The member representing Jos North-North State Constituency in the Plateau State House of Assembly, Ibrahim Baba-Hassan has empowered no fewer than 4,000 women with skills to become self-reliant.

The gesture, according to Baba Hassan, was aimed at providing financial freedom for women to lessen the burden on men for a better standard of living for families, give communities a sense of fulfilment. The event was held at Islamiya Primary School in Jos.

The women were trained in how to make cream, perfume, cakes, tailoring, computers and pastries and cosmetics, among others.

Baba-Hassan, who is also the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for Jos North Bassa Federal Constituency for the House of Representatives said women remained an indispensable tool for creating wealth, boosting the family economy, and building a stable family in the multiple roles as mothers, homemakers, farmers, traders and community leaders.

Baba-Hassan said that in the past two months, he has empowered over 2,500 women with N10, 000 each as starter packs to commence small and medium-scale businesses.

He reiterated his determination to ensure that more women are empowered with N10, 000 before January next year.

He said aside from the cash, he intends to empower about 20, 000 women and youths with different trades for efficiency and effective growth and development.

According to him, experts and policy-makers agree that empowering women, especially poor rural women, is fundamental to economic development.

The Director of Millennium Bulldozer, Saudat Hussan Adam said the programme would be in five stages with no fewer than 4,000 women to be trained in skills to become better citizens.

Some of the beneficiaries of the skills acquisition Esther Dung, Emmanuel Nyam and Aishatu Abubakar, expressed their gratitude to the lawmaker for touching women’s lives through skills. They added that the initiative will not only empower women but will also foster tolerance in their communities.

The tenure of local government chairmen in Yobe State will end on November 3 2022. However, The Nation’s investigation revealed that the Yobe State Independent Electoral Commission (YSIEC) has not commenced preparations to conduct fresh local government elections.

It was also gathered that the 90-day constitutional notice of election is already violated as no notice on the date for a new election has been served on stakeholders, including security personnel, political parties and IPAC from the commission.

In 2021, the State House of Assembly amended the Local Government Law through a resolution and reduced the tenure of the elected chairmen and councillors from 24 months to 20 months.

The current chairmen and councillors who were elected on February 27 2021, and sworn in on March 3 2021, are bound to vacate office on November 3 2022.

Efforts to get the Chairman of YSIEC, Dr Mamman Mamman to comment on the matter were futile, as he did not pick up his calls or respond to the text messages sent to him.

A source from the commission, who spoke to our correspondent in confidence, said “the commission is frustrated at the moment because; the state government was alerted on 90 days to the expiration of the tenure of these local government chairmen. But, since then, no response has been received from the state government.”

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The source also expressed worry over the possibility of facing legal action if elections are not conducted within the stipulated period.

“You know the law prohibits the appointment of local government caretaker committee chairmen. Even President Muhammadu Buhari and the Senate have warned that no state government should appoint any caretaker chairman but conduct elections instead. I am afraid with the silence from the state government, we may not meet the requirements of the law and someone may decide to slam legal action against the state government and the commission,” the source said.

But when contacted, the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in the State Barrister Saleh Samanja said he is aware of the implication and has also advised the government on what to do. He insisted that the state will not appoint local government caretakers.

“No caretaker will be put in place,” he responded.

On how it will be feasible with the 90 days’ notice already elapsed, the Chief Law Officer of the State said “we will cross the bridge when we come to it.”

Another source close to the government hinted that the state government at the moment is cash-strapped and therefore not interested in investing huge resources in the conduct of local government elections, especially with the general elections also very close.

The source added that “the governor intends to conduct the local government election after the general elections when he will be sworn in for his second tenure.”

Our findings revealed that up to half a billion naira would be required to conduct the election. The last election cost the commission about N400 million.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is set to partner with the Cross River State Health Insurance Agency (CRSHIA) to fight malaria.

In a meeting with CRSHIA in Calabar, the USAID’s Malaria Management Specialist in Nigeria, Dr Veronica Momoh said they wanted to know the readiness of the scheme for a possible collaboration to end malaria in the state.

