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
By Dapo Akinrefon THE Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Lagos State has initiated the process of declaring vacant, seats of six of its members who defected to the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the Lagos State House of Assembly.
*Salvador
The party also expressed its support for the Senator Ahmed Makarfi-led National Caretaker Committee, saying that the party is working as one in the state.
Members of the party, at its General Assembly meeting held Thursday in Lagos, unanimously adopted a motion affirming the leadership of Makarfi as the leader of the party.
Speaking at the assembly, the party's state publicity secretary, Mr. Taofik Gani, said the party is already initiating the process of declaring the seats of six of its members who defected to the APC, in the Lagos State House of Assembly.
Gani said: "We are doing our homework and we are going to make our formal application to the necessary authorities for their seats to be declared vacant. We want them to come and test their popularity in their various constituencies.
"If truly they are popular they should vacate their and not even contest their seats that will be declared vacant in court but come out to come and test their popularity in an election."
He, however, affirmed the party’s unalloyed support for the Makarfi-led caretaker committee noting that "in Lagos State we are one."
"There is no faction in Lagos State and we are all working as one as the local government election is coming up", he added.
In his remarks, state chairman of the party, Mr Moshood Salvador, stressed that the leader of the party in the state, Chief Bode George, the entire state executive and members of the party are solidly behind Senator Markarfi appointed as the caretaker chairman of the party.
Salvador said: "The entire party structures in the state including our leader, Chief Bode George are solidly behind Ahmed Makarfi, who was appointed as caretaker chairman of the party in Port Harcourt last year."
He further stated that part of the new amendment would restrict state electoral commission from conducting local government elections without providing a level playing ground.
The party chairman commended the National Assembly for accepting E-voting in the new amendment of the Electoral Act saying"the new electoral amendment is cheering news to those of you who are aspiring to contest the forth coming local government election and the 2019 general elections in the country."
The chairman disclosed that though the party suffered a political setback in Ibeju-Lekki local government area, the differences have been resolved as the party structure at the council level is in place.
A pro-democracy and advocacy group, Concerned Nigerians, has raised an alarm over what it termed decay of the Federal Capital territory, FCT, under the ministerial watch of the current FCT minister, Alhaji Mohammed M. Bello.
In a statement signed by its Co-Convener, Deji Adeyanju, it said haven written to the Minister severally to release information concerning the award of projects for the transformation of the territory, the Minister has refused to provide same, indicating corruption from his person.
It however said the group would embark on a peaceful protest to demand accountability and good representation from the minister tomorrow being the 7th of March, 2017.
"The tenure of Alhaji Mohammed M. Bello as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja has been marred by an increase in violent crimes such as kidnappings, armed robbery and murder; decay of public facilities and infrastructure, and increased opacity in the administration of public funds."
"Alhaji Bello's tenure has also seen a return of activities that had been successfully phased out in the city such as street hawking and the use of commercial motorcycles popularly called Okada."
"As part of efforts to ensure public sector accountability, we had written two Freedom of Information requests to the Minister seeking information regarding the award of contracts for the supply and installation of security equipment, streets & traffic lights, and rapid response equipment and payments made further to the award of these contracts. These letters have been ignored by the minister in order to cover his acts of corruption."
"What is more, the city continues to wallow in darkness, continues to be increasingly unsafe & insecure, while becoming increasingly unsanitary."
"Alhaji Bello's tenure has been marred by ineptitude, an inability to manage the City, and several other ills too numerous to mention."
"To this end, we will like to invite members of the press to our peaceful procession to protest the rapid decline of the City of Abuja under the administration of Alhaji Mohammed Bello. The procession will hold on Friday April 7th, 2017 by 9am. The meeting point will be in front of FCDA, Kapital Street, Area 11, Abuja."
"We urge members of the press to attend as we take a stand against the poor and ineffective policies of the Mohammed Bello led administration of the FCT.
THE United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) said tourism has the potential of generating adequate wealth and reduce poverty in the world, if properly harnessed.
File photo: Nigeria's stand at a tourism fair
The UNWTO, which made this known in its monthly bulletin released in Abuja on Wednesday, said tourism, remained one of the most important sectors in the world.
UNWTO said it would design a programme to support sustainable tourism and wildlife protection to boost the sector in the world.
The organisation also said it would raise awareness on the relevance of the sector in the reduction of poverty.
Accordingly, it will also promote knowledge sharing on best practices, the major objective for reducing poverty and developing tourism.
Ben Agande, Abuja. A meeting called by President Goodluck Jonathan to find lasting solution to the leadership crisis in the Peoples Democratic Party Thursday ended in a stalemate as Senator Ali Modu Sheriff maintained his ground that he must continue as the chairman of the party while governors Nyesom Wike and Ago Fayose and the national assembly caucus insisted that he must step down to allow for a neutral person to lead the party to the convention.
Makarfi, Jonathan and Sheriff
Senator Sheriff subsequently stormed out of the meeting along with his deputy, Cairo Ojougboh, insisting that for the meeting to progress, he must be recognised and addressed as chairman.
Students seeking admission into various higher institutions across the country are heaving a sigh of relief with the introduction of Remita for the purchase of their Universal Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) forms.
This revelation is an aftermath of a statement recently made by Head of Public Relations, Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Dr Fabian Benjamin, that "aside the banks and NIPOST, candidates can now purchase the pins through Remita."
