₦airaland Forum

Over 28,000 receive TraderMoni in first level, 4000 receive MarketMoni

The Emir of Keffi, Nasarawa State, Dr Shehu Yamusa told Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday that the people of Nasarawa love him very dearly.

The Vice President was in Nasarawa to assess the impact of TraderMoni and MarketMoni as well as engage in Family Chats with residents of the state.

He was accompanied by Nasarawa State governor, Abdullahi Sule. At the palace of the Emir, the Vice President was received to a rapturous welcome.

He explained that the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) was designed to lift millions of Nigerians out of poverty.

He added that Tradermoni is President Buhari’s way of providing interest-free credit to petty traders across the country.

“Your Royal Highness, I’m extremely honoured, I thank you very much for the warm welcome. And also I bring you very warm greetings from our President, Muhammadu Buhari who is also excited that we are launching the TraderMoni here in Nasarawa state today especially Keffi.

“One of the other things that I think you might be happy to hear is the President’s determination on this question of education, on June 20th while speaking to the government, when we inaugurated the National Economic Council, he made the point that the Federal Government will enforce along with the state governments the law of free and compulsory education for the first nine years of a child.

“It is a very important thing because we all know education is the key to economic success, it is the key to self realization and is the key that enables a person to live a dignified life.

“So we are extremely concerned on how to improve education, technical education in particular is very important. As a matter of fact, under our N-Power scheme, we already have several technical education programmes going on. We have what we call N-build, which is technical education for persons involved in the building industry, bricklayers and different skills associated with building.

Responding to the Vice President, the Emir said the people of Keffi were grateful for the empowerment programme and that they love the VP.

“Let us appreciate you and welcome you to Keffi for the second time. The first time you came it was for the Keffi Polo Ranch Open Tournament in support of education. This time around you are coming to empower our people, our community and the State in general.

“This shows how you have interest in us particularly as you are doing the religious duty of help, because we are your immediate neighbours and the holy books of the Quran and Bible say you should be kind to your neighbours. We appreciate you for coming to empower us.

“Your Excellency let me use this opportunity to protest for the review of our primary and secondary school education system. We need technical and vocational training.

“This will reduce unemployment because our children will be trained on how to be self-sufficient.

“Mr Vice President you are welcome to Keffi and we wish you a safe journey back. Keffi is very historic, it is a historical ancient city where the resistance of the indirect rule started as far back as 1940, we need self-sufficiency and you are here to support us and you are welcome. We love you the way you love us, you are welcome.

Speaking after the Emir, Governor Sule said he would like to inform the Vice President about the agricultural heritage that is in Nasarawa state.

“In the next few days we are going to commission an incubation sector. We have different technical discipline that will be training our people in the areas of electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, welding, fabrication, air conditioning, radio and television repairs, motor mechanic repairs, etc. Over 28,000 petty traders have received TraderMoni in the first level of N10,000 loans and over 4000 received MarketMoni. Traders who have paid back the N10,000 interest-free loan have begun collecting N15,000.

Source: https://www.chronicle.ng/2019/08/emir-of-keffi-to-osinbajo-we-love-you/

VP assesses ongoing disbursements at Keffi, Masaka markets, interacts with traders in Nasarawa

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN says feedback from the field and testimonies from stakeholders including beneficiaries indicate that TraderMoni and MarketMoni loan schemes are doing very well, and beneficiaries are indeed paying back their loans.

Prof. Osinbajo stated this on Tuesday during an interaction with journalists after his assessment visit to markets in Keffi and Masaka towns of Nasarawa State, where loans under the TraderMoni and MarketMoni schemes are being disbursed to traders.

According to the Vice President “It is going very well, and I am excited to hear the testimonies of the traders who have done so well after getting their first loan. It is also exciting to see that they have repaid their loans very quickly, because as you pay back, you are able to get more; when you get N10, 000, and you pay back, you get N15, 000 and it gets to N20, 000, when you repay, all the way to N100, 000, and it is so exciting to see that these traders are doing so well.

“Everybody is keying in already, what we want to do is to expand it so that more traders can get this facility, so we need to do more because at the moment, we have done close to 2 million but we need to increase the number”.

The Vice President urged beneficiaries of the loan schemes to continue to pay back their loans so they can get more money and become very successful in business.

Prof. Osinbajo said the target of the Federal Government in the Next Level is to expand the scheme to cover more traders and also increase the amount received to enable beneficiaries expand their businesses.

According to him, “we want to expand the TraderMoni and MarketMoni to include more people in every state, so we have only just started. More of the traders who are here will get the TraderMoni and the MarketMoni.

“So long as you continue to pay back you will continue to get more money. We want to make sure that every petty trader in the market have enough so that they themselves can even employ more people and pay their children’s school fees and also build their own houses. As I told you, we are going to expand the scheme so that more people can benefit.”

Earlier at the palace of the Emir of Keffi, Alhaji Shehu Chindo Yamusa, Prof. Osinbajo said his visit to the State was to assess the disbursement of the TraderMoni and MarketMoni loans to traders in markets across the States.

He said “TraderMoni is the President’s own way of empowering women and men who are traders. For many of them, their inventories are very small, it could be people hawking groundnuts, selling bread and other basic things. Most of them don’t have enough capital to improve their businesses. So, what we do is to empower them through the Bank of Industry.

“So, we want to ensure that people who are trading have an opportunity and that opportunity is provided when we are able to give them capital as part of this TraderMoni scheme. So, that is why we are here.”

On the Emir’s appeal about improving educational standards, the Vice President said President Buhari is determined to improve both access and quality of education to all Nigerians regardless of their socio-economic backgrounds.

According to him, “One of the other things that I think you might be happy to hear is the President’s determination to this question of education. On June 20th this year, while speaking to Governors when he inaugurated the National Economic Council, he made the point that the Federal Government will enforce, along with the State governments, the law on free and compulsory education of the first 9 years of the child’s school life.

“It is a very important thing because we all know that education the key to the economic success, the key to self-realization and the key that enables any person live a dignified life. So, we are extremely concerned on how to improve education; Technical education in particular, I think that it is very important.

“As a matter of fact, under our N-Power scheme we already have a number of technical education schemes going on. We have what we call N-Build which is technical education for persons involved in the building industry (tillers, brick layers etc). We also have training for extension workers, persons who will provide extension service. There is the one for persons involved in technical training like carpenter, electricians and many others.”

He added that the Federal Government in collaboration with State governments are committed to “doing more in terms of technical education and also in supporting the states for education especially making primary education and first three years of secondary education free and compulsory as well as the education of young women”.

In his remarks, the Emir of Keffi, Alhaji Shehu Chindo Yamusa who commended the Vice President for his show of concern and interest in the welfare of the people of Nasarawa State and Keffi in particular, appealed to the Federal Government to review the nation’s education curriculum to integrate vocational and technical education to address youth unemployment.

Read more: https://www.chronicle.ng/2019/08/tradermoni-marketmoni-beneficiaries-paying-back-doing-well-osinbajo/

Who is Reno Omokri’s next victim?

The word fraudster has a ring to it, somehow it sounds a lot nicer than thief. Reno Omokri, unfortunately is both. Yeah I am talking about the same Reno Omokri who claims to be a pastor yet we are yet to find anyone who actually attends his church or service programmes. (PS: the offer still waits for their identification. I dare say he’d be more than willing to push up such a person towards the top of his #RenoMoni fraud pyramid).

Much has been said about the fraudulent acts such as profiteering from the sale of books and tee shirts in Leah Sharibu’s name without as much as providing financial details to back up claims. First he allegedly said he transferred the monies made from the tees to her family then realizing the gaffe claimed that the donations were made directly to her father’s account.

On the book front, Reno said “the royalties spent exactly five minutes in his account before they were also transferred to her father”. What the people and by this I’m referring to his teeming followers want to see or read is;

Who was monitoring the time?

Are royalties a one off event?

What’s happened to the income from the book sold since the first payout was done?

For those interested in his other bold but outlandish claims, I would recommend you dig up his responses to #RenoUndarted.

We would like to see some sort of audit else this would continue to hang over him like the sword of Damocles.

Reno also regularly claims to be a bestselling author yet the said book which is his claim to fame accumulates dust on Amazon’s shelves.

Since a liar would always steal, remember when our mothers told us that? It’s not surprising that Reno Omokri is a thief. Yes I say it and it’s actually the main crux of my write up. A man with absolutely no scruples about dragging the title of Pastor into the mud apparently seeing as he thinks everyone else is like him with absolutely no compunction nor morals about stealing the identity of another albeit that of his nephew.
Sometimes in 2014, Reno Omokri who was at the time, the SA to the President on New Media ushered Nigeria into the now popular crime of Identity theft. In order to smear and slander the name of the then suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Reno Omokri anonymously sent emails to editors across the country in the identity of his nephew, a certain Wendel Simlin with the email; wendellsimlin@yahoo.com.

To most persons Reno has always been a duplicitous character skilled in the dark arts but as we have come to find out he’s not very good at covering up his tracks or aligning his lies as those who investigated the issue then claimed they didn’t do anything special at all, just basic checks around the email and most crucially, the attached word document.

It was as simple as opening the attached word document and right clicking to pull up its properties. There it was – his name as the author and person who last saved it on Hewlett-Packard computer (this is automatically done when you use your computer to generate a document).

