Sokoto state Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal has cautioned Nigerians to avoid inflammatory remarks capable of causing disunity among citizens of the country.
Tambuwal spoke against the backdrop of the ultimatum given to the Igbo to leave the North by some youths in Kaduna.
The remark came from the Governor Friday night when hosted members of the resident communities at the annual iftar breaking of fast session organised by the state government in Sokoto.
“I align myself fully with the position of the Northern Governors as enunciated by our chairman, Governor Kashim Shattima of Borno. All Nigerians must feel free to stay in any part of the country without fear of molestation.
“We have enjoyed a robust relationship with all members of the resident communities and you have no reason to fear. Sokoto is your home and it will continue to remain as such.
“I urge our youths to show restraint in making inflammatory remarks and threatening of one another. What we need now is to team up as a people to find lasting solutions to the myriad of challenges confronting us.
“We are a blessed nation and we should continue to develop our strengths so as to provide the needed leadership for Africa and the black world.
“So as far as your stay is in the North and in Sokoto, do not feel threatened by anyone,” the Governor added.
In his remarks, representative of the Igbo community in Sokoto, Mr. Steven Okoro, commended the state government for making all “Nigerians living in Sokoto feel at home”.
“We have never felt threatened in Sokoto. We and our families have stayed here in peace for hundreds of years and our relationship with all groups of people here is based on mutual trust and respect for one another,” Okoro stated.
Also, both leader of the Yoruba community in Sokoto, Alhaji Abdulfatah Coker and Chairman of the Association of Resident Communities, Muhammad Ibrahim, said they will continue to support constituted authorities to deliver on their mandates, and thanked Tambuwal for his open door policy which has enabled all citizens to reach out to him directly without much stress.
Tag: Aminu Tambuwal
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Avoid inflammatory statements, says Tambuwal
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Sokoto Govt donates N169m to fire victims
Sokoto State Government said it had donated
N169million to victims of fire disasters in parts of Sokoto metropolis.
Gov. Aminu Tambuwal stated this in Meet the Media to mark the end of the 2017 Democracy Day celebrations in Sokoto in Monday night.
Tambuwal said; ”the gesture was aimed at alleviating the suffering of the victims of the fire outbreaks in the metropolis.
”The state government has however devised means to curb future occurrences and mitigate the factors that cause frequent fire outbreaks in the state.”
Tambuwal warned residents against flouting building regulations as well as the sokoto master plan.
He further urged residents and traders to desist from indiscriminate erection of structures in markets and other commercial areas.
”The people of the state should stop blocking access roads for firemen in
case of any unforeseen eventuality.” This is in order to give access for the fire men to do their job during fire outbreaks to save lives and property.”
He said his administration was workers-friendly as it promptly pays their salaries and allowances.
The governor promised to sustain the gesture, assuring that their
pension and gratuities would continue to be accorded top
priority.”Pensions and gratuities of the state pensioners are paid as at when
due. And we have introduced various training for the serving workers.“Motivation is the best way to have the support of the service,
because if your staff are redundant, you will not get the best out of
them.“We will also continue to give support to the private sector and
also encourage them to motivate their staff to ensure improved
productivity in the state”,
he said. -
Sokoto spends N10bn on education – Tambuwal
Sokoto State Government has spent about N10 billion on the provision of infrastructure in schools over the last two years, Gov. Aminu Tambuwal, has said.
Tambuwal said at a media parley on Monday night in Sokoto, that the huge investment was in line with the government’s declaration of a state of emergency in the sector since December 2015.
“These huge funds were expended on the construction, renovation and expansion of schools, at all levels across the state.
“The money was also spent on the provision of school furniture, instructional materials, training and retraining and other motivation strategies for teachers, pupils and students, among others,” he said.
Tambuwal declared that the government had cleared the backlog of NECO and WAEC fees, as well as scholarship allowances for its students.
“Students studying both within and outside Nigeria are not being owed, as their tuition and upkeep allowances were being paid as at when due.
“The state government has also scaled up the level of engagement with the various development partners.
“In this direction, we will never waiver in routinely meeting all our obligations to them, all in the bid to further revamp the sector,” the governor stressed.
According to him, the attention being given to education has made the people more aware on the need to send their children to school, thereby, raising enrollment, retention and completion rates of students including girls.
He added,” The state House of Assembly had recently passed the compulsory free education law and I will assent to it in the next few days.
”Under the law, parents who refuse to enroll their children in school are liable to prosecution; and parents can seek for legal redress if they think that their children are denied educational opportunities by the state government.” -
NYSC crucial to national unity, integration – Osinbajo
The Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, says the NYSC is crucial for sustainable national unity, integration and economic development.
Osinbajo said this in a message to the swearing ceremony of the 2017 Batch ” A”, Stream 1, corps members in Sokoto on Thursday.
