Category: Northern Reports

The National Coordinator of the Disciples of Jagaban (DOJ) has commended Kano State Governor Abdullah Ganduje for his great achievements and for being one of the leading progressive governors in the country.

Comrade Abdulhakeem Adegoke Alawuje, who gave the commendation when he visited the Governor at the weekend, said Ganduje remains one of the leaders who silently work to secure the future of Nigeria without playing to the gallery.

The Coordinator, who joined members of the Council of Ulama of Nigeria along with Commissioners and members of the State Executive Council on an infrastructure tour urged other governors to borrow a leaf from Ganduje by prioritising human and infrastructure development without employing propaganda and politicking.

“The courageous efforts of spreading meaningful projects across the states by Governor Ganduje must be praised. We saw different kinds of legacy projects.

“The Governor’s laudable achievements include youths’ empowerment that touches varying professions, many modern hospitals, including standard cancer centres and novel employment programmes that are all-encompassing. Such strides must be imitated by other governors in the 36 states of the federation.

Alawuje stressed that DOJ has seen a semblance of good governance inherent in their principal, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu in Governor Ganduje.

“Ganduje is a thorough-bred Nigerian who has made Kano, which used to be the hotbed of tribal and religious crises, into a home for everybody. Despite provocations from other parts of Nigeria, Kano has remained peaceful and accommodating to all other tribes.

“The DOJ appeals to all stakeholders in Kano State to team up with Ganduje in his onerous task of repositioning the state. Such support will further encourage the governor to redouble his effort to achieve more to the benefit of the state, the country and posterity.”

Ahead of the 2023 general election, Northern Nigerian leaders and youth have warned that any political party that fields an aged, incompetent, or incapable candidate should forget the region’s votes.

According to a statement issued on Friday in Abuja,  after the Maitama Sule Leadership Lecture Series organized by the Students Wing of Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG), Borno State Chapter, spokesperson of the Northern Elders Forum, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, warned that the North would turn its back on any party that deliberately and specifically tilts advantages to candidates from particular regions.

He said:  “The next President should emerge from a credible election from any part of the country, but he or she must be first and foremost a Nigerian President and those Northerners with ambition to run for the office should know that Northern Elders Forum, Coalition of Northern Groups and many others are not merely supporting the emergence of a Northerner to succeed President Buhari.

“The North does not need to flash its scorecard on commitment to national unity and the democratic process and that it has paid a huge price for the unity and survival of this country, for which it has no regrets.

“The North has never been a parasite in Nigeria, and while the North believes that it serves all interests to stay as one united country, it will however be “difficult for us to continue to defend our co-existence if it can only be achieved at our permanent expense.”

He said those who should question their own commitments are people who threaten to leave the country or make it ungovernable if the next President does not bear all the hallmarks of their preferences.

Taking a swipe at President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration,  he said it has dropped the ball in the manner it had allowed insecurity, irredentism, corruption, poverty, national cohesion, unemployment of the young  and faith in the democratic process to become a way of life in Nigeria today.

He noted that with the unglorifying record of performance of the Buhari administration, which many mischievously see as solely a Northern creation, Northerners are also deeply skeptical that being Northern alone is not enough to make a good leader.

He however, said, the  state of the North today represents the best caution that what you see as yours is not necessarily the best where you have a choice, and every Nigerian must have a choice.

According to him: “If a Northerner is to become the next President with our votes in the North, then he has to be the best among all others. He has to convince us in the North that he understands our problems, and has the capacity to solve them. He must have the disposition, energy, health and intelligence to heal the breached pluralism of the North and build bridges across the entire nation.

“He has to be able to lead a country that is failing in a number of significant areas. A personal ambition to be President will not be enough, and we will scrutinize and advise those who will listen, to avoid the temptation to put in place persons who just want power, but not responsibility.

“A president from the North must have the exposure and network to reintegrate all parts of Nigeria into one country and one vision. He must have the courage to eliminate threats of insurgents, bandits, kidnappers, irredentists, impunity, the drugs pandemic and corruption.

“He must lead with a sense of mission and urgency; the wisdom to negotiate where necessary and the clout to hit hard where he needs to; and a clear understanding of the sources and nature of our threats and their solutions.

“The point must be made again that every Nigerian, irrespective of his political party or identity must be free to contest within his or her party to be fielded as a Presidential candidate, and we should reject any party that specifically and deliberately excludes any Nigerian from exercising the same right other Nigerians have,” he said.

