Category: South West

Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi has approved the appointment of 14 Permanent Secretaries, two General Managers and six Executive Secretaries.

A statement yesterday by his Chief Press Secretary, Yinka Oyebode, said the appointment was in a bid to further strengthen the leadership of the Civil Service for greater service delivery.

According to him, confirmation of the appointments followed the scaling of examinations in Information Communication Technology (ICT), Civil Service Procedures and General Knowledge.

The Permanent Secretaries are Johnson Adeola; Mrs. Taiwo Akinbolawa; Babatunde Adesola; Mrs. Omotola Faseluka and Tajudeen Adejumo.

Others are Emmanuel Jegede; Oluwadare Jolumo; Mrs. Oyeyemi Kayode-Ojo; Mrs. Mercy Adaran; Olasunkanmi Alabi; Michael Omolayo; Adeyinka Arogundade; Aderemi Ogunsemoyin and Mrs. Olusola Adeluyi-Femi

The General Managers are Rufus Adetoye and Olufemi Oyeniran, while the Executive Secretaries as Dr Dairo Ojo; Mrs. Olurotimi Famuagun; Biodun Oguntuyi; Mrs. Yetunde Ayodele; Mrs. Oluwatoyin Faluyi and Mrs. Yinka Jegede.

The Lagos State police command has advised the public especially those who lost their vehicles to theft or abandoned around the city to report at Area C Command, Surulere and Elere Division for claims within 14 days.

Area C Command, Surulere: Mercedez Benz 508 bus with number XX 952 AGL; Kia Sephia XA 398 SLM; unregistered Toyota Hilux.

Elere Division: Unregistered Tata bus;  LT bus with number SMK 53 XH; Toyota Highlander with registered number EKY 228 DD and Vanagon bus KRD 799 XR.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State has warned the former party secretary, Rasak Salinsile, to stop impersonating the Chairman, Prince Gboyega Famodun.

A statement by Famodun’s media aide, Kola Olabisi, warned Salinsile to desist from parading himself as the state chairman henceforth.

It reads: “The public should stop addressing the former secretary, Rasak Salinsile, as the state chairman which he is not. It has been observed at different fora that Salinsile has been fraudulently introducing himself as the state chairman of our party.

“The public is reminded that there is only one duly-elected state chairman of the APC who is Prince Adegboyega Famodun.”

The Catholic Church has reiterated its position to not pay ransom to secure the release of any of its kidnapped priest and official.

Director of Social Communication Commission Rev. Anthony Omodunbi, on behalf of Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Osogbo, Osun State, Rev. John Oyebola, lamented that the kidnap of priests reflected the degenerated state of the country’s system.

Omodunbi was reacting to the kidnap of two priests and two others at the rectory of St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Gidan Maikambo, Kafur Local Government Area of Katsina State.

He said: “The church authority has not changed its position that it won’t pay ransom to free its priests or any of its personnel.

“When clerics are kidnapped, it shows how degenerated we have become as a country. When you hear that a priest has been kidnapped, you should be sure that 20 other Nigerians have been kidnapped without us knowing.

“The church will continue to sensitise the congregation that everybody should be security conscious and avoid anything that could attract kidnappers to them. We shall continue to speak to the state that they are failing in their responsibilities of security and welfare. Clerics should continue to ensure security for themselves as long as it is lawful.”

Of the 774 local government areas in Nigeria, only 78 have achieved an Open Defecation Free (ODF) status as at May 2022, it has been learnt.

This was highlighted yesterday during the opening of the Southwest zonal review for states in the ‘Clean Nigeria: Use the Toilet Campaign’ which held in Ikeja, Lagos State.

The campaign was launched in May 2019 by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, and is aimed at ensuring that Nigeria is open defecation free by 2025. It is also backed by a Presidential Order 009.

The Lagos State government however reiterated its commitment towards making the state open defecation free by 2025.

Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources Tunji Bello said the state is setting the pace through various initiatives.

Bello, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary (Office of Environmental Service), Omoboaji Gaji, said the state initiated a four- Point Roadmap to drive its action and commitment to the national agenda.

He said: “We initiated a 4-point roadmap agenda – Public Enlightenment and Communication (PEC); Regulation and Standardisation; Bridging of Infrastructural Gaps and Monitoring; Evaluation and Enforcement – to drive the state’s action.

“We have also initialised a Public Private Partnership (PPP), Public Sector Participation (PSP) and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) plans in the provision of public toilets across the metropolis to bridge the infrastructural deficit.”

Bello added that the state also partnered Reckitt Benckiser to engage 10 Youth Volunteers in five Pilot local government areas of Lagos Island, Lagos Mainland, Mushin, Ifako-Ijaiye and Ikorodu – for a continuous Sensitisation and Awareness on best practices on sanitation and hygiene.

The Commissioner also stressed that the initiative is geared towards creating behavioural change, increasing knowledge on the effects of open defecation and how best to care for our sanitary facilities.

Minister of Water Resources Suleiman Adamu said the Federal Minister of Water Resources has been leading the drive to ensure Nigeria meets the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) indicators for the Sustainable Development Goal 6.

According to him, not much is going on regarding the implementation and achievement of results in meeting the campaign objectives in many states, hence, it is imperative that states do all they can to change the narrative. He also hailed Lagos for taking the lead to host the first Southwest zonal review meeting.

Adamu, whose speech was read by an official of the ministry, Mrs. Damilola Akomolafe, noted that the campaign is aimed at ‘mobilising high level political support, resources and the entire populace towards building a new culture of safe sanitation’.

Adamu, whose speech was read by an official of the ministry, Mrs. Damilola Akomolafe, noted that the campaign is also aimed at ‘mobilising high level political support, resources and the entire populace towards building a new culture of safe sanitation’.

It reads: “As at May 2022, only 78 Open Defecation Free local government areas have been recorded. While this is a good progress, it is not significant enough to put us on course our national target of an ODF Nigeria by 2025. Also, the spread of the 78 ODF councils is limited to 12 of the 36 states. This means that 24 states and the FCT have not been able to contribute any ODF council to the national statistics.

“We must also understand that ending open defecation is not just about access to toilets, it is about generating demand for toilets and chanting people’s behaviour regarding toilet usage. Achieving this will require the involvement of all stakeholders and it is in this regard that a national retreat was organised earlier in the year with the inclusion of the participation of key stakeholders to strategically think through how we can accelerate successful approaches in meeting our objectives.”

The minister hinted that Nigeria will be hosting the 2022 World Toilet Summit, noting that it will put the country on the global map and attract more investment to the sector.

The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) in the Southwest has lamented that governors in the region owed N242 billion in gratuities and pensions.

It also accused the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) of abandonment, saying the labour unions have not been taking up the plight of pensioners with relevant authorities.

NUP spokesman Comrade Olusegun Abatan, who spoke after the body’s zonal council meeting in Akure, said: “The condition of pensioners in the Southwest remains the same. Many of these states have been owing pensioners since 2012 and 2013, between N68 to N78 billion.

“Ogun State owes N68 billion, Ondo N78 billion, Ekiti N38 billion and Osun N58 billion. Lagos is almost free of indebtedness because it has entered into the Contributory Pension Scheme.

“We discovered that to liquidate N68 billion, for instance, it will take that government 34 years. But NLC and TUC have not been speaking out while negotiating matters concerning pensioners. So, we are urging them to do that now. By doing that, they are laying the bed they will sleep because they will become pensioners tomorrow. It is in their interest to take the matter seriously.”

Pensioners in Otun-Ekiti, Moba Local Government Area of Ekiti State, have appealed to Governor Kayode Fayemi to pay their outstanding entitlements before this tenure ends on October 16.

The pensioners lamented that some of their colleagues who retired between 2014 and 2019 had died without getting their entitlements.

One of them, Taiwo Ajayi, a retired principal, appealed to Fayemi to consider the plight of the ageing retirees who need to take care of their health and children.

Ajayi has five children, all unemployed graduates. He lamented that he retired in 2016 but the state had not paid him any entitlement since.

Another pensioner, Mrs. Bukola Owolabi, said it was unfortunate that many of her colleagues who retired in 2015 had died. She regretted that they died without enjoying the fruits of their labour because of the unending delay in the payment of gratuities.

Mrs. Owolabi appealed to Fayemi to offset the outstanding gratuities and pensions before his tenure ends.

“It saddens me whenever I remember that some of my colleagues who we retired together have died. None of them was able to eat the fruit of their labour after serving the government for 35 years,” she said.

A retired local government employee, Olusegun Agunbiade, urged the government to consider the fact that they spent 35 years of their lives contributing to the development of the state, and pay all outstanding gratuities.

Agunbiade said he retired in April 2017 but had friends who retired since 2015, and had died without getting their entitlements.

He also appealed to Fayemi to save the lives of pensioners still alive but needing money for medicals and other upkeep.

“It is no longer news that ageing pensioners are dying without collecting their gratuities. I appeal to our governor to pay arrears of gratuities and put smiles on our faces.”

Lagos State, through its Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, has developed the Lagos State Off-Grid Electrification Strategy and Action Plan with support from the British-funded Africa Clean Energy Technical Assistance Facility (ACE-TAF).

The programme, which is being implemented by Tetra Tech International Development and funded by the UK’s Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), is geared towards the improvement of the off-grid energy access in the state.

Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources Olalere Odusote, at the handing over yesterday, explained that the ministry was working to improve energy access in the state.

He recalled that the government, in 2021, developed the Lagos State Electricity Policy to articulate its vision for creating a viable sub-national electricity sector that caters fully to the needs of its residents, while also enabling significant socio-economic growth.

Odusote explained that with the emergence of the off-grid solar sector as an important component in achieving access to energy for all, the ministry has developed the Lagos State Off-Grid Electrification Strategy and Plan with the support of ACE-TAF to ensure the implementation of the Lagos State Electricity Policy on off-grid electrification.

Country Manager of the ACE-TAF Nigeria Chibuikem Agbaegbu expressed delight at the collaboration with the government in improving energy access to Lagosians.

He added that in 2021, AC-TAF committed to supporting the government to improve the enabling environment for off-grid solar, and has done so through its support in the development of the Lagos State Electricity Policy and the Lagos State Off-Grid Electrification Strategy and Action Plan.