An online newspaper, Premium Times, who had received official emails from Reno Omokri in the past checked out previous email headers from him and compared it to this particular one from Wendell Simlin. They matched i.e. the emails were sent from the same computer/location.

But he is not one to be deterred. Religious baiting is a very dangerous thing to do in Nigeria but it is the main stay of Reno Omokri’s, I mean his modus Oparandi. Once the religious touch paper has been lit in Nigeria, no one really has any control over it and many lives could possibly be lost. The email sent out by Reno was dripping with Islamophobia and also contained outright lies and smears not just against SLS but against Alhaji Mutallab – a man who reported his own son to the American authorities when he noticed extremist tendencies in him.

Seems the latest feather he’s added to his cap of mischief, is taking on persons he believes are too relevant and then he tries to misinform the public and Christian bodies as he seeks to exploit them for personal gratification.

Well if he comes facing you as Reno the Fraud, let one fly and if he comes backing you as Reno the identity Thief, do hesitate to release the notch, for he only commeth to steal, deceive and destroy our relative peace.

Nicholas Adesina writes from Ibadan, Oyo state.

By Seun Bisuga

Reno Omokri is the modern day illusionist for very obvious reasons. He is one person who never pays attention to details and hardly understands the organogram of the Presidency despite having worked there before as the New Media aide to former President, Goodluck Jonathan.
It’s increasingly clear why he was sacked and replaced by Obi Asika, he pays no attention to details and he’s apparently driven by emotions but more importantly by fraud and lies. In his article titled, “Osinbajo should appreciate me – Reno Omokri” he showed how uneducated he is especially with the workings of the Social Investment Programmes including TraderMoni which Omokri has been having sleepless nights over. First, it’s important for Nigerians to note how TraderMoni works.
The Nigerian Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) is one of the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP) for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) under the Office of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
This means that TraderMoni is not a personal programme of the Vice President but of the Federal Government in the Buhari administration. The visits by Prof. Yemi Osinbajo to markets are on-site assessments of the programme and an opportunity for the Vice President to directly feel the pulse of the beneficiaries and understand the problems they could be facing.
The programme is managed and executed by the Bank of Industry and the VP never shares N10,000 as Omokri has often claimed. The disbursement is electronic, so is the registration process, so it’s safe to say everything is online. In the first phase, two million petty traders across Nigerian markets benefited from the scheme.
Understanding the economics of TraderMoni has been a problem for Omokri, not that he has shown finesse on any subject matter before TraderMoni. If you skim the social media channel of Omokri, you’ll admit that he has little or no grasp of most issues. It’s difficult to tell maybe he is ignorant or illiterate because he often carries himself like someone who understands what he is talking about.
Away from TraderMoni, Omokri tried to clear his name of the fraud he is perpetuating in the name of Leah Sharibu. It has been well documented that Omokri sold books and shirts in the name of Sharibu, a Dapchi schoolgirl captured by Boko Haram.
Whipping up religious sentiments as he always does, Omokri apparently conned people across the world, including the new UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson to buy his Leah Sharibu narrative. When queried to give details of the earnings, Omokri contradicted himself.
In a tweet, he claimed the proceeds from the book and shirt spent no more than five minutes in his account before he transferred it to the parents of Miss Sharibu but shortly after he was asked to show a screenshot of the transfer, he claimed that the monies were paid directly to the account of Sharibu’s father, Nathan.
But this is one of the many fraud perpetuated by Omokri. He once wrote an article in the name of Wendell Simlin – his nephew – to smear the then Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Sanusi Lamido. He tried to blackmail him by accusing him of being the financier of terrorist group, Boko Haram.
He did this to rubbish a noble person who had raised very profound questions about the disappearance of $20 billion from the government coffers. Omokri saw this as an assault on the corruption-ridden government that he was a beneficiary.

Omokri always claims that he is bestseller but in the real sense, he is not. He uses this ploy to target people who are unsuspecting. He grand stands and paints himself in a light that never exists. Take for example the giveaways he does on Twitter.
Omokri claims to put smile on the face of the masses but that’s completely untrue, it’s another scam. He only gives one or two people N10,000 or N20,000, how exactly does that translate into the masses? In all, only six persons have benefitted from Reno’s equivalent of TraderMoni, how does that compare to the millions that benefitted from the FG scheme?
On Twitter, loads of people do giveaways and do not demand retweets in return but not Reno Omokri. He predominantly lives for the attention. He demands that people retweet him to benefit but despite all the retweets only six persons have benefited.
While real people do philanthropy without publicizing it, Omokri lives for the cameras, he even does videos demanding that his followers watch till the end.
Another scam by Omokri is that he is a pastor, something that has become cliché among scammers. No one has seen Omokri preach before despite claiming he owns a church and that is a rarity, given that, he will die for the lights, camera and action.
Any follower that quizzes him about the theology school he attended or who his spiritual father is on Twitter will be blocked. Omokri is the ultimate tyrant, you can’t question his judgment or submission on any matter, even worse, you must not have a superior argument to Omokri, if you do, he will block you but this is the same guy who insults people for fun.
Talking about insults, Omokri cannot debate me, talk less, the aides of VP Osinbajo, it will be a walk in the park, particularly for me, given the lacuna in our intellectual level.
But more importantly, Nigerians must know that there are loads of end-time pastors and must be weary of anyone whose words profess God but his actions are anti-God. He takes delight in using religion to rattle his followers and incite them to violence.

Source: https://www.chronicle.ng/2019/08/nigerians-should-appreciate-me-for-exposing-reno-omokri/

A group known as the Initiative to Save Democracy (ISD) has warned former aide of Goodluck Jonathan, Mr Reno Omokri, to refrain from attacking the vice president, Prof Yemi Osinbajo.

In a statement by its publicity secretary, Peter Oladele, the group faulted the call by Reno Omokri that the vice president should stand up against the president because the president had asked that his ministers pass correspondences and meeting proposals through the chief of staff, Mallam Abba Kyari.

The group stated that making such a call did not only show that Mr Omokri lacked an understanding of governance at the presidential level, but it also reflected the way and manner in which the Jonathan government was run without any institutional practice and order.

“We have read Reno Omokri’s constant attempt to politicise governance processes, especially his recent tirade at the vice president. In our view, Omokri has opened himself, the government of Jonathan where he served and his party up to the perfect counter-uppercut.

“Because by lambasting the president’s instruction to streamline administrative processes in adherence to global democratic executive standards, they are once again exposing and celebrating their own wayward governance systems of old in which presidential governance was a jungle-like wilderness where everyone who could whisper to the president could adjust his actions or inactions, which is largely responsible for the massive corruption and underdevelopment known of their administration which we are still dealing with.”

The Initiative to Save Democracy went further to state that the instruction given to ministers to have all correspondences and schedules for meetings go through the chief of staff was to ensure there was order and guided flow of the president’s activities.

“Does one expect the president to receive his ministers anytime and whenever they want to? Would that not be a recipe for chaos and insanity?” The group asked.

“There must follow a pattern in every institution, in which the head of the institution is accessed, correspondences sent and meetings scheduled. This was clearly not the case with the Jonathan administration.”

Source: https://www.chronicle.ng/2019/08/group-warns-reno-omokri-to-stop-attack-on-osinbajo/

*RENO OMOKRI: The Misfortunes of an Errand Boy*

By Olayinka Williams

Reno Omokri’s obsession with the Osinbajo name is no longer news and quite frankly, I think he draws breath and finds a considerable level of solace in either tweeting or posting about the bearer.

Should he be blamed? He's a failed assistant to a past president, his reputation is grasping straws and his relevance to the republic and humanity at large is fast dwindling, if I was he, I'd take a jab at anyone and anything to stay on the radar too.

Life and its beautiful ironies, isn’t it quite a thing of astonishment that Reno Omokri sees himself sacrosanct enough, a worthy advocate to kick against the policies of the current administration and an unarguably active Vice President? Reno’s darts must’ve been invented an administration too late.

Reno Omokri, the man who has continued to unrepentantly monetize for personal use, the unfortunate Leah Sharibu incident; printing and selling shirts to all who genuinely care for the young lady, employing the #FreeLeahSharibu hashtag to trend his unrelated social media shenanigans?

Omokri who on finding out about the worthlessness of his own book on Amazon quickly put pen to paper leveraging on Leah’s predicament to write another piece currently selling for $16 on the same website? Visiting churches worldwide introducing himself as a pastor and selling them the books while speaking about a nonexistent war on Christianity in Nigeria?

The same Reno who wound up in a filthy scandal after exploiting his relationship as brother-in-law to a California-based woman, Deborah Campbell, and wrote a malicious article in her son’s name (Wendell Simlin) in an attempt to link the spike in Boko Haram attacks to the suspension of Mr. Sanusi as CBN Governor in 2014?

Reno’s silliness dates as far back as far could imply and I’d be damned to take a man obviously suffering from inexplicable heights of boredom and redundancy seriously. Clearly, his obsession with Osinbajo and the Office of the Vice President is his last claim to relevance.

RENO'S OBSESSION WITH OSINBAJO IS HIS LAST CLAIM TO RELEVANCE

Why Jonathan's Social Media aide will never overcome his fraudulent past

We wake up each day, count it a blessing and go about our daily activities to earn a living.