The Former National Secretary, Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) and Overseer of Throneroom (Trust) Ministry, Kafanchan in Kaduna, Apostle (Dr) Emmanuel Nuhu Kure has opined that  Nigeria has lost its conscience, as a nation.

Apostle Kure who made the statement in Kaduna shortly after the marking the 30 anniversary of his Ministry and his 42-years as a preacher said, “Nigeria must start by going back to God and allow Him purge our consciences,” for everything to be back on track.

The event had in attendance: Pastor Enoch Adeboye, of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, (RCCG); Governor of Akwa-Ibom State, Emmanuel Udom; Former governor of Plateau State, Sen. Jonah Jang; Senator representing Southern Kaduna, Sen. Danjuma La’ah; former Ministers of Information, Prof. Jerry Gana, Labaran Mako and other dignitaries.

According to Apostle Kure, Nigerians are going through serious hardship on a daily basis and as a result of that, he called on the members of the National Assembly to urgently rescue  the economy.

“The Naira is just going moribund. The poor are dying as I’m talking to you. So when the politicians beat their chest that they have done well, they are just talking for themselves.

“Ask us the clergy who meet the poor. Every day, we feed the poor. Every month we give an offering here and we buy bags of rice and gari every month to distribute to the poor. We were not doing that 3 years ago.

“We know that the lockdown from COVID-19 has affected so many things but many economies across the world have rebounded.

“Nigeria is only rebounding on paper and on TV where what the government has done is announced … but the public we meet every day are not singing the same song.”

While warning those  working against the progress of the country that the wind of justice from God  will soon “wipe them” out,  the clergy maintained that the only thing that can liberate the country is the truth.

He said Nigeria has  has lost its conscience , as a nation  “we must start by going back to God  and allow him purge our consciences,” for every to be back on track.

“Whether they be Muslims, Christians or any other, it’s time for truth to set this country free. And that’s the only solution.  We need crusaders to save the nation.

“The Almighty who created the earth is about to begin selective justice that will bring stability to this nation. So a lot of things are about to change

Apostle Kure however noted that “doing Ministry work in Southern Kaduna or any part of the north and growing this big is not the easiest. With all the insecurity and the killings and losses one will incur if any of these facilities is raised down.

“They are billions of Naira and God has kept these facilities for 30 years one after the other for 30 years. The hospital is here, and during crises, the people come out to defend the hospital because it helps Muslims,  it helps Christians , the poor and the rich.”

In his remarks, Pastor Adeboye thanked the apostle for naming a prayer tower after him and donated N30 million for its completion.

In speech,  the state governor Mallam Nasir El-Rufai who was represented by his deputy, Hadiza Balarabe commended the ministry for its corporate social responsibility in the state.

He however urged Kaduna residents to continue to embrace peace and unity in order to defeat insecurity ravaging the state and the country at large.

Also, Senator representing Southern Kaduna Senatorial District, Danjuma La’ah called on the people of the region to continue to give their necessary support for the Man of God who has contributed immensely to the growth and development of the region.

“Apostle Kure has remained one of the great sons of Southern Kaduna who have given scholarships to hundreds of our teaming youths.”

While commenting on the insecurity, he said the region is witnessing relative peace at the moment while calling on the Federal Government to deploy more security in the area.

Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III has urged Africa to look inward in the hiding treasures of wisdom of its past to get solutions to the challenges facing the continent.

He made the appeal yesterday during the symposium on the Islamic African Heritage: Memory and History held in Abuja by the King Mohammed VI Foundation of African Ulamas.

The Sultan noted that Islamic heritage in Africa was very rich and deep, adding that there was a huge collection of manuscripts in private, public universities and libraries and research centres.

“At a time where Africa needs fresh ideas for its rejuvenation, we need to look inward in the hiding treasures of wisdom of our past.

“This will enable us to get the impetus to chart a new course that will address and solve the many problems facing us today.

“I am confident that in the rich legacies of ours, we shall find that which our grandfather’s found which made them build the great empires of the great of the past and contributed to humanity like all other civilisations.”

In his address on behalf of the General Secretariat of Mohammed VI Foundation of African Ulamas, Dr Si Mohammed Rifki, said that the seminar was a concrete step towards the fulfilment of one of the Foundation’s objectives, in keeping with the pledge to implement the proposals and recommendations adopted by the members of the Committee for the revival of the African Islamic heritage, with all its chapters.

