The Nation Newspaper

Tag: BUHARI

  • Buhari decries non-payment of teachers’ salaries

    DISRURBED by the non-payment of salaries to teachers in some states, President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday decried situation.

    He spoke through a statement signed by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, who said the President raised the concern after receiving a briefing from the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, MacJohn Nwaobiala.

    Shehu said the President urged the three tiers of government to be more mindful of their responsibilities to the payment of teachers’ salaries on time.

    He described as unfortunate that the non-payment of salaries had resulted in strikes by teachers in some states

    The media aid quoted Buhari as saying that the worst harm any state government could cause its citizens was to deny them quality education.

    The statement reads: “It then means that their citizens will be denied a chance to compete with others at the centre. Socially, it is very, very bad, if not irresponsible.”

    Nwaobiala had briefed the President on the current activities of her ministry as well as its challenges, including funding and insecurity in some parts of the country.

     

  • Non-payment of teachers’ salaries ‘worries’ Buhari

    President Muhammadu Buhari is concerned over non-payment of teachers’ salaries by many state governments.

    Buhari raised this issue and several others when top officials and heads of parastatals in the Federal Ministry of ‎Education briefed him on the activities of the Ministry at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Tuesday.

    He described the outstanding salaries arrears as unfair.

    The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, MacJohn ‎Nwaobiala‎, who led the delegation to the briefing, disclosed the officials’ encounter with the President while speaking with State House correspondents.

    He said the President was “pained” by the plight of the teachers, some of who are owed up to 12 months salary arrears.

    He said Buhari also expressed concern at the rating of Nigerian universities among their peers across the world.

    The permanent secretary said the President was told that some of the ratings were misinterpreted ‎and that the rating of Nigerian universities have actually been‎ improving.

    He said a top priority for them was school children displaced by terrorists in the country.

     

     

  • PDP backs Buhari’s anti graft campaign

    PDP backs Buhari’s anti graft campaign

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has expressed support for President Muhammadu Buhari’s anti corruption campaign, but stated however that due process must be followed in the fight against corruption.

    In a statement issued on Tuesday by its National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, the party warned against using the campaign as a guise to victimise innocent citizens and curtail the freedom of Nigerians.

    The PDP said the clarification became necessary in order to remove any misconception that the party was against Buhari’s decision to probe some past government officials, who are mainly members of the PDP.

    The statement said, “The PDP supports the decision of the Federal Government to fight corruption in our country. However, we make bold to state that it should not be used as a guise to victimise innocent citizens.

    “Democracy has come to stay in Nigeria and no citizen, irrespective of political, religious or ethnic affiliation should be denied access to due process and the rule of law in the process.

    “In the same vein, we want to state categorically that the anti-corruption war, whilst targeted at the immediate past administration, should not by any means be blind to the impunity of the present leaders of the country either in terms of borrowing and spending without recourse to the statutory arms and organs of government and dictates of transparency and accountability, or in terms of nepotism in appointments in key institutions such as INEC and the DSS.

    “The anti-corruption effort must not be blind to the corrupting of the security system resulting in the intrusion by over-zealous operatives on issues bordering purely on politics, the hounding, arrest and detention of Resident Electoral Officers and members of election tribunals in Rivers, Akwa-Ibom and other PDP states.”

     

     

  • Boko Haram: Buhari visits Cameroon, Benin Republic

    Boko Haram: Buhari visits Cameroon, Benin Republic

    To build a more effective regional coalition against the Boko Haram sect, President Muhammadu Buhari will visit Cameroon on Wednesday for talks with President Paul Biya and senior Cameroonian Government officials.

    The talks between Buhari and his Cameroonian counterpart, according to a statement issued by Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, are expected to focus on the full activation and deployment of the Multinational Joint Task Force against Boko Haram, which has been established under the auspices of the Lake Chad Basin Commission.

    President Buhari, who will be accompanied on the two-day trip by six state governors and the Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Defence  and the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, the statement said, will also discuss further joint measures to curb terrorism, violent extremism and other cross-border crimes.

    The state governors on the President’s entourage are – Alhaji Mohammed Bindow (Adamawa), Mr. Emmanuel Udom (Akwa Ibom), Mr. Samuel Ortom (Benue), Alhaji Kashim Shettima (Borno), Mr. Ben Ayade (Cross River) and Mr. Darius Ishaku (Taraba).

    President Buhari will also use the opportunity of his visit to Cameroon to meet with Nigerians living in the East African nation.