Unfortunately for Reno Omokiri he's faced with the same dilemma the only difference is that of late he's had no job and has taken to social media as consolation.Well he’s not entirely jobless, if you take into account the fact he sold shirts and books in Leah Sharibu’s name, scamming her parents and unsuspecting people.


But if he is not up to some old tricks, he is usually eking out a living out of his obsession for none other than the Vice President.


Similar to the holy grail or the elixir of life, a day can't go by without the self acclaimed pastor a crony to one of Nigeria's most corrupt governments attempting to take a dig at renowned Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.


Who requires that we shed light on the crooked character that once took on the personage of Wendell Simlin?


Lamido Sanusi - the Emir of Kano who was widely respected in the international community - had been suspended as the Governor of the Central bank a month after accusing the government of corruption.


A few days later, a number of journalists were surprised to receive an email from an unknown man, Wendell Simlin, which linked Sanusi with the militant Islamist group Boko Haram.


It was actually written by one of the president's aides, after his name was found in a Word document attached. Yes, Reno Omokri the one and only. Social media advisor to President Goodluck Jonathan.


Not long afterwards a Califonia-based woman, Deborah Campbell, told Sahara Reporters in a series of emails and telephone conversation that her son, based in Hercules, California, is the real Wendel Simlin.


She explained that she is married to Mr. Omokri’s brother-in-law and that the president’s aide exploited the relationship to perpetrate forgery.


Back in Nigeria, Feyi Fawehinmi, one of the team who investigated the letters said, "We just did a simple right click on the document and looked at the 'properties'," and his name was there as the author.


This simpleton attempts at smearing the names of more accomplished persons obviously hasn't been improved upon in the five years since. For only yesterday Reno took his darts to Instagram and almost verbatim spewed the exact same rhetoric that another established wailer @aishayesufu had a couple of days prior chugged out questioning the roles and functions of Vice President Osinbajo in the present administration.


Dare I say Reno took to Instagram in respect to the bashing he got on Twitter the last time he exfoliated his crass and idiosyncrasies in the community. Anyone remembers #RenoUndarted?


Seems he's also not forgotten the bashing but assumes Nigerians have forgotten that we've realized he's been fraudulently collecting money in the name of Leah Sharibu from donors across the world in the course of his travels. We are still waiting for the audited accounts showing royalties being paid to Leah's parents as he alleged.


Rather than provide proof, Reno went underground and thinking that the clime was clear popped his head out to once again go about earning his Dubai strategy bread.


Nigerians are usually not quick to be ruffled, but the attendant response that greeted him and his post yesterday, I'm sure Reno now knows that his goose is cooked so expect one of Nigeria's most slimy characters to reinvent himself in another shoddy pseudonym in the nearest future because his obsession with Osinbajo is his last claim to relevance.


Nicholas Adesina writes from Ibadan, Oyo State

*Nigeria newspapers and the name Osinbajo*

By Sunday Akinloye

If you are an ardent reader of Nigerian newspapers, you will find that they love the name Osinbajo. They can put it on all their headlines if they have to, my guess, is that they get more clicks whenever the name Osinbajo is in the headline.

I wouldn’t be surprised if one Nigeria newspaper comes up with the headline, “Osinbajo watches as Real Madrid beat Barcelona in El Clasico”. That is how these newspapers are wired nowadays.

On Thursday, 22 August, my attention was called to a Vanguard newspaper headline on Twitter, “Osinbajo storms in as, Adamu, Shehuri, Kategu, Sylva, Akume take oaths”. The headline was ludicrous to say the least.

Not only did the Vice President not “storm in” as claimed by Vanguard, the VP had nothing to do with the swearing-in but Vanguard Newspaper were hell-bent on finding a way to input the name that gave them so much joy.

But it is not only Vanguard that is in this trade. Punch newspaper once wrote a story, published on the cover of their newspaper with the same name. The headline read, “Osinbajo's firm linked to company fingered in alleged N100bn Alpha Beta scam”.

For headline huggers, the VP was in trouble but for those who read the story, Punch was a purveyor of fake news. They maligned the Vice President just to sell some copies of their newspaper. For those who read the story, the VP had nothing to do with the deal. The claim that SimmonCoopers were he once worked was Company Secretary to Alpha Beta was also false.

Punch like Vanguard played on the intelligence of Nigerians by using the name Osinbajo to sell their papers. But they are not the only players in the media sector, most medium are involved in this offline and online.

A few days ago, TheNation newspaper published a story with the headline, “Join APC before your party dies, Osinbajo tells PDP”, supposedly what the VP said at the 80th birthday celebration of Chief John Odigie-Oyegun.

For those of us who are wiser, we know it is a ploy, so we don’t click on these links anymore but for the unsuspecting the clicks rang in their hundreds. The truth is the VP never said that, he made a joke about a Republican politician in the US who wanted to switch to the Democrat Party in his dying hour because he did not want the headlines to read, “A Republican Senator Died” and at the end he said politicians from other parties were welcome in the APC.

So why is the media trying to paint the VP in a bad light? Why do they want to soil a man that has built his reputation for decades? Why are they quick to write false stories about the man but reluctant to publish positive stories?

Professionalism goes beyond clicks, maligning the name of a good person should mean more than selling newspapers.

Ask the Nigerian people and they will tell you all sorts of positive things about the VP. From his Family Chats to Mediation to political and economic intervention, no one comes close. He’s the people’s politician. He is closer to the grassroot than local government chairmen, that’s just who he is.

A testament of this was when he visited Ebonyi state to commission projects but in his usual style stopped by the home of a beneficiary of N-Power. After crying and praying profusely for the VP, here’s what Emelda Onyeika had to say.
“I had two cups of rice in the house that very day, when alert dropped (N-Power alert), I had to thank God for everything because I know what have been passing through, if not that am I nursing mother, I uses to soak garri overnight to enable me drink it. So I can breastfeed my baby.”

Prof. Osinbajo is man that is loved and respected locally and international. As chairman of the National Economic Council he has earned the praises of governors who described him as one of the finest leaders in Nigeria’s history.

Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai says the Vice President has a unique leadership style and humility, noting that the VP treated all (governors) equally regardless of party affiliations. That is who he is, a detribalized politician and leader.

Former Kwara State Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed a member of the opposition, said that the VP “led a strong team through various areas requiring attention in the economy. He made robust efforts in security giving direction, confidence and comfort.”

Here’s how Senator Kashim Shettima put it, the Vice President provided leadership and in the past four years, he exhibited humility, giving everyone a sense of belonging."

*If I were Okoi Obono-Obla*

By George Tari

If I were Okoi Obono-Obla there were many things I would have done very differently. But Obono-Obla is his own man, a man who wanted power and a man who absolute power corrupted absolutely.

Firstly, if I were Obono-Obla, I would have stuck to the mandate of my office instead of over-stepping my boundary and jumping into the jurisdiction of others.

Secondly, I would have hearkened to the warnings that came my way that my office was solely designed to investigate and not prosecute. I certainly would not go about blackmailing people and threatening them with the Presidency, when in the real sense, I’m not the President.

Thirdly, I wouldn’t embark on a needless media trial by co-opting Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) and others to sensationlise a case that turns out that he is digging his own grave.

Fourthly, If I were Obono-Obla, I would not continue to play judge and jury especially when all the evidences are against me. I understand that he does not want to retire into his shell like a battered tortoise but he must face the music for the abuse of office.

Fifthly, If I were Obono-Obla, I would not take my bribery and extortion business to foreign missions in Nigeria, it was a disgrace and a stain on Nigeria and Nigerians.

Sixthly, If I were Obono-Obla I would not have beaten Mrs Nkeiru Okpalanozie Negwa, a pregnant woman who was accused by his Panel of receiving bribe as an electoral officer, in the February 2019 elections, in order to manipulate results. She was arrested on 7 June 2019 and severely beaten to the extent she began to bleed. She was rushed to DEDA Hospital Jabi on 8 June 2019 by the operatives of the Panel, where she received treatment.

Seventhly, If I were Obono-Obla, I definitely would have meddled in election matters because it had nothing to do with Special Presidential Investigation Panel on the Recovery of Public Property.

If I were Obono-Obla, I would not have received donations on behalf of the Panel without declaring such donations to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation or retiring same.

If I were Obono-Obla, I would not have involved myself massive corruption, nepotism and violation of financial regulations.

If I were Obono-Obla, I would not have hired Mr.Nnadi Ifebi, a friend, who is not a member of the Panel to sign correspondences as my Chief of Staff and send out invitations to victims usually to extort money from them in the process.

If I were Obono-Obla, I would have respected the ruling of the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal that spelt out my mandate and stressed that, “the Panel only act on a written mandate received from the Presidency, and will seek authorization from the Presidency to undertake fresh mandates in accordance with extant laws of the Federation.”

If I were Obono-Obla, I would have halted my nefarious act when complaints against my work were flying left, right and center, and also, when I noticed that President Muhammadu Buhari has been inundated with complaints of all sorts.

But what did Obono-Obla sought to do? He sought to bite the finger that fed him. I will advise that he shuts up and face his case, the more he talks, the more he buries himself.

A word is enough for the wise. Take a cue from Mrs Winifred Oyo-Ita.

