efforts to change public attitudes.

Nigeria's government has raised concern about the plight of two Nigerian table tennis players, Alexandro Abia and Kenneth Eboh, held in Bosnia-Herzegovina since last month.
In a BBC interview, the chairwoman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, said she had spoken to the two students, and they were in a bad state.
She added that one of them had fainted while in a migrant camp in Bosnia.
The two were meant to have been sent back to Nigeria on Friday, she added.
Mr Abia and Mr Eboh said they were forcefully deported to Bosnia-Herzegovina from Croatia, where they were attending a university table tennis championship last month.
They say they were mistaken for illegal migrants.
The Croatian government has denied their allegations, saying the students disappeared after checking out of their hotel voluntarily.
Ms Dabiri-Erewa said the Nigerian government would ask the European Union (EU) to intervene if the students were not sent back home this week.
Bosnia-Herzegovina is not a member of the EU.

In all, let us just be hopeful a better Nigeria is near.

Lolz....madt reply

Tuesday, December 31, is the deadline for all unqualified teachers to practice in Nigeria - This order was given by the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) - The TRCN's registrar, Professor Josiah Olusegun Ajiboye, said that the plan of the federal government is to make teaching a well respected career path henceforth.

Teachers all over Nigeria without qualifications stipulated by the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) will be shown the way to the door by the end of December 2019.

This was revealed by the registrar of TRCN, Professor Josiah Olusegun Ajiboye, on Friday, November 29, at the University of Ibadan as he was administering the oath of practice on newly inducted teachers. Ajiboye said that the objective of the federal government for is to make future leaders of Nigerian children by improving the standard of education.

Moreover, the registrar said that henceforth teaching will become an enviable profession in the country going by the approval of Teachers’ Career Path through the national council on education.

He said: "We need to appreciate the fact that education unlocks the key to modernization, but the teacher holds the key to that door. He is the hub of any educational system and the major determinant of its quality. "This is so because he is saddled with the responsibilities of translating educational policies into practice."

Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that public schools teachers would be given 1GB (Gigabyte) data free to enable them to access and browse the internet on a regular basis. This was revealed by the minister of education, Adamu Adamu on Saturday, October 9 at the 2019 World Teachers Day celebration held in Abuja. The minister who was represented by the junior minister of education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, said the ministry was working with the Nigerian Communications Commission and other stakeholders to provide at least 1GB of data free to each public school teacher to surf the web and obtain educational materials.

Read more: https://www.legit.ng/1280215-unqualified-teachers-sacked-by-december-2019-fg.html

An appeal court in Jos, Plateau has affirmed the election victory of Governor Simon Lalong of the state. The court fined Jeremiah Useni of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) N200,000 in favour of Lalong - Useni's appeal against Lalong was thrown out for lacking merit.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) suffered a huge defeat on Friday, November 29, as an appeal court sitting in Jos, Plateau, ruled in favour of Simon Lalong, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2019 governorship election.

Channels Television reports that Justice Adumein Otisi, who led the judgement, threw out the appeal filed by PDP’s Jeremiah Useni for lacking merit. The appeal court also fined Useni the sum of N200,000 in favour of Lalong and the APC.

Legit.ng earlier reported how supporters and members of the PDP in Benue were, on Thursday, November 28, were greeted with the news that the appeal court had delivered a ruling in favour of Governor Samuel Ortom.

The judgement was delivered in Abuja with the court throwing away the appeal filed by Emmanuel Jime, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the governorship election of March 9.

The ruling was a decision unanimously taken by the panel of judges with the argument that Jime's appeal lacked merit. In his reaction, Jime said he had accepted the outcome of the appellate court in good faith. He, however, said in a statement by his spokesman, Kula Tersoo, in Makurdi, that Ortom did not win the 2019 gubernatorial election in Benue.

Jime said he would meet with his team of lawyers to study the judgement in order to decide his next move. “Today too, we receive the Court of Appeal judgement in good faith, but remain resolute in our contention that, by the majority of lawful votes cast, Samuel Ortom did not win that election," he said

https://www.legit.ng/1280127-appeal-court-governorship-election-victory-lalong-pdp-suffers-defeat.html

A heart touching video has emerged online where an 11 year-old girl was seen crying profusely outside a prison cell where her father is been held.

According to reports, the man was allegedly arrested for converting to Christianity from Islam in Iran. He was however trialed and found guilty of breaching the laws of the land and sentenced to death.