He added that the inclusion of Remita is to further cushion the challenges faced by students. "Candidates can now purchase the pin for registration from the comfort of their homes," he said.
Speaking on the development, a 2017 UTME candidate based in Akure, Ayanfe Adelolu who recently paid with Remita, described his experience as convenient: "All I did was to visit JAMB website, log in with my registered profile, click the 'UTME Examination' under the Sales of Form feature, and then select Remita." He continued, "From there, I went on to choose how I wanted to pay."
Another candidate said she paid with her mobile phone using Remita's app: "When I got to the page where I was asked about how I want to pay, I saw that I could pay with an app which I had heard of before. So, I downloaded it and used the Pay RRR features to pay."
In an earlier statement, JAMB had blamed cybercafés for making "information gathering, processing and administration of examination cumbersome as records and data of candidates are distorted." With Remita as a new e-PIN vendors, students will now be able to complete payment from their mobile phones even without patronising cyber cafés.
Already, JAMB has registered 600,000 candidates for the 2017 UTME across the country. With the addition of Remita to other e-PIN vendors, the payment process is now much easier for candidates.
The Minister of State for Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, yesterday said the Federal Government has learnt its lessons on ways to avert the kind of epidemic recorded at the Queen's College, Yaba, Lagos, even as he said that the school will remained closed until all repair activities are concluded.
The minister who described the incident as unfortunate regretted the loss of lives in the incident. Osagie Ehanire
Ehanire, who was accompanied by the Lagos state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Jide Idris, commended the Lagos State Government, the school's Old Girls Association and the Parents Teachers Association, PTA, for what he described as the initiatives they have taken in seeing to the welfare of the school.
According to Ehinare, the several gaps identified in the enquiries and remedial services steps taken to salvage the situation will be reviewed and discuss as part of efforts to finally nip the situation in the bud.
He said; "The lapses which we have identified and which we shall discuss will form part of my report which the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education shall address together.
"What we have seen so far are remedial activities being undertaken; the repair work is being done by the Old Girls' Association of the school and the PTA, and I believe by the time all these are done and proper inspections are done, then the school can be reopened."
Meanwhile, as part of steps to alleviate the problem of potable water in the school, a private water producing company, Queens lite has agreed to be supplying no fewer than 15, 000 litres of water to the school on daily basis.
Speaking on the current outbreak of meningitis in the country, the minister said it was unfortunate that the Type C just discovered in the country was strange to the nation. He said Nigeria used to have Type A meningitis but that the vaccines for the Type C now discovered in Nigeria was also not common but that the Federal
Government has mobilised for them and they are being applied already.
"We are prepared for this but what is well known is that the strain of meningitis this time is different. This time we have Serotype C which is not the same thing in the past. It sort of ambushed us but we have been mobilised to tackle the problem.
"We advised people in crowded environment to ensure that their rooms are well ventilated. "
The Minister also visited the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH, and the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, LASUTH where some of the students were admitted.
ABUJA- Federal Government Thursday appealed the judgment of Justice Jude Okeke that nullified the corruption charges against Justice Adeniyi Ademola, Mrs. Olabowale Ademola and Mr. Joe Agi (SAN). DOCKED: Justice Adeniyi Ademola of the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court (left) with his associate (right) and Chief Robert Clark (middle) at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Maitama, yesterday. Photo: NAN
Also, the government through the federal Ministry of Justice has filed a fresh case in the Code of Conduct Tribunal, CCT against Justice Ademola and his wife for living above their income and failure to declare their assets.
It will be recalled that Justice Okeke of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Wednesday April 5, 2017, upheld a no case submission by the Defence in the corruption case against Justice Ademola, Mrs. Ademola and Mr. Agi.
The judge also struck out the 18-count charge proffered against the Defendants after holding that the Prosecution failed to prove any of the allegations despite the provisions of sections 53 and 60 of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act (ICPC Act).
But sources in the Presidency told State House Correspondents on Thursday that the Government was not particularly excited by the development and had appealed the judgment it described as “a very strange outcome indeed considering the underlying facts.”
According to the sources, “It is even more strange that the trial was not allowed to continue considering the applicable statutory provisions. Section 53(1) of the ICPC Act raises a presumption that any gratification accepted or obtained by an accused person must have been corruptly accepted or obtained until the contrary is proved. Section 60 of the Act does not apply to the case.”
The Senate, Thursday, received the age-long report on the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIb) from its joint petroleum committee on petroleum (downstream and upstream) and gas.
The bill has been in the works for over a decade and been redrafted several times but was never passed by the previous assemblies.
Speaking on the report, Senate President, Bukola Saraki said: "What a historic day!" "We are getting there."
President Muhammadu Buhari, who took office in May 2015, made passing the legislation a priority as part of an attempt to crackdown on the mismanagement and corruption that has held back the country's energy sector. Oil sales account for two-thirds of government revenue in the OPEC member state.
When the bill was passed for second reading before moving to the committee stage, the Senate said the proposed legislation "establishes a framework for the creation of commercially oriented and profit driven entities that ensure value addition and internationalization of the country's petroleum industry."
"The bill seeks to provide transparency and accountability in the management of Nigeria's petroleum resources."
Saraki
Once the Senate has approved the bill, it will be sent to the lower chamber of parliament. With the approval of both, the final version will be sent to the president to be signed into law.
Its backers say Nigeria's oil sector is in dire need of change, with power currently concentrated in the state oil company Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and the petroleum ministry.