By George Tari, President of Coalition of Nigerian Youths for Good Governance, CNYGG

BOSF CONGRATULATES MR LAOLU AKANDE ON HIS REAPPOINTMENT AS SENIOR SPECIAL ASSISTANT(MEDIA AND PUBLICITY) TO THE PRESIDENT, OFFICE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT


Wednesday, 21st of August, 2019


We write to congratulate Mr. Olaolu Akande on his expected reappointment as the Senior Special Assistant(Media and Publicity) to the President, Office of the Vice President. Our appreciation, and experience of the energy and strength with which Mr Laolu Akande devoted to his duty in the presidency, coupled with his wit, proficiency and effective delivery especially in these times of abnormal opposition we believe, midwifed his reappointment as SSA(Media and Publicity) to the President, Office of His Excellency, Vice President.

BOSF is proud of him and his track record in the presidency. We understand the rigour the office poses, and we trust that his consummation and patriotism, goodwill and service to this country will urge him ahead in excellent continuity of the role.

Buhari Osinbajo Solidarity Front is glad to congratulate him. We ask him to do more and keep being a model and image of hardwork to us. In real sense, Mr Laolu Akande remains an institution we study and draw inspiration from.

Congratulations to the quintessential man and best wishes in his continued assignment to the good people of Nigeria.


Signed:
Mr Liberty Olawale Badmus
National Chairman, Buhari Osinbajo Solidarity Front

Distributed:
Directorate of Media and Publicity, Buhari Osinbajo Solidarity Front

Some Nigerians have raised dust over President Muhammadu Buhari’s speech directing incoming Ministers to go through Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, if they want to see him.

The speech which he delivered at the two-day presidential retreat for ministers-designate, presidential aides and other top government functionaries held at the State House in Abuja on Monday is standard protocol, Chronicle NG reports.

The President in his speech said, “In terms of coordination, kindly ensure that all submissions for my attention or meeting requests be channelled through the Chief of Staff, while all Fed. Executive Council matters be coordinated through the SGF.”

Chronicle NG found that the Chief of Staff to the President is responsible for scheduling meetings with the President.

According to a statement on the official website of the State House the functions of Mr Kyari includes coordination of meetings.

"The Office of the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces is overseen by the Chief of Staff to the President. The current occupant of that position is Alhaji Abba Kyari, appointed August 27, 2015,” says the State House website.

“The Chief of Staff manages the President’s schedule and correspondence, and any other duties that may be assigned by the President.”

Similarly, the functions of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation was explained.

“The Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation monitors and coordinates the implementation of government policies and programmes; serves as the frontline advisory institution of the Presidency; drives policy formulation, harmonization, and implementation; and monitors Federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies.”

In simple terms, the Chief of Staff handles the personal dealings with the President while the SGF handles executive correspondence.


Source: https://www.chronicle.ng/2019/08/why-buhari-is-right-to-direct-ministers-to-abba-kyari/

Meet Prof. YEMI OSINBAJO, a man driven by Passion, Honesty, Integrity and commitment to the masses


Ever since 1992 gave us a good idea of what true leadership and politicking was, I have never met a leader more committed to the entity Nigeria than Professor Yemi Osinbajo (PYO), a man with so much commitment, dedication, Confidence, Passion and such a good Communicator he almost rivals Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola (MKO) and Lt. Col. Odumegwu-Ojukwu.


Professor Yemi Osinabjo is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, a Professor of Law and the current Vice President of Nigeria since 29 May 2015.


As vice president, his roles and constitutional powers include; participation in all cabinet meetings and, by statute, vice chairmanship of the National Security Council, the National Defence Council, Federal Executive Council, and the Chairman of National Economic Council.


Although the vice president may take an active role in establishing policies in the Executive Branch by serving on such committees and councils, the relative power of the Nigerian vice president's office depends much upon the duties delegated by the president.


With the above limited executive functions accorded a vice president of Nigeria, Osinbajo has established policies that are more masses oriented and beneficial to the general public.


Unlike past vice presidents, Prof. Osinbajo has won the trust of the President and the masses alike with his integrity and passion for a better nation.


Osinbajo's poverty and hunger fighting policy (NSIPs) have earned him accolades from far and near including President Muhammadu Buhari, who on the 8th march, 2019, described Prof. Yemi Osinbajo as a “very dependable deputy” with whom he had established a special bond.
The president further said that professor Osinbajo has in the past four years diligently championed the values of setting the foundation for peace, progress, and stability of Nigeria, by working very hard to build a resilient economy while promoting transparency and accountability.


Prof. Osinbajo has shown he is not only a VP for Christians, APC or Yoruba's alone but also, a VP for all religions, political parties, tribes and all geo-political zones in Nigeria.

When you think he is most popular in the south south, a video of him visiting States in the south east will appear, then the argument immediately becomes that he is more popular in that region. In the north and south west, it's the same level of euphoria.

This earned the VP respect of all past governors of the last administration, given that, he is the chairman of the National Economic Council, NEC.


The Kwara State Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed (a PDP governor), noted that, Chairman (VP Osinbajo) led a strong team through various areas requiring attention in the economy. He made robust efforts in security giving direction, confidence and comfort.


In the same vein, the Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima, said "Osinbajo provided leadership and in the past 4 years, exhibited humility, giving everyone a sense of belonging."


The 36 governors said the vice president treated everybody equally regardless of their political parties.


Professor Osinbajo has been nicknamed the Star Boy by the public especially by those on social media yet his popularity has not come without its negative sides.


Some people have sponsored lots of hate and false news campaigns against a man committed to fighting poverty and hunger in Nigeria with his National Social Investment Programmes (NSIPs).


Ask me or any other non-partisan Nigerian of a hardworking and committed political leader and we would all point to Professor Yemi Osinbajo.

It gives me great joy that he is a Nigerian and one that has stood out in all his ways.

Oladele Peter, a psychologist and social commentator

FOWLER’S STELLAR ACHIEVEMENTS ARE BEYOND DOUBT

The attack on Babatunde Fowler of the FIRS appears to be deliberate, carefully manicured and clearly carries a political undertone. If this isn’t the case, what should anyone have against a man under whose leadership the agency has been able to achieve?

1. The growth of FIRS collections rose by 53.81% from ₦3.30 trillion in 2016 to ₦5.32 trillion in 2018, the highest collection ever in the history of the agency;

2. There was also a remarkable boost in the tax base from 10million to 20million tax payers with the potential for an increase of up to 45 million in 2019;

3. Growth in the IGR of States rose by over 46.11% from ₦800.02 billion in 2016 to ₦1.16 trillion in 2018;

4. Automated tax processes such as the e-Stamping, e-Registration, e-Filing, e-Payment and a host of others were introduced to make the entire process more efficient and user-friendly.

What is the Chief of Staff Abba Kyari up to this time?

Is his office even accorded the rights to question the affairs of a government agency as the FIRS?

Is this a ploy to kick out and replace a proficient and diligent man with a puppet who will dance to their shady tunes?

What does MSME mean to you? When can you categorise a business as MSME? And what low-interest loans are available to MSMEs in Nigeria?

I’m about to let you in on a secret to becoming the next big business, if you’re patient enough to read

1. 1500 MSMEs are to benefit from the FG’s shared facility scheme, all you need is your idea and you can be provided with an office space or factory to do business!

2. These facilities will provide power, high quality operating equipment and broadband connectivity (internet) which will help to greatly reduce your cost of operation.

3. What’s more, there will be a minimum of one shared facility per state, two of these already exist in Bauchi and Oyo states. Hit the follow button if you want info on other states!

4. Finally, I hear you’re worried about capital? Government agencies and institutions like Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN), Bank of Industry, NEXIM, and NIRSAL Microfinance Bank have got you covered with low-cost financing with reasonable loan repayment structures.

Now what are you waiting for?!

GLOBAL FOOD BASKET: A JOURNEY OF ABUNDANT ECONOMIC WEALTH

By David Chigaekpebi

Nigeria is blessed with a huge amount of arable land and currently boasts over 100 million heads of livestock and with the emphasis that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo have placed on agriculture, it is not surprising that it is receiving huge investments in this sector. Recently some Chinese investors were in the country upon invitation by the African Development bank (AFDB) and met with the Vice President looking to invest heavily in Agro related businesses. This in turn would address the food security and eventually transform Nigeria into a global food basket.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo while receiving the Investors said the Federal Government will welcome partnerships and initiatives that will make Nigeria actualize its potential of being a global food basket. “Nigeria is constantly aiming to advance agricultural technologies to boost plant agriculture and livestock sectors so as to contribute to food security globally.”

Despite Nigeria’s huge investments in its oil & gas and mineral resources, agriculture still forms a big contributor of the country’s economy. With Nigeria no longer over depending on oil for its economic development, the vice president has taken a great step to focus on agriculture and agro-businesses, thereby extensively creating more employment opportunities and ebbing away poverty in the country.

It therefore means that this wave of new business suggests a profoundly encouraging investment climate for investors. Strategically positioned to trade with surrounding nations, Nigeria henceforth will be increasingly noted as an investment destination and ‘’Global Food Basket’’ as stated by the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo.

Amidst such developments, it seems that agribusiness investment opportunities in Nigeria will now be as rich and diverse as the land itself.