His family is definitely in shock as his daughter could not hold her pain as she protest the only way she can. Crying outside the prison cell where her father is been held for four years now awaiting his fate, she said while she cried,


“God help me! I haven’t seen my dad in 4 years. Oh god, Let me see him. can’t live without him. Don’t kill my dad! Kill me instead…”

Watch video here…..

https://twitter.com/i/status/1200309900766842880

Popular Lagos pastor, Tony Rapu, has taken to his Instagram account to discredit the argument in some quarters that it is ungodly to enhance your body.

In a video he posted on his IG page, the clergyman stated that there is no where in the bible that says cosmetic surgery is wrong,

However, he stated that if a plastic surgery is done solely with the aim of becoming more sexually appealing, then there is a problem with the person psychologically.

”The bible is silent about plastic surgery and there is really nothing in it that tells us it is wrong, so there has to be other considerations. If a person If a person is conscious of a deformity or physical aspect of his or her body that is causing them some emotional discomfort, then cosmetic surgery is certainly an option. There are women who have had mastectomies and have had to have breast implants and we know many people who have benefited from surgeries, especially when the surgery is noninvasive and the side effects are minimal.

There really is nothing wrong with enhancing the quality of a person’s life by surgery especially when the person is able to breathe better, walk better, or talk better and especially when psychological health is improved.

The challenge is when surgery begins to be an attempt to meet an emotional void in a physical way or to attract unnecessary attention to a person, or to seek approval from other people. In some of these cases, we are then beginning to deal with psychological issues or deep seated insecurities in a person. If surgery is for sexual attractiveness, simply because you want to be found more sexually attractive, then perhaps you are dealing with a deeper issue in terms of esteem.

So if surgery is for enhancing a vanity, then we are dealing with issues internally that surgery would probably never be able to satisfy” he said.

Very nice write up...

The new Commissioner of Police in Ogun State, Kenneth Ebrimson, on Wednesday told Gov Dapo Abiodun that he was in the state as a crime fighter.

The new CP, who described himself as someone on the field, said he would work tirelessly to reduce, to the barest minimum, crimes and criminalities in Ogun.

Ebrimson said this while he met Gov Abiodun, in company with the outgoing CP, Bashir Makama, at the Okemosan Governor’s office, Abeokuta.

While promising to fight crime in all the nooks and crannies of Ogun, Ebrimson promised to guarantee the safety of lives and property of the people, no matter who is involved.

Abiodun, while welcoming Ebrimson, warned criminals to stay clear of the state, saying his administration has zero tolerance for crimes and criminal activities

“As a Gateway State, bordering some States and a neighbouring country, this comes with advantages and disadvantages. It means that criminals also go through our State. We will continue to be innovative and very intolerant to crimes and criminalities in this State.

“There will be no room for any criminal in this State. We will not tolerate it. We intend to keep the peace we are enjoying and that is why we are putting in place measures to ensure that the overflow from Lagos translates into a society where people can come and live, work and play without any fear of being attacked, robbed, kidnapped or live with any foreboding fear of criminal behaviour,” he stated.

The Governor commended the outgoing Police Commissioner, Mr. Bashir Makama for doing a good job while in the State, attributing the peace in Ogun to the co-operation between government and the police force in achieving a crime-free society.

We reported Sunday that Ebrimson was redeployed to Ogun State in place of Edgal Imohimi, who was earlier posted to take over from Makama as the state’s Police Commissioner.

The Speaker of the Cross River State House of Assembly (CRSHA), Rt. Hon. Eteng Jonah Williams has directed all political appointees in the State to denounce cultism openly before their appointment into public service.

Eteng stated this on the floor of the State House of Assembly while confirming the 3 Commissioner Nominees sent in by the State Governor, Sen. Ben Ayade.

The Speaker, who expressed the Assembly’s commitment to zero tolerance for cultism further stated, “Members have unanimously agreed that all political appointees henceforth must denounce cultism openly before their appointment into public service”.

He urged the new commissioners to work closely with the House of Assembly members to help move the state forward.

He said that members unanimously agreed that all the nominees be confirmed, and advised the nominees to collaborate with the House to facilitate the upliftment of the State.

Those confirmed are Mr. Asuquo Ekpeyong Jnr, immediate past Commissioner for Finance, Mr Peter Akam Egba, former Commissioner for Commerce and Industries and Barrister Tanko Ashang.

The confirmation is sequel to a correspondence from the Governor, in line with section 192(2) of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended.

The House, which dissolved into the Committee of the Whole subjected the nominees to rigorous screening, asking questions bothering on how they intend to assist the State Government deliver the gains of democracy to the Citizenry.