    The President, who is due back in Abuja on Thursday, will also undertake a one-day trip to Benin Republic on Saturday for talks with President Boni Yayi to round-off the diplomatic shuttles to neighbouring countries.

  • Buhari, Biya to strategise against Boko Haram in Yaoundé

    Buhari, Biya to strategise against Boko Haram in Yaoundé

    The Cameroonian Minister of Communication, Issa Bakary, said on Tuesday that security issues are expected to domination talks as Paul Biya hosts his Nigerian counterpart, Muhammadu Buhari on a two-day State Visit.

    According to Bakary, Buhari and his Cameroonian counterpart, Paul Biya, will also discuss other issues that will boost the two countries ‘brotherly relationship’.

    He said the visit would afford the two leaders the opportunity to map out strategies to defeat militants, Boko Haram who have been wrecking havoc in the parts of the two nations.

    “The visit follows the continuing attacks on both countries by Boko Haram,’’ he said.

    Bakary also said the visit became necessary as the insurgents, having been defeated frontally, have changed their attack strategy, including suicide bombings.

    He called on all Cameroonians and the people of far north region in particular, to increase their vigilance and spare no effort in collaborating with local authorities and security forces.

    He also said there was the need to share information on how to identify positions of Boko Haram and their accomplices.

  • Buhari asks Senate to confirm Service Chiefs

    Buhari asks Senate to confirm Service Chiefs

    President, Muhammadu Buhari, has asked the Senate to confirm the appointment of the Service Chiefs.

    Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki, read the President’s letter seeking the confirmation of the appointees on Tuesday.

    Those Buhari asked the Senate to confirm include Major-General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin as the new Chief Defence Staff, Major-General Tukur Y. Buratai as Chief of Army Staff, Rear Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas as Chief of Naval Staff, and Air Vice Marshal Sadique Abubakar as Chief of Air Staff.‎

    In the absence of standing committee, Saraki is expected to set up an ad-hoc committee to screen the appointees.

     

     

  • Heightened security in Cameroon as Buhari visits

    Heightened security in Cameroon as Buhari visits

    Security in Yaounde, capital of Cameroon, has been beefed up with the expected visit of President Muhammadu Buhari to the Central African nation on Wednesday.

    President Buhari is billed to start his visit to Cameroon on Wednesday and he will hold talks with his Cameroonian counterpart, President Paul Biya, on how to tackle the Boko Haram insurgency.

    After visiting Niger and Chad after his inauguration on May 29, President Buhari had earlier shifted his visit to Cameroon due to the Muslims’ Ramadan fasting and his invitation to the G-7 meeting in Berlin, Germany.

    Security patrols in Yaounde, the country’s capital, have increased since information about the Nigerian leader’ visit was made public.

    Besides thorough checking and searching of cars and trucks with ordinary plate numbers, cars with diplomatic plate numbers are also not spared.

    Speaking to journalists on Buhari’s visit, Nigeria’s High Commissioner to Cameroon, Amb. Hadiza Mustapha said: “It is our tradition in Nigeria that when presidents come into office, his first port of call should be African countries. His visit shows the highest level of cordiality.

    “There is need to synergize between the frontline states on how to confront insurgency, in order to build on the gains so far achieved.

    “Nigeria’s relations with Cameroon have a long history of both economic and political ties anchored on affinities and shared destiny.

    “It is a very significant visit and we are looking forward to it. The President is going to spend a night which shows you how much importance he attaches to it. I’m highly honoured to be receiving the second Nigerian President as Ambassador here.”

    [news_list display=”tag” tag=”Buhari, Cameroon, Security, Africa” exclude_categories=”Buhari, Cameroon, Africa Union, Chad” show_more=”on”]

  • Buhari to APC Reps: obey party’s directive on offices

    Buhari to APC Reps: obey party’s directive on offices

    Oyegun, Dogara, Gbajabiamila: there’ll be good news today

    President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday reiterated his stand on the National Assembly’s leadership crisis. The party’s position is supreme, he told members of the troubled House of Representatives.

    Buhari is said to have told the lawmakers: “Obey the party.”

    The main actors in the crisis appeared to be ready for peace.  That was the feeler after a meeting the All Progressives Congress (APC) House members held with the President ended in a deadlock.

    The feuding parties – headed by Speaker Yakubu Dogara and former House Minority Leader Femi Gbajabiamila – refused to shift ground on the sharing of principal officers’ positions.

    The meeting, which was held at the new Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, began at about 5.40pm. It lasted just 20 minutes.

