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Category: Northern Report

  • Continental applause as Kwara Gov bags Lifetime Achievement award on gender inclusion

    Continental applause as Kwara Gov bags Lifetime Achievement award on gender inclusion

    Kwara Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on Wednesday won a lifetime achievement award for his transformational gender inclusion policy in the state as prominent women leaders from across Africa commended his remarkable feats. 

    The Governor called on development agencies to design a ‘programme for result’ initiative which rewards any community or subnational that intentionally votes certain percentage of women into legislative offices, saying this would drive up gender inclusion and promote sustainable development. 

    At the ongoing 7th Voice of Women (VOW) Conference and Awards in Abuja, the Governor received a plaque specifically honoring his historic inclusion of unprecedentedly high number of women in key leadership positions, including having the highest number of women in cabinet in the history of Nigeria. 

    The award was a “big surprise” to the Governor by the Women Radio 91.7fm whose chief executive officer Toun Okewale Sonaiya called AbdulRazaq a historic figure in Nigeria as far as gender inclusion is concerned. 

    “This award recognises an individual, female or male, who has contributed in a profound way to gender empowerment during their lifetime or posthumous,” according to the organisers.

    The event, enriched by fireside conversations around issues of women empowerment and victimization, was attended by First Ladies from different states, female federal and state parliamentarians, ministers from across the continent, and dozens of gender rights activists, among others. 

    Kwara First Lady/Chairperson of Governors Wives’ Forum Ambassador (Mrs) Olufolake AbdulRazaq led her colleagues to the event; while Minister of Youth Dr Jamila Bio also briefly took the floor to point out how the Governor has mainstreamed gender inclusion in political leadership. 

    Two Kwara commissioners — Women Affairs’ Hon. Abosede Olaitan Buraimoh and Education and Human Capital Development’s Hajia Sa’adatu Kawu-Modibbo — are attending the conference, which is supported by MacArthur Foundation.

    Erelu Bisi Fayemi, former First Lady of Ekiti State and author of the African feminist charter, said the Governor of Kwara has truly earned his stripes for giving women a voice in a way never seen before in Nigeria’s history. 

    She also commended her husband former Governor Kayode Fayemi for his efforts in gender inclusion, and urged Governors in Nigeria to emulate the Kwara helmsman. 

    “If you check all the recent indices, the truth is that Nigeria is not doing so well in gender equality or women empowerment. It remains difficult for women to access political leadership,” she said, singling out AbdulRazaq for “using his platform as a Governor to promote women inclusion. He has shown adequate political will that is worth emulating.”

    Maureen Hinda-Mbuende, Namibian Deputy Finance Minister, said at the event that she is humbled by how much “the Governor of Kwara State has deployed the goodwill of his office to support women empowerment”. 

    In 2019, the Governor appointed a cabinet that had 56.25% female — apart from keeping some 50 % slots for women permanent secretaries. He currently has a 50% female cabinet, including young commissioners. 

    He has also introduced a legislation that mandates Kwara to have at least 35% gender parity in appointive political offices, including in the state bureaucracy.

    The Governor received a standing ovation from the large crowd, especially when the plaque was officially presented to him. 

    AbdulRazaq, for his part, thanked the organisers and wives of the Governor for their great efforts to put the issue of women empowerment on the front burners. 

    “This august gathering reminds us of the noble role that the Women Radio, organizers of this event, has played over the years in spotlighting every issue that concerns women, the girl child, and general wellbeing of our community,” he added. 

    “I am personally proud to associate with the management and staff of Women Radio. I congratulate you for this wonderful initiative. Women Radio has been a major cheerleader for what our administration has done in gender mainstreaming in Kwara State. This support dated back to 2019 when we nominated a 56.25% female majority cabinet in Kwara State. 

    “But we have gone beyond just appointing women as a matter of choice. We have enacted a legislation that compels any government in our state to have at least 35% gender representation in all government appointments, including at the level of permanent Secretary or boards of parastatals. 

    “This policy has had appreciable effects in the larger political space in our state. Today, we now have the youngest female lawmaker in Nigeria. This is apart from the other female legislators in the House. It is our intention that this will tear down all barriers against the girl child and spur them to reach for the stars! 