Momoh said through the contribution of the United States President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI), they had been able to support Nigeria’s national malaria elimination programme to ensure a malaria-free Nigeria.

She said PMI’s goal was to reduce severe malaria and its attendant complications and also to reduce complications associated with malaria.

“PMI aims to reduce all causes of under-five and maternal mortality by delivering quality services for the management of malaria and its complications.

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“It also aims to prevent malaria during pregnancy which puts the life of mother and child at risk by providing drugs, insecticide-treated nets and other commodities,” she said.

The Director-General of CRSHIA, Mr Godwin Iyala, told the team that the state health insurance scheme had a robust package that covered malaria in its entirety because of its prevalence in tropical Africa.

Iyala said the scheme’s 100 per cent malaria coverage was its own contribution and effort at ensuring that malaria was eliminated.

“In line with best practices, we plan to deliver quality, affordable and accessible health care services that will eliminate catastrophic consequences and out-of-pocket expenditures for health care.

“We have tried to ensure that the 196 primary health care facilities across the state’s 18 local government areas and all the general hospitals are accessible for primary or secondary care as the case may be.

“Also, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed with the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) for tertiary referrals when the need arises,” he said.

He thanked USAID for the partnership, adding that their names would remain in the history books for assisting to enthrone universal health coverage in Cross River.

The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God Worldwide (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye is set to visit Bauchi to hold a two-day ‘Light Up Bauchi’ mega crusade.

The mega crusade, which will take place at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Stadium, Bauchi today and tomorrow, is organised by the RCCG in collaboration with the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).

Read Also; Pastor Adeboye in Jos preaches unity among Christians

Prominent Christian clerics such as Pastor Joe Olaiya, Prophet Isa El-Buba, and Pastor Ishaku Chinook, among others, are billed to attend the crusade.

The Special Assistant to Pastor Adeboye on Personnel, Pastor Julius Olalekan, said music ministers expected to attend include Dr Panan Percy Paul, Solomon Lange, Friday Jibo, the classical choir of Bauchi State, and the Mass Choir.

Olalekan, who is in charge of region 17 of Bauchi, Adamawa, Borno, Gombe, Yobe, and Taraba states of the Northeast said arrangements for the success of the crusade were in top gear.

He said it’s not just a denominational gathering but a gathering of all Christians.

The Federal Capital Territory Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has advised residents to comply with early flood warnings from the weather forecast agencies.

The Director-General of FEMA, Alhaji Abba Idriss, advised 2022, FEMA Annual Review and Preparedness Meeting with over 250 local divers, community vanguards, flood rescue teams and 50 town criers.

Idriss said the meeting came at a time when flood warnings from the weather forecast agencies, especially the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) and the Nigerian Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) are issuing serious flood alerts almost every day.

According to him, as soon as the agency gets an early warning on floods, it will disseminate the information so that people will take advantage of the early information.

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He, therefore, urged residents to ensure that they get information about the way they will pass through before leaving their homes, offices and markets.

“FCT residents must also ensure that they don’t block drainage, avoid building on the waterways.”

The Director of Forecasting Response Mitigation of FEMA Mrs Florence Wenegieme said the event was organised to review situations with stakeholders, especially the local divers, volunteers, vanguards, local emergency committee and town criers.

“We have almost 600 volunteers, local divers, and town criers. The meeting is by representation,” she said.

The Director-General, Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA), Mr Clement Nze, reiterated the resolve of the agency to deepen its partnership with FEMA in coordinating water and flooding issues.

The Africa Polling Institute (API), a non-profit research institute has said that the domestication of the Discrimination against Persons with Disability Act (2018) remained crucial to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Nigeria.

The institute made this known at the “National Disability Data in Nigeria Report” launch in Abuja.

The report, an important component of the Nigeria Disability Research Project, was carried out by the institute, in collaboration with the National Bureau of Statistics.

The project, which had the support of the Ford Foundation, was done to develop a reservoir of data of People with Disabilities (PWDs).

Only 13 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have domesticated the Act.

The Acting Executive Director of API, Dr Olugbenga Ogunmefun said the lack of data on PWDs had contributed to the various problems and challenges facing the group.

Read Also; Bill to increase retirement age for people with disability scales second reading 

He added that to enhance the functionality and productivity of PWDs, deliberate efforts must be made towards domesticating the Act in all states and the FCT.

“In 2021, we had a grant from the Ford Foundation to go into the disability community to gather data and to have action research, about the domestication of the Disability Act as signed by President Muhammadu Buhari. We did that and we have four reports at the end of the whole exercise.

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the Lagos State University and a scholar on the project, Prof. Elias Wahab, said it was important for Nigeria to promote an inclusive society for all.

Wahab said: “Nigeria will gain a lot from this report because if we look at the SDGs, about five of them concern people with disabilities.”

The Consultant to API, Dr Israel Balogun added that massive awareness on the plights of persons with disabilities must be made by the government.

Also, Faith and Good Works of Destiny (FAGWO D) has concluded arrangements to train about 10 million Nigerians in food production.

The group said the move became imperative following the spate of poverty and economic decline in the country.

The Chief Executive Officer of FAGWOD, Bishop Eberechris Agakaizu, said this during a press conference whose theme was “Nigeria of Our Vision,” in Abuja at the weekend.

The supporters of the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), have cautioned a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara and an ex-Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Babachir Lawal to stop overheating the polity over the Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu/Senator Kashim Shettima 2023 presidential ticket.

Dogara and Lawal had vowed to mobilise against the APC in the 2023 presidential election for fielding Tinubu and Shettima.

“This (APC) ticket must never succeed. And we will make sure we defeat it in such a resounding manner that nobody in his right senses will ever think about it again,” Lawal said recently in a televised interview.

At the launch of Asiwaju Trumpeters, a Tinubu presidential support group in Abuja, its Deputy National Coordinator, Lookman Alawaye, warned Dogara and Lawal against stoking the fire of hatred, animosity and bigotry.

Read Also: Tinubu will win 2023 presidency, fix Nigeria – South West Arewa community

Alawaye said: “We all know that what is most critical in Nigeria is religion and could easily be misused to trigger violence.

“We appeal to them to be calm and retrace their steps and see reason with us. In politics, there is no permanent friend and enemy. Sometimes, we are friends; other times, we are foes.”

Alawaye said while he aligned with those that had raised concern about the APC same-faith ticket, he said competence and capacity should not be sacrificed for religiosity.

He urged critics to look at the antecedents and capacity of the APC presidential and vice-presidential candidates, Tinubu and Kashim Shettima respectively, who he said, were not known to be religious bigots.

“The APC Muslim-Muslim ticket is not inimical to the growth of the economy, security and welfare of the citizens,” he said.

The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye has urged Christian to be united irrespective of their denominations.

Adeboye advised the church at the Chapel of Mercy, Dadin-Kowa Jos yesterday.

He said he was in Jos to commiserate with the family of the founder and Senior Pastor of Chapel of Mercy, the late Rev. Isaac Oyebamiji as well as members of the church.

Adeboye, who described the deceased as one of his spiritual sons, apologised for his inability to visit immediately after Oyebamiji died. Adeboye advised family members of the deceased to emulate the good ways of their father and sustain the legacies he left behind.

Read Also; 2023: God hasn’t shown me Nigeria’s next President – Kumuyi

The wife of the deceased, Pastor Olutoyin Oyebamiji thanked Adeboye for the visit and described it as encouraging.

Adeboye was accompanied on the visit by his wife, Foluke.

Oyebamiji, 64, died in February after a brief illness in the United States.

He held a doctoral degree in Ministry, with emphasis on “Leadership and Preaching” from the Asbury Theological Seminary, Kentucky, U.S.A.