A Nigerian newspaper and Online version of the Vanguard, a daily publication in Nigeria covering Niger delta, general national news, politics, business, energy, sports, entertainment, fashion,lifestyle human interest stories, etc
The management of Yaba College of Technology (Yabatech), on Tuesday, asked staff of the institution to return to work as it would be constrained to apply the principle of "No work, no pay," if they failed to respect the laws of the land and desist from participating in illegal strike actions and disruption of academic activities.
The three unions on campus had gone on strike last Friday following alleged non-payment of some allowances attached to their salaries.
Appeals from Management that the stoppage was not peculiar to the institution and that all other federal polytechnics had long stopped the payments of such allowances fell on deaf ears.
The Management, today, directed staff attention to a federal government circular Reference number 58598/S.1/11/182 dated June 22, 2016 and signed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation which frowned against strike in the federal public service.
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Engineer Babachir David Lawal, in the circular had said government had observed with dismay that many workers' unions in Federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) "are in the habit of embarking on strike actions on the flimsiest of excuses, leading to disruption of services and orderliness in the affected organizations.
"It is even more worrisome that, often, the issues being canvassed could be amicably resolved through dialogue without recourse to industrial action.
"Government has deemed it necessary to remind workers and their respective unions of the "No work, No Pay" rule as contained in Section 43 of the Trade Disputes Act Cap 18, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria which states that where any worker takes part in a strike, he shall not be entitled to any wages or other remuneration for the period of the strike, and any such period shall not count for the purpose of reckoning the period of continuous employment and all rights dependent on continuity of employment shall be prejudiciary affected accordingly."
Meanwhile, the Yabatech Management has directed all Deans/Heads of service units and Directors of academic units to open registers in their offices for staff who attend to their normal daily duties to sign.
A circular signed by the Deputy Registrar, Senior Staff Personnel, Dr. Emmanuel Akinwale reminded the workers that the National Board for Technical Education had on June 10, 2016 directed that, "Allowances of staff should not be paid from Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) except for Part-Time teaching."
He enjoined all staff to attend to their normal duties in the interest of industrial harmony as the provision of the rule would be applied.
By Joseph Erunke ABUJA - PRESIDING Bishop of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission, TREM, Dr Mike Okonkwo, yesterday, joined advocates of restructuring of the country, saying with the various un-ending problems staring Nigeria in the face, such was the only panacea to its continued peaceful co-existence.
He also said it was time for Nigeria to begin to think towards making the National Assembly less attractive by making it a part-time job to reduce not only what he called waste but also corruption.
Okonkwo, who spoke to journalists, in Abuja, on the sideline of the Leading Edge Conference, an annual empowerment programme, organised by Abuja branch of his church, insisted it was time for Nigeria to be fully restructured, regretting that the agreement to return the country to true federalism was reached in Aburi between a delegation led by the late Odimegwu Ojukwu and some northern leaders, only for the latter to return to the country to renege on the agreement.
He said: “This restructuring has been there ever since. I understood it was one of the issues that created the 1966 coup. The Northerners – Balewa, Sardauna and the rest- were advocating true federalism, that was the reason for Ironsi’s murder because they said he instituted unitary government, that he abolished federalism and instituted unitary government.
"But after taking over the power for this reason, they didn't put in place the true federalism they were advocating for. And so, Ojukwu went to war on account of this, they went to Aburi on account of restructuring and there, they agreed only for it to be abandoned when they returned to the country.
"Now, it's like the chicken has come home to roost and we have to do it now. Let us have true federalism now so that anyone who wants this country must come with ideas.
"Remember that Chief Awolowo established the first television station in Western Nigeria with just cocoa money, so we need such things. That is the only way out of our current problems. "
On the National Assembly, Okonkwo, who noted that the National Assembly had not made any law beneficial to the ordinary citizens in Nigeria, said it was time for it to be made to function on part-time basis.
"Look at what we are having in the House of Representatives where they are trying to redefine what is padding and what is not. Let me say here that a time has come for us to have another look at our National Assembly to determine whether we need a full time legislature.
"With their action now, they are telling us that most of the times, they only come when they want to share money.
"We don't need full time legislature and let National Assembly be made less attractive so that only truthful and honest Nigerians who truly want to be legislators can be there.
" With the way it is, where they get anything they want now, why won't I fight and kill to get there? For now, I have not seen any law made by these people that are beneficial to the ordinary citizens. I think that these people should look at the different societies in Nigeria and make laws that are beneficial to them but it is not yet the case, "he added.
He asked Nigerians to resist the pending grazing reserve bill in the National Assembly, saying allowing it to sail through in the legislature would be dangerously to the country, given the activities of fulani herdsmen.
Hear him :"Government should be bold enough to deal decisively with people who are creating confusion. I don't see any reason why the Fulani cattle rearers should be going to villages and be Killing people and we are saying that we want to go and pass a bill on that!
"You can't pass a bill legalizing the passage of somebody who is going to go to my backyard and kill me. We should first of all determine who are these people, why are they killing villagers? This has never been the norm in the country, we have always have Hausa people and the Fulani cattle readers around, so this new trend is an indication that there is something wrong as far as this issue is concerned.