Moreover, the bill also seeks to split the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation into two: national oil company, NOC, and national petroleum assets management commission.
The NOC, as proposed in the bill, will be an "integrated oil and gas company operating as a fully commercial entity and will run like a private company", while the NPAMC will be a "single petroleum regulatory commission which will focus mainly on regulating the industry."
The Senate President had last week promised that the report on the bill would be laid today and that it would be presented for third reading on April 25.
A RIGHTS activist and lawyer, Mr. Joseph Otteh, has requested that the sacked national leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, act in good faith and in adherence to the tenor and spirit of the March 30, 2017 judgement of Justice John Tsoho of a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, which voided the NBA 2015 Constitution.
Mahmud
Speaking on the development, Otteh, said: "The NBA will be expected to live by example, and show principled, unstinting respect for the rule of law in all circumstances. The NBA has said that it has not read the judgement of the court, and the portions of the judgement relayed by the media clearly show that the Federal High Court annulled the constitution of the NBA.
"It is not clear what consequential orders the court made following its declaration that the constitution of the NBA was void, if it made any at all. However, this is not to say that where the court did not issue consequential orders, its judgement is without effect, no. The judgement may be sufficient grounds to alter the existing status quo.
Text of the judgement
"We will be reticent to impose on the judgement of the High Court, an interpretation that cannot unquestionably be interpolated from the text of the judgement. However, we urge that after reviewing the judgement, the present leadership of the NBA must act in good faith adherence to the tenor and spirit of the judgement in the overriding interest of the rule of law.
"The fact that an appeal is pending against the judgement is not enough reason, we believe, and in the present circumstances, to defy the judgement where it is reasonably clear that the judgement requires the NBA to act in a certain, definite way," he added.
The suit: It will be recalled that the suit was instituted by on July 27, 2016 by Mr. Olasupo Ojo, seeking the following reliefs which were all granted by Justice Tsoho:
A declaration that 'Exhibit C' the Amended Constitution of the NBA adopted at the Delegates Conference held in Calabar, Cross River State on August 31, 2001 as registered with and approved by the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC, in compliance with provisions of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2004 is the extant and valid constitution of the defendant.
A declaration that by the provision of section 600 of the CAMA 2004, 'Exhibit B' the amended constitution of the NBA purportedly amended and adopted at the annual general meeting held in Abuja on August 27, 2015 and pursuant to which the administration of and affairs of the defendant has been and is being conducted is void.
A declaration that all actions, decisions and activities howsoever described, already taken or intended/planned to be taken and/or carried out by the defendant, her officers, staff, organs, committees, branches, members, representatives and/or any other person acting on behalf of or in the name of the NBA in any manner whatsoever including but not limited to the conduct of elections in branches of the NBA and the plan/program/notice for the election into the national offices of the defendant pursuant to "Exhibit B," the constitution of the NBA purportedly amended and adopted at the Annual General Meeting held in Abuja on August 27, 2015 are null and void to the extent of their inconsistency with "Exhibit C," the Amended Constitution of the NBA adopted at the Delegates Conference held in Calabar on August 31, 2001 as registered with and approved by the Corporate Affairs Commission in compliance with the provisions of the CAMA 2004.
Perpetual injunction
An order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendant, her officers, staff, organs, committees, branches, members, representatives and/or any other person acting on behalf of or in the name of the Nigerian Bar Association in any manner howsoever described jointly and severally from conducting and/or purporting to conduct the affairs of the defendant on the basis of " Exhibit B," the constitution of the NBA purportedly amended and adopted at the annual General Meeting held in Abuja on August 27, 2015."
Issues raised: Reacting to the judgement, the sacked leadership of the body, headed by Mr. Abubakar Mahmoud, SAN, through its Secretary-General, Mr. Isiaka Olagunju, raised certain issues, which included that it was not joined in the suit alongside the 125 branches executive nationwide.
A statement by Olagunju, said: "We understand counsel to the Incorporated Trustees of the NBA has already appealed this decision. The NBA is making efforts to obtain the full judgement. However, the NBA is aware that those who challenged its 2015 Constitutions on similar grounds have been dismissed by the Federal High Court and other courts of coordinate jurisdictions across the country.
"The NBA has noted that this judgement has expectedly created a state of anxiety amongst its members. Annulling three previous NBA constitutions, is a matter of grave concern to the NBA and should be to the entire legal profession. The matter goes beyond the personal leadership ambitions of our individual members.
Senior practitioners to represent NBA: "The association has constituted a team comprising very senior and capable legal practitioners to represent the NBA and if necessary to join the appeal against this decision so as to preserve the continued smooth operation of the Association both at the State and National levels.
"The NBA will like to reiterate that neither the NBA President, nor any of the national officers or indeed any of the leadership of the 125 branches nationwide that were elected into office under the 2015 Constitution was a party to these proceedings. None of them has been served with any order of court affecting the conduct of any office of the NBA. In the absence of this, the NBA directs all its officers across the 125 branches nationwide and all other officers at the National level to continue to discharge their responsibilities."
Insisting that the judgement be complied with, Mr Ojo, through his lawyer, Mr. A. C. Ozioko, has written the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen in his capacity as the Chairman of the Body of Benchers, which is statutorily empowered to take over the administration of the NBA in situations like this, to set up a caretaker committee to run the affairs of NBA until an election is held.
No counter-affidavit: However, Mr. Ozioko, in a letter to the CJN, said: "We are solicitors to the plaintiff in the above matter before Justice Tsoho of a Federal High Court, Abuja in which judgement was delivered and all reliefs sought by the plaintiff granted on March 30, 2017.
Mandatory provisions
The court in its judgement voided the 2015 amended constitution of the NBA for non-compliance with mandatory provisions of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, CAMA. Also voided were all actions howsoever described taken under the said constitution.
"Sir, worthy of note is the fact that the defendant herein did not file any counter-affidavit in opposition to the plaintiff's suit, rather they filed a frivolous preliminary objections which were all dismissed by the court.
"You may also recall that the 2016 NBA national officers' election held on July 30 and 31, 2016 was conducted through electronic voting in line with the voided amended 2015 NBA Constitution. The obvious resultant effect of the Court judgment in this case is that the 2016 NBA national officers' election which ushered in the administration of Mahmoud, SAN, has been nullified and voided in its totality in line with relief 3 above granted by the Court, thus the NBA currently does not have a national leadership.
"Sir, it is not in doubt that the current ‘National Executive Committee’ of the NBA whose election has been nullified and voided by the court, is now incapable of functioning as a result thereof. To this end, we urge you in the overall interest of the Bar and the profession, as well as to forestall a breakdown of law and order to give immediate effect to the judgement of the Federal High Court in the instant suit and to exercise your powers under the Legal Practitioners Act and the 2001 NBA Constitution as highlighted above.
Respect and moral rectitude
"We are also conscious of the fact that the public, the nation at large and the international community are watching us and as the professional body of lawyers, our conduct must always be above board. Also of concern is that the Bar may lose its respect and moral rectitude to criticise the government and other persons for non-compliance with the rule of law and disobedience to court orders, if we do not immediately give effect to the instant judgement," Ozioko stated.
Mr. Ozioko also wrote to Access Bank, the official bank of the association, requesting for the suspension of operations in NBA accounts with the bank pending the takeover of the administration and management of the affairs of the association by the Caretaker Committee set up by the CJN, Justice Onnoghen.
Commenting on the issue, a Law lecturer at the Lagos State University, Gbenga Ojo said, "The option open now is for the NBA executive to continue running the affairs of the association. And since they have appealed against the judgement of the high court and stay of proceeding, they should be allowed to be. However, if they lose at the Court of Appeal or the apex court, then they can be removed. We cannot afford to have a vacuum."
The Organised Labour on Thursday urged the Federal Government to put in place a benchmark for the implementation of the new National Minimum Wage, when it is finally agreed upon.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) made the call at the presentation of the report of the Technical Committee on Minimum Wage and Palliatives to Mr Babachir Lawal, the Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF).
Mr Bobboi Kaigam, TUC President, said that the benchmark was imperative as the minimum wage was neither about the ordinary person nor about the public sector alone.
''If the states do their minimum wage, which group is going to do one for the private sector and the disadvantaged in the country?
''That goes to say that it must come from the Federal Government and it must cover all.
''So, the government should ensure that the benchmark for all employers is made as a law so that everybody in the country is carried along irrespective of the number of persons employed.
''We also hoped that the committee will look into the idea being canvassed that minimum wage should not only be for workers in organisation of 50 staff and above,'' he said.
Kaigama, however, called on the Federal Government to immediately address the problems facing civil servants even as it is giving bailout to state governments.
He frowned at claims by the state governors that they have never been carried along in the process of negotiating for minimum wage.
He added that on the issue of the minimum wage, we know that the state governors are only trying to be smart and there is no point in doing that.
''Your predecessors were involved in the process in the last exercises and now you deny that governors were not part of the negotiation.
''I hope that we all realise that constituting a minimum wage committee is not just coming for the inaugural meeting.
''It demands that you partake in every committee work in order for you to be part of the process, so that when the report is ready, everybody will be on the same page,'' he said.
The TUC president also called on the government to ensure that the report should not be consigned to the shelves.
He also commended the Federal Government for giving the state governors bailout to meet pressing needs in their states, as he alleged that they (governors) were not using it for the desired purpose.
''Again, there is the issue of the Paris Club refund to the governors; the first trench was released and now they are getting the second trench.
''We hope that this places a burden on them to ensure that the issue of arrears in salaries, pensions and gratuities are addressed.
''On the part of the Federal Government, we crave the indulgence of the government to ensure that they do not give bail out to only states when federal workers also have very serious problems.
''They have salary arrears, death benefits, promotion arrears, pension, government workers on contributory pension were yet to be paid for the past one year,'' he added.
He called on the government to use the committee's report to address the salient issues that had been enumerated for the purpose of maintaining industrial harmony in the system.
Mr Babachir Lawal, the SGF while receiving the report said President Muhammadu Buhari's administration was committed to the welfare of workers in the country.
Lawal assured the organised labour that the committee's report would be studied by the main committee and a memo would also be raised and submitted to President Buhari for immediate action.
Sen. Chris Ngige, Minister of Labour and Employment, while presenting the report, said the technical committee had recommended the setting up of a 29-member National Minimum Wage Committee.
Ngige added that the committee also recommended that the minimum wage committee should be headed by an accomplished Nigerian who was not a member of any of the political parties, but who is vast on issues on labour matters.
He said the minimum wage committee should be made up of eight representatives of the Federal Government, eight representatives of organised labour and eight representatives of employers of labour in the private sector.
The Minister added that the committee also recommended three representatives of state governors made up of one from the PDP Governors Forum, one from the APC Governors Forum and one from the Nigeria Governors Forum.
''This composition will give the governors a voice since they have always complained that they are not carried along in the process of previous negotiations,'' Ngige said.
Mr Ayuba Wabba, NLC President, commended the Federal Government and members of the committee for the far reaching recommendations.
He called on the Federal Government to ensure that the recommendations were duly implemented.
By Levinus Nwabughiogu ABUJA-Senator Ita Enang has dismissed the existence of conflict between the presidency and the national assembly, saying that the relationship between the Executive and the Legislature was cordial.
Enang who is the Senior Special Assistant, SSA, to President Muhammadu Buhari on Legislative Affairs (Senate) also said that the periodic interactions between the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara underscored the point.
He argued that the suspension of the screening of the 27 Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, nominees of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC by the senate only showed that the principle of separation of powers, the hallmark of democracy was active in Nigeria.
The SSA while briefing State House correspondents at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Thursday remarked that where tension ever existed, the intervention of the National Working Committee, NWC of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC led by the National Chairman, John Oyegun had doused it.
He said that the only time the public would need to worry was when the Executive and Legislature are in some romance, without any of them raising questions, submitting that crisis was normal with democracy.
The Presidential aide also welcomed the setting up of the presidential committee headed by Vice President Osinbajo to interface with the national assembly on the obvious matters.
He said: “I am here to confirm to you that the relationship between the Executive and the Legislature is very cordial, constitutional, and in all manners, usual.
“The relationship between the President and the Senate President is perfect and very cordial, personal and official.
“You have seen at many times the President of the Senate and even the Speaker of the House of Representatives coming to have personal interactions and briefing the President of the affairs of the legislature and other functions of the state.
“It appears that because of some incidences on the screening of some nominees, people think there are tensions. But let me assure you that there was no tension.
“It is only that the constitution requires that when the President makes a nomination to the legislature, the legislature is to screen, consider and approve as thought fit. If the legislature has reason to have reservations, there is always consultation. It will make its opinion known to the Executive by way of appropriate communication.
“Even if it appeared in the past that there were tensions, the actions of this week: the consultations between the President and the leaders of the National Assembly have doused all.
“The intervention of the National Working Committee of the APC led by the National chairman has again completely put the question of tension or discord at rest. That too has further brought down what it appeared to be tension.
“In all the issues that have arisen, no question is raised by the Legislature against the action of the President. It shows that in all manners, the President has not done anything that will make the legislature to call him to question.
“At anytime you will find the Legislature hands in gloves with the Executive without the Executive raising questions or the Legislature asking questions, then the public should be worried.
“That is why we have separation of powers. Each of them should check each other. When these checks arise, that is when the public feels there is tension. There is absolutely no tension.
“In setting up a committee led by the Vice President, the President felt that if there is any semblance of disagreement, it should be addressed. This shows that this government is very responsive. It is a welcome development.”
It will be recalled that the National Assembly, particularly, the Senate has been at loggerheads with the presidency on some issues which included the rejection of the nomination of the Ibrahim Magu as the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The senate also recommended the sack of Magu but the presidency is yet to heed the call, a development the Senate cited as reason why it would not screen the INEC nominees.
Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of Kano state has directed the state Ministry of Information to facilitate registration of Information Officers in the state Civil Service as members of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations.Ganduje
He further directed the Ministry to ensure training of Information Officers, to keep them abreast of emerging trends in Public Relations practice and to consolidate their career development.
The governor gave the directive a speech shortly after his investiture as Patron of NIPR at the state Executive Council Chambers at the Government House in Kano.
"Public Relations is a very important profession. Regardless of of how far any government is moving in serving the people, the society does not get to appreciate what is actually going on without PR practitioners", the governors stressed.
Governor Ganduje therefore urged PR practitioners in Kano to pay more attention to professional ethics stressing that the government would continue to support them.
He expressed appreciation to the institute for honoring him and acknowledging the effort of his administration in positively changing the lives of the people of Kano.
In his remarks, the National President of Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, NIPR, Dr. Rotimi Oladele, who was represented by his deputy, Alhaji Mukhtari Z. Surajo, explained that the institute is the professional body of qualified Public Relations Practitioners, attained charter status in 1990 with Decree 16 now Act of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
According to him, the Law mandates NIPR to regulate the practice and direct the development of Public Relations as a profession in Nigeria, stressing that it is illegal to practice Public Relations in the country without the institutes' certification.
He, therefore, advised the state government to ensure that all is Public Relations personnel are duly accredited, even as he acknowledge effort of the state government to assist in re-certifying civil servants who are existing members of the institute.
On the investiture of Governor Ganduje as Patron of the Institute, the NIPR President said it was based on his service to the people of the state has well as his determination to promote public relations practice.
Senate President Bukola Saraki has advocated that the Global Britain Fund be judiciously spent on poverty alleviation and economic development of the country.
Saraki, represented by Sen. Ali Wakili, the Chairman Senate Committee on Poverty Alleviation and Social Welfare made the call at a roundtable by the British High Commission in Abuja.
The UK Government had in 2016 announced a five-year Global Prosperity Fund of 1.3 billion pounds to promote economic reform and development for growth in partner countries.
Saraki
The fund's priorities include improving business climate, increasing ability of partners to tackle corruption, competitiveness and operation of markets, energy and financial sector.
Saraki said: "The fund worth 1.3 billion pounds represents another surgical attempt by the British Government to promote economic through poverty alleviation and economic boost.
"We are particularly interested in aspect of the fund which targets promotion of economic reforms and elimination of barriers of trade, public sector reform, strengthening capacity and building strong institutions.
"We are also interested in the aspect that focuses on developing growth sectors such as infrastructure, energy, finance, education and healthcare and providing development assistance to combat poverty.
"The targets are in line with the legislative agenda of the 8th senate which is largely focused on economic reforms and poverty alleviation.''
Saraki said that as the country battled with economic recession and looming humanitarian situation in the North-East, the Senate welcomed any form of partnership that would address the national challenges.
He said that the Senate would continue to use the instrumentality of laws as a means of social engineering to create conducive atmosphere for economic survival and empowerment of the citizens.
Saraki said that the Senate was currently working on the establishment of National Poverty Alleviation Commission, geared toward establishing a coordinating agency for eradication of poverty in Nigeria.
He reiterated the readiness of the senate to support programmes and initiatives aimed at enthroning sustainability and better livelihood for poor and vulnerable Nigerians.
The Chairman House Committee on Poverty Alleviation, Hon. Muhammed Wudil, remarked that the lower legislative chamber was also working on the establishment of Poverty Eradication Commission.
He said that the commission would not only centralise the programme but also maintain a reliable database.
According to him, eradication of poverty can only be effective through such institution that have constitutional mandate.
Wudil said that the House of Representatives by virtue of its constitutional responsibilities was working to put in place relevant legislation to achieve UN targets on poverty alleviation.
A group of civil society organizations, Thursday, staged a protest against what it termed, "an attempt to kill the legislature,” by the executive while urging Nigerians to rise up in defense of democracy.
It also urged democracy lovers to "rise up and condemn the latest affront against the National Assembly by the executive.”
The group, at a rally held at the premises of the National Assembly to show discontent over the Executive/Legislature faceoff, warned that any attempt to “intimidate lawmakers and undermine the independence of the legislature,” will spell doom for democracy.
The statement was jointly signed by Ariyo-Dare Atoye, Co-Convener, Coalition in Defence of Nigerian Democracy and Constitution (CDNDC), Jude Chijioke Ndukwe Convener, Movement for the Advancement of National Transformation (MANTRA) and Prince Deji Adeyanju, Convener, Concerned Nigerians.
Jude Ndukwe addressing the protesters
The statement read: “Today, we march against the attempt to kill the legislature and undermine democracy in Nigeria as it has become highly imperative for us to be vigilant about the relentless insistence of anti-democratic forces to bring our highly cherished freedom and democracy to their knees.
“While we insist that the National Assembly (NASS) open its books for public scrutiny and ensure transparency in all its activities, make laws that would improve the lives of the people they represent and repeal any law that serves only the interests of a few highly placed citizens to the detriment of a majority of the people, we call on the executive and its agents to respect the rule of law guiding its working relationship with the National Assembly.
The protesters
“It therefore becomes ours and the responsibility of every patriotic and democracy loving Nigerian to protect and defend our hard earned democracy against those trying to return us to the very dark days of the military era.
“We wish to state that Nigerians are very much aware that the current onslaught against the National Assembly is nothing but just a puerile battle for 2019, and nothing based on good governance or interest of the people!
“We can no longer afford the luxury of these unnecessary distractions. While the executive concentrates on attacking the national assembly, they left their guard open and allowed meningitis to avoidably claim hundreds of lives of Nigerians who depended on them for action against such diseases. This is absolutely unacceptable!
“This unholy attempt to kill our legislature must stop now!"
THE Economic Commission of West African States, ECOWAS, yesterday, said that Nigeria was a major beneficiary of ECOWAS Trade Liberisation Scheme, ETLS, stressing that it controllied more than 40 percent of trade in the region.
The Customs Director, ECOWAS Commission, Aissata Koffi, made this known at a workshop on the ETLS organized by Deloitte in collaboration with the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, NACCIMA.
According to her, "Nigeria is controlling 40 percent of the trading transactions in the region and the first in the ETLS list, the next country following it has 10 percent on the ETLS list. So you can imagine how far Nigeria is benefiting from the ETLS."
Koffi also expressed the desire of the Commission to see a more robust regional trading. She stated: "It's important for us to promote our products made in the ECOWAS region, not products coming from outside the region. We want to strengthen our intra-regional trade. They come here to take our raw material and go to produce it for third world countries and bring it back to us. Now we have the knowledge to have it made in ECOWAS."
She also said that other regions are envying ECOWAS because it has the biggest market and are now trading among themselves, adding, "We have also understood that it's better for us with the common external tariff that we place among us to trade between ourselves because we have the potential, we have the raw material."
In his remark, the Director General, NACCIMA, Emmanuel Cobham, said that he hopes that the programme will examine the impact of trade liberalisation on poverty alleviation, adding, "when effectively implemented, the ETLS scheme will improve trade flows among countries, and also, their Gross Domestic Product, GDP will perform better with enhanced economic opportunities, corresponding increase in income, job creation, with attendant reduction of poverty and enhanced development."
He added that, "It is trite knowledge that the ETLS is a main ECOWAS tool for promoting trade in the West African region, and making it a free trade area. This is in tandem with one of the objectives of the community which is the establishment of a common market. In view of the recent development in the global economy, it is important for the region to embrace intra-regional trade which is currently low and largely informal but with considerable potential for increase, taking into consideration, the population and abundant human and natural resources available.