Blessed with plentiful sunshine and rainfall, access to the fertile plains surrounding the life-giving River Niger and its tributaries, Nigeria's rich soils yield a vast array of crops, such as yam, beans, rice, maize, millet, other cereal grains, vegetables and fruits, including lemons, mangoes, grapefruits and oranges. Rivers within the country are also abundant sources of fish.
In the drier northern region livestock farming is the most prominent activity. An estimated 100 million heads of different animal species – namely cows, goats and camels.
Undoubtedly, if these and further investments both exterior and from within can be obtained, the country is on track to be a major contributor to the global food basket and the vice president, Yemi Osinbajo has surely embarked on a journey of abundant economic wealth for the people of Nigeria.


David Chigaekpebi, an agro-enthusiast writes from Nnewi

The Agricultural Transformation Support Programme Phase one (ATASP-1) says it has injected 209,464 metric tonnes of food valued at N36.2 billion into the Nigeria economy.

Mr Ibrahim Arabi, National Programme Coordinator of the organisation said this while familiarizing himself with the media on Tuesday in Abuja.

Arabi noted that the programme which commenced operation in March 2015 with five years duration had the target of contributing 100,000 metric tonnes of food.

Arabi further noted that the programme had so far trained no fewer than 20,000 farmers and processors among others including women and youth on Good Agronomic Practices (GAP) and food processing.

“The programme has contributed to the food and nutrition security, job and wealth creation objectives of Nigeria’s agricultural policy. About 299, 651 jobs have been created compared with a target of 120,000.

“The increase of the income of farmers and entrepreneurs by 20.5 per cent at the programme’s Mid Term Review (MTR) gives confidence that the target of 25 per cent increase in income for beneficiaries is achievable at the end of the programme,“ he noted.

ORGANISATION INJECTS 209,464 METRIC TONNES OF FOOD INTO NIGERIA August 7, 2019

Organisation injects 209,464 metric tonnes of food into Nigeria
The Agricultural Transformation Support Programme Phase one (ATASP-1) says it has injected 209,464 metric tonnes of food valued at N36.2 billion into the Nigeria economy.

Mr Ibrahim Arabi, National Programme Coordinator of the organisation said this while familiarizing himself with the media on Tuesday in Abuja.



Arabi noted that the programme which commenced operation in March 2015 with five years duration had the target of contributing 100,000 metric tonnes of food.

Arabi further noted that the programme had so far trained no fewer than 20,000 farmers and processors among others including women and youth on Good Agronomic Practices (GAP) and food processing.

“The programme has contributed to the food and nutrition security, job and wealth creation objectives of Nigeria’s agricultural policy. About 299, 651 jobs have been created compared with a target of 120,000.

READ: Nigeria en route to becoming global food basket – Osinbajo

“The increase of the income of farmers and entrepreneurs by 20.5 per cent at the programme’s Mid Term Review (MTR) gives confidence that the target of 25 per cent increase in income for beneficiaries is achievable at the end of the programme,“ he noted.



“Over 50 per cent of the programme beneficiaries have adopted the approved technologies introduced in respect of production, processing and post-harvest handling of rice, sorghum and cassava.

“Some of the beneficiaries that have adopted the Technologies promoted by ATASP-1 have been able to acquire additional assets through enhancement of income.

“As a result of the programme intervention, the areas under cultivation of the three commodities increased from 68,000 hectres target to 73,506.71 hectres,”Arabi noted.

Arabi noted that the primary goal of the programme was to contribute to poverty reduction, employment generation and wealth creation, import substitution, economic diversification and growth of Nigeria.

According to him, the programme is on-going in 200 rural communities, 33 Local Government Areas in seven states of the federation which are Anambra, Enugu, Niger, Kano, Jigawa, Kebbi and Sokoto.

The coordinator however identified the challenge of the programme as inadequate counterpart funding from stakeholders.

Arabi who noted some of the stakeholders as the states and local governments emphasised that though they are contributing but not as expected.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN says Nigeria is on its way to becoming the global food basket, this he said is in line with its commitment to develop a thriving agro-industrial sector.

He said the Federal Government will welcome partnerships and initiatives that would make Nigeria actualize its potential of being the food basket of the world.

The Vice President stated this on Tuesday when he received a delegation of Chinese investors and officials from the African Development Bank (AfDB), at the Presidential Villa.

According to Prof. Osinbajo, “I think that Nigeria is a place where there is tremendous opportunity. We have the 9th largest arable land in the world and most of that is still largely untouched.

“We have a tremendous potential of being the food basket of the world but a lot of that will depend on how we are able to get high quality inputs, seedling and others, and how we are able to use technology especially the benefits of industrial agriculture to our advantage.

Referring to the interest of the Chinese investors in the agro-allied sector, the VP noted that “we believe very strongly that this partnership is the one that will deliver the kind of growth, the kind of quantum leap we are looking forward to. We think that with your partnership with us, especially the agro-allied aspect of it, if it works very well, we can achieve a lot.”

Continuing, Prof. Osinbajo said “this is the reason why we are engaging at this (presidential) level of government alongside the AfDB, to ensure that our investors have no trouble at all in being able to operate their businesses and do their businesses efficiently.”

The Chinese investors are in the country at the instance of the African Development Bank to commence the processes of investing in Nigeria’s agricultural sector under an initiative known as the Agro-Industrial initiative with focus on crop production, forestry, fishery, and livestock production.

Speaking earlier, Prof. Zhao Zhihai, the leader of the Chinese delegation, said a consortium of Chinese investors were committed to the development of Nigeria’s agro-processing zones and especially the agro-allied sector.

In his own remarks, Prof. Oyebanji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, the head of the AfDB team at the meeting, said the framework of the initiative is to develop a programme that leverages Nigeria’s comparative advantage in key areas of agricultural production.

According to him, “the overall investment, under the initiative, amounts to between $16 billion to $25 billion over a period of four years with a strong government support and private sector leadership.”

Source: https://www.chronicle.ng/2019/08/nigeria-en-route-to-becoming-global-food-basket-osinbajo/

Obasanjo reverses self on Fulanization, seeks dialogue

It’s never too late to do the right thing; I think finally, former President Chief Olusegun Obasanjo appears to understanding this as well as his role as an elder statesman.

On Saturday, he met with Fulani cattle breeders in the Southwest as well as Kogi and Kwara States in order to address the scuffle between the nomadic herders and the resident farmers.

Obasanjo told Gan Allah Fulani Development Association of Nigeria (GAFDAN) that Yorubas wanted unity, peace, harmony, wholesomeness and progress in the region, stressing that the time had come for everybody to acknowledge that “bad things are happening” in the Southwest and which have been attracting bad names to the Fulani in their midst.

This is a clear departure from Obasanjo’s reliance on writing only letters in the past. The former president appears to be putting his money where his mouth is, he finally seems to understand that actions speak louder than words. Meeting face to face with Fulani cattle breeders is completely different from writing an open letter.

If one reads the communiqué from the meeting, Baba seems to have gotten some firsthand information on the most recent shape of the farmer/herder clashes across the country and the reasons for such happening in the Southwest.

Like President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo have done in the last few weeks, Chief Obasanjo has embraced dialogue over explosive statements that could cause the country more harm. We all know that Baba loves Nigeria and that he wants peace but this can best be achieved through diplomatic channels.

A proof of this was the swift rescue of five persons abducted in Ogun state. The police force deployed geo-tagging technology and other technological know-how to track the kidnappers and arrest five culprits.

These are the kind of engagements that is required and expected of our leaders and I am happy Baba is adding his voice to this newly adopted strategy.

Copied.

Publisher of an online news platform, Sahara Reporters and Convener of Revolution Now Protest, Mr. Yele Sowore, has been allegedly fingered to be a recipient of one million dollars $1million to organize and fund the much publicised protest scheduled to commence on Monday.

This is according to a Twitter post made by a social media reporter, Abiodun Olanrewaju, (@AbiodunOlarewa6) who stated that the said donor of the huge sum of money is a Nigerian, who is presently residing in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The motive behind the donation is to allegedly upturn the status quo and destabilize the much enjoyed peace in the country.

The DSS Spokesman Nnochirionye Afunanya had stated in a media briefing that certain foreign persons were sponsoring the #RevolutionNow movement.

While it is yet unclear who the donor is, a source who pleaded anonymity stated that Mr. Timi Frank, an aide to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, helped facilitated the transfer of funds to Mr. Sowore.

When asked if the former Vice President is also in Dubai, the source replied “yes.”

In a funny twist of events Timi Frank has however come out to ask the DSS to name the so called foreign sponsors even where there was no mention of his name.

The protest’s messaging and the groups associated with it has raised a number of questions about its sincerity of purpose.

OFFICE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT
PRESS RELEASE

PROMOTING NATIONAL UNITY FOSTERS PROGRESS AND PROSPERITY, SAYS OSINBAJO

*VP restates position on community policing as panacea for Nigeria's security challenge

Promoting national unity and cohesion amongst Nigeria's diverse population rather than divisiveness will guarantee the kind of progress and prosperity that citizens have long desired, according to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.

Prof. Osinbajo stated this on Tuesday in Lagos while delivering the 70th Anniversary Lecture of the Lagos Country Club, entitled, “Promoting National Cohesion for Progress and Prosperity."

According to him, “Everything we have learned from the annals of history and from contemporary reports from all over the world, tells us that social diversity can either be a trigger for conflict or a fountain of prosperity and progress.

"Diversity in and of itself is not a problem; it is what we do with it that matters. Whether or not sociocultural variety results in strife or collective success entirely depends on how a society choose to manage it."