The motion for confirmation was subsequently moved by the Leader, Rt. Hon. Peter Odey and seconded by the Deputy Leader, Rt. Hon. Fred Osim.

https://dailypost.ng/2019/11/28/cross-river-assembly-orders-political-appointees-to-denounce-cultism/amp/

That's cool...

This is kinda directed at me. I have learnt a lot from this piece. Thanks op...

Forty-seven Nigerian men pleaded innocent on Wednesday to a charge of public displays of affection with members of the same sex, an offence that carries a 10-year jail term.

Homosexuality is outlawed in many socially conservative African societies where some religious groups brand it a corrupting Western import.

The Nigerian men, who appeared at a court in the commercial capital Lagos, were among 57 arrested in a police raid on a hotel in the impoverished Egbeda district of the city in 2018.

Police said they were being “initiated” into a gay club, but the accused said they were attending a birthday party.

The trial is a test case for a law banning gay marriage, punishable by a 14-year jail term, and same-sex “amorous relationships”. It caused international outcry when it came into force under former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan in 2014.

Nobody has yet been convicted under the law, prosecution and defense lawyers in the case told Reuters. But Human Rights Watch and other activists say it has been used to extort bribes from suspects in exchange for not pursuing charges.

“Police officers will stop you and then get you arrested, extort money from you and begin to call you names,” Smart Joel, one of the defendants, told Reuters before the hearing. “I just wish the case will be quickly dismissed as soon as possible,” added Joel, 25, who runs a laundry and dry cleaning business.

Spokesmen for Nigeria’s police and ministry of justice did not respond to text messages and phone calls seeking comment on the extortion allegations.

Activists working to protect rights of sexual minorities in Nigeria said they were tired of harassment.

“The vagueness of the law makes it impossible to get a conviction,” Xeenarh Mohammed, executive director of the Lagos-based Initiative for Equal Rights (TIERS), told Reuters. “What does ‘amorous showing of same-sex affection’ mean?” she added.

The case was adjourned until Dec. 11.

The judge granted each of the men bail, provided they can post 500,000 naira ($1,634.52) and provide a surety who is either a civil servant or resides in Lagos state and has a “reasonable” income.

Prosecutors told Reuters police would track down the other 10 men out of the 57 originally arrested who failed to appear in court.

The EFCC, Lagos office, on Wednesday November 13, 2019, arraigned one John Isang and his son, Martins John Isang before Justice Sherifat Solebo of the Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja on an amended two-count charge bordering on conspiracy to obtain and obtaining by false pretense to the tune of $108, 000 (One Hundred and Eight Thousand United States Dollars) belonging to one Ikechukwu Eze.


The duo allegedly obtained the said sum from the victim under the pretence of having a vessel for hire to transport Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) outside the country.

The FCT Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Ayuba Gora, says driving with the aid of Google Map using mobile phones is a serious traffic offence.

NAN reports that Mr. Gora said this at the inauguration of the 2019 Ember Months Campaign by Lugbe Unit Command of the FRSC in Abuja on Wednesday.

According to him, the law forbids motorists from using mobile phones in any form while driving, as it can lead to an accident.

He also informed motorists that the corps will soon begin enforcement of installation of speed limiting devices.

Mr Gora advised motorists, especially commercial vehicle operators, who have yet to install the device to do so.

“We will embark on massive checks of vehicles without this device soon and arrest those that disconnected the devices from their vehicles".

“It is very important that all vehicles should have the device installed in their vehicles".

“The required speed limit for commercial vehicles even on the highways should not exceed 90 km/hr for buses and taxis".

“By doing this today, we are simply reminding motorists that they must drive with care and observe traffic rules and regulations in order to make the job very easy for all of us".

“If you are arrested this period, you will not just pay fines but must be taken for emotional evaluation test in the hospital to ascertain your mental fitness before we let go,” he said.

He urged the public to dial 122 or 112 in case they noticed unusual behaviour by road users and in the event of an accident.

That serves him right...

This Atiku sha...

Enjoy while it lasts...

Nobody goes unpunished for his/her bad act...

Perhaps they always forget they will surely get caught some day.

Gazzy88:
Faith or fate?

Yes 'faith'....exactly what I meant!

Today is the day when we remember the years before and look at the possibilities before us in order to strive for an even better future. We should remember not to leave the faith of our country in the hands of our leaders alone, as it is the responsibility of everyone to make it greater.

Have faith in Nigeria and Happy Democracy Day!

There shouldn't be any big deal about that...