" And the government should be bold enough to be decisive as far as it is concerned. We shouldn't rush to go and pass any bill, we should first sit down on the table, examine and sum out the good from the bad before such a thing could be done.
'" If we allow such a thing, it would be another form of Boko Haram which we are still fighting to end. Government should be very serious about this issue of Fulani herds men.'"
On the current hardship in the country, the clergy asked government to address the issue headlong and stop the blame game just as he admonished Nigerians to be patient with the current administration.
"The drop in the price of oil in the international markets alone is enough to negatively affect our economy as a nation.
"The ongoing problem in the Niger Delta where oil installations are being bombed and destroyed is another big issue affecting our economy at the moment.
"But be that as it may be, I want to encourage Nigerians that as bad as it is, they should endure it, "he advised.
Speaking on corruption in the country, Bishop Okonkwo said :" I think that Nigerians should come to terms when it comes to the issue of fighting corruption.
"I have said it in many fora that corruption is the name of Nigeria. It's not that we are fighting corruption, we are corruption.
" Corruption is in every system in Nigeria and it will be so until we are able to raise a new crop of people in Nigeria.
'"Corruption is in every part of the entire Nigerian system. Go to the market, you would see those who are selling fake drugs and when you tell them to stop, they will say no.
" So, I think there should be a fresh re-orientation, Buhari is just scratching corruption, he's can't eradicate it in Nigeria even if he does two terms, he can't eradicate it.
"The only way we can totally eradicate corruption in this country is a fresh re-orientation in our kindergarten and nursery schools to raise new crop of Nigerians who will sing patriotism.
" If you go to primary schools now, you would see that they are waiting on the wings to enter to get their own, because that is what we are promoted, we celebrate thieves. We celebrate bandits and armed robbers and so we tell people that hard labour is not useful, we tell people that working hard is not good, that rather steal money and spray, you would be celebrated.
. '"That is what they have been thought, that is how the body language in Nigeria has been in the past years. And so, young people are not ready to go to school any longer, even those who go to school are already neck-deep in the corruption thing.
"So, to stop this, as I said earlier, we need a fresh orientation and all hands must be on deck, it's not what the government alone can do. We should accept that corruption has brought us to this level we presently find ourselves and that there must be an urgent need to adequately address it.
"We must begin to see the areas that can be developed like tourism. During our rainy days, we did not look at this. We misused the money gotten from oil which could have been used to develop other economies.
" This has brought us to this current situation we find ourselves. So, we should stop pointing fingers that it is this man or that man or that party or this party, this is not a party issue. The issue is that there is hardship in Nigeria and all hands must be on the deck to immediately address it.
He asked government not to spare any one found wanting in the corruption issue, saying urgent prosecution and jailing of the guilty ones was the only way to keep people out of the menace.
"Another thing I would advocate when it comes to the issue of corruption is that when somebody is caught, the government should be serious on the prosecution. That is what is done in developed countries.
"The high number of people we are hearing on daily basis that they looted billions of this and that, how many have been prosecuted and jailed?
"We only read in the pages of newspapers that this person stole billions, stole trillions, that even annoys me the most, given the fact that some people are stealing this kind of money while others are hungry and dying on streets.
"So I advocate that if anyone is caught and it is established that he actually stole, let all the money be taken and he be sent to jail.
"Don't just say that since the money has been taken, he be freed. Send the person to jail so that they will know that corruption is not attractive, '"he stressed.
The Management of Indorama Eleme Fertilizer & Chemicals, IEFCL, has debunked media reports of its involvement in any form of national economic or security sabotage.
NSA Babagana-Monguno
It will be recalled that the National Security Adviser, NSA, Major General Babagana Monguno (retd), last Thursday, alleged that explosives experts dispatched to conduct investigations into the incessant bombing of oil facilities in Niger Delta, uncovered the diversion of about 9,000kg of high explosives and 16,420 pieces of detonators for illegal use.
Monguno had added that two fertilizer companies, Notore Petrochemical and Indorama Eleme Petrochemical company, were alleged to have short-changed Nigerians by causing fertilizer shortages through illegal export of the product outside the country.
But the company stated that all its domestic supplies to customers so far are in accordance with the approval of the Office of the National Security Adviser, NSA, and the Farm Input and Supply Services, FISS, department in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
In a statement signed by the head of Corporate Communications, Dr Jossy Nkwocha, he noted "the company is not, and have not, and would never be directly or indirectly involved in any activity to undermine or sabotage the economy or security of the nation.
"IEFCL has been loading and distributing an average of between 90 – 100 long trailers of fertilizers, each carrying 600 bags of 50kg each, totalling over 57,000 bags of Indorama Urea fertilizer daily over the past one month for the benefit of Nigerian farmers across the country.
“Indorama Nigeria is committed to the growth and development of the Nigerian economy, and has in the past ten years demonstrated such commitment by providing more than 85 percent domestic needs of polymers which were hitherto imported into the country at huge foreign exchange cost,” he explained.
He also said that the company has expressed readiness to collaborate with the office of the NSA and Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to ensure that all identified concerns about availability of Indorama fertilizers by farmers and dealers are addressed as quickly as possible.
The company will work with the Federal Government regulators to achieve its vision of building the largest Petrochemicals and fertilizer hub of Africa with a cumulative investment of $4.32 billion by 2020.
He lamented that the company was greatly embarrassed and distressed that the publications gave misleading impression that the two fertilizer companies were sabotaging national security by distributing fertilizers within the country, which were being used by some undesirable elements to make explosives.
“The publications further mentioned an unnamed organisation involved in commercial explosives and accessories whose activities were sabotaging national security”.
“This mix-up has caused great embarrassment and distress to our company, which over the past ten years has the unblemished reputation of adding great value to the Nigerian economy and society,” he stated.
LAGOS- In an apparent bid to reaffirm his relevance, Boko Haram’s former leader, Abubakar Shekau, has threatened fresh but more vicious attacks on Nigeria, saying this would culminate in an attack on President Muhammadu Buhari in the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The latest threat came barely a week after he was upstaged by ISIS, who appointed al-Barnawi, son of founder of the sect, Muhammed Yusuf, as the new leader of the sect.
In a new video released yesterday, Shekau, who paraded a large number of his men and munitions, was quiet, while one of his masked lieutenants read out a statement that reiterated their unflagging loyalty to him, denouncing ISIS' choice of Mr. Al-Barnawi as its West African 'Wali' (leader).
But Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, in a swift reaction, waved off the threat last night, saying “not every tomfoolery deserves a response.”
Also Buratai, Army spokesman, Usman
The 24-minute video, which was partly in Arabic and ended largely in Hausa, had the group issuing direct threats to President Muhammadu Buhari; Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Butatai and spokesman of the Nigeria Army, Sani Usman, who they labelled as their avowed enemies and infidels.
The group expressed displeasure with the Albagdadhi-led ISIS for recognising Al-Barnawi as the new leader of Boko Haram in West Africa but failed to withdraw its loyalty to Mr. Albagdadhi whom they repeatedly referred to as Khalifa (Supreme leader) - an indication that Boko Haram is still very much comfortable being under the stronger umbrella of ISIS.
In the concluding part of the video message that featured the group speaking from a thick forest that conforms with the Nigerian vegetation during the rainy season, the masked speaker threatened more vicious war against Nigeria and its West and Central African neighbours, including Cameroon, Chad and Niger, very soon.
The veiled speaker in the front row of men that were all armed with lethal weapons, such as anti-aircraft rifles and rocket launchers, among others, threatened that they would soon attack the Presidential Villa and bring down the Nigerian flag.
The translated video message
The transcribed and translated video message read:"This is a message from the group of Jamaatu Ahlil sunna liddawati wal jihad in West Africa of the Islamic caliphate to all the Jihadists of the world; especially to Abubakar Albagdadi.
"News has recently come to us through the media outlets, including those of the infidels. The news was that someone has been made leader or vicegerent of our movement in West Africa. But we are telling you that the appointed person has no qualifications to become our leader. We have listened and heard from them and their comment and how they tried to defame Ahlil Sunna wal jamaaa and we are further convinced that such a person cannot become our leader. And we cannot follow the one that is not of Ahlil Sunna wal jamaaa.
"Besides, our leader, Abubakar Shekau, has sent you an eight-point message detailing why the person you appointed cannot lead because he is one of those that are called irjai. You (Albagdadhi) have sent a message back to our leader asking for the meaning of Irjai which he explained to you and you have failed to get back to us till date.
"Apart from that, in the message we sent to you, you've not been able to address all the questions asked and the issues raised till date. For that reason, we are telling you that we are together with our leader, Abubakar Shekau. There are other issues that we want to raise but not on this platform.
"We have not reneged on our professed loyalty in the leadership of Albagdadi. We are still with him. But we will not entertain any middle man to come between us and the Khalifa Albagdadhi until we meet face to face with the Khalifa or get a video or audio message from him, then we will reveal to him core secrets about those they are building their trust on.
"We are also warning you the infidels of the West African countries that in no distant time, you are going to be visited with a calamity from us that will marvel you all for a long time to come. We will shock the world very soon. Watch out for us.
"The Chief of Army Staff, General Buratai and the army spokesman, Kukasheka; we are going to show you our strength in Nigeria. The world should know that we are no longer out to fight Nigeria but our battle is of the entire world. And the battle has just begun. It is going to be a fresh battle for you soldiers of Nigeria. Die you all in your rage.
"To you, President Buhari, very soon you will see us inside your home, the presidential palace. You will hear from us right in there by the will of God. Abuja will hear from us very soon. We will demolish infidels and bring down the green white green and replace it with our flag.
“Under that flag, we shall worship Allah and we shall bring justice to all of you. Don't think it is only this weapon that will aid us to destroy you but Allah will assist us to do this. Die you all in your rage. We are out to wage war on the world."
The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) said on Tuesday in Abuja said that the Federal Government had not provided concessionary exchange rate or waiver for the 2016 Hajj pilgrims.
Hajj Pilgrims
Addressing newsmen, the Executive Chairman of the commission, Alhaji Abdullahi Mohammed, also denied the involvement of government in sourcing for foreign exchange for the pilgrims.
He added that contrary to the widely held view among Nigerians, the Federal Government was not sponsoring any pilgrim to Saudi Arabia this year.
Mohammed explained that the commission met with State Pilgrims Agencies in January and agreed that with the prevailing economic challenges, the burden of state sponsorship or concessionary rate should be taken off the government.
“ It was at that meeting that we agreed to approach the Central Bank of Nigeria to allow us use the prevailing rate then which was N197 to the dollar.
“ It was on that basis that we signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the CBN in March this year.
“ So, it was on that basis that intending pilgrims were charged.
''When the payments were remitted to the commission, we deposited the money in our account, domiciled at the CBN since then,'' he said.
According to Mohammed, it will be unfair to the pilgrims if they are now asked to access their money on the basis of the current exchange rate.
“ People should not forget that ?when this deal was struck, the current dual exchange rate policy of the CBN was not operational,“ he said.
He said that the ongoing issue of the exchange rate of N197 to a dollar was unnecessary as it was neither a concessionary rate nor a waiver.
The chairman added that the pilgrims were only getting a fair deal.
My girlfriend comes from a very religious background and doesn't believe in sex before marriage and tbis could be quite frustrating for me.
Now, I've met this girl at the university and we've had sex. I am 22 and my girlfriend 23. We've been together for two years, though we have known each other since secondary school. All she agrees to is a kiss and nothing more.
When I met tills new girl a few months back, she looked like the girl of my dreams and the most beautiful I have ever met. I got to know her and we started going out as friends.
Then, one night, we went to a party, we both had a lot to drink and started kissing. We then went upstairs to an empty bedroom.
She was really hot – the sex we had fulfilled my wildest fantasies. I knew I shouldn't be cheating but tbis girl was so exciting. We couldn't get enough of each other after that and have had sex whenever it is possible and it gets better and better.
I told her about my girlfriend and she said she didn't care. She just says she wants to continue seeing me.
I'm back home now and we've agreed not to meet during the holidays, to give ourselves time to sort our heads out. I thought I'd be able to forget her when I was with my girlfriend but I can't. I don't know what to do. I miss the fantastic sex I had with my other girl and don't even feel guilty.
Dare, by e-mail.
Dear Dare,
Sexual chemistry is amazingly strong but that doesn't necessarily make for lasting relationship. Ask yourself exactly what you're missing now. Is it just the sex or do you miss being with this new girl of yours? If it's just the sex, ask your girlfriend to spice things up between you physically. There is a lot you can do without going all the way.
If, on the other hand, you genuinely miss being with your university girl as bad as you are missing the sex, find out whether she'd like a proper relationship with you.
If she says yes and you can't imagine giving her up, be kind and finish with your girlfriend.
Illegal Market and structure under the high tension power lines knows along Power line road between Council /Power line Bus stop, in Idimu in Lagso were demolished by Lagos State Building Control Agency[LASBCA] and Lagos state Taskforce Monitoring and Enforcement, Tuesday. Videos By Bunmi Azeez
Farmers in Nigeria’s crisis-hit northeast urgently need help to start growing crops again, the U.N. food agency said on Tuesday, warning that a failure to get people back on their feet could open the door to radicalisation.
An insurgency by Boko Haram militants in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states disrupted fishing, farming, cattle breeding and trade routes after violence worsened in 2012, reports the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Radicalised Boko Haram members
Government forces retook territory from the insurgents last year, although attacks continue.
The improved situation has allowed aid agencies to reach more of the 7 million people who need aid, including 3 million experiencing severe food shortages.
But failure to rebuild the rural economy and boost job opportunities could result in youth frustration and continued violence in the region, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said.
“If you miss the opportunity, you perpetuate the need for food assistance. You create dependency,” Dominique Burgeon, director of FAO’s emergency and rehabilitation division, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
“If you create frustration, you leave the door open to all sorts of discontent including radicalisation and enrolment into armed groups.”
The United Nations and medical charity, Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres) warned last month that nearly 250,000 children in Borno state alone were suffering life-threatening malnourishment, and many were dying.
Aid agencies now have “a critical opportunity to tackle the alarming levels of food insecurity in northeast Nigeria,” Tim Vaessen, FAO’s emergency and response manager in Nigeria, said in a statement.
FAO has already distributed seeds to some 120,000 farmers to grow crops during the rainy season. Their harvest is expected in September and experts hope it will provide families with enough food for up to 10 months.
The U.N. agency now wants to reach 385,000 farmers who can grow crops on land that can be irrigated during the current drier weather.
Boko Haram controlled a swathe of land in northeast Nigeria around the size of Belgium at the end of 2014, but was pushed out by Nigerian troops, aided by soldiers from neighbouring countries, early last year.
Some 9 million people are in need of aid across the Lake Chad region, comprising Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon and Niger.
Late last month, U.N. humanitarian aid chief Stephen O’Brien, told the Security Council: “What we have uncovered and assessed is deeply, distressingly alarming, even for those of us who have witnessed such depths of humanitarian need before.”
He warned that the lean season – the period between harvests – which puts millions in the Lake Chad region at risk of hunger and malnutrition each year, had already begun, making the need for aid even more urgent.
By Song Daniel, Norther Region Editor After many months of allegations and counter allegations over the padding of the current year’s budget, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Tuesday, began a holistic investigation into the matter.Abdulmumini Jibrin
To set the ball rolling into probe, which is likely to lead to the falling and rising of some key actors in the NASS, the anti-graft agency interrogated the former House Appropriation Committee Chairman, Abdulmumuni Jirbin, for eight hours, trying to establish the veracity or otherwise of his allegations against the leadership of the House of Representatives.
Jibrin is contending that the Speaker of the House of Representatives and four others connived and injected illegal projects worth N281 billion into the budget, a claim denied by the accused.
Detained Publisher of the blog, Abusidiqu.com, Mr. Abubakar Sidiq Usman, who was released on Tuesday, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has vowed that he will continue to speak out, adding that his voice will never be silenced.
Usman in a short video released by Twitter user, @etinmagbe said: “I’ve just been released by the EFCC. I want to say again that my voice will never be silenced, irrespective of whatever they (EFCC) think they have done to me here. I will continue to do what I have always been doing, and I say, no retreat, no surrender.”
See photos below:
Blogger Abubakar Sidiq Usman freed by the EFCC on Tuesday, August 9, 2016.Blogger Abubakar Usman freedBlogger Abubakar Usman freedBlogger Abubakar Sidiq Usman (right) freed
Two Chinese nationals kidnapped by gunmen near in Abuja, last weekend have been released, police said Tuesday.
The men, who are aged 45 and 50 and work for a construction company, were held for “24 hours of captivity” after they were ambushed, police spokesman Umar Nurman told AFP.
They have undergone tests in a hospital in Abuja and appear to be in good health, he added.
Their release followed “extensive pressure from the search party”, Nurman said. It was unknown whether a ransom had been paid.
The exact timings of the kidnapping and release also remain unclear, though police previously said the men were ambushed on their way to Abuja on Saturday afternoon.
Kidnappings targeting prominent Nigerians and foreigners, especially in the oil-producing south, were rife in the 2000s until a 2009 government amnesty reduced unrest in the region.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday pledged to reinvigorate ties after their first meeting since Ankara shot down a Russian warplane last November.
Tayyip-Erdogan
Erdogan’s visit to Putin’s hometown of Saint Petersburg is also his first foreign trip since the failed coup against him last month that sparked a purge of opponents and cast a shadow over Turkey’s relations with the West.
“We lived through a very complicated moment in the relations between our states and we very much want, and I feel our Turkish friends want, to overcome the difficulties,” Putin told journalists at a joint press conference.
He insisted it would take “painstaking work” and “some time” to return to previous trade levels as Russia rolls back punishing economic sanctions against Ankara, but both sides said they wanted to restart major energy projects hit by the crisis.
Erdogan said he hoped relations would become “more robust” and stressed how important it was that Putin offered his support after the coup.
“We will bring our relations back to the old level and even beyond,” he said.
The shooting down of a Russian fighter jet by a Turkish F-16 on the Syrian border last November saw Putin slap sanctions on Turkey and launch a blistering war of words that dealt serious damage to burgeoning ties.
But in a shock reversal late June, Putin accepted a letter from Erdogan expressing regret over the incident as an apology.
He quickly rolled back a ban on the sale of package holidays to Turkey and signalled Moscow would end measures against Turkish food imports and construction firms.
Now in the wake of the failed July 15 coup attempt, there are fears in Western capitals that NATO-member Turkey could draw even closer to Moscow — with Erdogan bluntly making it clear he feels let down by the United States and the European Union.
Putin was one of the first foreign leaders to phone Erdogan offering support after the coup attempt and shares none of the concerns of EU leaders about the ensuing crackdown.
Russian President Putin
– Back to business? –
Relations between Turkey and Russia — two powers vying for influence in the strategic Black Sea region and Middle East — have long been complicated.
Yet before the plane crisis, Moscow and Ankara managed to prevent disputes on Syria and Ukraine from harming cooperation on issues like the TurkStream gas pipeline to Europe and a Russian-built nuclear power station in Turkey.
Those projects were put on ice with trade between the two countries plunging 43 percent in January-May this year to $6.1 billion, and Turkey’s tourism industry seeing visitor numbers from Russia fall by 93 percent.
With Turkey’s outlook flagging and Russia mired in economic crisis due to low oil prices and Western sanctions over Ukraine, both men want to get business started again.
Erdogan said he wanted to see the TurkStream project “done as fast as possible”, while Putin said construction could start “in the nearest future” and that the restoration of business ties would be done “in phases”.
The Turkish leader also insisted the two sides were once again targeting an ambitious trade turnover of $100 billion by 2024.
But Russian Economy Minister Alexei Ulyukayev told media it could take up to two years to fully restore pre-crisis trade levels.
– Skirting Syria –
A previous uptick in relations between Turkey and Russia was built on a macho friendship between Putin and Erdogan, two combative leaders in their early 60s credited with restoring confidence to their nations in the wake of financial crises but also criticised for clampdowns on human rights.
But after such a bitter dispute — which saw Putin accuse Erdogan of stabbing profiting from an illegal oil trade with the Islamic State group — it will take a lot for the pair to reheat relations.
The two strongmen conspicuously skirted one major issue that divides them — the war in Syria.
Putin and Erdogan said they would start discussing the conflict after the press conference, but the Russian leader insisted both sides were committed to finding a peaceful solution.
Russia is carrying out a bombing campaign in support of President Bashar al-Assad while Turkey is fiercely opposed to the Syrian leader.
Erdogan insisted in an interview with Russian media ahead of the talks that Assad must still go — a position opposed by Putin — but said that the conflict could now become the focus for renewed cooperation between the two sides.
Even if your car doesn’t come with 470 HP and Wi-Fi connectivity, your car is the biggest and most expensive gadget you own.
The Nigeria auto-industry is saturated with large number of mechanics who have little experience on car repairs or sometime driven by excessive profit motives to become deceitful. As such, unless a car owner changes his or her vehicle as often as a MacBook, keeping that ride in peak operating condition is as well as keeping repair costs down over its lifespan becomes very vital.
Here are 4 insights compiled by Autofactorng, an online retail store for sales of quality auto spare parts to make sure that a N5,000 brake job doesn’t cost you a N50, 000 leak in your checking account.
1
Trial and error
A large number of mechanics have little experience and knowledge about the well-being of cars. Working on modern vehicles demands unprecedented talent and training. In the bid to fix the problem, more problems arise.
2.
Charging for unnecessary repairs
A mechanic diagnoses a problem, repairs it and – surprise, surprise – the problem is still there. They then re-diagnose it as a different problem and repair that. Eventually, the mechanic repairs the original defect but charges the customer for all the repairs. In some other instances, the mechanic is fully aware of other faults in your vehicle but will keep mute so as to get you to come back and pay more.
3.
Misdiagnosing something that is not faulty
Sometimes to pad their bills, mechanics will tell a customer non-defective parts need to be replaced. Your brakes need to be resurfaced? They'll tell you to get them replaced. Other parts on the car can be repaired? They'll suggest replacement. Like unnecessary repairs, unneeded parts being sold to you are also a trick for major extortion.
4.
Purchase of inferior parts
Mechanics in Nigeria are in this habit. The car owner pays for authentic parts for repairs, they will not only double the price of parts, they go as far as getting inferior parts which will eventually cause more damage.
Korede Ogunseinde is an auto blogger at Autofactorng
Controversial blogger, Mr. Abubakar Sidiq Usman, detained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, over alleged cyber-stalking, was on Tuesday, released by the anti-graft agency.
Blogger Abubakar Sidiq Usman (right) freed by the EFCC on Tuesday, August 9, 2016.
No fewer than 54 students from various tertiary institutions in Benue have denounced their membership of cult groups. The students denounced membership of different cult groups during an interactive session between heads of tertiary institutions in the state and the Coordinator of Campus Cult Eradication Foundation, an NGO. The students took turns to denounce their membership of the groups in a meeting that was co-sponsored by the police. Miss Blessing Ibrahim, a student of Benue Polytechnic, Ugbokolo, who renounced her membership at the meeting, told newsmen that she did so owing to the non-beneficial nature of cultism. Another, Mr Samson Adakachi, also said he was recanting his membership of the group because of its heinous activities. Adakachi said the devilish activities of his cult gang, “the vikies” were “unimaginable”. The ex-cultists said that they were tired of their association with the groups and willingly denounced their membership. Speaking during the interactive session, Prof. Mathias Nder, Rector, Katsina-Ala College of Education, Katsina-Ala, said cult activities posed serious security challenges to the institution. Nder said that most lecturers in the school live under threats of physical harassment from cult groups who demanded money in exchange for attacks. He regretted that most institutions in the state lacked the requisite security to deal with the emerging security threat. Nder appealed to the State Government to grant approval to schools to include the study of Ethics and Morals in their academic curriculum. “The increased cases of insecurity in the state is as a result of the collapse in the social values of our society today. “Therefore, we need to include ethics and moral courses in the academic curriculum since the culture of a people is buried in the people’s language.'' On his part, the State Commissioner of Police, Mr Bashir Makama, assured that the command would provide adequate protection to the ex-cultists and urged them to encourage their old members to also renounce their cult membership. Makama warned that the command would not fold its arms and watch cult groups unleash terror on innocent citizens. Earlier in an address, Mr Samuel Ejembi, founder of the Campus Cult Eradication Foundation, described cultism as a “deadly menace that has destroyed lives of many innocent Nigerian citizens”. Ejembi decried the ills of cultism, noting that most of its adherents are initiated without knowing the inherent dangers. He said the ex-cultists were the best instruments against the evil group in the state; stressing that it is a threat to security in any state. “Cultism includes robbery, kidnapping, drug dealing, peddling and thuggery,'' he said.
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to “immediately and unconditionally release blogger Abubakar Usman who is detained simply for exercising his constitutional and internationally recognised right to freedom of expression.”
Abubakar-Sidiq-Usman
Mr Usman was arrested for alleged cyber-stalking of the EFCC Chairman, Mr. Ibrahim Magu.
But in a statement on Tuesday, by SERAP Executive Director, Mr. Adetokunbo Mumuni, the organisation said: "This action by the EFCC is unequivocally contrary to both section 39 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (as amended) and article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Nigeria is a state party. The EFCC must now immediately and unconditionally release Mr Usman and drop all charges against him.
"Nigeria's constitution guarantees freedom of expression. Under international law, everyone has the right to freedom of expression, including freedom to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice. SERAP believes that no one should be arrested simply for criticising public institution or public figures.
"The EFCC and indeed all public institutions should proactively encourage freedom of expression to enhance their ability to fight corruption but also to maintain the sanctity of the constitution and Nigeria's international obligations and commitments. There are many whistle-blowers out there that can be of immense support to anti-corruption agencies and contribute to the effective discharge of their statutory mandates to prevent and combat corruption.
"Nigerians should be allowed to talk freely without threats of arrest or harm.
"SERAP will be taking legal action to challenge the constitutionality of the ludicrous Cyber Crime Act which is now being regularly used to undermine the effective enjoyment of the right to freedom of expression in Nigeria.
"In 2011, the United Nations Human Rights Committee issued guidance to states parties including Nigeria on their free speech obligations under article 19 that emphasized the high value that the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights places upon uninhibited expression in circumstances of public debate concerning public figures in the political domain and public institutions.”
Former governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party for Lagos state in the 2015 election, Mr Jimi Agbaje has promised that he will lead the party back to winning ways if elected chairman of the party at the Portharcourt Convention.Jimi Agbaje
Speaking with Journalists shortly after he picked the nomination forms for the chairmanship position of the party in Abuja, Mr Agbaje said as a candidate who does not belong to any of the factions in the party, he stands a better chance to unite all the contending forces in the party.
According to him, it was high time the party learnt from its mistakes of the past that cost it power at the national level as well as some states that it had previously won.
He said: “We accept that mistakes were made in the past in the PDP, especially with our internal democracy. So we have to go back to the position of the founding fathers of our party on internal democracy
“And that means that we have go back to our constitution. That is very important. We have to be more all inclusive as we have been thus far. It is about bringing people nearer rather than sending them far away from the party. Everybody must feel to be part of this party.
“what I bring to the table is that I am not a member of any faction or any tendencies. I am in a position to talk to everybody, to ensure that if you love the PDP, then it is time to come back to the zone. I will appeal to those who feel very strongly to join us because Nigeria cannot make the progress it deserves without a viable opposition and that PDP is going to provide that opposition as an alternative government and in a responsible manner.
The Lagos State Government on Tuesday warned that any building used as hideouts by kidnappers, vandals and other criminal elements in any part of the State would henceforth be confiscated and taken over by government.
The State Government, while vowing that it would henceforth scale up enforcement of restriction of commercial motorcycles, popularly called Okada, on certain routes and ban on street trading, said security agencies have been placed on red alert and that there shall no longer be any hiding place for criminal elements in any part of the State.
Rising from the monthly State Security Council Meeting chaired by Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, the government said it had resolved to henceforth embark on massive and aggressive confiscation of properties used as hideouts by criminal elements in the State.
The State’s Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Owoseni, who briefed journalists at the end of the meeting alongside heads of all security agencies in the State, said the decision of government followed recent security threats in the State, and the need to take strong and decisive action to address the situation.
According to Owoseni, “The take away for today after the Security Council Meeting is for us to look at all the strategies that we have been employing in tackling the security challenges that we had in the State and to further strategise with the view to sustaining those measures that would put all the criminal elements in check and the Security Council of the State has come out to let our people know emphatically that the State is more poised at tackling all the criminal challenges and making sure that all the criminal elements that are going about in the State will not be allowed any free reign; they will not be given freedom of space to practice any of their criminal acts.
“There is no hiding place for criminal elements again in the State and as we get them, they would be made to face the full wrath of the law. In addition to that, the Council resolved that any structure or any places of hiding that criminal elements are using in the State, the State will not hesitate, in the interest of the public, to take over those safe havens, structures or houses that these criminal elements are using as hiding places to perpetrate their criminal activities."
The CP added that the Council also resolved that in as much as government had been enforcing the Okada restriction with human face, the law would henceforth be scaled up to achieve the purpose of its enactment.
He said: “The State still want to use this opportunity to further enlighten the public on the need to observe those laws that have been made in order to make life easy for the good people of Lagos.
“The two particular ones that we have looked at is the restriction of the commercial motorcycles to certain routes in the State and of course the activities of street traders. What we want people to know is that the State is not sleeping on its enforcement duties but government is just trying to be responsible in the way these laws are enforced.
“The Security Council wants us to seize this opportunity to let the people know that these laws are made to be complied with and that we will not stop at making sure that they are enforced as they are supposed to be, and that elements that contravene these laws would also be made to face the law.”
He debunked insinuations as to whether there were challenges in enforcing the laws, saying that government was only trying to enforce the law with human face and urged the people to cooperate with government.
Owoseni also advised criminal elements in the State to turn a new leaf and get themselves meaningfully engaged, as there is no hiding place for them in the State.
He further charged residents to be security conscious, saying that security starts with the people.
Abuja – The Vice Chancellor, National Open University of Nigeria, NOUN, Professor Abdalla Adamu, on Tuesday, urged the National Universities Commission, NUC, to prevail on Council of Legal Education, CLE to admit the law graduates of NOUN into Nigeria Law Schools.
NOUN-building
Prof. Adamu stated this in Abuja, when he paid a visit to to the Executive Secretary of NUC, Professor Adamu Abdulrasheed?, in his office.
He said following the advice of NUC, NOUN has already suspended admission into its Law Department.