The Vice President said though the challenges of insecurity occasioned by hate speech and promotion of divisiveness is not peculiar to Nigeria alone, the same principle of diversity and national cohesion driving economic growth in other successful nations applies even in Nigeria.

Citing local examples of States that have harnessed their diversities to attain some levels of progress and prosperity, the Vice President said, “our most dynamic economic spaces have been historically multicultural cities like Lagos and Kano".

"Lagos as a port city obviously benefitted from its coastal location as a gateway to the African continent for traders and adventurers from beyond the seas as well as from the hinterland. Kano was a major terminal on the trans-Saharan trade drawing commercial traffic from as far North as the Maghreb and the Middle East and from Southern Nigeria.

"The conscious decision of Bola Tinubu then Governor of Lagos to appoint his commissioners from everywhere in Nigeria is partly responsible for the peerless progress of Lagos State.

"He appointed Mr Wale Edun from Ogun State as Finance Commissioner, Rauf Aregbesola from Osun as Commissioner for Works, Fola Arthur Worrey from Delta as Commissioner for Lands, Ben Akabueze from Anambra as Commissoner for Budget and Planning, Lai Mohammed from Kwara State as Chief of Staff and I, from Ogun State, as his Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice.

"Lagos undertook fiscal, real property, judicial and environmental reforms that has made the State a model for the rest of the country. Nigeria is the same nation that produced Philip Emeagwali, an Igbo Christian; Africa’s first Nobel laureate in Literature, Prof. Wole Soyinka, Yoruba, of no known religion; and Jelani Aliyu, Fulani, Muslim, a world class designer of motor vehicles. Nigeria is the nation it is because of the collective strength of its many talents, attributes and contours.

"From the foregoing, it is clear that when we create spaces for migratory talent to flourish without discrimination, there is an economic multiplier effect that results in an ever-increasing radius of growth," he said.

Continuing, Prof. Osinbajo said, “It is no accident that that the most affluent economies in the world are places that have learned to leverage diversity. In the 21st century, the true wealth of nations is human capital."

According to him, “this means that places that have learned to attract and retain the most diverse pool of skilled human resources are easily winning the race for success. Diversity means a multiplicity of perspectives and world views, but this also provides a broad range of cultural, philosophical and intellectual approaches for solving problems.

"In this rich soil, nourished by various ideas and schools of thought, productive synthesis is possible and innovation flourishes. Thus, the world’s richest nations are those places that have learned how to attract talent from various places and to harness diversity as a driver of growth."

The Vice President said Nigeria can transform its diversity into cohesion that would lead to greater prosperity, noting that the Buhari administration has adopted and initiated programmes that leveraged on the diversity of Nigeria's population.

He said, “The classification of Nigerians as “indigenes” and “non-indigenes” is our own form of divisionism and has long contradicted our declared aspirations towards unity in diversity. All that should matter in evaluating ourselves is where we live and fulfil our civic obligations. This is why our Social Investment Programmes are being administered on the basis of residency.

“The eligible beneficiaries were selected based on their states of residence and none was discriminated against on any basis. This approach is consistent with our broader philosophy of fostering national cohesion by broadening access to opportunity for all Nigerians without qualification.”

He urged Nigerians to “continue to defuse the potential perils of diversity by continuing to pursue measures that promote social inclusion and national cohesion.”

On ensuring the protection of rights, lives and property in a diverse society like Nigeria, Prof. Osinbajo said, “one of the most important ramparts of national cohesion are the guarantees of fundamental freedoms. The right to life, which comes with the duty of governments to ensure peace and security, freedom of movement, freedom of Worship, and the rule of law."

According to him, “everyone must be reasonably assured that their lives and livelihoods will be protected by government, that their disputes will be fairly and justly resolved regardless of their ethnicity or faith. Our challenges as a nation basically centre around these issues - religious conflicts, farmer-herder clashes in the North Central and many parts of the North West, Boko Haram insurgency in the North East, and militancy in the Niger Delta.

"When law enforcement institutions are weak there is a huge opportunity to run divisive narratives. By that I mean that where, for example, the security agencies do not speedily apprehend criminals, or the criminal justice system is slow, then there is room for people to say that authorities don’t arrest and prosecute Fulani herders when they kill because the law enforcement officers are often not resident in the communities where they are posted for policing duties; then it is easier to promote doubt about their commitment to ensuring the safety of the communities they police."

Still on the issue of law and order, the Vice President said, "where the quality and integrity of judges is in doubt, it is easier to find parochial reasons for unfavourable decisions.”

Citing the reforms carried out by the Lagos State Government between 1999 and 2007 as an example, the Vice President said "we must strengthen our judicial system, first by the appointment of judges of integrity and sound legal knowledge and then putting in place a welfare package that discourages misconduct."

He added, “In diverse societies we must do all that is necessary to strengthen the institutions of law enforcement, security and the rule of law. The challenge is dynamic and our approach must also be dynamic.

"Which is why I believe that State Police in a large, diverse federation is imperative. However, this requires constitutional amendment a product of consensus of our legislators. In the interim the Federal Government has approved the community policing option.

"The IGP recently announced the plan. An important component is that in the new approach to police recruitments. Police officers will be recruited in each local government and after training will be required to remain in their local governments.

"The plan also involves interfaces between traditional rulers, State neighbourhood watch or vigilante programmes and the police. The security architecture is now being reengineered for greater use of technology and more integration of the use of security platforms."


Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity
Office of the Vice President
30th July, 2019

I'm very sure he or she hates his/her family too.
Did Muslims complain to you?
Why not mind your business.

Why won't you hate them when you hate your neighbours.....I no know who beg for your love.[/quote]

*NYCD cautions Nigerian youths against Sowore’s calculated revolutionary protest*

The National Youth Coalition for Development has cautioned Nigerian youths against joining Omoyele Sowore’s revolutionary protest, stressing that, the motive behind the rally is negative.

In a press statement signed by the chairman of NYCD, Olawale Adebayo and co-signed by Secretary Chukwu Maurice Okoye on Monday, the group said Mr. Sowore was still bitter after losing out ridiculously in the last presidential election.

The group decried the strategy used by Mr. Sowore and some other Nigerians to deceive and subsequently con young Nigerians into thinking it’s a cause for them.

The NYCD said Nigerian youths can organize their protests without being used as a means to an end.

The chairman, Mr. Adebayo said Mr. Sowore was morally bankrupt and lacked the standing to call for revolution in Nigeria, given that, his online news platform, SaharaReporters is the king of fake news in Nigeria.

“How can Mr. Sowore call for a revolution when the revolution is supposed to start with him. Many of the problems we have in Nigeria is caused by the SaharaReporters which is owned by him.

He said Nigerians have not forgotten how he was disgraced on live television by the African Action Congress, AAC, the party which he founded and for which he contested the 2019 presidential election.

“He was disgraced on live television by the AAC for mismanaging and embezzling funds from donors for the execution of the last presidential election, how can this man be calling for revolution? Remember, he that lives in a glass house should not throw stones.

The NYCD called for massive boycott of the planned protests claiming that Mr. Sowore along with others like Segun Awosanya, popularly known as Segalink have fraudulent pasts and are using the supposed protest to collect grants from foreign organizations.

“A leopard never loses its stripes, these are men with proven track record for fraud. Segalink used #EndSARS to con many Nigerians on Twitter, he even took money from politicians to propagate outright falsehood and lies.

“I urge all Nigerians to please stay at home and don’t allow themselves to be used. We must remember that Sowore is always looking to grab the headlines and afterwards he will run to the United States while young Nigerians will be left hanging.

Mr. Adebayo said after the elections which Mr. Sowore was accused of fraud, he returned to the US to allow all claims against him to cool off.

“Has Sowore responded to the fraud allegations against him? Has he denied any of the allegations against him? We need to be weary of these elements.

He then urged Nigerian youths to demand their rights from the government in a civil way. “Youths can mobilize themselves for a protest but they need to do it with intentions of making things better for all and not enriching a few, we should be at the vanguard of this for good,” he said.

The NYCD said it will be announcing a protest for all Nigerian youths with a view to dialoguing with the federal, state and local government.

*NYCD cautions Nigerian youths against Sowore’s calculated revolutionary protest*

The National Youth for Coalition for Development has cautioned Nigerian youths against joining Omoyele Sowore’s revolutionary protest, stressing that, the motive behind the rally is negative.

In a press statement signed by the chairman of YNPD, Olawale Adebayo and co-signed by Secretary Chukwu Maurice Okoye on Monday, the group said Mr. Sowore was still bitter after losing out ridiculously in the last presidential election.

The group decried the strategy used by Mr. Sowore and some other Nigerians to deceive and subsequently con young Nigerians into thinking it’s a cause for them.

The NYCD said Nigerian youths can organize their protests without being used as a means to an end.

The chairman, Mr. Adebayo said Mr. Sowore was morally bankrupt and lacked the standing to call for revolution in Nigeria, given that, his online news platform, SaharaReporters is the king of fake news in Nigeria.

“How can Mr. Sowore call for a revolution when the revolution is supposed to start with him. Many of the problems we have in Nigeria is caused by the SaharaReporters which is owned by him.

He said Nigerians have not forgotten how he was disgraced on live television by the African Action Congress, AAC, the party which he founded and for which he contested the 2019 presidential election.

