The Nation Newspaper

Category: Northern Reports

  • Matawalle, Ubani, Sani, Wammako, others for award

    Matawalle, Ubani, Sani, Wammako, others for award

    Zamfara State Governor Bello Matawalle, has been nominated for the award of “Governor of the Year” by a leading labour and youth online news platform, Aluta News, as part of activities marking its second year anniversary.

    Other recipients of the awards include Senator Uba Sani, Bashir Idris, Senator Aliyu Wammako, Dr Halimatu Sadiya Muhammad, Nura Sani Kangiwa, Peace Corp of Nigeria, and AUPCTRE, among others.

    Aluta Media Limited, publishers of Aluta News (www.alutanews.ng), said Matawalle was nominated for the prestigious award, having scaled all the strict standards of excellence laid down by the Board of Directors of the media organisation.

    According to the publisher, Comrade Gambo Jagindi, the assessment committee found the governor worthy of the award after taking careful stock of his performance index since he assumed office as the Governor of Zamfara State, and for being the grassroots leader in the Nigerian democratic space.

    ”This distinguished award is in recognition of the governor’s outstanding courage, patriotism in upholding the highest values of integrity and democratic ethics,” Jagindi said.

    The Aluta News second anniversary celebration with the theme “Role of the Youth in Politics” would hold on November 27, 2021, in Abuja.

  • Lawyer faults NBTE’s Abuja property takeover

    Lawyer faults NBTE’s Abuja property takeover

    The forceful takeover of the sprawling structure on Plot 1405, Cadastral Zone 05, Maitama, Abuja, known as Marjanatu House by the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), is an abuse of power, a lawyer, Opeyemi Ajekigbe has said.

    Ajekigbe, who is the lawyer to D, B. Mangal Nigeria Limited, said six officials of the NBTE, accompanied by about 20 thugs on November 11, at about 4:00 p.m. were said to have invaded the property, occupied by Standard Chartered Bank, First Bank among other businesses and chased out all tenant-occupants and locked the gates to the premises.

    According to Ajekigbe, the NBTE had first attempted to claim the property in 2006 through a court case instituted on its behalf by Petroleum Financial Corporate Limited.

    He said while the case, marked FCT/HC/CV/238/2006 was pending, the court, in 2007, issued an interlocutory order for parties to maintain status quo pending the determination of the suit in which NBTE claimed it owned the plot of land being occupied by the property.

    In the final judgment on February 2, 2012, Justice Ugochukwu Ogakwu of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) vacated the interlocutory order and proceeded to determine the case against the plaintiff and held that it failed to establish its claim to the land.

    Justice Ogakwu further held that the plot of land belonged to the defendant D. B. Mangal Nigeria Limited.

    The lawyer said despite the judgment which it did not appeal, the NBTE instigated the now-defunct Special Presidential Panel on Recovery of Public Property (SPIP) led by Okoi Obono Obla to take over the same property in 2019 but failed.

    Ajekigbe said one of the NBTE officials Bashir Abubakar, who allegedly led the invasion, claimed that the Minister of Education authorised the takeover of the building.

    He condemned the decision by the NBTE authorities to resort to self-help, noting that as an educational institution, the body “ought to know better the import of the phrase, due process and the attendant effect of lack of it.”

    The Director of Press and Information, Federal Ministry of Education, Bem Goong dismissed the claim that the Education Minister authorised the takeover of the property.

    Goong wondered how Adamu, who has not been in the country for some time, could authorise such a takeover.

    “The Minister you are talking about has been in Germany for weeks and could not have given such order. Whose house is it? Does the Minister just give orders for the takeover of houses?” Goong queried.

  • Fed Govt distributes utensils to Benue cooks

    Fed Govt distributes utensils to Benue cooks

    The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development has distributed feeding utensils for the use of pupils on the National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme (NHGSFP).

    At the handing over event, the Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Tony Ijohor  (SAN) commended the initiative to distribute the items and assured the minister of the support of the state government for the National Social Investment Programmes to ensure a greater number of Benue people are lifted out of poverty.

    Governor Ortom disclosed that the state government had, in 2017, distributed cooking utensils in excess of N400 million to cooks recruited for the programme and funded training on personal safety and hygiene and COVID-19 protocols to mitigate incidences of disease outbreak and food poisoning in schools benefitting from the National Home Grown School Feeding Programme.

    The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya Umar Farouk, represented by an Assistant Director in the ministry, Mr Ladan Haruna said the National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme is one of the programmes designed by the Federal Government to address poverty in the society.

    She revealed that the Federal Government partners with state governments to deliver the programme, adding that over nine million pupils are being fed by over 100,000 cooks.

  • Banditry: Katsina engages 500 vigilante groups

    Banditry: Katsina engages 500 vigilante groups

    The Katsina State Government has engaged additional 500 vigilante groups to complement the activities of security agencies in the ongoing counter-engagements against banditry in the state.

    The Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Mustapha Muhammad Inuwa, disclosed this in his office when he received the interim report from the security committees on the engagement of additional vigilante members. The committee was led by the Special Adviser on Security, Alhaji Ibrahim Katsina. He disclosed that the measures were part of the efforts by the state government to restore peace in Katsina State.

    A member of the Security Committee representing Daura Emirate Council, and also a retired Deputy Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Lawal Al-Hassan said the Committee selected 13 vigilante groups  from each local government area of the state, who were of proven courage and integrity.

    Chairman of the Security Committee and also Special Adviser to Governor Aminu Masari on Security, Alhaji Ibrahim Katsina said the process was part of community policing concept that will augment the efforts of security personnel in curtailing insecurity.

    Also, Katsina State Governor Aminu Bello Masari yesterday presented the sum of N340, 951,912,557 as the 2022 Katsina budget tagged “Budget of Economic Resilience” to the Assembly.

    Presenting the budget, the Governor said section 121 (1) of the Constitution empowered the state governor to prepare and lay before the House of Assembly estimates of the revenues and expenditures of the state for the next financial year.

    He further noted that despite the numerous challenges the state government is facing, especially in terms of low revenue earning and insecurity in some parts of the state, implementation of the 2021 Budget has recorded some progress.

    He said: “Indeed we have designed a plan of action for the 2022 financial year that will ensure completion of development projects, especially roads and infrastructure, water supply, health, education, agriculture, and environment. The 2022 Budget is, therefore, tagged “Budget of Economic Resilience.

    “The total budget for the 2022 fiscal year is in the sum of N340, 951,912,557, with 69.85 per cent capital expenditure and 30.40 per cent recurrent expenditure. In aggregate terms, the 2022 Budget is higher than that of the 2021 revised budget by N48, 064,131, 214.

    “The 2022 Budget is structured with a total recurrent expenditure of N102, 800,756, 244 which is equivalent to 30.15 per cent of the total budget and capital expenditure of N238, 151,156,313.00 which is 69.85 per cent of the total budget.

    “The total amount projected to finance the 2022 Budget is the sum of N175, 105, 396,188.00 which comprises N61, 664,771, 966 as Internally Generated Revenues from the State Board of Internal Revenue and other MDAs. The Revenue Receivable through the Federation Account is estimated at N100, 940, 624, 222 with an Opening Balance of N12, 500,000,000.”

    Masari assured the people that the government complete all the projects being executed before the end of his tenure.

  • ‘Don’t induce parents to accept child immunisation’

    The District Head of Kiyawa and member of Routine Immunisation Committee of Kiyawa Local Government Area, Alhaji Adamu Aliyu Kiyawa, has condemned the act of bribing parents in Jigawa and other states in the North before they accept the routine immunisation of their babies. He decried the 12.3 per cent child mortality rate as a result of pneumonia.

    The antenatal and post-natal health care advocate expressed dismay over the state government’s policy of inducing parents with material things in order to accept routine immunisation in the state.

    Kiyawa expressed his displeasure while speaking at a town hall meeting in his palace as part of this year’s International Pneumonia Day celebration organised by Save the Children International (SCI).

    He said: “It is improper to encourage bribery and corruption even in the health care services to the community.”

    Alhaji Adamu Aliyu further explained that “it is the duty of every responsible government to provide basic health care services to its people. Also, it’s the government’s responsibility to encourage the populace to accept any useful policies and programmes by the government that will impact positively on the social and economic lives of the citizens in the areas of health, education, and security, among others.”

  • Kwara leads APC States in developmental strides

    Kwara leads APC States in developmental strides

    Kwara at the weekend emerged with the highest number of points in the September edition of the Progressive Strides, the monthly bulletin tracking the performance of the 21 All Progressives Congress (APC) States.

    Kwara ticked 26 points to top the table followed by Lagos (21) and Jigawa and Kebbi which had 16 strides apiece for the month under review.

    “The entries for the edition witnessed more improvements as regards developmental strides collated from the (Progressive Governors’) Forum States in 2021,” Salihu Mohammed Lukman, Director General of the Forum, wrote in the preface to the 63rd edition of the report.

    Read Also: AbdulRazaq introduces KwaraLEARN

    “In general, there is an all-around increase in the pattern of initiatives introduced by the States with Kwara State recording most initiatives for this month having twenty six (26) development strides.

    “These cut across economic development, education, science and technology, health and nutrition, agriculture and rural development, infrastructure, security and sensitisation, empowerment and innovation, environment and hygiene, transportation and finally sports and youths development.

    “Lagos State follows with 21 strides while Jigawa and Kebbi trail with 16 each. Gombe and Kaduna recorded 15 strides each; Nasarawa and Ogun 14 each; Ekiti and Niger 13 each; Kano and Katsina 10 each; while Ebonyi got 9 strides. Kogi recorded 8 strides; Cross River, Osun and Yobe got six 6 each, as Borno and Ondo had four each. Finally, 3 strides were recorded in Imo and Zamfara States each.”

    Kwara has repeatedly topped the table of the Forum’s Strides since it was introduced.

  • Northern governors greet Emir of Argungu on 25th anniversary

    Northern governors greet Emir of Argungu on 25th anniversary

    The Northern Governors Forum has congratulated the Emir of Argungu, His Royal Highness Alhaji Samaila Muhammad Mera on his 25th anniversary on the throne.

    Chairman of the forum and Governor of Plateau State, Simon Lalong, in a statement, said the royal father has shown tremendous passion for the development of his people, especially in the areas of education, health and economic prosperity.

    READ ALSO: PDP chair: Northern governors, leaders split over slot

    He commended him for working with the state government in reviving the Argungu Fishing Festival, which he said has brought back the historic culture of the Emirate.

  • Contract controversy: Adamawa dismisses Gombi Hospital fraud allegation

    Contract controversy: Adamawa dismisses Gombi Hospital fraud allegation

    The Adamawa State Government has okayed the quality and pace of work on the Gombi Cottage Hospital, a secondary healthcare facility located at the headquarters of the Gombi local government area north of the state.

    The government has said that the cottage hospital, a 60-bed facility, is one of the best executed of ongoing government projects as against speculation gaining ground which suggests otherwise.

    Commissioner of Information and Strategy of the state, Dr Umar Pella, who in Wednesday conducted newsmen round the site against a news story earlier on Tuesday describing the project as abandoned, said work never stopped on the project and that it would be completed on schedule.

    Questions first arose on the Gombi Cottage Hospital last month when at a stakeholders meeting in the state capital, Yola, some community and youth leaders from Gombi alleged that work had stopped on the project and that what had been done so far was substandard.

    Fielding questions from newsmen at the project site on Wednesday, however, the information commissioner said, “The contractor is doing well. He is one of our best. The construction is about to be completed as you have seen. So I don’t understand where the talk about being abandoned is coming from.”

    Read Also: Seven confimed killed in attack on Adamawa community

    He concluded that on the side of the contractor and the government funding the project, the project is on course.

    However, he admitted, in response to a question about a court suit regarding the hospital project, that some members of the host community who are dissatisfied with the allocation of the hospital land, instituted a case.

    He said the suit might have contributed to the atmosphere of doubt about the project, but that a process was on to sort out the land allocation issue and vaccate the suit.

    Earlier in a separate interview, the project manager overseeing site work, Arch Prambi Kwabe told newsmen that work on the Gombi Cottage Hospital had reached 90 percent and that the contractor was determined to deliver the project by end of next month.

    Kwabe said work never stopped from the beginning of the project in April this year, hence nobody could rightly describe the project as abandoned.

  • Medicaid wins best cancer NGO award

    Medicaid wins best cancer NGO award

    The Federal Ministry of Health has presented the best cancer NGO of the year award to the Medicaid Cancer Foundation (MCF) in recognition of its outstanding contribution to national and international cancer control efforts.

    MCF was founded 13 years ago by Dr Zainab Shinkafi-Bagudu in response to a need to improve cancer care in Nigeria. Her visionary leadership has brought access to high-impact medicines and treatment, and support to hundreds of cancer patients. MCF has also led advocacies for the passage of key legislation to reduce the burden of cancer treatment in Nigeria, such as the Cancer Health Fund.

    While receiving the award, Dr Bagudu, who is also a member of the Board of Directors, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), said this is a wonderful achievement for my team and our supporters, it encourages us to keep doing more to improve the lot of cancer patients in Nigeria.

    “Dr Zainab is the heart and soul of advocacy in Nigeria. She is our source of inspiration, her passion for the elimination of Cervical Cancer especially, drives us to do better in our respective scope of work. Without her leadership, we would not have had so many significant wins.

    She has influenced changes in the landscape of cancer control policy in Nigeria.

    “We are very proud of our accomplishments thus far, even in the early years when we were just the seed of an idea, we were earnest about changing the cancer paradigm in Nigeria,” said Hadiza A-Arome, who leads the patient access to cancer care programme at the foundation.

    The guest speaker Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu spoke on how NGOs can explore financial opportunities to fund cancer care in Nigeria. He further commended the efforts of the wives of other state governors in fighting cancer in their states.

  • 4,000 FCT PDP, APGA members defect to APC

    4,000 FCT PDP, APGA members defect to APC

    Ahead of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Councils’ election slated for February 2022, no less than 4, 000 party faithful have dumped opposition parties to join the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwali Area Council of the territory.

    Receiving the defectors to the APC fold, the FCT Minister of State, Dr Ramatu Aliyu assured them of justice and fairness among members of the ruling party. She called on others who are yet to join to do so.

    The Minister, who described the event as a ‘harvest’ of over 4,000 members, expressed delight that most of the defectors are former leaders of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), in the Federal Capital Territory.

    Aliyu also urged them to use their political weight to ensure victory for the party in 2022 and beyond.

    She, however, appealed to old and new members of the ruling party to work together in peace and be law-abiding, just as she emphasised the supremacy of party decisions.

    The Minister said: “We are here to receive over 4,000 of our brothers and sisters who have decided to join the ruling APC. They came from various political parties, especially the major opposition parties, the PDP and APGA. According to a statement issued on Friday by her Special Assistant Media, Austine Elemue, the Minister, who acknowledged that the occasion was not to kick-off campaign for the council elections, however, challenged party members to support continuity in governance.

    The APC Chairman in FCT, Abdulmalik Usman revealed that some of the defectors are founding members of the All Progressives Congress before they jumped ship.