The message was delivered by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Bashir Garba, on behalf of Gov. Aminu Tambuwal.
“The role of corps members, like yourselves, is in significant tasks that impact aspects of our national life including the conduct of elections, census, national health and immunisation campaigns.” This role is one that this country acknowledges and appreciates.
“It is a testament and credit to the young people of our country.
“It demonstrates what they can do when they are given the opportunity and challenge.”
Osinbajo advised the corps members to uphold the ideals of the scheme and remain conscientious in the discharge of their assignments.
He lauded the corps members for ensuring the success of the”Change Begins with Me” campaign.
“You must all strive to fight the painful erosion of our social values as a result of greed and dishonesty.
“If change begins with each of you, there can be nothing that will impede the progress of this great nation.
“ You must all consider yourselves as agents of this change as well as actively live and promote it,” he said.
Osinbajo said the Federal Government was aware of the challenges facing the scheme.
“They include insecurity, deployment management and processes, among others.
“We shall continue to encourage continued cooperation between the federal, state and local governments.
“This is to ensure the smooth and effective execution of the operations relating to the scheme,” he said.
Mr Musa Abubakar, the state NYSC Coordinator, said that 2,500 corps members were deployed to the state under the batch out of which 2,221 had registered by midnight on Wednesday.
Abubakar commended the state government, the Sultanate council of Sokoto and the people of the state for their sustained support to the scheme.
He appealed to the state government to provide a utility vehicle and furniture to the NYSC secretariat.
”All these are geared towards effective delivery of the scheme’s mandate to the good people of the state,” Abubakar said.
Alhaji Abubakar Ladan, the state Chairman of NYSC Governing Board, said that adequate arrangements had been made for the welfare and security of corps members.
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Court fixes judgment for suit seeking Tambuwal’s sack
A Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed June 23 for judgment in a suit seeking to sack Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal.
Justice Gabriel Kolawole chose the date Tuesday after taking arguments from lawyers representing parties in the suit filed by two governorship aspirants of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Sokoto during the 2015 elections – Senator Umaru Dahiru and Abubakar Sanyinna.
It is the plaintiffs’ contention that the December 4, 2014 governorship primary election of the APC was held in violation of the party’s guideline for the conduct of such election, its constitution and the Electoral Act.
The violation, they argued, was to the effect that delegates to the primary election were neither screened nor verified and therefore, there was no list of delegates for the election.
Defendants in the case are the APC, Tambuwal and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Arguing his clients’ case yesterday, plaintiffs’ lawyer, Roland Otaru (SAN) said “having regard to the documentary exhibits attached to the originating summons and further affidavit, the issue for determination is narrow.
“All we are saying is that the 1st defendant’s governorship primary election of the 4th of December 2014 in Sokoto State did not comply with the provision of Section 87 of the Electoral Act (EA) 2010 (as amended) the constitution of the party (APC) and the guidelines rolled out for the conduct of the primary election by the APC.
“We have shown that there was no verification and accreditation of candidates. What we are saying is that there was no accreditation of candidates for the primary in accordance with the EA and the guidelines.
“The 1st defendant (APC), having failed to comply with the guideline, by not allowing accreditation and verification of delegates, the primary was a nullity,” Otaru said.
He submitted that the accreditation of delegates is fundamental to the democratic process.
Otaru argued that having failed to follow the procedure laid down in the APC guideline and its constitution, the court should set aside the primary and grant all our reliefs, which the Supreme Court said are grantable.
He noted that none of the defendants have been able to show the court the list of delegates that were accredited for the primary election.
Otaru said the onus was now on them (the defendants) to show the list of accredited candidates. He added that “All they have shown are the reports of the primary.”
Responding, lawyer to the APC and Tambuwal, Jibrin Okutepa and Sunday Ameh (both SAN) challenged the legitimacy of the suit. They urged the court to dismiss it.
In their notices of preliminary objection and counter-affidavits, which they argued separately, APC and Tambuwal that the suit was wrongly commenced by way of a originating summons.
They stated that with the contentious nature of the facts of the case, the suit ought to be commenced through a writ of summons which would have enabled parties to call witnesses to explain the facts of the case.
“We have argued in our affidavit that these proceedings are not fit to come via originating summons,” he said.
On the plaintiffs’ claim of non-accreditation of delegates during the primaries, Okutepa said the onus was on the plaintiffs to call delegates as witnesses to show that they were not accredited.
He said: “The burden is on the plaintiffs to call delegates to come to court to show that they were not accredited. This case is bereft of any evidential support to warrant any declaration to be made in favour of the plaintiffs.”
Okutepa argued that the plaintiffs’ prayer seeking the conduct of fresh primaries was not only ungrantable but could push the court to a path of collision with the Constitution in a situation where the law provided that primaries must be held 60days before the main election.