    Dogara and Gbajabiamila led their groups to the meeting, which was attended by some members of the APC National Working Committee (NWC), led by the party’s National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun.

    Gbajabiamila’s group is demanding that the APC’s position on the selection of principal officers be implemented by the Speaker, whose Consolidation Group believes that federal character must be reflected in the sharing of offices.

    But, at the end of the 20-minute parley, both groups were optimistic that the end to the crisis was in sight.

    On emerging from the meeting, both camps agreed with the President’s counsel that the party should not be undermined.

    The President was said to be unequivocal that the “unity of the APC in the House is central to ensuring that the party delivers the promised change to Nigerians”.

    Dogara told State House correspondents that his loyalty to the party remained unshaken, adding that he was open to a quick resolution of the crisis.

    He said: “I have always stood firmly by the party, there has never been a time that I never stood firmly by the party.

    “So, like my chairman has explained, we are going into consultations with the party and I am sure sooner than later, we will have good news for Nigerians.”

    Gbajabiamila said party supremacy was exhaustively discussed, adding that the outcome of another consultation towards an early resolution of the crisis would be made public.

    Gbajabiamila said: “We are still talking. But I think this is the first time everybody is coming together in a cordial atmosphere. We came together for the first time as one family, with a lot of camaraderie.

    “I think we are almost at the point where all of these will be behind us. Hopefully, by tomorrow (today). It is not about magic; it is about what should have been done a long time ago.

    “We have finally sat down together and we will resolve it before the night, in a couple of hours.The important thing is that the country wants to move ahead. The House wants to move ahead and the party wants to move ahead. Move ahead, we shall.

    “Whoever or whatever outside forces that might have been stoking the fire, I think we would put that to an end this evening at the meeting.”

    Odigie-Oyegun said the party would have good news for the nation bytomorrow (today).

    According to him, yesterday’s meeting achieved a lot, notwithstanding its brevity.

    The chair said: “Everything is upbeat. You can see that I am smiling. You will be very surprised that a lot was achieved in 20 minutes.

    “As the chairman of the party, I can say that there are no discordant tunes. You can see the Speaker of the House standing firmly beside me and I have a feeling that in another three or four hours and by tomorrow, we will have good news for the nation.

    “It is never too late to straighten the path.”

     

  • Can Buhari appoint INEC acting chairman?

    Can Buhari appoint INEC acting chairman?

    Lately, there has been controversy as to whether the President’s powers to appoint a substantive Chairman for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) also includes powers to appoint anyone to act in an acting capacity. This intervention is designed to contribute to the raging debate as well as offer insights into the legal position having regard to the relevant statutory enactments and provisions on the subject matter.

    The powers to appoint a substantive Chairman of INEC are regulated by Sections 153(1) and 154 (1) (3) which provide as follows:

    153 (1) “There shall be established for the Federation the following bodies, namely:

    (a)     Code of conduct Bureau;

    (b)     Council of states;

    (c)     Federal Character Commission;

    (d)     Federal Civil Service Commission;

    (e)     Federal Judicial Service Commission;

    (f)      Independent National Electoral  Commission;

    (g)     National Defence Council;

    (h)     National Economic Council;

    (i)      National Judicial Council;

    (j)      National Population Commission;

    (k)     National Security Council;

    (l)      Nigeria Police Council;

    (m)   Police Service Commission; and

    (n)     Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission; 154(1 & 3) “Except in the case of ex-official members of where other provisions are made in this Constitution, the Chairman and members of any of the bodies so established shall, subject to the provisions of this Constitution, be appointed by the President and the appointment shall be subject to confirmation by the Senate … in exercising his powers to appoint  a person as Chairman or member of the Independent National Electoral Commission, National Judicial Council, the Federal Judicial Service Commission or the National Population Commission, the President shall consult the Council of State”

    The summary of the above constitutional provisions is that the President retains the power to appoint INEC substantive chairman subject to confirmation by the Senate after consulting with the Council of State. Therefore, the power of the President to appoint a substantive Chairman of INEC is clearly not in doubt.

    The next question is whether the outgone Chairman of INEC, Professor AttahiruJega was entitled to assign responsibilities to anyone within the INEC hierarchy to take over his responsibilities pending the time anyone would be appointed to act in acting capacity and before the appointment of a substantive chairman? The answer to that query can be resolved by reference to Section 160(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) which provides as follows:

    160(1) “subject to subsection (2) of this section, any of the bodies may, with the approval of the President, by rules or otherwise regulate its own procedure or confer powers and impose duties on any officer or authority for the purpose of discharging its function.”

