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
Nigeria's anti-corruption stakeholders gathered today at the U.S. Embassy and discussed efforts to tackle corruption in the country.
The roundtable was chaired by Professor Chidi Odinkalu, senior member of the Nigerian Bar and head of the Open Society Justice Initiative with government officials and representatives of civil society in attendance.
U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission David Young welcomed the roundtable participants and said the United States is encouraged to see representatives from the legislature, judiciary, strategic government departments, anti-corruption agencies and civil society on the panel and in the audience.
He hoped the roundtable will result in a frank and honest dialogue to evaluate progress in the fight against corruption and the impact of corruption on Nigeria's sustainable development goals. "We celebrate the U.S. and Nigeria's strong partnership in the efforts to eliminate corruption and improve government accountability and transparency and hope that today's event positively contributes to our ongoing efforts," he said.
Mr. Young congratulated Nigeria on joining the Open Government Partnership and submitting its first National Action Plan.
The Open Government Partnership was launched in 2011 to provide an international platform for reformers committed to making their governments more open, accountable, and responsive to citizens. It now includes 70 participating countries.
Professor Humphrey Asobie from the University of Nigeria and former Chairman of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) delivered the keynote address, urging all anti-corruption agencies and the judiciary to be more truthful and transparent in their dealings with the public.
Other panelists at the roundtable included Femi Falana, a senior member of the Nigerian Bar, representatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Federal Ministry of Justice, Federal Court of Appeal, House Anti-Corruption Committee, and the Code of Conduct Bureau.
Tomorrow, U.S. Embassy Abuja is collaborating with the Government of Nigeria, the European Union and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime to commemorate the U.N. General Assembly's adoption of the United Nations Convention against Corruption. The event will feature panel discussions on the topics of "Preventing Corruption: Closing the doors to illicit activities" and: "Reducing Impunity: Recovery of Proceeds of Crime for Sustainable Development."
RonaldoCristiano Ronaldo shrugged off allegations that he hid millions of euros in tax havens by insisting “he who owes nothing, fears nothing”, Spanish radio reported Thursday.
“You believe I am worried? He who owes nothing, fears nothing,” said the superstar after being approached by Portuguese TV station RTP to respond to the allegations after Real Madrid’s Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday evening.
An international consortium of media organisations last week claimed that a huge data leak involving 18 million documents showed the Portuguese skipper hid 150 million euros ($160 million) from image rights in the British Virgin Islands.
Ronaldo, 31, has strongly denied all claims of wrongdoing.
On Wednesday, his club side came out in his defence.
“Real Madrid demand the maximum respect for a player like Cristiano Ronaldo, whose behaviour has been exemplary during his entire time at our club,” Madrid said in a statement.
The Berger axis which is one of the major gateways to the State of Excellence is also witnessing massive expansion projects by the present administration.
The expansion projects at Berger include the construction of about 700 meters slip road through which traffic outward Lagos-Ibadan Expressway can connect Omole Phase Two, Magodo Phase One and Olowoora.
The road, which was designed with drainage channels, sidewalks and street light, is about 6 meters wide and can conveniently accommodate two vehicles at a time.
Apart from the Pedestrian Bridge which has been completed, there are also expanded lay-bys and reservation areas at both sides of the Berger Bus Stop to facilitate easy pulling off of commercial and private vehicles from the main expressway, while massive road improvement, construction of lay-bys and reservation projects are equally on-going under the bridge.
The government is also constructing iron barricades to facilitate free flow of traffic and forestall incidents of accidents associated with pedestrians crossing the road without recourse to the foot bridge.
See Photos below…
Photos 1-4: Ongoing construction of multifaceted projects such as Expansion of the pedestrian bridge; segregated lanes; slip road and lay-by) at Berger bus stop, along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway by the Lagos State Government, on Wednesday, December 7, 2016.
Photos 5-7: Iron barricade being erected by the Lagos State Government at Berger Bus Stop to stop indiscriminate crossing of the expressway by pedestrians so as to reduce accident on Wednesday, December 7, 2016.
"You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete." ― R. Buckminster Fuller (1885-1983)
DEVELOPMENT of any society is imperative if that society must evolve and that is the sole responsibility of government as the advancement that comes with development is also of high importance to the success of any government.
In Nigeria, and by extension Africa, infrastructural decadence has become the norm as governments over the years have learnt and mastered the act of abandoning projects halfway only to be further abandoned by successive governments.
This situation has continued to hinder the potential greatness of Nigeria, a country naturally endowed with all manner of untapped mineral resources save for crude oil which has become a mainstay for the national economy at the detriment of other natural resources littering the country.
Sadly though, crude oil which has accounted for huge foreign exchange receipts over the years has not translated to infrastructural or economic development thereby creating a huge vacuum, even as the former is known to be crucial to the growth of the latter. The government has literarily failed to make the existing infrastructural model obsolete by replacing them with new ones.
By virtue of crude oil discovery in Nigeria, international oil companies sprang up in the country and over time it became imperative for these companies to fill a part of the vacuum created by government's inaction over the years via the model popularly known today as Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR.
It is noteworthy that little or no mention has been made about the efforts and contributions of these international oil companies operating in Nigeria to the development of our national economy and wellbeing. The reports that frequently make the headlines are in the negatives and that is understandable due to numerous well known factors.
It is however imperative to also highlight the positive contributions of the IOC's and what they have been doing quietly over the years, especially those things that have been long abandoned by government.
An exemplary case study, one with almost zero community crises since commencement of its operations in Nigeria is the American oil giant Exxonmobil. Even while it is commendable to note that Shell, Chevron, Total and the rest of them all have robust CSR schemes, but when the government never plays its part as expected, no amount of effort from any individual or group can ever be enough.
ExxonMobil is the world's largest publicly owned oil and gas company, operating on six continents, and a leader in almost every aspect of the energy business, hence its operations in Nigeria would be met with such international standards befitting only of a company of its size and operations.
In different areas spanning education, health, road infrastructures, rural community development, human capacity development, the company has relentlessly shown commitment to an unparalleled, world class CSR scheme.
Education:
In promoting its educational support programme in the country, the company has spent over N4 billion on the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)/ Mobil Producing Nigeria (MPN) Joint Venture (JV) undergraduate scholarship which it extended to Nigerian students from all parts of the country, while 50 per cent of this amount or N2 billion went to students from Akwa Ibom state, being the state hosting most of the company's activities in Nigeria.
Similarly, over N57 million has equally been spent on the NNPC/MPN JV secondary school scholarship targeting indigent students from Akwa Ibom State over the last four years while over N1 billion spent on the provision of the NNPC/Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited (ExxonMobil subsidiary company) international postgraduate scholarship to Nigerian students in the last two decades.
ExxonMobil has preserved a culture of lengthening its undergraduate scholarship scheme, providing opportunity for about 500 Nigerians every year of which over 8000 students have benefitted from that robust plan in the last two decades. In the last seven years, over 200 candidates benefitted from the NNPC/EEPNL national post graduate scholarship to show the company's strong educational support to the country.
These are just a few mention of what Exxonmobil has done in bringing quality education to many Nigerian children and youths, many of whom may not have had access to education had they been solely dependent on government for education.
The company by its actions has shown it holds the strong view that an educated society is a developed society, and for that singular reason it has continued over the years to invest heavily on national undergraduate and post graduate scholarships with the hope, of course that these ones would one day take charge of the country and ensure things are done properly.
For a company that currently accounts for over 30% of Nigeria's crude production, thereby becoming the highest crude oil producer and revenue contributor to the nation, Exxonmobil more than other IOC's have shown commitment to Nigeria, generating well over N1 trillion annual revenue contribution to the federal government of Nigeria since 2010 with little or no furore, and more than N160 billion NDDC contributions since 200. The company inspite of these direct contributions to the national coffers and economy has never relent on its CSR efforts in all its operating communities in the country, with special interest in Akwa Ibom state, its main host.
Social infrastructure Package:
In July 2013, Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited, MPN, announced plans to make multi-year social investments in Akwa Ibom State. These investments supplement the company's regular annual community development projects which are in partnership with its joint venture partner NNPC.
The social investment package funds both short and long-term projects for communities in which MPN operates, as well as other parts of Akwa Ibom State. Total proposed contributions are N24.6 billion.
Short-term projects include contributions for the Eket-Ibeno road reconstruction and community assistance projects in the four communities surrounding MPN’s operations in Qua Iboe Terminal (QIT), as well as nearby coastal communities.
Long-term projects include contributions for proposed projects such as enhancing Ibeno Beach, upgrading the University of Uyo engineering facility, and designing and constructing a trauma center at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital. The state government already has an implementation committee in place to work with the oil giant on the heels of the initial announcement.
Special Projects II:
Under its special project II arrangement, another major CSR program MPN and its partner NNPC is poised to spend about N24Billion on 384 projects across 8 communities in Akwa Ibom State. It is a social investment across our neighboring communities, specifically Ibeno, Eket, Esit Eket, Onna, Ikot Abasi, Mkpat Enin, Eastern Obolo & Mbo. It is an act of goodwill done in good faith to appreciate the kind gestures of the communities towards MPN. This is addition to another N8 billion as counterpart funding for the dualization of Eket-Ibeno road bringing the total funding package to N32 billion.
Now, this is huge and staggering by any standard, and is worthy of commendation. Also worthy of mention is the quality of projects embarked upon by these IOC's which always makes one wonder why the government is unable to replicate such quality projects around the country.
Exxonmobil and its JV partner NNPC contributes N320 billion annually to the Akwa ibom state government as ground rent and taxes, as well as over N160 billion to the NDDC since 2001. The JV has contributed over US$210 million to community assistance projects in Akwa Ibom from 2002 – 2014. The company also recruits over 35 percent of its workforce from its host state of Akwa-Ibom. Little wonder the company records little or no community issues over the 50 years period it has operated In Nigeria.