“He was disgraced on live television by the AAC for mismanaging and embezzling funds from donors for the execution of the last presidential election, how can this man be calling for revolution? Remember, he that lives in a glass house should not throw stones.

The NYCD called for massive boycott of the planned protests claiming that Mr. Sowore along with others like Segun Awosanya, popularly known as Segalink have fraudulent pasts and are using the supposed protest to collect grants from foreign organizations.

“A leopard never loses its stripes, these are men with proven track record for fraud. Segalink used #EndSARS to con many Nigerians on Twitter, he even took money from politicians to propagate outright falsehood and lies.

“I urge all Nigerians to please stay at home and don’t allow themselves to be used. We must remember that Sowore is always looking to grab the headlines and afterwards he will run to the United States while young Nigerians will be left hanging.

Mr. Adebayo said after the elections which Mr. Sowore was accused of fraud, he returned to the US to allow all claims against him to cool off.

“Has Sowore responded to the fraud allegations against him? Has he denied any of the allegations against him? We need to be weary of these elements.

He then urged Nigerian youths to demand their rights from the government in a civil way. “Youths can mobilize themselves for a protest but they need to do it with intentions of making things better for all and not enriching a few, we should be at the vanguard of this for good,” he said.

The NYCD said it will be announcing a protest for all Nigerian youths with a view to dialoguing with the federal, state and local government.

*YNPD cautions Nigerian youths against Sowore’s fraudulent revolutionary protest*

The Youth for Nigeria Political Development has cautioned Nigerian youths against joining Omoyele Sowore’s revolutionary protest, stressing that, the motive behind the rally is negative and selfishly financial in nature.
In a press statement signed by the chairman of YNPD, Olawale Adebayo, and co-signed by Secretary Chukwu Maurice Okoye on Monday, the group said Mr. Sowore was still bitter after losing out ridiculously in the last presidential election.

The group decried the strategy used by Mr. Sowore and some other Nigerians to deceive and subsequently con young Nigerians into thinking it’s a cause for them.

The YNDP said Nigerian youths can organize their own protest without being used as a means to an end by unscrupulous individuals.

The chairman, Mr. Adebayo said Mr. Sowore was morally bankrupt and lacked the standing to call for revolution in Nigeria, given that, his online news platform, SaharaReporters is the widely recognized king of fake news in Nigeria.

“How can Mr. Sowore call for a revolution when the revolution is supposed to start with him? Many of the problems we have in Nigeria is caused by the SaharaReporters which is owned by him.

He said Nigerians have not forgotten how he was disgraced on live television by the African Action Congress, AAC, the party which he founded and for which he contested the 2019 presidential election.

“He was disgraced on live television by the AAC for mismanaging and embezzling funds from donors for the execution of the last presidential election, how can this man be calling for revolution? Remember, he who lives in a glass house should not throw stones.

The YNPD called for massive boycott of the planned protests claiming that Mr. Sowore along with others like Segun Awosanya, popularly known as Segalink have fraudulent pasts and are using the supposed protest to collect grants from foreign organizations.

“A leopard never loses its stripes, these are men with proven track record for frauds at home and abroad. Segalink used #EndSARS to con many Nigerians on Twitter, he even took money from politicians to propagate outright falsehood and lies especially during the just concluded 2019 elections.

“I urge all Nigerians to please stay at home and not allow themselves to be used. We must remember that Sowore is always looking to grab the headlines and afterwards he will run to the United States to cool off, while young Nigerians he has deceived will be left hanging.

Mr. Adebayo said after the elections which Mr. Sowore was accused of fraud, he returned to the US to allow all claims against him to cool off. Now he has returned to continue grandstanding as a way of getting more funds from unsuspecting foreign donors who think they are supporting democracy, but are unknowingly just being used to finance one man’s excesses.

“Has Sowore responded to the fraud allegations against him? Has he denied any of the allegations against him? We need to be wary of these elements.

He urged Nigerian youths to demand their rights from the government in a civil way. “Youths can mobilize themselves for a protest but they need to do it with intentions of making things better for all and not enriching a few, we should be at the vanguard of this for good,” he said.

The YNPD said it will be announcing a protest for all Nigerian youths with a view to dialogue with the federal, state and local governments.

RECRUITING POLICE OFFICERS FROM THEIR COMMUNITIES WILL IMPROVE SECURITY – OSINBAJO

In continuation of the series of consultations with a number of leading traditional rulers in different states to help bolster security architecture in local communities and effectively tackle security challenges around the country, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, met with traditional rulers in Osogbo, Osun State capital, today.

Speaking with the press after the meeting with Obas in the state, including the Ooni of Ife, His Imperial Majesty Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi; Owa Obokun of Ijesaland, Oba Adekunle Aromolaran; and several leading traditional rulers in the State, Prof. Osinbajo said this part of the consultations highlighted the importance of community policing as a major aspect of improving the security architecture in States.

The Vice President further said that effective collaboration between local police officers alongside neighbourhood watch programmes in States would help combat security challenges.

Prof. Osinbajo noted that traditional rulers constitute a very important part of this arrangement (security architecture) in states, because they act as the interface between the State governments’ and Federal Government’s security architecture.

“We try to look at how all of these would work effectively. Obviously, we need more men and women on ground, we need more security,” he said.

The Vice President added, “We spent a fair amount of time trying to understand the security architecture of the State; where the difficulties may lie and steps that need to be taken. As you know, we’ve already had consultations with the State governors, including State governors of the South West. We’ve also held consultations with the service chiefs.

“So, this stage of the consultations with the traditional rulers is very important, because they are the most important component of the security architecture of the State, in particular because of the plans that we have for community policing. And I’m sure you’ve heard the Inspector General of Police talking about this. It will involve recruiting policemen locally in their local government areas, and letting them remain in their local government areas where they’ve been recruited. Obviously, they would better understand the landscape, their neighbourhood and places.

“And of course, we also expect that they would be working with the neighbourhood watch programmes in the various States.”

OSINBAJO CONFIDENT IG CAN HANDLE SHIITES
The Vice President assured Nigerians that the Buhari administration has set up measures to effectively tackle security challenges nationwide, including the recent Shi’ites protest in Abuja, emphasizing that President Buhari puts a premium on the lives and security of all Nigerians.

According to him “I’m sure you heard already what the President said about it (Shiites protest) and the instructions that was given to the Inspector General of Police. Some of these issues are dynamic and we have to keep ensuring that we are steps ahead of them. I’m very confident that given a lot of what has been done already, and what the IG himself intends to put in place, we’ll be able to contain most of the security challenges without much problems.”

The Vice President was accompanied by the Deputy Governor of Osun State, Gboyega Alabi, who hosted the meeting at the Government House, Osogbo. Other security chiefs, including from the police and the military were also in attendance.


Source: https://www.chronicle.ng/2019/07/recruiting-police-officers-from-their-communities-will-improve-security-osinbajo/

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Saturday met with two royal fathers in Ogun state in a bid to ensure the safety of live and property as well as fashion modalities for lasting peace in the country.

At the palace of the Akarigbo of Remoland, Oba Babatunde Adewale Ajayi, Prof. Osinbajo assured Nigerians of President Muhammadu Buhari’s resolve to improve the security situation across the country.

At the meeting which had Governor Dapo Abiodun in attendance, the Vice President assured Nigerians that engagements will be held across the country to ensure that Nigeria is peaceful.

Speaking briefly to newsmen after meeting with the Akarigbo, he explained that the security concerns in Nigeria are top priority for the government and engagement with stakeholders is important to finding a lasting solution.

“As you know there are many significant security concerns all over the country and of course there are concerns also in the South West, so I’m here on the instruction of Mr President to consult with Kabiyesi, the Akarigbo of Remoland, Governor Dapo Abiodun and other stakeholders on what could be done to beef up security and also generally to improve the security architecture.

Explaining why he met with the Akarigbo, he said, “Of course you know that Kabiyesi is not just the traditional ruler here but also a very important part of the government, so that is why we here to talk to him and to agree on a few modalities for beefing of security and for ensuring that we are fully conscious of what is going on around us and also to be sure that peace and security reigns here and across the country.

Asked what his advice to Nigerians are, he said, “I think the most important thing is for all of us to realize that we are one country and we all have to work together to ensure that our country is peaceful, secure and happy for all of us.

“This country has the potential to give us everything we can desire and everything that we need. There are many amongst us who may want to cause instability and difficulty as well but we are very confident, God helping us, that if we work together as a country and as a nation we will be able to overcome all our problems, and then set our country on the path of peace and prosperity.”

The Vice President is now meeting the Awujale of the Ijebu, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona for more consultations on security issues.

He is accompanied by Deputy Chief of Staff, Mr. Ade Ipaye, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, Special Adviser on Political Matters as well as other aides.

SCAMMING A PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE IN THAT MANNER IS NOT FAIR. A NIGERIAN SCAMMER WOULD HAVE DONE BETTER THAN THE KENYAN.

Atiku and PDP’s Star witness, who claimed to be an ICT expert from Kenya, by name - David Ayu Nyango Njoga has said the results of the last presidential election were stored in a server allegedly operated by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Njoga said he only got the report, which he later analysed, from a third party website : “www.factdontlieng.com”.
The witness, who claimed that the information was provided by an INEC official, but said the INEC official acted anonymously and whose name, he does not know.