    The clear implication of the foregoing is that Professor AttahiruJega could only delegate such powers to anyone with the prior express approval of the President or else the action would be unconstitutional.

    However, the next question is whether the President can appoint anyone as Acting Chairman of INEC as he had done recently? There appears to be no clear answer to this controversy from constitutional provisions. However, reference can be made to the provisions of Interpretation Act to resolve the controversy.

    Sections 11(1)(a, b,c) and 11 (2) on powers of appointment conferred by an enactment generally provides :

    11(1)(a, b,c) “Where an enactment confers a power to appoint a person either to an office or to exercise any functions, whether for a specified period or not, the power includes:

    (a) Power to appoint a person by name or to appoint the holder from time to time of a particular office;

    (b) Power to remove or suspend him;

    (c) Power, exercisable in the manner and subject to the limitations and conditions (if any) applicable to the power to appoint –

    (i) To reappoint or reinstate him;

    (ii) To appoint a person to act in his place, either generally or in regard to specified functions, during such time as is considered expedient by the authority in whom the power of appointment in question is vested.

    (2) A reference in an enactment to the holder of an office shall be construed as including a reference to a person for the time being appointed to act in his place, either as respects the functions of the office generally or the functions in regard to which he is appointed, as the case may be.”

    Clearly from the above, powers to appoint include power to remove or suspend, power to reappoint or reinstate and power to appoint in an acting capacity. Therefore, President Buhari clearly has powers to appoint an Acting Chairman of INEC by virtue of the provisions of Interpretation Act.

    It would seem that on the strength of the provisions of the Interpretation Act, such an appoint in an acting capacity pending the appointment of the substantive Chairman of INEC would not require prior Senate approval  as it arises by virtue of the express powers conferred on the President by constitutional provisions. It is only when such appointment relates to a substantive position of the Chairman of INEC that the Senate approval must be sought and obtained before the appointment would be deemed valid and constitutional.

    The controversy as to whether President Buhari has the powers to appoint an INEC Acting Chairman pending the appointment of a Substantive Chairman should therefore be regarded as closed.

  • Terrorism: Expert seeks ICT community’s support for Buhari

    Terrorism: Expert seeks ICT community’s support for Buhari

    The Chief Executive Officer, Teledon Group, Dr Emmanuel Ekuwem, has called on information communication technology (ICT) practitioners to support President Muhammadu Buhari in his fight against terrorism.

    Dr Ekuwem, who spoke with our reporter in Lagos, lamented the needless loss of lives of soldiers due to ill-equipment.

    According to him, ICT can be used to tackle insecurity by equipping the toll gates, sea and air ports and borders with ‘fire gates’ that will screen through vehicle, detecting lethal objects, including acid, dangerous chemicals, guns, explosives, arms, and ammunition.

    “Terrorists have to move their weapons from one place to the other to execute their plans; they do not carry these weapons physically, they weld it into the body of the car, sandpaper and spray the car body. No matter the distance they travel, no one would see the arms. But, with the use of ICT tools, we would reduce terrorism, identify the weapons and prevent them from coming into the country,” he said.

    He said it is the duty of ICT professionals to equip armed forces with the right knowledge, inform the Presidency about the latest technologies that are available to detect crimes and act proactively.

    He lamented the absence of criminal data base in the country, adding that it is not helping in the fight against criminals.

    He said: “Wherever a criminal or serial offender is stopped by the law enforcement agents, it is a new case because there is no criminal data base. Everybody is arresting criminals, interrogating them and letting them go. All they can do is to write a statement. Each police station, military, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSDC), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) should have their own criminal data base and it should all be interlinked, just like banks are doing globally.

    “There is the need to bring the Nigerian security apparatus to the same level of ICT as a tool to boost performance, high level delivery and output like in the banking or telecoms. It is the duty of the ICT industry to collaborate with the Presidency and the various governors. CCTV, camera among other ICT tools can also be put around the country to detect crimes and criminals.”

    He lamented that technophobia has prevented the use of ICT to fight insecurity, adding that the people in charge of the various arms of the national security system are not comfortable with technology.

    “They see technology as being too complicated or too complex. Instead of seeing it as a tool, they prefer to do what they are used to doing in the manual way.

    “Cyber security must also be looked into. It is an indispensable component of national security. It is very important that we provide security in the Nigerian cyber space.  The challenge is to overcome technophobia, and to have skills and competences.

    “The regulators need to be much more aggressive and have the need to push,” he said.