If Exxonmobil is embarking on these mind boggling CSR projects in Akwa Ibom state and other parts of the country, Shell is doing same in Rivers State and other parts of the country, Chevron is doing same in Delta and Ondo state and some parts of the country, while Total also implements same in Rivers state and other parts of the country, Eni's Agip would also consider doing same in its area of operations this would transform the country in no mean way.
If there are no hindrances and these oil companies are allowed to do as much through their CSR programs the impact would be felt and the projects would last a lifetime. This is surely the way to go if national infrastructural development is still a key booster to the economy especially in a country that does not plan long term, have no regard for basic statistics, and where successive governments have done nothing but failed the people woefully over the past years. A proper and well articulated CSR program as orchestrated by Exxonmobil and other international Oil Companies across the country can surely fill that vacuum as created by years of government's negligence.
Mr. Adeoye, an industry analyst and Host of the Energie Platform show writes from Houston Texas, USA.
The Nigerian Telecommunication Commission (NCC) on Thursday advised consumers to take advantage of the 2442 short code to choose the type of messages they want to receive.
The Executive Vice-Chairman of NCC, Prof. Umar Danbatta, gave the advice at the 79th Telecom Consumers Parliament help in Abuja.
He said that the parliament, with its theme: Implementation of the `Do not Disturb' (DND): the journey so far, was aimed at sensitising the public to the policy.
Danbatta said that the short code would go a long way to give consumers the right to choose the messages they wanted to receive.
According to him, following the barrage of complaints on the menace of unsolicited message, the commission swayed into action by mandating the activation of 2442 short code.
"The code will enable consumers to control the type of messages they receive.
"I am glad that it has come into effect and I urge all consumers to take advantage of this new regime by sending "stop to 2442'' to avoid unsolicited messages,'' he said.
Danbatta said the commission was aware that for the initiative to succeed, there was need for massive public enlightenment by both regulator and the operating companies.
"It is on this regard that the theme of today's parliament becomes relevant.
"The objective is to place the issue on the front burner of our discourse until unsolicited messages become a thing of the past,'' he said.
Danbatta said the issue of consumer's protection was very paramount to the commission, adding that consumers were kings in the market place.
To uphold the principle, he said that the commission had put in place various programmes to inform, educate and protect the consumers of telecom service.
Presenting a paper on the theme, Mr Ayoola Oke, a telecom consultant with NCC, called on operators to ensure full compliance with the 2442 short code.
Oke said that one major challenge of the policy was lack of awareness, hence the need for both the regulators and the telecom operators to be involved in massive publicity.
He called for effective complaint management by the operators and network management to block spam and screen out malicious mails.
Responding to questions on outright ban on unsolicited messages, Mrs Amina Shehu, Head of Legal, NCC, said complete ban was not possible because of e-commerce system.
The Abule Egba Flyover is a direct response by the Governor Akinwunmi Ambode administration in Lagos State to address the perennial traffic gridlock often associated with the area especially during rush hour.
The construction of the Bridge, which is scheduled to be completed in 2017, is at advanced stage, while residents and commuters are hopeful that upon completion, it would permanently reduce traffic to the barest minimum.
Much as the Ambode administration which has become synonymous with creative solutions to traffic gridlock across the metropolis, the several initiatives have also seen tremendous improvement on the aesthetics of the road infrastructure especially with modern bus shelters, lay-bys, segregated bus parks, barricades, slip roads among others.
The pictures below show the progress of work on the Bridge and the network of roads.
Ghana election: Ghanaians started lining up at voting stations on Wednesday to elect a president and parliament, in polls dominated by a three-year economic downturn that led to heavy job losses and price hikes.
President John Mahama is running for a second four-year term in the West African nation rich in gold, cocoa, diamonds, aluminium, bauxite and recently discovered oil.
Mahama is competing with six other candidates for the presidency, but his fiercest rival is Nana Akufo-Addo, the leader of the largest opposition, New Patriotic Party (NPP).
Report says the incumbent president remains popular in the nation of 26 million people, which was the first sub-Saharan country to gain independence in colonial Africa, in 1957.
The 58-year-old made major progress in improving Ghana's infrastructure by building schools, health facilities and roads.
However, many voters held Mahama and the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) responsible for a debilitating three-year energy crisis that led to a 10 per cent drop in economic growth between 2011 and 2015.
They also held him responsible for sharp rise in electricity, water and petrol prices.
Akufo-Addo, 72, promises to use Ghana's new-found oil to create jobs and push industrialisation in all economic sectors, including agriculture.
Over 15 million Ghanaians are eligible to cast their vote at one of the 29,000 polling stations until 1700 GMT.
They will also elect 275 parliamentarians for the next four years.
If no presidential candidate gains 51 per cent or more of the vote, the election will go into a second round.
Results are expected Friday after voting ended in Wednesday.
People watch update results of the general elections after midnight on a big projector screen installed in Teshie Police Station in Accra, on December 8, 2016. Counting was underway after presidential and parliamentary polls in Ghana on December 7, with incumbent John Mahama taking on rival Nana Akufo-Addo for the top job with no clear favourite in a high-stakes race. The majority of voting stations closed at 5:00 pm, (1700 GMT) with a policeman standing at the end of queues across the country to mark the last voter. / AFP PHOTOElectoral officials use a lantern and a smartphone torchlight to assist people to vote late on December 7, 2016 at a polling station in Tamale, northern region. Counting was underway after presidential and parliamentary polls in Ghana on December 7, 2016, with incumbent John Mahama taking on rival Nana Akufo-Addo for the top job with no clear favourite in a high-stakes race. / AFP PHOTOElectoral officials use a lantern and a smartphone torchlight to assist people to vote late on December 7, 2016 at a polling station in Tamale, northern region. Counting was underway after presidential and parliamentary polls in Ghana on December 7, 2016, with incumbent John Mahama taking on rival Nana Akufo-Addo for the top job with no clear favourite in a high-stakes race. / AFP PHOTO
Supporters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) candidate Nana Akufo-Addo, wait outside his house in the Nima neighbourhood in Accra on December 8, 2016. Ghanaians faced an anxious wait on December 8 for the results of a nail-biting presidential election tainted by sporadic outbreaks of violence, with no clear favourite emerging from the early provisional results. / AFP PHOTOPolicemen stand guard outside the headquarters of the Electoral Commission in Accra on December 8, 2016. Ghanaians faced an anxious wait on December 8 for the results of a nail-biting presidential election tainted by sporadic outbreaks of violence, with no clear favourite emerging from the early provisional results. / AFP PHOTO
Gov. Ambode today received the US ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Stuart Symington at Lagos House, Ikeja
See photos below…
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode (right), in a warm handshake with US Ambassador to Nigeria , Mr. Stuart Symington during a courtesy visit to the Governor at the Lagos House,Ikeja, on Thursday, December 8, 2016.
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode (right), presenting a State plaque to the US Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Stuart Symington during a courtesy visit to the Governor at the Lagos House, Ikeja.
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode (middle), with US Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Stuart Symington (left) and US Consul General in Lagos, Mr. John Bray (right) during a courtesy visit to the Governor at the Lagos House,Ikeja.
L-R: Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, with US Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Stuart Symington and US Consul General in Lagos, Mr. John Bray during a courtesy visit to the Governor at the Lagos House,Ikeja.
The Lagos State Government on Thursday said it was ready to roll out Lake Rice on Dec. 15 to Lagosians at N13,000 per 50 kg towards the Yuletide celebrations.
Mr Sanni Okanlawan, Special Adviser on Food Security to Gov. Akinwumi Ambode, made the disclosure in Lagos during the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) National Agriculture Stakeholders Summit.
Okanlawan said that sales of the rice would be made at all the 57 Local Government Areas (LGAs) and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) in the state to ensure proper distribution.
"Lake Rice is the acronym of both Lagos and Kebbi States joint product which will be out to the public on Dec. 15 at the rate of N13,000 per 50kg bag as it is already subsidised by the government.
"To make it more available, the rice will be sold at the 57 LGAs and LCDAs for easy accessibility and to guard against unwanted persons diverting the product.
"The state government has put in place a committee that will ensure that Lagosians have the best Christmas celebration, that is why we are offering the wholesome and well packaged rice,'' Okanlawan said.
The special adviser also said that the state had established a Department of Agribusiness, an Agriculture Trust Fund and Commodity Exchange Market to be set up soon.
The government's efforts were in alignment with the Federal Government's diversification drive from a mono-economy to agriculture.
The Senate on Thursday, rescheduled the screening and confirmation of the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ibrahim Magu to Dec. 15.
The Deputy Leader of the Senate, Bala N'allah, made this known while addressing newsmen on Thursday in Abuja.
He said the postponement of the exercise from Dec. 8 to Dec. 15 became necessary to allow for a full house to convene.
According to him, lawmakers who traveled out of Abuja for official assignments requested the postponement pending their arrival to enable them participate in the confirmation process.
"The Senate is normally guided by the time frame of the work. We agreed that today will be the confirmation of the EFCC Acting Chairman, Ibrahim Magu.
"But we received a lot of calls from senators who are away, who want to participate.
"When we looked at the demand and the number we felt it will be wrong for us to proceed, disregarding those calls.
"We decided to fix it for Tuesday but we were not sure if the President will declare Tuesday as Public Holiday, so we agreed to fix it for Thursday.
"We have since written an official letter to the acting chairman fixing Thursday as the day for the confirmation hearing of his appointment,'' he said.
On why Magu's confirmation had lingered for more than five months, N'allah said the senate had other matters of priority to attend to.
"Anybody who is familiar with the normal procedure of governance would have known that there are certain procedures that need to be taken for candidates to be confirmed.
"Whatever we do is always subject to interpretation but what is important is that a date has been fixed," he said.
Presidency had in July written the Senate seeking the screening and confirmation of Magu as substantive chairman of the commission.
President Muhammadu Buhari had appointed Magu as acting chairman of the EFCC after the removal of Ibrahim Lamorde on Nov. 9, 2015.
Before his appointment, Magu was the Head of Economic Governance Unit of the commission.
If confirmed, Magu will be the fourth head of the anti-graft agency, after Nuhu Ribadu, Farida Waziri and Ibrahim Lamorde.
By Emma Amaize ASABA- ELDERS, leaders and stakeholders of the coastal states of Niger Delta under the auspices of Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF, are assembling tomorrow (Friday) in Asaba, capital of Delta State for a meeting.
A statement by PANDEF, issued by a member of the Central Working Committee, CWC, Dr. Alfred Mulade, said the meeting summoned by the leader, former Federal Commissioner for Information, Chief Edwin Clark: "is to discuss the gains made so far and the way forward towards the actualization of permanent peace in the Niger Delta region."
The governor of Delta state, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, who has shown concern about the present state of affairs in the region, is expected to play host to the leaders from all parts of the region.
Before now, some rights groups in the region, especially the Ijaw People's Development Initiative, IPDI, led by Mr. Austin Ozobo, had condemned the holding of PANDEF's meetings at Abuja, saying it should hold in any of the Niger Delta states, but not the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.
Gov. Ekezie Ikpeazu of Abia has said that if there is any group of people in Nigeria, in need of peace, it is the Igbos, who are found in all parts of the country doing business.
Ikpeazu made the remark when he received the Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai, who paid him a courtesy call.
"If Nigeria is perpetually in trouble, it will not augur well for the Igbos, who are republican and found every where in the country," the governor said.
According to Ikpeazu, Igbos are desperate for peace in Nigeria.
He said the people of the state would continue to support President Muhammadu Buhari in his efforts to move the nation forward.
The governor, who donated two Hilux vehicles to support the army operation in the state, commended the military for degrading and decimating the Boko Haram terrorists in the North East.
He also commended the army for curbing violent crimes in the state, as well as pipeline vandalism.
Earlier, Buratai informed the governor of the ongoing "Exercise Python Dance" in the South East, explaining that it was meant to train troops on internal security.
He further explained the exercise in addition to other exercises and operations going on across the nation were aimed ensuring security, safety and peace for the unity of the country to enable the citizenry go about their lawful businesses.
The Lagos State Government on Thursday said that it is putting finishing touches to make this year's edition of its flagship Yuletide revue popularly known as the One Lagos Fiesta (OLF) bigger better and bolder.
Addressing journalists at the Banquet Hall, Lagos House in Ikeja, the State's Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Steve Ayorinde said in line with the vision of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, the event would continue in its tradition of holding across the five zones as it held last year including Ikeja (Agege Stadium), Badagry (Badagry Stadium), Ikorodu (Ikorodu Town Hall), Lagos Island (Bar Beach) and Epe (Epe Recreation Centre).
Ayorinde said this year's edition would stand out as instead of the five days that it held last December, this year's will run for eight days across all the zones, commencing from Christmas Eve on December 24 till the wee hours of the New Year.
He said the reason for the expanded fiesta was to keep Lagosians, especially the youths, happy and creatively busy.
"You will recall that we have just had a successful maiden edition of The Lagos Street Party (TLSP) last weekend, in which the popular Ahmadu Bello way in Victoria Island was turned into a carnival and concert ground.
Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos state
"While TLSP delivered on its mandate to formally usher in the Yuletide season in Lagos and create an additional platform for creative enterprise to flourish, OLF will fulfill its traditional obligation of ending the year on an entertaining note and usher in the new year with fun and fanfare, while carrying along every part of the state in line with the governor’s electoral promise that no part of Lagos will be left behind," the Commissioner said.
Ayorinde said this year's edition of the One Lagos Fiesta would also see the introduction of a talent hunt exercise tagged 'Lagos’ Got Talent', which according to him, seeks to discover, celebrate and reward exceptional talents among the youth or the young at heart in the areas of music, dance, comedy and other creative stunts.
Explaining how the talent hunt would run, Ayorinde said that interested participants can register online at www.onelagosfiesta.ng as well as in the five zonal offices including Multipurpose hall of Eko FM, Agidingbi Ikeja, Divisional Information Office, Lugard’s House along the Badagry Marina, Divisional Information Office, Ikorodu, 1, Oriwu Street, Ita Elewa, City Hall, Lagos Island and Divisional Information Office, Epe, Chalet Road, beside Lagos High Court, Oke-Oyinbo, Epe.
He said registration for the talent hunt show would run till Wednesday, December 14, 2016, while those selected from the audition would have an opportunity to perform at the OLF stage in each location between the 24th and 30th of December with the two finalists from each zone slugging it out for the final showdown in Victoria Island on the 31st of December.
"If you are talented in any of these areas and you are looking for a platform to showcase your skills and begin a rewarding journey to stardom, then this year’s OLF is the platform you need," Ayorinde said.
Also speaking, Co-chairs of the One Lagos Fiesta Committee, Acting Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Hon. Adebimpe Akinshola and Special Adviser to the Governor on Education, Mr. Obafela Bank-Olemoh, said that winners of the talent hunt show would be handsomely rewarded by the State Government, adding that arrangements have also been made for varieties of A-list and upcoming artistes from all music genres to thrill participants.
They also assured that adequate security measures have been put in place to ensure safety of lives and property throughout the course of the fiesta.
Osun state government has described the Wednesday protest and actions of some few pensioners in Osogbo over alleged non-payment of their entitlements by the state government as an attempt by their sponsors to gag the truth.
The Government said those behind the fabrications of lies over bailout loans and other financial matters concerning Osun have also conspired to prevent any avenue for the government to set the records straight.
The Director, Bureau of Communication and Strategy in the Office of the Governor, Mr. Semiu Okanlawon, in a statement, said the arranged protest against the non-payment of their entitlement was a cover up to disrupt the sitting of the State House of Assembly and prevent the Government from giving out the figures.
He said for accountability and transparency, the state House of Assembly has started probing how N34.5bn received from the federal government as bailout was spent.
The statement read in part, “The House of Assembly had summoned some government officials to appear before lawmakers on Wednesday 7th December 2016."
“Those summoned include: the Accountant-General, Permanent Secretaries Ministry of Finance, Office of Budget Planning, Director-General of Debt Management Office, Officials of Wema Bank, Zenith Bank and First Bank, Osun State Chairmen of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), Joint Negotiation Council (JNC) and the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employee (NULGE)."
“Heads of Market Women, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) were also invited."
The Bureau queried why the protesters did not allow the House of Assembly to go on with the proceedings that was expected to be aired live on Television so that people can come out with questions that had agitated their minds if the few supposed pensioners were not out to gag the truth.
He said, "Those invited to the House of Assembly were expected to appear before the House with useful documents and necessary information concerning the bailout fund given to the state government."
"The situation where sponsored pensioners openly assaulted the Deputy Speaker and other government officials with charms and other weapons were not expected of senior citizens that pensioners are supposed to be."
He said the House of Assembly, which symbolises people's representation, was about providing a platform to throw lights on how the bailout loan was disbursed to lay to rest all allegations of financial recklessness levied on government.
The statement reads, “The totality of what Osun has collected this year could not pay salaries that we have paid but for extreme skills in financial management. Osun took N325m this month. And Osun must pay a modulated bill of N1.7bn. So if you add up what Osun got as revenue from January to November, it is short by close to 50 percent of what Osun is paying out."
“There must therefore be a trick that Aregbesola is using because every month we complain that what Osun get is small. And yet, much more than what Osun receives on monthly basis is paid as wages. This is not even considering capital projects which are everywhere in this state."
The statement added that the Aregbesola administration has put in place the best mechanism to ensure transparency in allocation of resources.
It added, “This is the state that pioneered the setting up of a body in charge of resources allocation which had workers’ representatives from all the industrial unions in both NLC and TUC and professionals with government officials as members."
" That body is headed by a veteran, vibrant unionist, Alhaji Comrade Hassan Sunmonu. Without any doubt, nothing could be more transparent than this."
Lagos State governor, Akinwunmi Ambode today met with investors on bond issuance today at Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
See photos…
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode (left), with former State Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Olawale Edun during the Governor's meeting with investors on Bond Issuance at the Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, on Thursday, December 8, 2016.
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode (2nd left), with Commissioner for Finance/Economic Planning & Budget, Mr. Adeyemi Ashade (2nd left); his counterpart for Energy & Mineral Resources, Mr. Wale Oluwo (2nd right) and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Mr. Taiwo Ogunleye during the Governor's meeting with investors on Bond Issuance at the Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode (2nd left), with Commissioner for Finance/Economic Planning & Budget, Mr. Adeyemi Ashade (2nd left); his counterpart for Energy & Mineral Resources, Mr. Wale Oluwo (2nd right) and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Mr. Taiwo Ogunleye during the Governor's meeting with investors on Bond Issuance at the Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
R-L: Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, with Permanent Secretary/Accountant General, Mrs. Abimbola Umar and Commissioner for Finance/Economic Planning & Budget, Mr. Adeyemi Ashade during the Governor's meeting with investors on Bond Issuance at the Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
L-R: Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, with Commissioner for Energy & Mineral Resources, Mr. Wale Oluwo and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Mr. Taiwo Ogunleye during the Governor's meeting with investors on Bond Issuance at the Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
By Ikechukwu Nnochiri ABUJA – Erstwhile National Security Adviser, NSA, Col. Sambo Dasuki, retd, has prayed the Supreme Court to expedite hearing on two appeals he lodged against his continued detention by the Federal Government.
Dasuki who has been in custody of the Department of State Service, DSS, since December 29, 2015, is challenging FG’s refusal to release him on bail as ordered by different courts of competent jurisdiction.
In a letter he forwarded to the Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen, the former NSA, through his lead counsel, Mr. J.B. Daudu, SAN, begged the apex court to accelerate hearing on his bail request in order to stop the government from further infringing on his fundamental human rights.
He told the Acting CJN that the two pending appeals which he filed in August, were in compliance with the Supreme Court practice directions.Former national security adviser of ex-president Goodluck Jonathan, Sambo Dasuki (R), speaks with his lawyer Ahmed Raji, during his trial at the federal high court in Abuja, on September 1, 2015. Nigerian prosecutors on September 1, 2015 slapped a charge of unlawful possession of arms against Dasuki. Dasuki was arraigned on a “one-count charge of being in possession of firearms without licence,” Prosecutor Mohammed Diri told the federal high court in Abuja. AFP PHOTO
In the letter dated November 30 and received by the apex court on December 6, Dasuki, further prayed the court to exercise its discretion in his favour by granting quick determination of the two appeals because of their peculiar nature.
Daudu in the letter recalled that his client was arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) on charges of breach of trust, criminal misappropriation and sundry offences before two high courts of the Federal Capital Territory between September and December last year.
He stated that following a not guilty plea by his client, the two courts granted him bail and the conditions perfected by the appellant.
The letter explained that no sooner had Dasuki perfected his bail conditions than the DSS operatives swooped on him and abducted him at Kuje prison gate.
He said his client have since then been in detention without trial.
Daudu told Justice Onnoghen that the only reason FG adduced to justify “the abduction” of his client, which was not backed by any law, was that Dasuki posed a security risk.
The letter read in part; "The same government having breached his right to fair trial by not allowing him proceed on bail to have adequate time and facilities to prepare his defence, interfered with his constitutionally guaranteed presumption of innocence by continuing to detain him without trial has insisted on several occasions to proceed with the charges afore described, knowing fully well that the appellant has no access to documents with which he would wish to defend himself.
By AbdulSalam Muhammad KANO – A Kano serving Commissioner in charge of Land, Dr. Faruk Bibi Faruk, and his permanent secretary, Alhaji Bello Bari were Thursday arraigned before the State High court over an alleged land deals.
The suspects who were earlier investigated by the State Anti corruption Agency were dragged before Justice Nasiru Saminu of Court 22 on three count charges.
The Commissioner, Bibi Faruk, his permanent secretary Mahmud Bello Bari and a director were said to have sold an allocated plot of land to one Baba Sharu at the cost of 5 million Naira punishable sometimes in April 2016, thereby committed an offence punishable under section 315 of criminal panel code.
The prosecuting Lawyer, Rabi Ibrahim Waya also accused the suspects of breach of trust by in their capacity as public servant and in the process committed an offence punishable under section 97 of the panel code.
By Levinus Nwabughiogu ABUJA – Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Mr. Solomon Dalong Thursday said that government has not been able to pay the allowances of the Super Falcons because their victory in Cameroon was not expected.
Recall that the team on Saturday won the 2016 African Women Cup of Nations but had not been paid their allowances.
Speaking to State House Correspondents after a private meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the presidential Villa, Abuja, Dalong said that there was no money readily available to pay them.
He however said that efforts were being made to find solution to the matter.
He said: “It is unfortunate that we are celebrating victory of the Super Falcons amidst some bitter feelings among the players because of some administrative lapses that were not managed properly because if the situation was explained to these girls, I don’t think the situation would have gotten to this level.
“They have stamped their authority and dominance over football in the continent, having consistently won the trophy eight times.
“After the girls came back from Cameroon, we had launched with them and they were in high spirits, the communication gap in trying to convey the situation to them could have been what led to it.
Labour unions and recipient Banks of the N34.5 billion bailout funds given to Osun State government have declared that the fund was exclusively used for payment of arrears of salaries, allowances in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN’s) guidelines and directives.
In a statement by the Chairman, House Committee on Information and Strategy, Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, the representatives of the banks, Adebayo Yakub (First Bank), Musbau Oyeniran (Wema Bank) and Ola Adedeji (Zenith Bank) – and the labour leaders made the declaration while testifying before the State House of Assembly during the probing into the concessionary loan, popularly referred to as bailout fund at a special plenary on Wednesday.
This was as the Accountant-General of the State, Akintayo Kolawole and the labour leaders said, the pension arrears were not captured in the bailout fund but the Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, in his magnanimity and agreement with labour decided that the pensioners, having served the state diligently, must be included in the disbursement of the fund.
The Assembly had directed some government officials, labour unions and relevants organisations to appear before it for the probe of the fund given to state by the Federal Government, subject to a motion by one of the lawmakers, calling for the probing of the fund.
According to the statement, the representatives of the three banks involved told the Osun legislators that, “We can confirm that we followed the CBN guidelines in the way and manner the bailout loan was disbursed. All the payment we made on the bailout fund were for salaries, allowances and pensions.
“The figures shown by the Accountant General and permanent secretary, Local Government affairs, were correct. We can also confirm that the balance shown are the balance figures in the banks.”
Also, the Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Jacob Adekomi and his counterparts from the Joint negotiation Council (JNC), Bayo Adejumo, Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGEE), and Nigeria Union of Teacher (NUT), Wakeel Amuda, according to the statement, confirmed that they monitored the fund and found that it was used for salary, allowances and pensions.
They said, the labour unions and the state government agreed on how to spend the bailout fund and the government respected the agreement by spending the fund in line with the CBN guidelines.
Aregbosola
According to each of them, pensioners were not captured in the fund released to the state government, but they prevailed on the governor and had an understanding to include the pensioners, which the governor magnanimously agreed.
The labour leaders confirmed that the government set up a committee, headed by the first NLC President, Comrade Hassan Sunmonu, with labour unions and other stakeholders as members to monitor the fund and the revenue from other sources, saying this has given them the opportunity to monitor the transactions.
Presenting the analysis of the fund, the Accountant-General said, the state government had requested for N64,327,492,947.01 to cover salaries, allowances, pensions and gratuties, but the CBN approved only N25,871,920,000 to cover just salaries and allowance, leaving out pension and gratuities.
“No fund was released for pension and gratuity despite the fact that we included it in our letter to the CBN. We explained this to the pensioners repeatedly but they did not believe us.
“If you look at the letter we wrote for N64bn, it covered every category of staff. They pensioners should not have been paid from the fund, but for the magnanimity of the governor, who said we must include them because they had served the state diligently.
“It will also interest you to note that what I presented here is the same document I sent to the ICPC and I believe they are satisfied, because it is about six months now and they have not return to ask any other question”.
He said, inspite the non-inclusion of pensions, the government had paid the pensioners up till August 2016 in line with modulated salary structures as applicable to civil servants in the state
According to him, as at November 30,2016, the state government still has N2.040 billion in First Bank and N1.312 billion in Wema Bank as balance of the bailout fund, which according to him, would be used to augment salaries in months to come.
The statement further noted that he stressed that the government has demonstrated high sense of responsibility in the application of the fund.
For the arrears of salaries, allowance, pension and gratuities of local governments workers, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Local Government, Mufutau Oluwadare, the statement added, said, a sum of N23,887,975,810.26 was requested, but only N9,117,070,000 was approved and released by the CBN.
According to him, it was this that sum up to N34bn released to both state and local government, saying, the fund released was not inclusive of the pension, but they were magnanimously included to ensure that they are paid, just like the serving government officials.
The Speaker of the Assembly, Honourable Najeem Salaam, the statement further noted, said, based on the analysis made on the disbursement of the fund, there was no any other way it could be shown that the fund was used for the purpose of salary, allowances and pensions.
Salam, who debunked the insinuations that the House was prompted to investigate the bailout fund based on the decision of the Senate to investigate the matter, said, the Assembly had been following the application of the fund since 2015.
He cited a letter dated 12th November 2015 with reference No: LM94/vol4/277 in which the House requested the Accountant General to give update on the Sukuk Bond, bailout fund and multilateral loans of the state and it was responded to through another letter, detailing the disbursement of the funds.
“We have been monitoring the activities of the executive on how the bailout and other loans are being spent. If the Senate wants to come for its oversight function, we will not say they shouldn’t come, but it has to come through relevant state authority, which is the state legislative arm.
“We are not fighting with the Senate. We are not saying that the Senate can’t perform it’s oversight function but things have to be properly done,” Salam said.
Senator representing Rivers South East Senatorial District, Magnus Ngei Abe has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, of training its officers in an obscure hotel and with the knowledge of the Rivers state Governor, Nyesom Wike.
He also accused INEC of discussing the Saturday rerun date with the governor wherein Wike had been the one who announced the date even before INEC made its announcement. Speaking at a press briefing in Port Harcourt, Abe said that INEC had been conducting its activities to the knowledge of Governor Nyesom Wike and the PDP. He revealed that Collation and Returning Officers were being trained at an obscure hotel in Umuahia, Abia State. "We are becoming very concerned about the activities and linkages that we are seeing between the PDP and the INEC. We just received a report this evening that the INEC Collation and returning officers were being trained at the Dangreet Hotel in Umuahia in Abia state and from our knowledge of the operations of INEC, no training of officers has ever been conducted in any obscure hotel in this country."
"Training of officers is always done in the universities where the officers are being picked from and from that university they are taken straight to the state where they are to do their job."
"But to hear now that collation and returning officers were being trained at the Dangreet Hotel, Umuahia in the presence of PDP agents when our own agents were not informed or aware of it, certainly calls for concern and we believe that in this exercise, INEC should not only be fair but be seen by all Nigerians to be fair."
"We are very concerned because of the relationship that exists between some of the key actors in this whole thing and some of the key players in the INEC structure."
"We think that all Nigerians must be vigilant as far as this Rivers re-run election is concerned and that all the parties should be evenly and fairly treated." Abe said that another case in point was the December 10 election date, which INEC discussed with Gov. Wike, who he stated was an interested party, adding that it was the governor who announced the date as December 10 for the re-run elections before INEC did. "I have had cause to tell Nigerians that this date December 10 was fixed at a meeting between Gov. Wike and INEC to which we were not privy, involved and consulted."
"The first person that made the date 10th of December public to the Nigerian people was Gov. Nyesom Wike, when he announced that now INEC had said that this election will hold on the 10th and we will see how that will work".
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 Ekiti Progressives Youths (EPY) has demanded an explanation from the Minister of Solid Minerals Development and ex-Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi over his alleged contribution of N1billion campaign fund of the Ondo State Governor-elect, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN).
Rising from its meeting in Ado-Ekiti on Wednesday, the EPY said in a communique signed by its President and Secretary, Mr Samuel Adekunle and Comrade Roland Adewale that it was alarmed that Dr Fayemi, who left Ekiti State in debt could donate N1 billion to the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship election campaign in Ondo State.
Fayemi
The youths said “it was strange that Fayemi could donate N1.5 billion to the APC presidential election campaign and another N1 billion to governorship election campaign within two years when youths, who are members of his party are wallowing in abject poverty.”
They said it was wicked for Fayemi to have used fund looted from Ekiti State to purchase appointment as Secretary to the Government of Ondo State for his wife, Erelu Bisi Fayemi.
The EPY noted that “the N1 billion allegedly wasted in Ondo State by Fayemi would have empowered 10,000 youths in Ekiti State at N100, 000 each and that would have gone a long way to alleviate the sufferings of the youths, especially those in the APC.
“Ekiti youths should recall also that Fayemi allegedly donated N1.5 billion to the campaign fund of President Muhammadu Buhari, which many believed qualified him for the ministerial appointment that he got.
“It should also be recalled that two out of the four trailers of rice and other food items donated to the Ekiti State APC by Dangote Foundation, were diverted to Ondo State and handed to Akeredolu by Fayemi's wife.
“Now, Fayemi has used another N1 billion to buy SSG appointment for his wife in Ondo State. This is the height of wickedness and we, the youths of Ekiti State are waiting for Fayemi to declare his ambition to contest the 2018 governorship election.”
ABUJA- Defence Headquarters has asked Nigerians not to panic over reports of possible infiltration of Boko Haram terrorists in some areas outside North East, saying the sects have not only been completely decimated but also confined to Sambisa Forest pending when they will be completely eliminated.
It also said contrary to insinuations that the military operations in the South East, tagged: “Operation Python Dance” was a threat to the peace and security of the area, it was merely a training platform for personnel in the zone.
Speaking to select journalists in Abuja, Brigadier General Rabe Abubakar, Director, Information of the Defence Headquarters, however, said in the course of the exercise, the personnel can respond to normalize peace if there were threats to security.
Abubakar, who said contrary to recent fears expressed by the Kano State governor about possible imminent infiltration of his state by Boko Haram terrorists, insisted that the terrorists have been defeated, saying a handful of them were restricted to their enclave in Sambisa Forest.
“The military has done what is termed as containment action and movements against the Boko Haram, and its ability to attack. What the Boko Haram now do is normal segmented flash attacks."
“Only a few members of the sect on bikes now parade isolated areas to attack. I am glad to say that in any of our operations that we have conducted, we freed the captives of the terrorists in each of these operations in the North East too, “he said.
Abubakar added:”Equally important is the free movement now of commercial vehicles. People can now do their businesses and without fear.The economic aspect of the areas has also bounced back."
"However, we are always on the watch as terrorists are never tired. They have ways of disguising and carrying out isolated ambushes and attacks."
“We understand all their antics and their modus operandi. On the issue of IEDs planted on the roads to impede the movements of the troops is also under consideration and we have made progress on that. We have procured relevant platforms to contain that."
“By and large, the operations there have significantly reached a good level and we will soon eliminate all of them as we have restricted them to the enclave of Sambisa and if you have been following, this Christmas will witness the launching of the last batch of operations."
“There could be a connectivity. Where the Boko Haram are being disturbed, generally they have to seek a leeway by way of movement and find new places. So, the possibility cannot be ruled out."
“But what the military are saying is that their movement would be extremely hard. I do not see them progressing beyond the North East.”
Speaking on the Operation Python Dance, he cautioned against politicizing the matter.
“We do not have to politicize the issue of security. Whatever the military does is with all sincerity and purpose. It is nationalistic and we do not conduct just operations targeting any group."
“For example, in the North Central, we did an operation. All these operations are ways of training. The whole military job is about training and it is why you do this that you have trained men."
“The Navy also had Eagle Eye. They are aimed to train personnel to test their capabilities, strengths and others."
“In the course of trainings, there could be some identified security threatened areas and which definitely must draw the attention of the military, but that is an addendum to what we want to achieve."
“There is a need to come out with proactive measures that will checkmate the activities of kidnappers, robbers, herdsmen, farmers' clash and others. This is what we are trying to achieve in the region."
“It is not to threaten or harass anyone. The operations are command exercises. The insinuations are wrong. The essence of the training is to remind officers what is expected of them.”
But he said the exercise was not without reasons, saying the country’s borders were so porous to necessitate such training.
“You see, geographically, there is no smoke without fire. Why I say so is that we have borders that are lacking in some certain levels of security presence. We have porous borders. We have smuggling in of small arms, medium arms, trans-border crimes and so on. Armed robberies, profligacy and others. "
“All these accumulate from issues having to do with porous borders. The borders are still porous, and we have to realise that some of the members of the insurgence countries would come from these countries, especially with the fall of government in these countries which necessitate the fallen regime to relocate with their arms and ammunition."
“So, we agree that some of these terrorists are from outside Nigeria. Porous borders are a challenge it is natural and that is why we come up with the multinational task force, we have had some many operations in the area and they have been successful.
The African Development Bank (AfDB) says its portfolio which comprises of 55 projects are being implemented in Nigeria, amounting to 5.2 billion dollars to support inclusive growth and development.
AfDB Nigeria Country Director, Dr Ousmane Dore disclosed this at the closing of the three-day 11th African Economic Conference 2016 with the theme, "Feed Africa: Towards agro-allied industrialisation for inclusive growth.''
The conference was organised by the AfDB, UN Development Programme (UNDP) and UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).
Dore said that Nigeria was selected to host the conference, adding that the bank had been promoting agro-allied industrialisation and value chain agriculture in the country.
"Fifty five projects of the bank amounting to 5.2 billion dollars comprising of our portfolio today in Nigeria out of these, 13 per cent used portfolio is in agriculture .
"What is more important is the approach the bank has used in this country toward agriculture to look at agriculture from programme perspective to value chain- staple crop processing zone.
"We have set up the processing zone in this country to promote agriculture from farming all the way to market,'' he said.
The official said that the Agriculture Transformation Support programme was the main programme that the bank had in Nigeria.
He said that the programme which cost 150 million dollars implemented in four states of crop processing zones would be extended to other states.
"This programme is being extended by 200 million dollars on coming years to try to set up this processing zone across the country.
"Also, we have Enable Youth Programme in Agriculture, it is meant to get youths to set up their own agriculture businesses. The programme will cost 300 million dollars to roll out.''
He said that the continent needed to use agriculture as an avenue to accelerate its transformation and development.
"All hands must be on desk as we place agriculture at the centre of agriculture transformation.
"The debate that has taken place from this meeting is that agriculture must take its place as the mainstay of African growth and transformation.
"It was established that agriculture must be moved from a sector that have a potential to bring out its full potential.
"The sector should transform itself from agro-allied and this must be the key concept to take away,'' the official said.
In addition, he said that the continent should learn from countries which had used agriculture to transform their economies from poverty to achieve income growth.
He gave example of Korea which used its main endowment of agriculture to transform its economy from feeding people to create small manufacturing- agro-allied industries.
According to him, this led the country to generate enough income and now it has moved into high technology.
He told the stakeholders to think beyond the conference to achieve the outcome of the meeting.
"There is massive uncultivated arable land in Africa so why not use the opportunity to use this potential to move toward transformation once sought by African leaders.
"Development must be underpinned by some industrialisation strategies.
"We do recall the way many Africa countries rolled out industrialisation policies in the 60s and 70s, what is clearly being understood today by development specialists.
"The specialist said that unless the countries move towards well designed policies, well thought industrialisation policies, they are going to be stuck.
"They are going to be stuck, in a situation where they depend on the same commodity export and therefore subjected to problem of international price movement,'' the official said.
Dore, however, expressed optimism that the conference had raised awareness on the need to put in the centre of Africa development, the issue of industrialisation.
The League Management Company (LMC) has approved the Kwara Stadium Complex in Ilorin for the hosting of Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) matches for the 2016/2017 season.
A representative of the LMC, Bode Oyewole who inspected facilities at the stadium on Wednesday in Ilorin, told newsmen that he was satisfied with what was on ground.
"If what we have seen is anything to go by, I have no hesitation but to say the stadium is fit to host any match of any magnitude.
kwara-united-
"All the facilities necessary for a football match have been checked and they are okay. The changing room is as important as the match officials' room, the sickbay is as important as the pitch.
"But, there are some (facilities) which needs upliftment and I have spoken with the appropriate authorities for them to be upgraded," Oyewole said.
He added that football was fast developing in Nigeria but that one would be doing the country injustice in comparing the country's stadiums to what are seen in Europe.
Newly-promoted side Abubakar Bukola Saraki (ABS) FC of Ilorin will be playing in the NPFL in the 2016/2017 season.
By Levinus Nwabughiogu ABUJA- Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has said that the biting economic situation in the country may have been responsible for the nonpayment of Super Falcons’ allowances.
It will be recalled that Falcons who were victorious in the just concluded Africa Women Cup of Nations champions by beating Cameroon to win the trophy on Saturday have not been paid.
To this end, they refused to vacate their hotel in Abuja on Tuesday.
It was reported however that the players were offered N50,000 each but they rejected it; demanding for all their outstanding allowances.
An inquiry into the matter by the State House Correspondents at the end of the meeting of the Federal Executive Council, FEC on Wednesday revealed the Ministry of Youth and Sport was handling the matter.
Lai Mohammed when asked whether the matter came up at the meeting said this:
“The Minister of Youth and Sports raised the issue today at the council and it is being looked into.
“Over time, it has become tradition to reward victorious athletes or sports persons but I think this is caused by the biting economic situation.
“The Minister of Youth and Sports is handling the matter. It was reported under other matters today at the council.” Sent from my BlackBerry wireless device from MTN
…laments poor treatment of Super Falcons, other sport ambassadors
Speaking at plenary today, Senator Ben Murray-Bruce representing Bayelsa East lamented the maltreatment of the Super Falcons who did the nation proud by conquering Africa on Saturday.
Recall that members of the team have refused to go back to their base except all allowances owed them is paid.
According to Senator Bruce, “We are a nation that builds stadiums but play no matches in them, we are a nation that spends a quarter of a billion dollars to buy equipments for NTA for the All Africa Games, but after the event, we don’t use the equipment. It seems like when it comes to awarding contracts to build facilities we are experts at them.
“I remember telling president Obasanjo at the time, there was no need to build the stadium at Abuja, that the All Africa Games could have been held in Lagos like they did in 1972. Now the stadium is built, when El-Rufai was FCT Minister, he went to take it over, he asked how much does it take to maintain, they told him JB was charging two billion naira every year just for maintenance, he said “please I don’t want it anymore.”
Ben Bruce
“The problem we have right now is this, we care about structures, we don’t care about people and this applies to every government since 1960. It is a disgrace what is happening to our girls, it is a disgrace what happens to our football players, our boxers, our tennis players, swimmers and all athletes representing Nigeria. We must take a position, we either care about human beings or we care about bricks and mortar, we either care about people or we care about giving out contracts, the talent for Nigeria to be great is the people we have in this country, but the government of Nigeria do not care about human beings, they only care about giving out contracts.
“Now we have won the competition, something as simple as paying wages to our young ladies who are the heroes of our time is not being paid because there are no contracts to be awarded. The entire sports division must be overhauled and only people with intelligence, committment, passion and a drive to make Nigeria great should be appointed to the ministry of sports and government should understand that this is serious business.
“Everytime I see a kid selling paper on the street running, you see an area-boy but I see a 100m world champion because that is how they are made. All the kids in America who are now heroes all came from the ghetto. Nobody in this chamber, none of our children will be world champion because they are too rich. Only the children of the poor will go into sports. The children of the rich will go into science and technology, they will not go into sports. So what we have done is deprive the child of the poor a chance to make a living and to be successful and this is very important.
“Whether you are Dick Tiger, Hogan Bassey, any world champion we have ever had, they have never been children of the rich. The children of the poor are the ones who we are depriving a chance to make a living and be successful. I urge all my noisy colleagues to please support this motion and get the government to paid the allowances of these beautiful children so that we can be great again.”
ABUJA: Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Abdullahi Muhammadu Gana, has said if the corps is to effectively discharge its mandate and meet up with new security demands, it would have to recruit 100, 000 Nigerians.
Gana spoke Wednesday at the NSCDC Academy in Abuja shortly after decorating 10 newly promoted officers to the rank of Assistant Commandant Generals (ACG).
He said a bigger workforce has become necessary in order to meet up with the request for its personnel running into several thousands from several ministries departments and agencies of government.
He said;”We are facing more and more challenges on daily basis. Just some months ago, we had a meeting with the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals where the Minister said that they would be requiring a 5000-man squad in line with government’s decision to diversify the economy."
“The minister, Dr Kayode Fayemi, had during the meeting insisted that my men must be trained and retrained to understand the modus operandi of the sector especially on the identification of solid minerals very well. Today, we have set up a Solid Minerals unit in the corps."
“After that, the Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbe, also approached us to request for a 3000-man squad to help in checking the activities of the Fulani herdsmen and manning the 5000 ranches the ministry intend to establish in the country. He later demanded for an additional 3000 men."
“We have also held meeting with the Minister of Defence, who requested that we prepare and deploy about 3, 300 of our men to the North East where the military have dislodged the Boko Haram insurgents to secure the civilians."
“The same thing with the MD of the Nigeria Railway Corporation who has also requested the deployment of 3000 men to their 22 installations across the country since the sector has been classified among the critical infrastructure of government."
“The same request came from the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and essentially from the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) requesting the deployment of our men to secure the dams in the country following the threat from Boko Haram to poison the source of our drinking water."
“The newly promoted ACGs must understand that these are the challenges facing them. We want them to take charge of the railway command; it is a very big task. We have made request to the government that for us to meet up with these requirements, we will need to beef up our personnel and we are looking at the possibility of recruiting 100,000 workforce,” he noted.
Abuja – Sen. Chris Ngige, Minister of Labour and Employment has called for speedy pass of the Occupational and Health Bill before the National Assembly.
Ngige said this in Abuja on Wednesday at a two-day National Awareness and Sensitisation Workshop on Occupational, Safety and Health (OSH) for major industries and government agencies in Nigeria.
The workshop was organised by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment in partnership with Global Network Monitoring and Development Initiative, its theme is: "Emergency Preparedness and Response for Workplace System Resilience''.
The minister was represented by Dr Ifeoma Anyawutaku, Director, Occupational, Safety and Health in the ministry.
Ngige said that it was imperative to create awareness on risks faced in various places of work and ways of tackling the challenges.
"The Occupational Safety and Health Bill in the Legislature, still awaiting passage, is the key to effective OSH communication.
"We believed the current Legislature will pass the bill and other labour bill that are pending before the end of its tenure. The Nigerian workers will be better for it. ''he said.
He said that the ministry of labour and employment was committed to domesticating the International Labour Organsition's Convention C.187 on Promotional Framework on Occupational Safety and Health in Nigeria.
According to him, the ministry is determined to boosting the occupational safety and health in the administrative services and offices beyond the regularly covered industrial working environment.
"This will enhance the performance of the National Occupational Safety and Health Management System to boost the occupational safety and health preventative culture in the world of work.
"This workshop is expected to add value to your knowledge on the various occupational safety and health policies and programmes, ''he said.
Also, Mr Mohammed Haruna, Executive Director, Global Network Monitoring and Development said the workshop was crucial to advocate for safe workplace in various organisation in the country.
Haruna said that Nigeria lacked emergency preparedness and responses to health and safety issues in the country.
"How prepare are we, if there is an emergency in our homes, workplace, among others.
"We need to be prepared at all time, we are always rushing into issues and we end up making half hazard arrangement in tackling problems.
"So, it is very important that this awareness is created to educate people about occupational health and safety because accident does not only happen in the industries but could be anywhere.''
A participant, Mr Quintus Azogu, Asst. Controller General, Policy, Regulatory Department in the Federal Fire Service commended the organisers for the programme.
Azogu said that programme was timely as there had been a lot of fire out breaks in the country due to the dry season.
He said at it was important for Nigerians to be careful and prepared for any unfortunate occurrence that may occur.
Police authorities in Abuja, yesterday, smashed a syndicate that specialised in robbing bank customers by swindling them of their Automatic Teller Machine, ATM, cards and pins, with the leader saying they got their 'business' idea from reading newspapers.
The suspects and cards found in their possession.
Vanguard gathered that the suspects, who were identified as David Wuese, Chika Okenyi, Omotayo Bamidele and Akura Godwin, were apprehended following complaints from members of the public to the Inspector General Police, Ibrahim Idris, who deployed his operatives at the Special Intelligence Response Team, IRT, to trail and arrest the suspects.
Sources at Force Headquarters disclosed that members of the syndicate were trailed to hideouts in Enugu, Benue and Nassarawa states, where they were arrested and over 70 ATM cards recovered from them.
A source said the suspects confessed during interrogations that they normally steal the ATM cards and pins while pretending to assist customers solve issues at ATM points.
Confessions
When Vanguard interviewed the suspects, the leader of the syndicate Wuese, aged 27, disclosed that the syndicate was formed in Makurdi, Benue State, and they carried out their activities across several states in the country.
Wuese said: "We read about something similar to our operation in the newspapers, but modified it. Some of the ATM cards found in our possession were all invalid and that was what we were using to steal from our victims.
"We don't operate in one state. After stealing a card, we will check the balance and if the money is below N20,000, we don't touch it. But if the amount in the account is huge, we withdraw money by phones, which we would resell at cheaper prices.
"Sometimes, we take the ATMs to night clubs and hotels where we pay with cards. In our last operation, we bought three Samsung Galaxy Edge for N245,000 each and we sold them for N215,000.
"We also bought three Blackberry Passport for N130,000 each and sold them for N90,000. We also got two Infinix phones for N82,000 and it was sold for N60,000.
"I can't recall the number of operations we have carried out, but we normally share all the money we have made equally.
"I have bought a Toyota Camry with my own share of our loot. I don't know what my friends have done with their own share."
ABUJA- THE Senate, Wednesday, said it was set to screen the Acting Chairman of the Economic amd Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC), Ibrahim Magu Thursday.
Disclosing this yesterday, Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu who presided over the plenary session said that the chamber would screen Magu today.
It would be recalled that President Buhari had in June this year, forwarded a request for Magu's confirmation to the Senate, but the matter had not featured on the Senate’s agenda since then.
Senate President Bukola Saraki, had in July, 2016 read the letter from president Muhammadu Buhari appointing Magu as chairman of the EFCC.
Since then, nothing tangible was seen from the side of the Senate on the confirmation.
Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu urged Senators to turn up for the legislative exercise which would be done by the committee of the house.
Magu might however have serious questions to answer as quite a number of the senators who had governed as state governors have one issue or the other with the agency.
Magu became acting chairman of the commission in November, 2015 after the expiration of the tenure of his predecessor, Ibrahim Lamorde.
By Emman Ovuakporie and Johnbosco Agbakwuru ABUJA – THE House of Representatives Wednesday reversed its earlier decision prohibiting the suspended former House Committee Chairman on Appropriation, Abdulmumin Jibrin from having access to the National Assembly Complex.
The reversal was contained in a resolution passed to him appear before the Committee on Ethics and Privileges to respond to the petition on the alleged ownership of foreign accounts in Barclays Bank, United Kingdom.
Recall that the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) had on Monday submitted a petition to the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara, House Committee on Public Petitions, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Code of Conduct Bureau as well as office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) to prosecute the lawmaker.
Over 150 Turkish officers, some responsible for training others, were recalled or retired from NATO high command in the wake of a July coup attempt, US Army General Curtis Scaparrotti told reporters on Wednesday.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
The top NATO commander said he lost 50 per cent of 300 Turkish officers in the alliance's so-called Allied Command Operations in Belgium, Italy and the Netherlands.
"You lose a good deal of experience, so we are seeing a bit of degradation," Scaparrotti said, speaking on the sidelines of a two-day meeting of NATO foreign ministers at the military alliance headquarters in Brussels.
Turkey's government declared a state of emergency following the failed military coup and launched a crackdown on alleged supporters of US-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen, whom President Recep Tayyip Erdogan holds responsible for the putsch.
Scaparrotti said he was in contact with Turkey's head of armed forces, General Hulusi Akar, on a nearly weekly basis, and that Akar has been "very direct in his commitment to NATO" and to refilling positions with the right officers as quickly as possible.
About half of the empty positions had been restaffed, Scaparrotti added.
The U.S. general said he had no suspicions that any of the officers were involved with planning the coup and that he was concerned for the officers and their families.
Last month, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg confirmed that Turkish soldiers working in the military alliance have sought asylum in other countries in the wake of the Turkish government's crackdown on the military and civil servants following the coup.
Popular Nigerian musical icon, award winning musician Dare Art Alade, will be hosting the unveiling of GS4 brand of cars made by China's leading automaker GAC motors at the Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island Lagos on Monday.
This is as Stephanie Linus, Kunle Afolayan and a host of other have indicated their interest to grace the premiere unveiling of the GS4 cars.
Also for the event of a delegation from China led by the General Manager of GAC Motors will be making their first visit to Nigeria.
Speaking about the vehicle, Chief Diana Chen, Chairman of CIG Motors and Chief host of the event and the first Chinese woman to receive a Chieftaincy title in Nigeria, said applying sustainable and eco-friendly technologies in vehicle production and automotive decoration is one of our primary goals. All cars manufactured by GAC Motor follow the highest standards and use only the best quality and environmental friendly materials.”
No doubt this is a choice car for Nigerians and it has been said continuously in the automotive industry in Nigeria that the launch of the GS4 car is set to create a revolution in Nigeria's automobile Industry.
The GS4 brand has scored many firsts. GS4 scored 80.68 points in the C-ECAP assessment and became the first SUV vehicle model to receive the gold medal.
This best-selling model has just made its debut to Lagos, Nigeria where it is currently been assembled. It has optimal fuel efficiency with a combined fuel consumption of 6.3 L/100 km (37.3 MPG) and only 36dB in idling noise to provide undisturbed driving space for car owners.
The Unveiling is expected to be an event of pomp and pageantry as select stakeholders of Nigeria's automobile industry, captains of industry, celebrities, political leaders and heads of corporate organisations have confirmed attendance.
Some of the celebrities who will be gracing this occasion are Stephanie Linus, who received a car from GAC Motors for carting away the Best Overall Movie In Africa Award at the AMVCA Awards 2016 and the award winning Movie Director, Kunle Afolayan.
Dr Boboye Oyeyemi ,Corps Marshal ,Federal Road Safety Commission(FRSC),on Wednesday said 770 road traffic crashes involving 4,365 tankers and trailers had killed 1,048 people from January to November 2016.
Speaking at the Interactive session with stakeholders in road transport sector in Abuja, Oyeyemi said 4,365 people were also injured during the period of review.
According to him, crashes involving tankers and trailers had been on the increase since 2014 as 1,862 people were killed while 1,285 deaths were recorded in 2015.
"On comparative notes, it was observed that while there was 31.9 per cent reduction in road traffic crashes between 2014 and 2015, 38.6 per cent was recorded between January and November this year.
"While the rates of tankers and trailers’ involvement were 15.5 per cent and 0.14 per cent respectively within the period.
" The summary of crashes involving tankers, trailers and trucks from week one to 48 2016 show 14,984 people were involved in a total of 7934 crashes.
"Among these, tankers recorded over 252 crashes; trailers 518; and trucks 1,276, while other vehicles accounted for 10884, bringing the number of crashes vehicles to 12,959 killing 1,748 and leaving 6,365 injured,'' he said.
Oyeyemi said that the FRSC would continue to put measures in place to address the challenges and had initiated a new partnership with relevant stakeholders in road safety to curb them.
He urged tanker owners to put in place safety valve to avoid spillage of content of tankers in case of crashes.
Oyeyemi said to regulate safe practice for effective and safe delivery of liquid hydrocarbon in Nigeria, FRSC had initiated a safe-to-load programme and deployed 168 personnel to 43 tank farms in Nigeria.
He said within one year, 103,201 vehicles had been inspected to determine their level of compliance with the minimum safety standard and 78,121 met the standard, while 25,080 failed.
The corps marshal said to ensure safer road environment especially during the festive periods, the corps mapped out strategies to address traffic challenges by deploying personnel to identified black-spots.
He said 38 critical corridors had been identified for special patrol with the aim of reducing road traffic crashes,fatalities and prompt removal of obstructions.
He urged all Nigerians and stakeholders to join the campaign to "crash the crash'' in the festive season.
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Babachir Lawal, represented by Mr Mohammed Tahir,Director Parastatals SGF, said the federal government was working to eliminate road bumps from the highways.
This, Lawal said, would help in curbing crashes, adding that there was need to train and retrain drivers so as to avoid mistakes that could lead to accidents on the highways.
He called for need for the installation of speed cameras to be installed on the roads to spot out recalcitrant drivers.
Responding, Mr Salimonu Oladiti, the National Chairman of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers and Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, (PTD/NUPENG), appealed to FRSC to compel tanker drivers to install safety valves on their vehicles.
Oladiti said this would help in averting deaths that resulted in spillage of tankers contents in accident scenes.
He said the major challenges faced by tanker drivers were speed bumps and road blocks on the highways because too much application of brakes by tankers led to break failure and appealed that such should be checked.
Mr Najeem Yasin, the President of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW),reiterated the union's commitment to collaborating and supporting the FRSC to curb crashes especially in the festive seasons.
Yasin said the union would play its part to ensure an accident-free festive season.
The Naira appears helpless in the face of efforts by the CBN and stakeholders in the forex market in fast -tracking its recovery, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.
The Nigerian currency exchanged at N485 to a dollar at the parallel market on Wednesday in Lagos, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro traded at N600 and N510, respectively.
At the Bureau De Change (BDC) window, the Naira closed at N399 to a dollar, CBN controlled rate, while the Pound Sterling and the Euro exchanged at N606 and N512, respectively.
Trading at the interbank market saw the Naira closed at N305.50 to a dollar.
Naira-Dollar
Traders at the market said that the shortage of the green back was impacting negatively on the performance of the Naira.
As the yuletide approaches, it is becoming clear that navigating the Naira to an upward trajectory involves concerted efforts by well meaning Nigerians.
It is undisputable that the Nigerian currency is fighting many battles that require patriotism on the part of the business community to win.
It will be recalled that Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, President, Association of Bureau de Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) last week identified currency hoarding and speculation as monsters challenging the very existence of the Naira.
Remittances from Nigerians living abroad, which is put at 21 billion dollars, which was hitherto assisting in the defence of the nation's currency from total destruction, has now reduced drastically.
The Naira stirs everyone in the face to salvage it from its attackers.
Some suspected armed robbers have written some Lagos residents urging them to prepare to pay season's dues to them on a date not mentioned.
Residents of Joseph Harrison Estate, Yaba area of Lagos State got the letter from the bandits on Wednesday notifying them of their impending attack to collect their "dues" for the festive season.
NAN gathered that the letter was placed on the vehicle of one of the residents and was discovered in the morning when he was about to wash his car.
"We are coming this week to collect our dues and to visit you tenants and landlords of Joseph Harrison Street in the week. If you like go and bring police or soldiers, we are coming to perform our duties.
"If you cooperate, we will not kill, but if you fail to cooperate, blood will flow," the letter said.
NAN check at the estate on Tuesday revealed that sterner security measures have been put in place to protect lives and properties in the community.
Mr Bolanle Akinyemi, Chairman, Community Development Association said the estate had enjoyed some peace for a long while as it was protected by guards and the police from Sabo Police Post.
"We are also mindful of the slum that surrounds us and we have been conscious of suspected criminals," he said.
"No one has received such letter before, but there was a case in 2013 when a company in the estate was robbed," he said.
The chairman said they have reported the threat to Sabo Police Division and more guards have been engaged at the estate.
Concerned residents urged the commissioner of police, Fatai Owoseni to deploy more men to patrol the estate regularly.
By Rotimi Ojomoyela Ado-Ekiti – The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has berated Governor Ayodele Fayose for wearing military camouflage to the House of Assembly on Tuesday to present his 2017 budget proposal.
The party said such attitude represents conduct unbecoming of his high position in a constitutional democracy.
The party also frowned at the governor’s contempt for separation of powers as enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, noting that arrogating the powers of the parliament to himself is a brazen trampling on the law, urging the National Assembly to save Nigerian Constitution from the governor’s executive lawlessness and recklessness.
Fayose had on Tuesday stormed the House of Assembly in a military camouflage to present budget estimate for the 2017 Appropriation. At the occasion, he said he was the Speaker of the House of Assembly while the substantive Speaker Kola Oluwawole was acting Speaker on the seat representing him.
The APC in a statement in Ado-Ekiti by its Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, said Fayose’s conduct was an affront on the constitution and a brazen conduct suggesting that democracy was dead in Ekiti State.
“We have always insisted that Fayose is a law unto himself and a threat to democracy in Nigeria, showing contempt for the law and would do anything to undermine the integrity of the supremacy of the constitution.
“As a man who has constituted himself as the law, Fayose has demonstrated several times that he has no respect for the nation’s constitutional democracy and the rule of law. “He sacked the House of Assembly for six months and ran 19 APC members out of the town with thugs and used seven PDP members to impeach APC Speaker in the House of Assembly of 26 members after he led thugs to invade the court to beat a judge and tore court records in the Chief Judge’s office.
“Fayose keeps his own army in the Government House that he regularly unleashes on his opponents, including using same armed thugs to prevent EFCC from doing its job when the governor stormed Access Bank with thugs to shield Mrs Fani-Kayode from EFCC scrutiny on her husband’s frozen account.
“Wearing army camouflage to the parliament to present the budget has confirmed our earlier claim that Fayose has army uniforms stocked at home with which he unleashed terror on the opposition during the Presidential and National Assembly elections,” he explained.
Describing Fayose’s mode of dressing as a collective insult and embarrassment to Ekiti people, Olatunbosun said the governor’s conduct was an affront to the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces and officers and men of the armed forces as the only official and institution allowed to wear such uniform.
“The President of the federation is allowed to wear army uniform to perform certain official functions while the officers and men of the force can also wear it, and so by wearing army uniform to perform an official duty in the parliament, Fayose is challenging the authority of the President who is the only Head of Government allowed by law to wear army uniform.
“Fayose may be running a mercenary ring and planning something sinister as we had earlier raised alarm. It is time for the security agencies to take Fayose’s security breach seriously,” Olatunbosun said.
He added: “Since Ekiti State House of Assembly members are Fayose’s captives who cannot question his illegal conduct, we wish to ask the Chief of Defence Staff and Chief of Army Staff if they granted Fayose permission to sew, keep and wear army uniform.
“We also call on the National Assembly to take parliamentary notice at Ekiti House of Assembly as a parliament that has collapsed and is irretrievably comatose and so needs intervention to save democracy and Nigerian law from those who have no respect for constitutional democracy and governance.
“Democracy is on life support in Ekiti State from the reckless desecration of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and so it is time the very bastion of democracy, the National Assembly, came to the aid of the nation’s constitution being held by the throat by Fayose who has unabashed contempt for constitutional order.”
United States president-elect Donald Trump has been named Person of the Year by Time magazine.
The business tycoon-turned-politician defied the polls to win the US 2016 presidential election and is seen by many as a divisive standard bearer for right-wing anti-establishment movements across the globe.
"It's hard to measure the scale of his disruption," a statement released on Times magazine's website reads, describing its choice as "for better or worse."
Time magazine's Person of the Year edition for 2016 has a photo of Donald Trump from behind, sitting in an upholstered armchair and looking over his shoulder towards the reader, with the title "President of the Divided States of America."
Time editor Nancy Gibbs tells NBC News that his selection was "one of the more straight forward" choices that the magazine has made.
"It comes after the political novice scored a surprise victory in the November 8 elections.
"When have we ever seen a single individual who has so defied expectations, broken the rules, violated norms, beaten not one but two political parties on the way to winning an election that he entered with 100-to-1 odds against him?" she asked.
"I don't think that we have ever seen one person operating in such an unconventional way have an impact on the events of the year quite like this."
Time magazine on Wednesday named Donald Trump its “Person of the Year” for 2016 for his stunning upset election victory that rewrote the rules of politics, delivering him to the helm of a divided America.
The president-elect dialed into NBC television’s Today show, welcoming the accolade as a “very, very great honor,” denying he was responsible for divisions and praising outgoing Democratic President Barack Obama.
The real estate tycoon, who has never previously held elected office and shocked the political establishment by defeating his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, is featured on Time’s cover described as “Donald Trump: President of the Divided States of America.”
The magazine said its person of the year, a tradition that began in 1927, “had the greatest influence, for better or worse, on the events of the year.”
“So which is it this year: better or worse?” editor-in-chief Nancy Gibbs wrote. “The challenge for Donald Trump is how profoundly the country disagrees about the answer.”
She said 2016 had been the year of his rise and 2017 would be the year of his rule, after he is sworn into office on January 20.
“Like all newly elected leaders, he has a chance to fulfill promises and defy expectations,” said Gibbs.
Trump
Trump won the title, she added, for “reminding America that demagoguery feeds on despair and that truth is only as powerful as the trust in those who speak it, for empowering a hidden electorate by mainstreaming its furies and live-streaming its fears, and for framing tomorrow’s political culture by demolishing yesterday’s.”
In the past Time has showed its editorial teeth by naming sinister figures — Adolf Hitler in 1938 and Joseph Stalin both in 1939 and 1942.
The president-elect told NBC’s Today show that he thought the sub-heading on the front cover about a divided America was “snarky” and denied that it was his fault.
“I’m not president yet so I didn’t do anything to divide,” he said, despite having inflamed the country by campaign rhetoric disparaging women, illegal immigrants and Muslims among others.
– Takes Obama’s advice –
For years he criticized Obama and was instrumental in the so-called “birther” movement that questioned whether the first black president was born in the United States.
“I will say this: I’ve now gotten to know President Obama, I really like him,” Trump told NBC on Wednesday. “I can’t speak for him, but we have a really good chemistry together. We talked,” he said.
“He loves the country, he wants to do right by the country and for the country and I will tell you, we obviously very much disagree on certain policies and certain things, but I really like him,” he added.
The billionaire even said that he discussed some of his possible appointments with the outgoing Democratic president.
“I take his recommendations very seriously and there are some people that I will be appointing and in one case have appointed where he thought very highly of that person,” Trump said.
Clinton, the former secretary of state who became the closest in history to becoming America’s first female commander in chief, was named the runner-up, with computer hackers in third place.
The former first lady won the popular vote with around 2.7 million more votes than Trump, but the Republican won the crucial Electoral College by 306 to 232.
Trump campaigned hard on a promise of bringing back jobs with the old manufacturing heartland hard hit by companies fleeing overseas and taking jobs to cheaper labor markets in China or Mexico.
Trump told Time in an interview that he asked Apple CEO Tim Cook to build in the United States “a great plant, your biggest and your best, even if it’s only a foot by a foot bigger than some place in China.”
He also addressed representing working class Americans despite his lavish wealth, living in a luxurious Manhattan penthouse.
“I’m sitting in an apartment the likes of which nobody’s ever seen. And yet I represent the workers of the world. And they love me and I love them,” he told the magazine.
“I think people aspire to do things. And they aspire to watch people. I don’t think they want to see the president carrying his luggage out of Air Force One. And that’s pretty much the way it is,” he said.
By Henry Umoru ABUJA- SENATE President Bukola Saraki said yesterday that the long awaited Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB) would be passed by the Senate before the of January.
According to him, if Nigeria as a country must achieve the change, the most compelling would be the consideration of t existing petroleum legal, regulatory and institutional structures which he described as out-dated.
Declaring open a 3-day public hearing on PIGB, organized by Senate Joint committees on Petroleum (Upstream), Petroleum (Downstream) and Gas, Saraki who noted that the passage of the bill would open a new vista in the oil and gas industry, said, “Let me reassure all stakeholders of our commitment to ensure the passage of this bill. It is my hope that before the end of this session, that we will have that can be laid before us before we go on recess. And hopefully by the time we come back in January, we should be able to pass this bill.
"The petroleum industry remains the mainstay of the Nigerian economy. Oil and gas have been, and will likely remain for the foreseeable future, Nigeria's most important non-renewable energy source. The industry contributes over 90% of the country's foreign exchange earnings.”
The Senate President who lamented that the non-passage of the bill for almost sixteen years has negatively Nigeria as a country, said: "This all-important sector of the economy has for too long performed below efficiency indexes, with government and investors alike losing significant edge in the oil and gas investment trends. The case for change cannot be more compelling considering that existing petroleum legal, regulatory and institutional structures are out-dated.
“It is unacceptable that till date, we still import over 90% of needed petroleum products (petrol and chemicals), we flare substantial gas produced, we have damaged our eco-systems and polluted our communities and cannot supply adequate electricity to our homes and industries.
“This situation has undermined our citizens' standard of living, life expectancy, our national energy security and has resulted to other unforeseen fall-outs like: labour unrest; fuel queues; high cost of delivery of products; high cost of delivery of overall services in the overall economy; and unquantifiable wastage of national productivity as a result.
“The state of the industry globally today, has heightened and made it imperative that either we comprehensively reform our local industry to have a chance to keep it alive or become extinct. The oil and gas industry is yearning for good governance,competitiveness, transparency, indigenous participation and accountability.”
On what the passage of the bill seeks to achieve, the Senate President said that it will "Create efficient and effective governing institutions with clear and separate roles for the petroleum industry, establish a framework for the creation of commercially oriented and profit driven petroleum entities that ensures value addition and internationalization of the petroleum industry and promote transparency in the administration of the petroleum resources of Nigeria and create a conducive business environment for petroleum industry operations.
“Let me reassure all stakeholders that this is just the beginning. We will also tackle the issues of downstream, gas and the environment. We are poised and resolved that we will deal with all issues related to the industry, albeit in tranches. This will ensure thoroughness and effectiveness. As a nation we cannot afford any further delay in our effort to reform our oil and gas industry.
“The journey begins now and I assure you that we will guarantee that all of these bills are passed in record time. I wish you all very fruitful deliberations.”
Earlier in his remarks, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Petroleum (Upstream), Senator Tayo Alaosoadura, said: "The PIB as we all know, has been lingering as it were in the corridors of the National Assembly for a little over a decade.
“However, the Eight Senate has made the PIGB as one of the key landmarks to revamp the economy and make petroleum industry more efficient. If we must get out of the present recession the country is witnessing and get the economy on the steady path of growth, the petroleum industry must be made efficient and more profit-oriented.
“The call also by the Senate president in rolling out the agenda for the 8th Senate made it abundantly clear that the passage of the PIGB will be one of the landmark successes of the Eight Senate.”
During the 3-day public hearing, critical stakeholders like the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Ministry of Petroleum Resources, PENGASSAN, NUPENA, BPE, others made presentation while other key players in the oil sector like the International Oil Companies (IOCs), Host Communities, among others are expected to make presentations.