When asked if the website belonged to INEC, he said no but by a whistle-blower, whose name he, still did not know. He said the website was created on March 12, 2019, which is more than two weeks after the Presidential election date. When reminded that the presidential election held on February 23 and the results released before March 12, the witness went mute.

So that we are better informed:-
Below, are the illustrations on the different visa pages of the New Nigerian E-Passport:-

1. Rock, maybe Aso
2. Tiv Dancers
3. Calabar Masquerade
4. Argungu Fish Festival
5. Igbo Traditional Male Dancers.
6. Wall of Emir Palace
7. Fulani Herdsman & Cows
8. Benin Bronze
9. Durbar Horse Riders
10. Lagos Traffic
11. Fulani Girls With Calabash
12. Unidentifiable Historic Monument.
13. Carving of Southern Lady
14. Immigration HQ Building
15. Benin Mask
16. Savannah Forest
17. Rural Village Setting
18. Abuja City Entry
19. Hausa Trumpeter
20. Offshore Oil Rig
21 Akwa Ibom Female Dancers.
22. Obudu Ranch Cable Car
23. Canoe Transport
24. Lagos Eyo Festival
25. Rock-Jos, Abeokuta or Ondo
26. Nupe Bronze Carving
27. Acrobats Possibly S.E
28. Rock/Tree in Arid Background
29. Yoruba Masquerades
30. Waterfall
31. Statue of Ogun, god of Iron.

It was just a regular day – another business-as-usual one, for 28-year-old Suleiman Sanni, a basket seller in the popular Kasuwar Yankaba in Nasarawa LGA of Kano state, North West, Nigeria. Little did he know right there in the market, even without a formal bank account to his name, he’d become a beneficiary of a government micro loan to support his small business. That day he got registered and on the following day, Sanni received a non-collateral loan of N10,000 to support his small-scale business whose total capital at the time was estimated around N5,000.

Suleiman would need a formal bank account and collateral in order to access a loan from a regular commercial bank in any part of the country. His story is just one of over two million petty traders across the country who have become beneficiaries of the government scheme. This is the success story that GEEP has become today.

It was in 2017, when the President Buhari’s administration launched the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP), as one of the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP) for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) under the Office of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, and executed in partnership with the Bank of Industry. TraderMoni is perhaps the most popular of the three schemes under GEEP including MarketMoni and FarmerMoni, and has so far reached over two million petty traders and small business owners in Nigeria.

In a remarkably short period, GEEP’s impact has been felt across the country but even more significant is its impact in the North West, a geopolitical zone with relatively low access to financial inclusion. The ‘no-barrier’ access to the TraderMoni loan ensured that tens of thousands became beneficiaries of the government loan. All they needed were just a working mobile phone and a verifiable business.

In a media chat with journalists, the Executive Director, Micro Enterprises, Bank of Industry, Mrs. Toyin Adeniji, said, “Trader-Moni is a microcredit loan for petty traders designed to meet the need of the larger population of Nigerian micro-enterprises that do not meet the more stringent starting requirements of the bank verification number and bank accounts.

According to her, “Qualified petty traders start at N10, 000, they progress to N15, 000, N20, 000, N50, 000 and then N100, 000. And as they pay back the preceding amount, they automatically qualify for the next loan.”

The loan repayment period is 6 months but records have it that many have repaid their first loan before the expiration tenure.

A GEEP Activation team travelled round the zone in 2018 ensuring every state was reached. From Kano to Kaduna, to Sokoto, Zamfara, Kebbi and Jigawa, visiting local markets in each of the state to enumerate and disburse the loans to traders.

The stories and testimonials were largely the same for the beneficiaries of the loan – they have been given an opportunity to expand their business – and ultimately, enhance their living conditions. And for many of them, it was the first time benefiting directly from a government scheme of such.

For most traders interviewed, the ease of access to the loans, non-discrimination of beneficiaries and convenient repayment plans were major attractions to them in contrast to the many hurdles of getting commercial bank loans.

Aisha Umaru, a roadside trader in local foods like kulikuli and mai in Gusau Central Market and 22-year-old Aliyu Umar Kwaruru, who sells local groundnut in a wheelbarrow in Kebbi Central Market are grateful for this intervention. For them, it was a good stepping stone to gradually scale their petty businesses.

According to Suleiman Sanni mentioned earlier in this article, “I came into the market a bit late and saw the TraderMoni people registering small businesses, and I was privileged to be part of those registered. It is indeed a blessing and I am grateful because this money will in-crease my business capital a great deal. Rather than buying fifty baskets, I can now afford to buy a hundred.”

Read more:https://punchng.com/tradermoni-beneficiaries-in-the-north-west-share-testimonies/

FAKE NEWS; ENSHRINING ENTHO-RELIGIOUS CRISES

By Solagberu Mustapha Oatunji

Fake news: news articles that are deliberately and verifiably fallacious, conceived in detail to manipulate the perception of a people. It is used to stir up and inflame social conflict. Counterfeit stories which mostly sound beautiful and fantastic will definitely mislead the readers and grow mistrust amongst people, who consequently, resort to lack of social grace, ill-manners, and discourtesy.

This has become a norm in our society where some mischief makers sit at the comfort of their crib, fabricate stories, and making things seem cryptic in order to turn neighbor against neighbor, and make the people become largely antagonistic towards governments.

Why would anyone do this? To intensify social conflict and erode people’s faith in the democratic ruling, all in the name of ethnic and religion disparities or prevent people’s ability to work together or sidetrack people from crucial issue so that these issues remain vague.

People with this spiteful goal can use fake news to cause civil unrest. Fake news poses a serious threat to our nation democracy. Fake news is more widespread on social media than the legitimate fourth estate; thereby endangering large portion of the public because of the way fake news spread geometrically in the informal sector.

Social media has become a platform where people have unlimited access to national and global events. This gives rise to some cause for concern for those who simply believe all they read without any form of cross referencing or fact-checking.

Regardless of who is the first propagate it, fake news purposefully sabotages trust in subsequent factual news that we read, as well as in government. Needless to say, the tribal conflict it causes amongst the masses where an Igbo man cannot go to the North in the hope of doing business in peace, or the Hausa man cannot go to the west for commercial cattle-rearing. All these waves of animosity only serve to bring shame upon the Nigeria motto of unity and faith, peace and progress.

Misinformation risks worsening ethno-religious tension which in turn raises concerns about internal security, and weakens intertribal relations.

In a country with more than 250 ethnic groups and over 500 dialects, even with the knowledgeable elite, we still haven’t gotten it right. We are beleaguered with hatred because of our selfish aspirations. False information and hate speech spread on social media keep on stoking violence against ethnic groups across the length and breadth of the land.

Nigeria is high on the list as one of the most unstable states in Africa because of religious and regional tensions; these religious and ethnic divides have led to conflicts about control of power, unequal allocation of resources, economic decline and ethno-religious clashes.

A high level of corruption via the looting of state resources is another serious and pandemic problem that makes all forms of conflict and troubles worse in Nigeria. The country is richly endowed with natural resources and high amount of human capital but one of the main reasons that has permeated the entrenchment of lack of development is corruption.

This has led to increased cases of poverty which in turn seed bitter anger and hatred amongst the people. Poverty and injustice caused by corruption weaken any sense of mutual tolerance, discourages coexistence, while reawakening mutual distrust, social hatred, radicalism, and violence.

For this reason, corruption is the most important issue that has to be resolved in order to diminish ethno-religious conflicts in Nigeria.

National unity makes a country strong and prosperous. It aids in developing policies which in turn drive economic and industrial development, especially when the people work together to promote patriotism and can guarantee the safety of lives and properties.

Finally, all genres of writers, journalists and social media influencers should listen to their inner ‘’small voices’’ and not only listen to narratives being driven against the government of the day. They need to practice according to ethical standards in order to reduce any form of fake or misinformed news that will undermine national peace and stability.

*Nigerians rank Sahara Reporters, Punch as leading FAKE NEWS media outfits*

Nigerians have ranked SaharaReporters and Punch Newspapers as the leading media outfits for fake news in the country following a vote on a poll on social media.

In a poll conducted by Oladele Peter, titled: "Which News Media Ranks First In Fake News". Sahara Reporters topped the vote, after being picked by 47% of the respondents.
Punch placed second with 27% while Premium Times and Daily Post placed a joint third with 13% each.

Oladele Peter, a professional psychologist, explained that he conducted the poll following weeks of fake news churned out by media outfits in Nigeria.

In this online poll which was recently conducted this month, some very interesting findings were gathered to show how respondents see the media houses when it comes to publishing fake news and passing it off as the real deal.

With the spread of internet usage and smartphones becoming as ubiquitous as pens, the phrase that goes “the world is a global village” has become a daily reality for billions of the world’s population. Zoom in on Nigeria and the global village becomes one long street of interactions in all directions, with diverse ramifications.

Nigerians are a unique audience of sorts, and over time this audience has come to identify the major home-based media outlets for their various strengths and weaknesses, presentation styles, as well as neutrality or partisanship in political issues.

Fake news is a global scourge and Nigeria is not immune to this terrible trend in news dissemination. After the US election cycle in 2016 that produced Donald Trump as president, the world became introduced to media tactics for aggressive controlling of narratives.

When media sources deliberately set out to twist the little shreds of truth, or outright falsehoods that get presented as news, it becomes the burden of the audience to sieve through all content and separate fact from fiction.