    Read Also: Five die, others injured in petrol truck accident in Kwara

    “To make this possible, we have keyed into different educational and sanitation programmes that will encourage the girl child to enrol in school and complete her education. One of them is the Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE), which we have keyed into. 

    “We have similarly introduced a policy of six-month maternity leave to encourage women to nurture our children without losing their professional status or abandoning work.

    “I’m optimistic that many other states of the federation are in the race to break new positive grounds in gender mainstreaming. Together, we can influence national legislations that support gender parity and empower women and the girl child to fulfil their destiny.

    “Once, again, I congratulate Women Radio on its successes over the years. I specially thank you for the honour done to me and to our state so far. I promise that we will not drop the ball.”

  • Stakeholders call for amendment of Electoral Act

    Stakeholders call for amendment of Electoral Act

    • Rep: House will look into INEC guidelines

    No address the shortcomings in general elections, stakeholders have called for a further amendment to the 2022 Electoral Act.

     They argued that the appointment of Resident Electoral Commissioners (REC) and commissioners of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should not be done by the President.

     This is as the House of Representatives assured that it would look into the guidelines of INEC on the conduct of future elections.

     Executive Director, Yiaga Africa, Samson Itodo called for the unbundling of INEC, adding that the constitutional arrangements where issues on the appointment of INEC chairman and National Commissioners are vested in the Executive needed to be reviewed.

     Itodo spoke at a roundtable convened to conduct a post- mortem of the General Election and to seek priority areas for reforms organised by Yiaga Africa and the Kofi Annan Foundation with the theme “Unpacking Nigeria’s 2023 general elections and prospects for electoral reform” in Abuja.

     He said the Justice Uwais Committee recommended that the president should not appoint chairman, commissioners into INEC; rather that power should be vested into another institution.

     The Yiaga Africa chief stated that this was just one way of protecting the independence of the Commission to prevent it from any form of political interference or manipulation.

     Itodo said: “You cannot have an electoral commission that is composed of persons who are appointed by the President and in some cases you have the incumbents as part of a political party or leading a political party.’’

    Read Also: What Electoral Act says on deduction of invalid votes

     “So, in line with Justice Uwais,one of the recommendations is to review the appointment process of commissioners and RECs into INEC. In fact, one of the proposals is that the President should not appoint RECs.

    “INEC when properly constituted with individuals that have impeccable character, competence and capacity should appoint its own resident electoral commissioners or directors of elections to manage elections.”

     Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology, Dachung Bagos, said the National Assembly would work to review issues around what happened during the last election and to look at what could be done to enforce those laws.

     He said: “We will look at INEC’s guidelines to turn them into law, because the difference between guidelines and the law is that the guideline is what someone sits down and feels that this is the guideline.

     “However, when the guideline is now a law, it becomes mandatory to practice. So we are going to review all these issues that Nigerians have problems with.

     “Once it’s now a law, it is no longer a guideline. Nobody will be able to change it at the dying minute. So, these are issues that collectively, we are all going to look at.”

     A representative of Kofi Annan Foundation in Nigeria, Sebastian Brack said Nigeria’s successful democratic experiment is a priority.

     Brack said: “This particular roundtable is looking at how we can improve the situation for the next elections in a constructive and forward looking way.”

     Special Adviser to the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mohammed Kuna, said that although elections are important, they are not enough in terms of deepening and consolidating democracy.

     Kuna said there was a need to focus also on governance issues, on issues of political accountability, on issues of conducting elections among others and the commission was noting them.

  • Out-of-school children: Fed Govt to focus on basic education

    Out-of-school children: Fed Govt to focus on basic education

    The Federal Government said to reduce the number of out-of-school children, it intends to focus more on basic or primary education than tertiary education.

    Minister of education, Dr Tahir Mamman, said in the past, more focus was placed on universities, polytechnics and Colleges of Education but the administration has decided to shift its focus to basic education in the country.

    He said although the responsibility of basic education lies mainly under the purview of states and local governments, the Federal Government is developing policies and backing it with funding.

    The Minister said this yesterday in Abuja at a ministerial roundtable on National child wellbeing at the ongoing 29th Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) summit with the theme: ‘Pathways to sustainable economic transformation and inclusion’.

    Mamman also said the government intends to make the teaching profession more attractive to Nigerians to enable it to reduce the number of out of school children in the country.