He said the Foundation paid tribute to Nigeria which is steep in history and which boasts a rich cultural heritage as well as many prestigious libraries, universities and scientific centers by hosting the meeting in Abuja.

He said King Mohammed VI of Morocco wanted to make the Foundation of African Oulema is a prominent platform for the preservation of the faith and its provisions, including the specificities of the heritage of African peoples.

The language the world goes by today is that of science and the production of knowledge. Therefore, African Oulema have no other alternative but to develop new visions for the future. They should open up vast horizons which clearly show that these

Oulema are part and parcel of a world that nurtures great hopes for the promotion of science, for the production of knowledge and for the preservation of memory and of cultural heritage. This will inevitably require a good command of the international languages of science which encourage research and translation, both of which are closely related to scientific research and creativity.

Governor of Kwara State, Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq has commissioned the newly renovated ICT laboratory in Government Secondary School Ilorin, renovated by YouthHubAfrica – a non – governmental organisation.

Executive Director, YouthHubAfrica, Rotimi Olawale, said the ICT Lab would improve the learning, teaching and creative capacity of secondary school students.

According to Olawale, the ICT laboratory, renovated by YouthHubAfrica with support from Huawei Technologies, is equipped with thirty-one (31) state-of-the-art computers, UPS, overhead projector and other ICT facilities.

In a statement in Abuja, Olawale said the lab would improve the standard of Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) related courses as well as innovation amongst students so as to enable them develop their skill set and provide a level playing field with their counterparts globally.

“Technology is a crucial part of today’s world and a key solution towards bridging the current skill gap. The renovated ICT will not only broaden their horizon but present the younger generation with global opportunities and position them at the forefront of 21st century innovation,” the statement said.

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has promised to treat serving and retired personnel, including their spouses for cancer-related diseases after conducting free cancer screening in Abuja.

The Chief of Medical Services NAF, Air Commodore Olabode Babalola disclosed this during the one-day Cancer Awareness Programme and screening in Abuja organised by the Nigerian Air Force Officers’ Wives’ Association (NAFOWA) in commemoration of the Breast Cancer Awareness Day which is marked globally to raise awareness of Breast Cancer and to encourage its prevention, detection and treatment.

He said some of such cases are presented to the hospital late by which time treatment would make very little impact.

According to him, cancer is responsible for 72,000 deaths in Nigeria every year with an estimated 102,000 new cases diagnosed annually.

He stressed the need for the people to give priority to preventive action as early detection is important in the fight against cancer.

“It is in line with this that the free screening services for cancers of the Breast and Cervix would be provided today at the NAFOWA cancer screening centre.”

He said the gesture underscores the commitment of the NAFOWA leadership towards improving the well-being of the Air Force family at large.

Speaking on the topic “Reducing Cancer Scourge in Nigeria,” the guest lecturer Dr Uchechukwu Nneka Shagaya, Consultant Clinical/Radiation Oncologist National Hospital Abuja said in 2008, cancer was responsible for 13 per cent of 56 million deaths.

This makes the need to screen for early detection or prevention by adopting healthy lifestyles necessary.

Satisfied with the recent successes recorded against the bandits in some communities in Kaduna, Zamfara and Katsina state, Niger State Governor and Chairman North Central states Governors’ Forum (NCSGF) Abubakar Sani Bello has praised the military for carrying out air and ground strikes that neutralised the activities of the bandits.

The Governor said in a statement that the battle against the criminals must not only be sustained but also extended simultaneously to other neighbouring states such as Niger State.

Governor Bello, who expressed regret over the recent killing of 18 people and the kidnap of some members of Mazakuka and Kaboji communities in Mashegu Local Government Area, as well as the kidnap of no less than 30 travellers at Garun Gabas in Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State, noted that the bandits could be totally eliminated if the assault on them is carried out simultaneously.

The Governor stated that change in tactics against the bandits has become necessary because “when the bandits become overwhelmed by the military might in a particular state, they move to another.”

He cited the recent trend where they moved to Niger and Sokoto states as a result of the offensive in Zamfara, Kaduna and Katsina states.

“The bandits run to other states once they feel the pressure of the military,” he said.

He noted that there is existing joint security collaboration among the affected states.

The Governor also said he is sustaining his weekly meetings with Heads of security agencies to review their strategy on how to curtail the criminal activities of the bandits.

He urged residents of the affected communities to provide credible intelligence to the security agencies so that the simultaneous military operation can be successful.