Ameh argued in similar vein and maintained in his submission on his notice of preliminary objection that the suit was wrongly commenced.
He said, “The preliminary objection challenges the manner of commencement of the action through an originating summons.
“That the facts for and against the suit are hostile so much so that our counter-affidavits filed in response to the the plaintiffs’ affidavit led the plaintiffs to file a further and better affidavit shows that the facts are contentious and requires explanations.”
Lawyer to INEC Alhassan Umar, said the commission had filed a counter-affidavit to enable it to exhibit its “monitoring report of APC governorship primaries in Sokoto State.”
He however said that in compliance with the admonition of the Supreme Court in plethora of cases, the commission would remain neutral and not take side with any of the plaintiffs and the two other defendants.
Umar said, “The pith of our case is that in pursuant of the constitutional mandate of the third defendant we monitored the primaries and the report is Exhibit I earlier referred.
“In the case of Amaechi against INEC, the Supreme Court upheld the sanctity of the report of primaries issued by the third defendant (INEC).”
Otaru, who later responded to the preliminary objection by Tambuwal and APC, argued that there was no any form of “friction” in the case to warrant the commencement of the suit via a writ of summons.
He also said the two notices of preliminary objection did not comply with Order 29(4)(a) of the Civil Procedure Rules of the Federal High Court his court having not been filed within 21 days of the defendants’ being served with the plaintiffs’ originating summons.
Okutepa, on point of law, argued that Order 29 of the Civil Procedure Rules of the Federal High Court was not applicable to the situation “because we are not challenging the jurisdiction of the court.
He said, “The suit has been wrongly commenced. We are not saying the court cannot hear the case.
“The court can hear it through a writ of summons so that parties can call witnesses.”
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Sokoto to prosecute agric loan defaulters, says Commissioner
Sokoto State Government on Monday vowed to prosecute all the defaulters of the multi billion agricultural loans, disbursed in the last few years.
The State Commissioner for Agriculture, Alhaji Umaru Nagwari, made the pledge in Sokoto at a news briefing organised to mark the two year anniversary of Gov. Aminu Tambuwal.
According to him, the ministry is a compiling list of all the defaulters and everybody must pay whatever he or she collected.
“This is public fund and it must be repaid for other farmers to benefit,” he said.
He also promised that the state government was fully committed to providing all the needed agricultural inputs and implements to farmers across the state.
“This is to further boost food security, reduce poverty and unemployment, among others,” he added.
On the fears of recurrence of tomato Ebola, Nagwari said that the ministry was taking measures to assist the farmers.
“This is by purchasing improved tomato seeds and insecticides as well as providing efficient extension services,” the commissioner averred.
The commissioner explained that the gesture was aimed at preventing the huge losses recorded by tomato farmers in the state in 2015.
Nagwari further stated that the state government has taken measures to curb the menace of quealea birds across the state.
“We have mapped out strategies to complement the efforts of the Federal Government in this direction,” he added.
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Tambuwal incorporates religious groups to support fight against polio
Gov. Aminu Tambuwal has incorporated the Jama’atul Nasril Islam (JNI), and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), as part of the Task Force to support the fight against polio in the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that this came to the fore on Sunday, in Bodinga town, Bodinga Local Government Area of the state at the commencement of the immunisation plus days.
Speaking at the event, the governor announced the formation of an expanded high powered task force, made up of leadership of JNI and CAN.
He said that the committee will ensure the massive mobilisation of all persons resident in the state, towards the success of the exercise.
He said,”my administration is committed in ensuring that the successes recorded in the fight against polio and other killer-diseases are not reversed.”
Tambuwal further called on stakeholders not to relent until the country was free from the dreaded polio virus.
Tambuwal said,” the Sokoto State Government has committed huge sums of money for the renovation of hospitals, construction of staff houses, as well as provision of basic medical equipment to Primary Healthcare Centres.
“This is to enable them provide qualitative primary and secondary health care services to the people.
“We will also continue to renovate our health facilities and construct some additional primary health centers for equitable distribution of facilities in all areas where there are none.”
Tambuwal also directed all the 23 local government areas to provide all needed support towards the success of the exercise.
The governor also inaugurated the task force on polio immunisation and implementation in all the 23 LGAs with each council chairman serving as head.
In his remarks, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, represented by the Magajin Rafin Sokoto, Alhaji Rilwanu Bello, called on all district heads to be fully involved in the immunisation drive.
In their separate remarks, representatives of the World Health Organisation (WHO), UNICEF, Rotary International and national primary Healthcare Development Agency, reiterated their determination to ensure that Nigeria is free from the wild polio virus (WPV).
On his part, the state commissioner of health, Dr. Balarabe Kakale called on all communities to take precautionary measures on the impending risk of Gastro enteritis, especially as the raining season is about to set in.