According to the VC, “As a result of a perspective in the interpretation of the NOUN Act, the Council of Legal Education, CLE?, perceives our mode of instruction as correspondence and part-time and therefore excludes our students from participation in the law school programmes.
“Thus, we have repeatedly drawn attention to the fact that NOUN is an Open Distance Learning, ODL, institution and part of the large network of such institutions all over the world provide accessible, affordable and equitable education to millions of individuals who would work and learn at the same time due to their circumstances.
“We are praying to the Executive Secretary to draw the attention of the CLE to the fact that NOUN as an ODL institution, does not equate to part-time or correspondence institution,
“In o?rder to make things easier for everyone, we have even accepted the NUC recommendation to halt admission into the programme until we streamline our activities with CLE.”
The VC also urged the Executive Secretary to prevail on Nigerian universities to desist from discrimination against graduates of NOUN for all postgraduate programmes in all areas, adding that NUC should intervene and request National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, to accept graduates from NOUN to contribute their quotas to nation building.
Responding, the Executive Secretary of NUC, Prof. Abdulrasheed pledged the Commission’s assurance to seek audience with the Council of Legal ?Education with the view to making the Council understand that NOUN is not a part-time or a correspondence programme.
“It is a policy of Council of Legal Education, CLE to deny certain category of students from going to Law School. NOUN is an ODL institution, this is the future of tertiary education in the world.
“NOUN has come with genuine defence. We will have to adjust to this reality of this open and distance learning which is threatening the character and nature of our tertiary institutions in the country. Digital revolution is one of the two revolutions of the recent decade that are changing the world.
“We are going to make a strong case to draw the attention of CLE to the fact that NOUN is an ODL and not a correspondence programme. This is a new method of learning ?globally,” he said.
ASABA- ANOTHER militant group, Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate, NDGJM, has emerged with a threat to bring down the Refinery in Eleme, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Warri Refinery and the Utorogun gas plant in Otu-Jeremi in Ughelli South Local Government Area, Delta State in few days should the federal government fail to listen to them.
File: Militants
Issuing 48 hours to oil multinationals still in the upland of the region, especially in the Ogba/Egi axis of Rivers state, Urhobo/Isoko/Ndokwa axis of Delta state and other upland oil producing areas to evacuate their personnel, they decried that all the people of the upland Niger Delta, under whose watch the largest and most critical oil assets are located, have been ignored over the years as government and the oil companies pander to every whim and cough of those who have violently engaged the state.
The group in a statement by its Spokesman, self-styled Gen. Aldo Agbalaja said: “We have keenly watched developments in the country in recent times, developments that are most depressing, very much depicting the marginalization and subjugation of the hapless people of our region.
“We have thought very deeply about the ongoing shenanigan and play-acting going on between the federal government and some self-styled 'Niger Delta agitators' and thought if we fail to make our own statement now, then there will be no future for the larger Niger Delta region”.
Continuing in the statement, he said; “for the avoidance of doubts, the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate is not in the mold of the various criminal gangs that have so far paraded themselves as fighting for the interest of the people of the Niger Delta, but who indeed have been engaged in fight for personal enrichment.
“We are not one of them. We are out to tell the world that there is a Niger Delta that is made up of many tribes and tongues, the people of whom have so far suffered both local and national oppression.
“We have come at this point to ensure that our oppressors, being the federal government, the state governments in the six core Niger Delta states who have received billions of dollars over the past years but have brought little or no development to the region and the so-called super-ethnic nations, who have yielded to greed and wickedness and have exposed the rest of us in the oil-rich, but deeply impoverished region, to crippling squalor”.
Explaining that the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate is a coalition of forces across the Niger Delta region, fighting for the interest of the region, Agbalaja said, “Federal government and the oil multinational companies have been making a very grave mistake by equating the interest of the Ijaw people as that of all the tribes of the region. Indeed, this is a mistake that is about to take a more devastating toll than has ever been seen or experienced in the history of Nigeria.
“Any moment from now, we shall be making a loud statement which we believe should be loud enough for all to see and take seriously and then afterwards state our demands.
“We have considered this ‘coming statement’ reluctantly inevitable because of the recalcitrance of federal authorities, as well as oil giants; they both have decided to ignore calls to reason and have made violence the only option.
“Just as in the 2009 experience, the federal government and oil companies have started yet another round of negotiation with the Ijaw front, in the name of all the people of the Niger Delta. This will not work. Since they do not regard the assets in our areas important enough to be protected, we shall root them all out of the length of the Niger Delta. We don't want to make this mistake any longer, violence pays as it has become the only voice that government gives hearkens to.
“Finally, we are asking all the oil multinationals still in the upland of our region; AGIP, TOTAL, SHELL, MOBIL, SHORELINES, NECONDE, E.D WESTERN, SEPLAT and others to commence the evacuation of their personnel from the region, especially in the Ogba/Egi axis of Rivers state, Urhobo/Isoko/Ndokwa axis of Delta state and other upland oil producing areas, within the next 48 hours.
“We also want to bring it to the attention of the federal government and the NNPC that the refineries in Warri (Urhobo land) and Port Harcourt (Eleme) and the gas plant in Otorogun will all come down in few days from now.
“We just hope that the Nigerian government will continue ignoring us so that we can perfect what those in the riverine area started”.
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