    His words: “And so, for us, in the education sector at this time, we are focusing attention at that level of basic education. In the past for some time, we focused on tertiary education, the universities, polytechnics, Colleges of Education but now our attention has shifted to that level. Now not because it is our mandate. Ordinarily, at that level it is actually state and local governments that have the bulk of the responsibility, that is what the Constitution says as basic education is compulsory.

    Read Also: EU earmarks N32.9b for out-of-school children

    “For now, what we’re doing is to develop policies at the federal level and engage the governors who have responsibility and not only just engaging them by word of mouth, no, there’s also some funding, which is provided for that through the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC).

    “And then the issue of the teachers you know, who have to have the requisite background, you know, to be able to train them properly, and then ensure also that the condition of service is suitable and the teacher profession is also attractive to those who want to go into it. Not like the situation that we met on the ground where a lot of people who go into teaching are people who don’t have anything else to do. So, these and many others are some of the policies we are looking at.”

     Country Director, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Cristian Munduate said the government needs to set priorities and stick to them to achieve its mandate of reducing the number of out-of-school children.

    She said about 2000 children die everyday from preventable diseases which can be accelerated at the local levels with the correct investments to prevent diseases rather than its cure.

    Munduate added: “About 2000 children die everyday from preventable diseases, so, talking about rapid responses and quick wins, these can be accelerated at local level with the correct investments to prevent and not cure diseases.

    “What we spend on one child you can prevent through giving quality preventive actions,I commend the government because we have just finalised a consultation where the history of education was leaning on quality learning. Why? Because when the government came into office, the numbers were there. Three out of four children cannot understand what they are reading or cannot do arithmetical calculations.”

    Chief Executive Officer (CEO)-designate, NESG, Dr Tayo Aduloju said the present numbers say the country is in a crisis that must be treated now in terms of the huge number of out of school children in the country.

    Aduloju suggested that the government uses social investment incentives like the conditional cash transfer that it is implementing to force parents to send their children to school, ensure birth registration and vaccination.

     He said this could be done by making sure that every head of household that plans on benefiting from the programme ensures their children are in school, provides the birth registration of all their children and vaccinations.

  • EU earmarks 5.4m euros for teachers’ devt

    EU earmarks 5.4m euros for teachers’ devt

    The European Union (EU) has earmarked 5.4 million euros to build the capacity of teachers.

     EU Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen, made this known in Abuja during the launch of 40 million euro intervention programme on education and youth empowerment in the Northwest through the Global Gateway initiative.

     According to her, the additional fund was to ensure teachers get upgraded skills and learning needed to nurture students armed with requisite knowledge to become an army of solutions to the many challenges confronting Nigeria and Africa.

    She said: “Actually, this component is complemented by a 5.4 million euros separate programme that we signed today, which is dedicated to teachers, aiming to build their resilience and capacity in challenging environments. We have to remember that there is no education without teachers and that’s why we also have to invest in teacher training.

     “The third objective of our programme is really that it empowers youth with the skills they need, providing vocational education as promoting behavioral change campaigns to challenge harmful social norms and empower girls.”

     Urpilainen also said the European Union was equally out to provide vocational education and training for youths to equip them with the skills required to excel in the labour market.

    She said: “This ambitious programme launched today has been designed with Nigerian authorities to ensure the ownership and an adequate response to the local needs. The EU is not only targeting the youth through this specific programme, it is also bringing the youth to the driving seat and this is why as the EU, we set up the Youth Sounding Board, also here in Nigeria, as well as in many countries to make sure that what we do is for the youth but also by the youth.

    “We have to include young people in the decision making, we have to create spaces and structures where young people feel that they are visible and they watch this and this is precisely what the European Union is doing.”

    Urpilainen noted that Nigeria was not only the economic powerhouse on the continent and the most populous country in Africa, but the country was also a strategic partner of the EU in the West African region.

    Read Also: EU, Netherlands to boost jobs in Nigeria

    While describing education as the most transformative sector with ability to change the fortunes of a country, she noted that the programme would focus on lifting out – of – school – children off the streets to get the required education, especially girls through various components aimed at achieving one objective; access to quality education and youth empowerment.

    She said: “Education is the most transformative sector in which we can invest and it is the cornerstone for creating resilient societies and finding solutions to the biggest challenges of our time.

    “So, the EU investment on access, skills and quality education and youth empowerment in Northwestern Nigeria brings actually all these different components together. It will be deployed in Northwest Nigeria.

    “The programme which we are launching today supports access to education for out of school children with a specific focus on bringing and keeping girls in schools. It also includes direct assistance to families, cash, transfers, social protection, income generation, gifts and indirect assistance through agricultural practices. I think it’s important that we are able to provide access to education to each and every child in Nigeria so no one is left behind.

    “Another talk and overall objective of our programme is that it really promotes validated teaching and learning in targeted schools. So it will support child centred medical, sexual reproductive health racial gender equality training and support community based and state level capacities to deliver on education.”

     Speaking on behalf of the Northwest states, Jigawa State Governor, Umar Namadi, who appreciated the EU for helping the region tackle the menace of out-of-school children, said they were committed to making education in their respective states a priority and have decided to invest heavily in the sector.

    He said: “The Northwestern states have the highest population in the country, we are more disadvantaged when it comes to education so this support is coming at the right time.

    “For each of us education is a priority and we have decided collectively and individually to invest in education and we are ready to change the narrative in next four years.

    “This support has come at the right time and I assure you that this support will go a long way in helping us to revamp education in our various states. This intervention we will utilize in the best way possible and I assure you that the outcomes would be something commendable to improve our educational system and other aspects of social development.”

    Minister of Education, Tahir Mamman, warned that any attempt to downplay education would cost the country a fortune in terms of welfare and security.

    He said: “If our youths are not properly catered for, trained and empowered, we are toying with the future of the country. Not catering for them will allow poverty to grow, insecurity to foster.”

    Mamman, who urged state governors to focus on prioritising education and youth empowerment, disclosed that the soon to be released education sector roadmap covered the same objectives of the European Union in revamping the sector.

     “Our focus is shifting to basic education, out of school children, adolescent girls who need to be trained and empowered. Our government is ready to commit 25% of the budget on education, all the President needs according to him is policies that will justify that budget and that is what we are working on,” Mamman explained.

  • Flights resume at Kaduna Airport

    Flights resume at Kaduna Airport

    After months of suspension due to security threats posed by banditry, flights have resumed at the Hassan Usman Katsina International Airport, Kaduna.

     Arrival of Air Peace flight ERJ-145, which touched down at the airport at 5:10 pm, on Monday marked the resumption of flights on the route.

    It would be recalled that bandits attacked the precinct of the airport in March, last year, and caused flights to be slightly impaired. Though Azman Air continued after some time, it also suspended operations about five months ago.

     The development had forced passengers, especially on the Lagos-Kaduna route, to either land in Kano or Abuja and travel to Kaduna by road.

    Meanwhile, passengers expressed happiness with the Air Peace flight, calling on the government and other relevant agencies to ensure that the Kaduna Airport remains functional.

    Speaking to reporters shortly after the ceremonial welcome given to Air Peace flight, the Airport Manager, Adamu Sheikh said more airlines were set to commence operations, stressing that adequate security has been put in place for aircraft landing and take off. 

    According to him, “more airlines are coming back and we are prepared. We have the cooperation of all the security agencies, everybody wants this airport to function, SK all stakeholders are rallying round us to ensure that this airport is safe for aircraft landing and take-off.”

    Read Also: Insecurity: Flights resume operation at Kaduna Airport

     Air Peace Kaduna Station Manager, Fatima Ndayako explained that the Airline returned to the Kaduna route due to persistent requests from their customers who needed to service them along the route. She however assured that, the Airline will have daily operation to and and fro Kaduna and Lagos.

    Air Peace is the sole airline providing service between Lagos and Kaduna at the Kaduna Airport, offering flights with a capacity of 50 passengers.

    Our Correspondent also gathered that, Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State facilitated the return of flight operations in the state after meeting with airline executives in Abuja. He also held meetings with high-ranking military officers, some of whom were present during the airport’s flight operations resumption.

  • NHRC: Northwest records 1,547 cases of human rights violation

    NHRC: Northwest records 1,547 cases of human rights violation

    No less than 1,547 cases of human rights violations were recorded in the Northwest between January and October, this year, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Kano office, said yesterday.

    Of the figure, about 1,320 had been concluded while 227 cases were still pending, NHRC Kano State Coordinator, Alhaji Shehu Abdullahi, said.

    Abdullahi, who spoke to reporters, said the complaints were focused on six areas: women and gender rights, rights of children, civil and political rights, discrimination and economic and socio-cultural rights.

     He discovered that abandonment of family responsibilities constituted the highest number of the cases with 720 complaints, domestic violence 250, custody and access to children 27, and forceful marriage 10.

    “There are a lot of human rights violations in terms of migration but Nigeria has done well in respect of preserving the rights of migrants.

     “Rights of children constitutes 310, survival and development 300, sexual abuse 10, civil and political rights 32, unlawful arrest and detention 12, threat to life 5, access to justice 15 and discrimination 25,” the NHRC coordinator said.

    Read Also: NHRC calls for action to address humanitarian issues

     He attributed the success recorded to the commitment of the Federal Government, under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu who signed and ratified the protocol of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, on the rights of PWDs in Africa.

     According to him, the records indicate Nigeria’s dedication to promoting inclusivity, accessibility and full realisation of the rights of people living with disabilities.

     He said the NHRC was dedicated to gaining international and local recognition for human rights advancement.

     “This commission (NHRC) has achieved a great milestone at the international level, as it was elected as a governing board member of the global alliance of national human rights institutions and a member of the network of African national human rights institutions working group on migration,” he said.

  • Leave Matawalle out of your predicament, analyst tells Zamfara governor

    Leave Matawalle out of your predicament, analyst tells Zamfara governor

    The governor of Zamfara, Dauda Lawal, has been urged to focus on the governance of the state rather than dissipate energy in discrediting his predecessor and minister of state for defence, Bello Matawwalle.

    The advice was given by a renowned analyst, Deyemi Saka, who said that the immediate task of the governor was to gain the confidence and cooperation of Zamfarans, saying his victory was a subject of dispute.

    He wrote: “From May 29, 2023, when Mr Dauda Lawal assumed office as the governor of Zamfara state, it has been one week, and one alarm raised. One would expect a man whose immediate task is to gain the confidence and cooperation of Zamfarans as his victory was a subject of dispute. It is one media circus or the other.

    “The first major distraction was the allegations that former Governor Bello Matawalle (in his words) had gone away with 17 vehicles from his office and those in the deputy governor’s office claiming that the vehicles were his (Matawalle) personal belongings. He made this claim while on a program on a local radio station in Gusau and further claimed office equipment was not spared,”

    “We all remember how that ended. There was a judicial pronouncement that established that such claims were frivolous, false, ridiculous, and mere exaggeration. After getting a bloodied nose and ego bruised, one would have expected Governor Dauda Lawal and his hatchet men to abandon such an unproductive agenda, but they rather got emboldened.

    Read Also: PDP to Sylva: Quit governorship race in your own interest

    “A few weeks ago, the governor, while missing in action as female students of the Federal University Gusau were abducted from their off-campus residence at Sabo Gida village in Bungudu Local Government Area. While the federal government, through relevant security agencies, embarked on a rescue mission in a bid for Mr. Lawal to save his face because of the leadership naivety and insensitivity he demonstrated by embarking on a foreign trip and refusing to cut short his trip, it was another needless outburst which he claimed the federal government was negotiating with terrorists in the state without his knowledge.

    He further stated: “True to their antics, a faceless group named “Zamfara Circle” issued a statement signed by one Aminu M. Lawal Tsafe mischievously called for the redeployment of the Hon. Minister of State for Defence to another Ministry, Dr. Bello Muhammed Matawalle.

    “Unperturbed and undaunted by his growing unpopularity due to this political witch-hunt and ceaseless display of knowledge of the essence of governance, Gov. Dauda Lawal and his gang are back in the media with another allegation against his predecessor.

    “In a move which is not unexpected, and in a bid to excuse his poor performance since he got into office, the governor claimed the bad financial situation the current administration met in Zamfara State was caused by the past government of Bello Matawalle.

    “In a widely syndicated news report, he alleged that the former governor directed the Ministry of Local Government to withdraw N1 billion from the Local Government Joint Account on October 25, 2021, and to pay N825 million to the contractors therefrom without any valuation. He said this was in complete disregard of due process.

    The analyst stated: “If the recent statement by Mr. Lawal is anything to go by, a downward review of a contract amounts to graft. Claiming that no reputable bidder would not agree to a drastic reduction in cost while none to the scope of work is evidence of corruption is watery and childish.

    “No reputable company will like to lose a good client and its integrity by insisting on defending a proposal that is outlandish, padded, and highly inflated while putting into consideration the economic realities on the ground.

    “Governor Dauda Lawal should be reminded that the coffers of Zamfara State is not a personal bank account of Dr. Matawalle. While it is not open to any debate that as a head of government, he is responsible for the actions and inactions of his administration, this doesn’t mean things were done without recourse to extant laws of our land. Whatever amount that was paid to contractors would have been captured in the State’s Appropriation Act for the year such payment was made.

    “When the news broke that the government of the day provided evidence of embezzlement against the former governor, I was expecting hard facts and documents to back up such claims. I never expected rhetorics and the usual mudslinging. There is a need for the governor to be urged to get busy with a serious business of governance and not commit to being a wailing wailer.”

  • FEC approves Alake’s seven-point agenda for solid minerals development

    FEC approves Alake’s seven-point agenda for solid minerals development

    The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved a draft policy for the solid minerals sector, encompassing all activities, operations, guidelines, regulatory framework, sourcing, and mining, among other dynamics in the sector.

    Tagged the “Agenda for the Transformation of the Solid minerals Sector for international Competitiveness and Domestic Prosperity,” highlights of the agenda includes creation of the Solid Minerals Corporation; Joint Venture with Mining Multinationals; Big Data on specific seven priority minerals and their deposits; Mine surveillance task force and Mine Police amongst others.

    Speaking to newsmen after the FEC meeting, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake stated the approval empowered the ministry to act precisely on various issues, including security measures, combating illegal mining activities across the country, and securing Nigeria’s economic survival.

    ” Solid minerals sector is critical to Nigeria’s economic survival due to ongoing changes in the global oil market, the push for climate change, and the shift towards green energy. Illegal mining activities, from artisanal miners to high-level involvement, are significant challenges. 

    Read Also: FEC okays $5b annual fund for humanitarian, poverty alleviation

    “Hence, government is reorganising the security structure and engaging in inter-agency cooperation to combat the menace.”

    “The approval today, as part of the policy, allows the Solid Minerals Ministry to act on all matters related to deregulation, management, operation, and environmental sanitization of the Solid Minerals sector. This makes the sector more investor-friendly, ensuring security and stability for investments, and attracting both local and foreign investors,” Alake asserted.

    The Minister added that operationalisation of the solid minerals sector through FEC approval will not only sanitize the sector, but consequently lead to the creation of six (6) Mineral Processing Centres to focus on value added products which will ultimately make solid minerals a major revenue and foreign exchange earner for the nation.

  • Northern elders condemn Gumi’s attack on Tinubu, Wike

    Northern elders condemn Gumi’s attack on Tinubu, Wike

    A group of Northern elders under the auspices of Northeast Consolidated Peoples Forum (NCPF) yesterday described the attack on President Bola Tinubu and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyelsom Wike, by the controversial Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmed Gumi, as malicious, inciting and a misinterpretation of their history.

      Its spokesman, Alhaji Mohammed Abba Liman, said in Abuja that the elders distanced themselves from Gumi, adding that he was only speaking his mind and not for the North.

      The group expressed their determination to continue to supportTinubu and Wike.

      Describing Gumi as a “divisive element”, they said it was easy for him to make “unhealthy and inciting statements” because he had not experienced the pains and horrors of war.

      The elders also condemned the religious and ethnic incitements by those they described as “misguided elements and their sponsors” to cause disaffection and disunity in the country,” saying: “such does not represent the collective view and interest of the North, and certainly not Nigeria’s interest”.

      Gumi had taken a swipe at Wike, for receiving the Israeli ambassador who paid him a courtesy visit in his office, describing him as “Satanic” .

    Gumi also accused Tinubu of pursuing a Christian agenda against Muslims, adding that Christians could not be trusted with power because, according to Gumi, if you empower them, they would turn around and kill you.

    He asked the president to sack the FCT minister and said Muslims would rise up against Tinubu and would not allow him to finish his tenure in office.

    The cleric added that it was Christian soldiers who killed northern political leaders in the past.

    The elders group made up of statesmen and women disagreed with the cleric, saying: “We totally condemn such unprovoked divisive statements from a divisive element who is seeking to destabilise the peace and unity of our dear county, Nigeria, for selfish reasons.”

    Read Also: FEC approves constitution of humanitarian, poverty alleviation trust fund

    “The utterance is toxic and it should not be accepted by any decent and sound minded person who loves peace and our Nigeria”.

    The constitution of the Federal Public of Nigeria, according to Liman, “gives power and right to any Nigerian irrespective of tribes, religion and political affiliation to be appointed to any position of power as long as that person operates within the limit of our law.

    “What Nigeria needs now is a consolidation of its peace, unity and progress.

    “We caution profiteers of religious fundamentalism and ethnicity, as well as agents of destabilization and instability to desist henceforth.

    “We, therefore, stand with President BolaTinubu and Chief Nyesom Wike. We indeed stand with Nigeria and, of course, the Nigerian constitution for a better governance system for all Nigeria.”

  • Fed Govt, experts seek expanded mitigation, adaptation financing

    Fed Govt, experts seek expanded mitigation, adaptation financing

    The Federal Government has reiterated its commitment to addressing the menace of climate change and its effects on communities across the country.

    The government said it is not unaware of the economic challenges the climate crisis is having on individuals, communities and the country, the reason behind its resolve to address the issue.

    The Minister of State for Environment, Ishaq Salako stated these yesterday at the National Conference on Climate Change, themed ‘Creating an agenda for sustainable climate finance For Nigeria’ in Abuja.

    He noted that mobilising finance to mitigate the effects of climate change crisis was a critical issue that must be well-articulated and globally implemented.

    According to him, climate change poses a threat to  the nation, and the need for sustainable, and innovative solutions could not be overstated.

    He said: “Nigeria, like many other nations, is grappling with the devastating impacts of climate change, including extreme weather events and ecological disruptions.

    “As we confront these challenges, we must recognise that addressing climate change is not solely an environmental concern. It is an economic, social, and moral imperative that demands coordinated and collective action.

    “In the pursuit of a sustainable climate future, financing plays a pivotal role.We must explore avenues for mobilising financial resources to implement mitigation and adaptation measures.

    “These resources should be directed towards projects that not only reduce our carbon footprint but also enhance the resilience of our communities and ecosystems.

    “The government is fully committed to addressing climate change and promoting sustainable climate finance.’’

    “As we strive to meet these targets, we need the support and active involvement of all stakeholders, including the private sector, civil society organizations, and the international community”.

    Earlier, Executive Director, Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), Akinbode Oluwafemi, said effects of climate change are set to accelerate over the coming years unless progressive climate finance and a well-structured loss and damage funding mechanism are institutionalised and appropriately managed.

    Oluwafemi noted that no part of the country is currently immune to the effects of climate change, saying: “There is, undoubtedly, a need to create a new source of finance that will address climate risks and arrest emission upsurge. Climate finance in Nigeria has relied exclusively on concessional debt which is about 46 per cent and non-concessional debt at 25%.

    “Grant and equity-based finance currently play a relatively minimal role in Nigeria’s climate finance ecosystem, at five per cent and 12 per cent.

    Read Also: Judgment against P&ID freed Nigeria’s global assets from imminent risks – Fagbemi

    “Nigeria’s climate finance is not yet reflective of the country’s vulnerability.

    In his keynote address, entitled: “COP 28: Loss and Damage Fund and the quest for sustainable climate change finance mechanism,” Prof. Lanre Fagbohun, noted that climate change financing requires more commitment from the developed countries than what they are offering now considering how they contribute more to carbon emissions than the developing and underdeveloped regions that suffer the larger share of the effect of the phenomenon.

    Fagbohun, a former Vice Chancellor, Lagos State University (LASU) said: “It has been a long and hard-fought win for the world community to get to where we are today on ‘loss and damage’.

    Its sustainability will depend on how well the mechanisms for funding arrangements and the Fund are structured. The global climate change governance regime as it stands today has not been sufficiently effective. It is bedeviled with contradictions and inequitable conditions of the international system.

    “If the resolutions of COP27 regarding loss and damage are to achieve their goals for the UNFCCC and Paris Agreements, African countries, on their part, must be ready to stand as one to assert their joint position.This is the way to revolutionise Africa’s traditional approach at global negotiations.”