He also appealed to people to maintain personal and environmental hygiene, adding that the ministry will continue to discharge its duties effectively.
Other members of the task force announced by the governor include development partners, women groups, heads of security agencies, traditional and religious leaders, labour leaders, political officers, student groups, members of the civil societies, among others.
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Ghost workers: Sokoto recovers N278m from LG payrolls – Tambuwal
Sokoto State Government says it has recovered over N278 million paid to ghost workers on the payrolls of local governments in the past four months.
Gov. Aminu Tambuwal disclosed this on Sunday during a stakeholders’ meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) held in Gwadabawa Local Government Area.
Tambuwal said the money was paid to the ghost workers’ bank accounts but was not claimed from the various banks.
“This was sequel to the centralisation of the payment of the salaries of workers of the local governments.
“About two weeks ago, some banks alerted the Commissioner of Local Governments about the existence of the unclaimed money,” the governor said.
He said the recent verification of council staff was aimed at ascertaining genuine workers.
“The exercise was not aimed at witch hunting anyone but to ascertain the actual workforce and monthly wage bill of the local governments,” Tambuwal said.
He said many farmers in the state were defaulting in repayment of agricultural loans obtained from commercial banks and assured the banks of the government’s support in recovering the money.
“The money belongs to the Central Bank of Nigeria and we will support any action to recover it.
“This is to enable other farmers to benefit from the gesture as the money is not a bonanza.’’
Tambuwal called on the people to continue to pray for President Muhammadu Buhari as well as for sustained peace and unity of Nigeria.
Also speaking, Sen. Ibrahim Gobir (APC-Sokoto) and Speaker, Sokoto State House of Assembly, Alhaji Salihu Maidaji, called on party members to obtain their permanent voter cards.
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Sokoto creates 27,000 jobs in agric sector, says Tambuwal
Sokoto State Government says it has created no fewer than 27,166 jobs in the agricultural sector in the last two years.
Gov. Aminu Tambuwal said this on Wednesday in Sokoto at the opening of a stakeholders’ sensitisation workshop on Climate Change Adaptation and Agri-business Support, organised in collaboration with the State Office of International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
“In the period under consideration, we have supported more than 33,000 people, through the promotion of improved crop production techniques, para-veterinary clinics as well as women and youth off-farm activities.
“Similarly, we have created, through our community-based agric and rural development initiatives, 27,166 jobs via different interventions in sustainable agriculture, community infrastructure, rural enterprise development, among others,’’ he said.
The governor said that his administration was fully committed to the development of agriculture, with a view to enhancing food security, eradicating poverty and boosting employment opportunities, especially among the youth.
“The state government will continue to honour and fulfil all financial obligations entered into with IFAD and other donor agencies, so that the people of the state can continue to enjoy its maximum benefit,’’ Tambuwal said.
In his goodwill message, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, represented by the North West Regional Director, Mr Adeyemi Ayoyeyi, said that the Federal Government was determined to develop the agricultural sector.
“The Federal Government, under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari, was resolute in its vision of promoting agricultural production in Nigeria.
“The Federal Government was implementing programmes aimed at attracting the youth to agricultural practices across the value chain.
“The ministry, in collaboration with IFAD and other partners, has developed and implemented the climate change adaptation and agri-business support programme.
“This is to fast-track climate change mitigation and stimulate smart agriculture in the country,’’ Ogbeh said.
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Sokoto to ensure sustainable development
The Sokoto State Government says it is committed to ensure a sustainable development of the urban and rural areas of the state.
Aminu Tambuwal said this at a two-day stakeholders sensitisation workshop in the mining sector for the North West geo-political zone on Wednesday in Sokoto.
Tambuwal, represented by Prof. Bashir Garba, Secretary to the State Government, said ” before the development of oil, we have been getting all resources from coal which is also a solid mineral”.
“We tend to have abandoned the huge deposit of coal since the discovery of oil in the country; there are countries which still rely on solid minerals for their survival e.g Copper in Tunisia.
“Solid minerals have been in utilisation than petrol; in other words, all states in the country should try and discover their own solid mineral.”
The governor assured that the solid mineral developmental fund would support the stakeholders it it was well utilised.
Hajia Hadiza Goni, Acting Secretary, Solid Minerals Development Fund, said that the development of the mining sector had been one of the key change priorities of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari for economic diversification and growth.
Goni explained that before the discovery of oil in commercial quantity in Nigeria, mining sector was the mainstay of the economy and one of the major sources of revenue generation.
She said “unfortunately, in approximately 45 years decline of the country’s mining sector, we have been unable to articulate a framework upon which the sector would viably stand and operate.
“As such, we have missed out on various opportunities to capitalise on the up-surging of commodity process.”
Goni said that the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development had identified 45 different solid mineral types across the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory.