It was festivity galore as members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (J5 Container Unit, Mile 12) handed over the keys of an office accommodation to the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Ojota Unit Command Lagos. The newly inaugurated building, comprising two office rooms and a toilet, was built by the NURTW.
In his address, Bulama Adamu Gumel, representative of the transport union, said the donation was made as a token of appreciation to the men and officers of the command. Gumel, who likened the relationship between FRSC and NURTW to that between husbands and wives, emphasised that “doing this for FRSC does not mean that our members now have a licence to drive or behave recklessly on the roads.”
Commending the gesture, Michael A. Olapade, a Deputy Corps Commander, who represented the Lagos State FRSC Commander, thanked the transport union for standing by FRSC, even as he urged his officers to always do more for the public, adding that “to whom much is given, much is also expected.”
While recalling that his command had recorded landmark achievements through collaborations that had enhanced the operation and performance of his officers, Ojota Unit Commander of FRSC, Kehinde Hamzat, an Assistant Corps Commander (ACC), said he “felt extremely great and happy” that the relationship between the FRSC and stakeholders is waxing stronger.
“The true friend of FRSC is the driver that upholds all the etiquettes of good driving, including driving with up-to-date driver’s licence and respecting traffic rules and regulations. If the road safety officials are happy, they will be motivated to do more on the roads and more lives will be saved.
“I am happy the union leaders warned their members that the donation was not a license for misbehaviour on the road, but an act of corporate social responsibility. Some transporters act ignorantly. Some want to come closer to us without knowing how. But with this gesture, they know we are really approachable; there is also an opportunity for us to get closer to them and enlighten them the more on driver’s licence and other issues,” Hamzat said.
The Bodija Ojurin Muslim Community (BOMC) in Ibadan, Oyo State will mark its 15th anniversary on March 13. It will also present awards to eminent Muslim scholars and individuals in the community among who is the leader of the Women’s Wing of the group, Alhaja Balikis Opoola.
In a statement jointly signed by its President, Mallam Shakirullah Alamalyekeen and the Public Relations Officer (PRO), Mr. Akinsola Nurudeen, there will be a lecture entitled “Who is a Good Leader”? The Guest lecturer will be Fadilat Sheikh Muhideen Ajani Bello.
The statement added that Alhaja Opoola and Sheikh Bello would be presented with awards as mark of recognition for their contributions to the development of the community and their roles towards enhancing the cause of Islam.
According to Alhaji Mumeen Olaosebikan, one of the organisers of the event, the venue will be the premises of the Muslim Community Group of School Inukoko Bodija, Ibadan at 9:00 in the morning.
The Council of Ndi Eze and the entire Igbo Community in Lagos State have said the position of Eze Ndigbo of Lagos State has not been in contention. They maintained that Eze Christian Uchechukwu Nwachukwu is the authentic Eze Ndigbo of Lagos State since 1999.
Speaking to reporters at the Igbo Community Centre, Okota Lagos State the groups said “the clarification became necessary in order to correct some tissues of falsehood published in the Vanguard of March 1, 2016.”
In a press statement signed by Eze Nwachukwu on behalf of the Council of Ndi Eze Lagos State, Igbo Community Lagos State and the 13 leaders of the two groups, they said: “The Council of Ndi Eze and the entire Igbo Community in Lagos State wish to draw the attention of the public and particularly the Governor and Government of Lagos State to the misleading and malicious falsehood published in the Vanguard Newspaper of Tuesday, March 1, 2016 on page 15 wherein it stated that ‘ a council of Eze Ndigbo is now established for Lagos State with a council of 12 Eze Ndigbo from which a chairman was chosen in the person of Eze H.N. Ohazuluike, with Eze Ndigbo Christian U. Nwachukwu designated as a member.’
“The same falsehood was also published in the Sun Newspaper of February 25, 2016 wherein it stated that ‘the protracted leadership tussle over Eze Ndigbo Lagos State was laid to rest yesterday [February 24] following the intervention of the President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Enwo Igariway and other traditional rulers from various states… With this development, Eze Ohazuluike, Eze Ndigbo Lagos State has emerged the interim chairman of the council in Lagos…However, Eze Nwachukwu, who declined the Vice-Chairmanship position has pledged to work with the council and embraced Eze Ohazuluike.’”
The statement continued: “The genesis of the so-called protracted leadership tussle over Eze Ndigbo Lagos State started since December, 1998. The Igbo Council of Chiefs of Lagos State, Igbo Speaking Community in Lagos and the Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos State, jointly invited applications from Igbo in Lagos State for the Eze Ndigbo of Lagos State.
Many Igbo sons, including Chief Christian Uchechukwu Nwachukwu, Chief H.N. Ohazuluike and others applied and after thorough screening by the three bodies and others, Eze Nwachukwu was selected as the Eze Ndigbo Lagos State after an election was conducted.
“On April 22, 1999, the Igbo Speaking Community Lagos State issued Eze Nwachukwu a certificate as the duly selected Eze Ndigbo Lagos State after his coronation. On May 19, 1999, the then Chairman of Igbo Council of Chiefs, Chief Ralph Uwazurike and the then Chairman of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos State Chief Solomon Okonkwo organised a press conference during which Eze Nwachukwu was presented to the public as the Eze Ndigbo Lagos State and on December 6, 2008, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Lagos State appointed him as its patron.
“On October 5, 1999, Eze Nwachukwu was presented with a certificate by the then Oba of Lagos, Oba Adeyinka Oyekan, as the recognised Eze Ndigbo Lagos State, after which he was presented to the Council of Obas and Chiefs Lagos State by the then President-General of Igbo Speaking Community, Chief Uche Momah during which Chief Ohazuluike was ordered by Oba Oyekan to stop parading himself as Eze Ndigbo of Lagos State or he would go to jail.
“Since then, Eze Nwachukwu has been accorded full recognition by past and present Governors and Governments of Lagos State. For instance, wife of then Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu, Senator Oluremi Tinubu inaugurated the Igbo Community Centre built by Eze Nwachukwu as venue for meetings and other cultural activities of the Igbo Council of Ndi Eze and other Igbo organisations.
“We urge the public to disregard and discountenance the charade of a meeting held at Colnades Hotel Ikoyi Lagos and their illegal and unwarranted actions and publications…regarding the issue of Eze Ndigbo of Lagos State that is not yet vacant…”
In a separate briefing, Eze Nwachukwu revealed that on November 5, 2009, the Southeast Council of Traditional Rulers invited him to its meeting held at Nike Lake Resort Hotel, Enugu on the issue of the problems caused by Igbo Cultural leaders in the Diaspora, especially with regard to traditional title of Eze reserved for traditional rulers in the Southeast.
He said after deliberations, it was agreed that the Igbo traditional leaders in the Diaspora should be addressed as Onye Ndu Ndigbo (Leader of the Igbo) to avoid conflicit. It was in the light of that meeting that the Southeast Council of Traditional Rulers, by their letter dated November 16, 2009 (Ref No SECTR/CH/VOL.2/0238) written to ex-Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) confirming me as the Onye Ndu Ndigbo Lagos State in view of the fact that I am the recognised Eze Ndigbo Lagos State.
“Being an ally of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Ohazuluika and his cohorts had no official or government recognition by the Lagos State Government. Fortunately, when PDP was defeated at the centre, Chief Ohazuluike and his group realised that they were floating without any kind of recognition by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos as they worked against the APC during the last election, they ran to Enugu to invite the Ohanaeze Ndigbo in Enugu where they have close friends and political allies to come and handpick him as the recognised Eze Ndigbo chairman in Lagos State.
Otun-Akute, a community in Ifo Local Government Area of Ogun State used to be peaceful. But, since developers marched into the place waving court papers and threatening to pull down houses, the peace has been shattered. The landlords and residents say they will fight to keep their homes. RAYMOND MORDI was at the community.
Residents of Durojaiye Crescent in Otun-Akute in Ifo Local Government Area of Ogun State are spoiling for a showdown with a group of developers threatening to render them homeless.
Most of them possess valid Certificates of Occupancy (C of Os) and have lived in the community for two decades.
They were shocked when the developers stormed the community located along the boundary of Lagos and Ogun states, waving court papers and threatening to pull down their houses, if they do not pay N2 million per plot to re-purchase the property.
The residents are now on the alert, waiting for the bulldozers to arrive. But, to prevent the angry house owners from taking the laws into their own hands, some stakeholders within the community have appealed to Governor Ibikunle Amosun to deliver them from the hands of the property developers who are threatening to render about 10, 000 people homeless.
•Col. Ajayi (rtd)
One of the home owners, Col. Gabriel Ajayi (rtd) said the uproar that will ensue if the government fails to come to their aid will be the latest war in Nigeria.
He said: “Already, the Northeast is plagued by Boko Haram insurgency and the Southeast is swarming with agitation for Biafra. Now, parts of the Southwest are on the verge of a revolt against land speculators and those who collaborate with them.
“If government refuses to heed to our call for help, the tendency is for people to rise up to defend their lands and properties. Why else does government exist, if not to promote the welfare of the citizens? If the government’s C of O is disregarded by these land speculators, the action would ridicule the authority of government. If this number of people are ejected from here, because of a deceased person and his so-called agents that don’t even have the proof that the dead man mandated them to act on his behalf; because the man died over 50 years ago, then the situation will be grave.”
Another home owner who spoke to our reporter, Mr. Moses Shadrack, said the situation is capable of pushing people who are ordinarily peace-loving to becoming aggressive.
His words: “If this kind of thing has not been going on unchecked, we would not have come to this sorry state. We know of numerous land disputes during which lives were lost.
“The late Managing Director of the Lekki Free Trade Zone, Mr. Tajudeen Disu, was murdered over land dispute recently. This kind of thing has the tendency of pushing people who are peace-loving to becoming aggressive. They have promised to come back with caterpillar to pull down our houses; nobody would stay idle and watch his house pulled down. We want the government to nip this thing in the bud before it escalates.”
Shadrack, who is the Secretary of the Community Development Association (CDA) in Durojaiye Crescent, added that the peace of the community has been disrupted and residents who have been living peacefully for decades are longer at ease.
According to Ajayi, the policemen they brought along did not wear their regular uniform. He said: “They wore cardigan, with scruffy trousers and bathroom slippers. But, they were carrying AK 47 riffles. They came with Area Boys carrying machetes. How can Nigeria Police descend so low and mix themselves with area boys and work together, as if the Area Boys were giving them protection? The police authorities should be ashamed of themselves to send their men out in that fashion to go and harass innocent citizens.”
The retired infantry officer said the land in question is supposed to belong to Ogun State Government, under the government’s global acquisition of lands in the area.
He said: “This is the allocation paper or the C of O given to me by the government in 2002, authorising me to occupy this place. The person that originally acquired it from the Akinola family bought it in 1994 and he sold the place to me in 2000. So, I’ve been a legal occupant of this place since the year 2000 and I applied for the C of O in 2001 and in 2002 my application was granted.”
The C of O read in part: “I am pleased to inform you that the Executive Governor has graciously approved the re-allocation to you the parcel of land or property depicted on the survey plan…Consequently, you are now granted the statutory right of occupancy over the said land under the following conditions…” The allocation paper described it as a re-allocation of government land within the Ogun State Property and Investment Corporation (OPIC) acquisition at Iju-Ajuwon-Akute and environs. This document, which was issued by the Ogun State Bureau of Lands Survey and Town Planning, Land Department, Oke-Ilewo, Abeokuta with reference number, LUD11/LRA1742/17, is dated April 23, 2002 and was signed by the Permanent Secretary and conveyed the approval granted on February 19, 2002.
Ajayi said people started occupying the place when it was a jungle. But, he added that it is intriguing that land speculators have started showing interest in the place, which is now relatively developed, through self-help. The first person to move into the crescent, Mrs. Iyabo Davids, popularly known in the area as Iya Ibeji, said when she got there, there were no roads and no houses, apart from her own.
“The entire place was a jungle. My children and I were the ones that cleared the bush, to create a footpath. That was over 25 years ago. I’ve never heard the name Akinduro (the purported owner of the land); I only know Mr. Akinola, who sold the land to me,” she noted.
Shadrack said residents came back from work one day and discovered that their gates have been padlocked.
He added: “They also posted a notice on all houses on the crescent. As we speak, I can’t move my vehicle into my compound, because the place is still locked. So, we contacted the family that sold the land to us and they told us that they have been on the case in the last 18 years.
“It was a rude shock to hear this, because we were never informed that such a thing was going on. Most of us who bought land here actually made search through our lawyers, but nothing showed that there was a dispute over the land. We were told that the land was without any encumbrances.
“The person who sold the land to us told us that Durojaiye Crescent is not among the disputed land. He said we are being asked to come forward and re-ratify the purchase because of the money they have spent in prosecuting the case. They are asking us to pay N1 million for half plot and N2 million for full plot. So, the question we asked at this juncture is, why are we being harassed unnecessarily? As a result, the negotiation became deadlocked. But two days after, they came with Area Boys and the police and started writing ‘possession taken today on court order”.
The patriarch of the Akinola family that sold the land on Durojaiye Crescent and its environs, Mr. Sunday Akinola, said the dispute started 16 years ago (2000), but became a court case 13 years ago. The 95-year-old Akinola said: “For two years, we were trying to settle the matter at the community level through the Baale Council (traditional council of chiefs). The council established that the land belonged to me and that the Akinduro family should not touch any inch of my land.”
But, the Akinduros reportedly obtained a jankara judgment to get a share of the Akinola family land. Akinola told Southwest Report that the Akinduros are from Ekiti State and have no share in the communal land in the area. He added: “They came into the area when they bought a parcel of land from the Ajibose family.”
The Nigerian Inter-religious Council (NIREC) has organised a special prayer session for divine intervention on the country’s security and economic challenges.
The prayer, which was hosted by Akoko Northwest chapter, Ikare-Akoko in conjunction with the local government’s chapter of the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) took place at the council’s multi-purpose hall.
At the session, prayers were offered for quick end to the insurgency in the Northeast and frequent kidnapping and armed robbery cases in other parts of the country. Both Christian and Islamic clerics led the people in prayers.
Speaking at the occasion, the chairman of NIREC in the council area, Alhaji Ibrahim Kilani noted that this was the first time in the history of the local government that NULGE will be partnering the organisation in such religious event.
He praised the council chief for promoting religious harmony and co-existence among followers of different faiths in the area.
Kilani, however, urged religious groups in the council and the country to allow peace to reign.
He said: “There is no point in killing ourselves about religion since every individual is free to practise what he believes in.”
In his goodwill message, the local government chairman, Joseph Aladetimehin praised the state government for giving council chairmen the enabling environment and the needed assistance to operate.
Aladetimehin, who noted that he is the people’s chief servant, said his administration would always listen to the people in order to know and solve their problems.
He also assured them that his administration would make security and religious harmony top priority.
The council chief urged the people to give peace a chance by abstaining from acts that could threaten the existing peace in the area.
The Director of Local Government Administration in the council, Adewumi Kolade urged members of staff of the council to re-dedicate themselves to duty and hard work to justify the huge investment government is making on them.
Kolade commended the state and the local governments for being workers-friendly.
The Olubaram of Ibaram-Akoko, Oba Oluwasegunota Atibioke commended the leadership of NIREC in the area, even as he urged the people to embrace religious harmony and peaceful co-existence.
The monarch also advised members of staff of the council to show more commitment to their work in order to ensure rapid development of the area.
A member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Desmond Elliot has led women, the physically-challenged and youths of his Surulere Constituency 1 on walk for life, good health and vitality.
He said the walk would keep the people fit to contribute their quota to the progress and development of the constituency in particular and state in general.
The almost two-hour walk began at 9:30 in the morning at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere trasversing through Ojulegba, Masha and finally ending at the stadium.
During the walk, paramedics and other health officials were on hand in case of any emergency, even though there was no incident suggestive of danger throughout the walk.
The trekkers gyrated and danced to the rhythm of music emanating from mobile speakers during the walk.
On why he organised the walk, Elliot said: “A couple of months ago, I was very ill due to overweight. Adhering strictly to doctor’s advice, I had to design a method to shed weight. This was one of the methods I adopted.”
The lawmaker explained that leading the people on the walk for life and vitality was in response to medical prescription.
“A lot of people get ill because they did not take their health seriously.’’
He said apart from the walk, the paramedics equally carried out various tests and prescribed drugs to the people.
“They do the heart test to know if their blood is circulating properly. They tests were to ensure they do not have hypertension, their sight is good, breathing and hearing are functioning optimally. This is basically to make sure that we have a healthy Surulere,” he said.
Elliot gave kudos to the women for coming out en masse to participate in the programme, noting that the inspiration to embrace the women folk for the exercise came from his wife.
“My wife is the main motivator of the programme and that is why it is good to marry someone who is good. When we do something, we should always seek the advice of the women because they are our mothers,” he said.
The lawmaker, who personally wheeled some of the physically-challenged persons during the walk, explained that he had set up skill acquisition and empowerment programme for them.
“Nigerians should try and enhanc the well-being of the less-privileged. Nothing gives pleasure than making people happy through the provision of empowerment programmes and other facilities,” he said.
One of the participants, Edo State-born physically-challenged Short-put Silver medal holder, Hanah Ogie said the lawmaker is a true friend of the disabled people.
“For me, the walk is lovely even though I am physically-challenged. We have to thank the Hon. who facilitated the walk. There are Nigerians who are well placed, but who have not thought it wise to make impact in the lives of the physically-challenged persons.
“He has organised empowerment programme to make life easy for us. He should equally fight for us through the enabling laws. For instance, when I was coming, I had to pay extra money for a taxi cab to bring me here.
“Nigerian commercial drivers most of the time don’t like carrying us to where we are going to. We will appreciate it if a law could be passed to make life easy for us,’’ she said.
Another trekker, Mrs Jokotade Olayori said: “Elliot is doing a good job. I appreciate his efforts to make us feel like human. We also Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila.
“The test and medication are useful. I was given a pair of eye glasses. I had tested positive for diabetes, and my BP is high. So, they recommended medicine for me to reduce it.
“They made me to know that my cholesterol is high and advised me on what to eat. I thank the lawmaker for the opportunity,” she said.
Concerned with the increasing spate of violence against women, stakeholders, including the British Mission in Nigeria, civil society organisations and the media, are pushing for the enforcement of the provisions of Violence against Persons (Prohibition) Act 2015. ODUNAYO OGUNMOLA reports
Violence against women has seemingly become a daily occurrence in Nigeria. Victims who survive it have sordid tales to tell.
Some violence against women take place within the victims’ homes, others occur in the public. Most times, the culprits go unpunished; a development which emboldens them to commit more of the crime.
Described as the violation of women’s fundamental human rights, discrimination or violence against women include all acts of gender-based violence that result in, or are likely to result in physical, sexual, psychological or economic harms or suffering to women, including arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether or not it occurred in public or private life.
Whenever there is civil war, insurgency, terrorism, sectarian crisis, robbery and other forms of violence, women are always at the receiving end; with many of them serving as sex slaves and instruments for bargaining.
Nigeria, whose legal system is adapted from its colonial master, the Great Britain, has laws which prescribe punishment for perpetrators of such violence against women. However, it is believed that such laws are not well implemented to deter culprits.
It is against this background that New Initiative for Social Development (NISD), a non-governmental Organisation (NGO), with the support of the British High Commission, organised a three-day workshop in
Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, for stakeholders. It was aimed at creating awareness among the people and sensitise them to a new law enacted to reduce, if not eliminate violence against women in Nigeria.
The civil society group won a big battle in the National Assembly with the passage of the Violence against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Bill by the Seventh Senate on May 5, last year and the signing of the Bill into law by ex-President Goodluck Jonathan on May 24, last year.
It is on record that the Bill had been in the National Assembly for 13 years before it was passed and assented to by ex-President Jonathan. Since its passage, not many Nigerians know that the VAPP Law exists for victims to defend their rights and for the offenders to be punished.
The workshop was attended by the officials of the British High Commission in Nigeria, the Department for International Development (DFID), media practitioners from both print and electronic media, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), faith-based organisations, association of women lawyers (FIDA) and security agencies, among other stakeholders.
•Participants at the workshop
The participants came from the six Southwest states of Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo and Ekiti to brainstorm on ways to promote the VAPP Law, ensure its domestication in states where it has not been domesticated to ensure that future perpetrators of violence against women are brought to justice.
The session for journalists was very interesting, lively and revealing as they shared experience on their reportage of various acts of violence meted out to the women folk and in-depth enlightenment on the VAPP Law.
In his welcome address, the Executive Director of NISD, Mr. Abiodun Oyeleye, said his agency, with the support of the British High Commission, has produced and distributed over 1,000 copies of VAPP Law, trained 20 journalists in the Southwest states in order to understand the contents of the Law and enlighten the citizens on its import.
He explained that the NGO has also trained 20 senior police officers on strategic ways of enforcing the law in each of the six Southwest states while it also planned to increase the capacity of 25 judges in the
zone in in-depth interpretation of the Law.
Oyeleye stressed that the passage of the VAPP Bill and its subsequent signing into Law now gives a legal teeth to the law which aimed at eliminating cases of sexual and other forms of discrimination and gender-based violence in the country.
In her remarks, the Acting Southwest Regional Coordinator of DFID, Mrs. Margaret Fagboyo, noted that her agency supports governments at national and sub-national levels and civil society groups to help reduce poverty, support good governance and achieve sustainable development goals.
She further explained that one of the critical success factors towards the achievement of these goals is a free and egalitarian society, devoid of any oppression, suppression, discrimination or violence that can prevent individuals or group of people from attaining their God-given potential.
She said: “Unfortunately, the legal and judicial systems do not offer much protection against violence and abuse. The ugly trend is further accentuated by our culture of silence. It has been realised that in these instances, silence is never golden.
“However, the situation is more complicated in our environment. While, for instance, rape carries a punishment of life imprisonment in Nigeria, the arduous process of proving rape, the pain and shame of reliving the experience, coupled with societal pressure to keep silent, victim-blaming and stigma, often discourage women from reporting sexual violence.
“Until the passage of VAPP Bill, there were a handful of states in Nigeria with specific laws targeting domestic violence and abuse but there was no federal law specifically addressing the myriad of cases.
“However, the content of the new law is tailored towards our environment, as it reflects the realities of domestic violence and discrimination in Nigeria at present. In addition, the law incorporates relevant provisions of international human rights laws and principles.
“VAPP Law has been in place for over eight months now. How many people are aware of it? How many people have gained insights of its provisions? How many people have been charged under the law or conviction obtained?
“Here comes the responsibility for the media. The media is recognised all over the world as agent of socialisation, which moulds morals, views and opinions of the society. It needs, therefore, to step in and begin the education process towards preventing and ending violence and abuse in our society.”
In his keynote address, the representative of the British High Commission, Mr. Wale Adebajo, regretted that institutions in Nigeria are very weak in rising up to tackle the issue of sexual violence while the situation is further compounded by lack of political will and low capacity of actors.
Adebajo, who is the Communication Manager and Political Adviser of the British Deputy High Commission in Lagos also expressed dismay that the VAPP Law has a challenge of low level of awareness among Nigerians; with citizens having no access to the law, including the justice sector stakeholders which makes it very difficult to enforce.
As more winners emerge in the Astymin “Get Alert Promo”, many Nigerians, including winners of the promo, have continued to praise Astymin brand for its efforts to empower Nigerians.
The promo, which commenced at the beginning of last month was aimed at rewarding Nigerians for their loyalty and support. It was also part of the celebrations of its 15 years of doing business in Nigeria.
Many of the winners believe that Astymin has positively touched their lives in terms of health, even as they said its amino-acid and multivitamins are essential ingredients that nourish their bodies.
One of the winners, Inuolaji Bukola Ajara said she and members of her family have been taking Astymin after it was recommended to them by a medical doctor. Since then, she said, Astymin has become a regular daily multivitamin supplement for her entire household.
Apparently excited by the reward, another winner, Pastor Esther Fekumo from Igbalu area of Ikorodu, Lagos State said she has been taking Astymin since over a year ago.
According to her, Astymin has high quality of amino acid-enriched multivitamin that boosts the body immune system and enhances general well-being of her family.
Another winner, Mr Isaac Ewuba Edafe from Benin-City, corroborated Bukola’s and Fekumo’s assertion, saying that apart from the ongoing promo which is an additional reward to its customers, Astymin has remained an excellent multivitamin supplement for his family.
“Astymin is what I buy for my entire family because it is very good. It is totally different from other multivitamins in the market. When you take it, you will immediately feel its nourishing effect on your bod ysystem. This promo is just like an additional bonus for me because I and my family are already enjoying the benefits of Astymin on our health,” he said.
Every day, winners receive N100, 000 in the Astymin “Get Alert Promo” since its commencement last month. It is described as an engaging brand experience that will deliver both health and financial value to Nigerians. It is the brand’s way of rewarding consumers to have good health and money in their pockets.
A report of the United Kingdom (UK) government’s Department for International Development (DFID) has scored the Lagos State Government high in the implementation of policies that encouraged good governance, quality education and functional health care delivery.
The report, which was released to the public on Thursday, followed a Citizens’ Perception Survey (CPS) carried out by Independent Monitoring and Evaluation Project (IMEP) in 10 states that benefited from DFID-sponsored State Level Programmes (SLP).
The survey had Lagos rated against nine other states as a group to measure and track changes in the citizens’ perception on the achievement of the SLPs, which include state accountability and voice initiative, education, health care and state employment. The survey was held between July 2014 and June 2015 to measure the achievement of the 10-year partnership programme.
The CPS project supervisor, Dr. Elizabeth Omoluabi, said more than 12,964 people were interviewed during sampling in the 10 states, noting that the aim of the survey was to gauge the level of involvement of citizens in governance, service delivery and provision of basic amenities that would facilitate development.
Dr. Omoluabi said the result of the survey was representative of the citizens of the selected states, cautioning that the report should not be seen as reflection of governance in states not captured in DFID partnership.
On education, the DFID report states: “Ninety-six per cent of children of the official school age are currently attending school in Lagos. This figure is higher than the number of school-age children in the nine other states considered in the survey. In Lagos, the Net Attendance Ratio at primary school is 95 per cent for boys and 96 per cent for girls, indicating that there are almost no gender preferences.”
The survey revealed that more than half of school-age children are attending private schools, adding that citizens’ satisfaction with public and private schools are similar.
The DFID report also said 70 per cent of all Lagos citizens who use government health facilities are satisfied with the quality of service, adding that the satisfaction was expressed by the poor. It added: “About 42 per cent of the poorest households and 49 per cent of the wealthiest 60 per cent visited a government health clinic, at least, once in last year.”
On good governance and citizens’ inclusion in governance, the report said people’s satisfaction about government’s service delivery in road maintenance, community safety and availability of medicine was 20 percentage points higher in Lagos than they were in other states. The survey also showed that women have equal chances as men to attain high positions in Lagos, compared to other states sampled.
Omoluabi said the report gave a snapshot of people’s feeling about governance and service delivery in the sampled states. She further said the achievement recorded by the DFID-sponsored projects would be handed over to the government of the benefiting states for continuity.
Other states that benefitted from the project were Enugu, Kano, Jigawa, Kaduna, Anambra, Katsina, Niger, Yobe and Zamfara.
To ensure high level of cleanliness, Executive Secretary of Ikoyi-Obalende Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of Lagos State, Toyin Caxton-Martins has embarked on a campaign to eliminate rats, the cause of Lassa fever. She has supervised the fumigation of the Police Officers’ Wives’ Association (POWA) Market at Ijeh and Obalende in the council area.
The Executive Secretary said one of the priorities of the council was to promote and complement Lagos State Government’s policy on environmental health by involving market women and men and other stakeholders.
Caxton-Martins said the gesture will ensure an atmosphere conducive enough to safe food, healthy living and prevention of contagious diseases.
She said: “It isn’t enough to rid the environment of rodents and other infectious creatures. We will also intensify our efforts on massive education of the public on the causes and consequences of keeping their environments dirty.
“To have sustainable development, our people have a great role to play by co-operating with the government.
”This would make our people healthier and productive which, in turn, would translate to better quality life.”
The council boss enjoined residents to always ensure that their surroundings are frequently fumigated to avoid unnecessary spending of their hard earned income on treatment of diseases that are preventable.