"As the apex business membership organisation within our clime, and umbrella body for all the regional, state, city Bilateral and Multilateral Chambers of Commerce in Nigeria, we pledge our readiness to support any organisation that may want to take advantage of the scheme to expand their trade within the West African Region," he added.
The ETLS is the main ECOWAS operational tool for promoting the West Africa region as a Free Trade Area. This lies in tandem with one of the objectives of the community, which is the establishment of a common market through liberalisation of trade, abolition of customs duties levied on imports and exports, and of non-tariff barriers.
Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajia Aisha Alhasan, has alleged that members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Taraba had been neglected by the party's leadership.
Alhasan made the allegation on Thursday in Abuja when she led some members of the party from Taraba on a visit to its National Secretariat, Abuja.
"I have come as a party member and a leader with my brothers from Taraba to air our problems; the APC people in Taraba are very worried.
"No opposition party performed as well as we did since 1999, but unfortunately, apart from my appointment which is statutory and constitutional, and the ambassadorial, we still do not have any meaningful appointment,'' she said.
She added that the members who had worked for the party in the state expected their leaders to assist them in securing political appointments.
The minister said that APC in Taraba had capable and qualified persons that could help the Federal Government to drive its change agenda and the development of the country if appointed.
APC
She described as "unfortunate'' existing situation where members of the party and the state were not carried along in government appointments and projects.
"We have to take care of our people else we will not know our faith in next election. Even in Federal Government projects, they do not involve us.
"Taraba state APC should be remembered, this is our plea. If projects are sent to the state which is controlled by the PDP, our people are left hanging,'' she said.
Alhassan, however, said that she was not afraid of the rumour going round that the party's structure in the state would be hijacked by some people.
She expressed optimism that the party`s leadership would not encourage such act and implored other party members to remain resolute.
"I have at some point addressed a crowd in Taraba and I told them that the current governor is even welcomed to join the party.
"But if he comes, he will be an APC member like us," she said.
The Deputy National Chairman (North) of the party, Sen. Lawal Shuaibu, who received the delegation, assured that the complaints would be addressed.
He said that the party was ready to accept new members but cautioned that such persons should respect the party's structure always.
Shuaibu appealed to party members and Nigerians to continue to be patient with the Federal Government, adding that the government was striving hard to put smile on the faces of citizens.
Alhasan was APC governorship candidate in Taraba in the 2015 elections.
The Federal Government on Thursday Promised to give tax holidays to miners of seven minerals in the country.
Dr Kayode Fayemi, the Minster of Mines and Steel Development, made the promise at a stakeholders meeting of the Association of Miners Processors of Barite (AMAPOB) and Tse Torkula Community in Guma Local Government area of Benue state.
The Minister for State Mines and Steel Development, Mr Abubarkar Bwari, also attended the meeting.
Fayemi said that out the 40 solid minerals in the country, the Federal Government was concentrating on seven minerals for full exploration.
"As a country, we have the best tax holidays worldwide, all miners have three years tax holidays from the government.
"Again, out of the 40 minerals in the country, we have selected seven strategic ones for concentration. The minerals are limestone, barytes, iron, bitumen lead and zinc.
"We also have duty free on all mining equipment".
The minister advised miners to adequately compensate host communities for peace and healthy working condition.
"We are seriously discouraging a situation where miners fail to compensate host communities either by cash or through inequities that are resulting to unhealthy situations. We need a healthy environment to work".
He said that the government needed to massively inject funds and create good market environment for full mining activities to take place in the country.
He said that there were serious mining activities ongoing in the country other than cement, but were not heard about until this national tour of mining sites by government.
The minister said that Benue, Nasarawa and Cross Rivers states had large quantities of barytes to satisfy the needs of the oil and gas companies.
He said that the government was likely to commenced substitution or ban importation of barytes for oil companies to patronise barytes produced locally.
Mr Mike Mku, the Vice President, Association of Miners and Processors of Barite (AMAPOB), appealed to the Federal Government to ban importation of barytes into country.
Mku said that the local processors of barytes had enough to sustain the oil and gas companies.
Mku said that his members lacked equipment, infrastructure and market to sell their products since the oil companies were currently importing barytes.
He appealed to government to leverage on local content by partnering with them for effective output in the mining sector.
Mr Gregory Tarkubu, Spokesperson for the host community, promised their cooperation and support to the mining project in the community.
NAN reports that minister visited Dajo Pottery, REMICO Processing Plant and Ploygaurd Investment while in the state.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday said that "groundless'' accusations over a Syrian chemical attack are "unacceptable'' amid Western efforts to pressure Damascus with a new United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution.
Putin made the remarks during a phone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to a Kremlin statement.
Media reports said that about 70 people were killed with 200 others wounded on Tuesday in a toxic gas attack by Syrian warplanes on the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhoun in the country's northwestern province of Idlib.
But the Russian Defence Ministry on Wednesday said that the deadly gas contamination was caused by the explosion of chemical weapons produced and stored by the rebels, after Syrian aircraft bombed the area.
Damascus has repeatedly denied possession of any chemical weapons.
During Thursday's conversation, Putin called the gas contamination "an incident," saying "it is unacceptable to make groundless accusations against any party until a thorough and objective international investigation has been conducted."
U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday accused the Syrian Government of going "beyond a red line" by attacking civilians with toxic gas.
Western countries are trying to pass a UNSC resolution drafted by the U.S, Britain and France condemning Damascus for its alleged chemical attack.
Russian Deputy Envoy to UN Vladimir Safronkov said that Russia supports on-spot probe into the alleged chemical attack, rather than in a remote way.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said Russia was ready to veto the resolution if Western countries rush the vote.
The U.S Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley threatened on Wednesday that her country may take unilateral action if the UNSC failed to respond.
The Federal Government on Thursday notified the Federal High Court Abuja of an application pending before it seeking protection for witnesses billed to testify in the trial of former National Security Adviser, retired Col. Sambo Dasuki.
Counsel to the Federal Government, Mr Oladipo Okpeseyi brought this to the notice of the court when Dasuki was re-arraigned before Justice Ahmed Mohammed on a seven-count amended charge.
In the amended charge, Dasuki was accused of being in possession of prohibited firearms without requisite licence in July 2015, contrary to Section 28 of the Firearms Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
He was specifically alleged to have been in possession of five tervor rifles at his residence in Asokoro, Abuja.
Besides the firearms, Dasuki was also accused of money laundering and was specifically said to have been in possession of $40,000, N5million and €20,000, allegedly found in his house in July.
According to the charge, the money was said to be proceeds of an unlawful act contrary to Section 15 (3) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act.
The amended charge also indicated that $150,000 and another N37 million, being proceeds of an unlawful act was also found in his Sokoto residence in July 2015.
Dasuki pleaded not guilty to all the seven counts.
Okpeseyi informed the court of his readiness for trial and that he had a motion pending before the court to seek protection for witnesses billed to testify against Dasuki.
He also told the court that since the amended charge bore the same number with the previous charge, the court should exercise its order on the bail earlier granted the defendant by allowing him to continue to enjoy bail.
Earlier, Dasuki's counsel, Mr Ahmed Raji (SAN) urged the court to allow the defendant enjoy the bail conditions earlier granted him.
Raji, however, opposed the motion for witness protection which he said was filed since June 3, 2016 on the grounds that the motion was predicated on the old charge.
He informed the court that the prosecution had on Jan. 23 filed an application on the same issue and wondered why the prosecution chose to "dance backward" to the motion of 2016 instead of going ahead with that of 2017.
He, however, urged the court to give him time to peruse the counter-affidavit filed by his client against the 2016 motion to enable him respond appropriately as required by law. Justice Mohammed affirmed the bail conditions granted Dasuki in the amended charges of unlawful possession of firearms and money laundering.
The judge said that since the prosecuting counsel did not oppose the application, Dasuki should continue to enjoy bail on the conditions granted him in 2015 when he was first arraigned for the same offence.
He adjourned the matter until May 11 to hear the application for secret trial.
Dasuki was in 2015 admitted to bail by Justice Adeniyi Ademola, but the bail order was not obeyed by the Federal Government.
Dasuki has since then been kept in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS). Justice Ademola in 2015 dismissed the application for secret trial.
He dismissed it on the grounds that the prosecution had already filed the names and addresses of all the witnesses in the trial and had made same available to the general public.
Britain said on Thursday that its exit from the European Union would bring very little or no change in its bilateral relationship with Nigeria.
The British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr Paul Arkwright, said this in his public lecture delivered at the Federal University, Lokoja.
According to the British envoy, what happens in Nigeria and the choices made by the Nigerian government will be more important for the economy than whatever BREXIT may mean for Nigeria.
"I am optimistic for the United Kingdom and I am optimistic for Nigeria,'' he said.
Arkwright said oil and gas were not Nigeria's most important resource but its people.
"The human capital that Nigeria has – Nigerians themselves and their drive, determination and ability to get things done often when facing considerable challenges – are what make me optimistic about Nigeria's future," he said.
The envoy said BREXIT would not in any way impact negatively on Nigeria and Britain's historical and cultural links, the common language of English and the strong educational and business links.
"If anything, I see our connection becoming stronger; the United Kingdom is naturally looking to grow its market share, to encourage more businesses to come to Nigeria and to invest and to encourage more inward investment into the United Kingdom from Nigeria," Arkwright said.
He said that 90 per cent of student visas and 70 per cent of other categories of visas were granted to Nigerians in 2015.
The High Commissioner expressed hope that BREXIT would mean more British travellers visiting Nigeria for the same reasons that Nigerians come to the United Kingdom.
"I want people to come and explore the business opportunities that Nigeria offers. We think there are roughly 20,000 British and dual nationals living in Nigeria now.
"That figure may, and I hope it will, grow as British businesses of all sizes are encouraged to look outward still further, to export and do business, creating jobs in Nigeria," he explained.
Arkwright urged the Nigerian government to make the process of getting visas easier to facilitate exchange of goods and services between the two countries.
"More Britons will come to Nigeria if it was simpler to apply for and the process for getting a visa was quicker.
He expressed support for the ongoing efforts by the government to diversify the nation's economy, saying that the country could no longer depend solely on oil.
The British High Commissioner urged the federal government to take the anti-corruption fight beyond arresting and prosecuting offenders and work more on changing the attitude and mind-set of Nigerians.
He pledged the support of the British government for the anti-corruption fight, saying that Britain would surely return to the government, funds and assets acquired with stolen funds from Nigeria.
Earlier, Prof. Angela Freeman-Miri, Vice Chancellor, Federal University, Lokoja, thanked the High Commissioner for choosing the university to deliver the lecture titled, "BREXIT: Lessons, Challenges and Opportunities''.
