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Tag: commissioner

  • Amosun seeks confirmation of commissioner-nominees

    Amosun seeks confirmation of commissioner-nominees

    OGUN State Governor Ibikunle Amosun has forwarded the names of two additional commissioner-nominees to the House of Assembly for screen and confirmation.

    The Speaker, Suraj Adekunbi, said this at yesterday’s plenary when he read a letter from the governor to the house.

    The nominees are Miss Aderonke Onadeko and Mrs. Abiola Okogie.

    Adekunbi called on the new commissioners-nominees to appear before the House tomorrow with 30 copies of their curriculum vitae for screening.

    Also, at the plenary, the assembly adopted the interim report which recommended extension of the caretaker committee of the Amalgamated Motorcycles and Riders Association of Nigeria (AMORAN).

    The report was adopted after the Chairman, House Committee on Transportation, Isreal Jolaosho, read the report of the committee on petition by some members of the transportation unions.

    Jolaosho said the extension was to give the committee more time to address the issue contained in the petition from the transport unions.

     

     

  • Youths constitute 10m of Lagos population, says Commissioner

    Youths constitute 10m of Lagos population, says Commissioner

    The Lagos State Commissioner for Youth and Social Development, Mrs Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf, yesterday said the youths constitute about 10 million out of the estimated 23 million people living in the state.

    She said the state government is taking proactive steps towards developing a strategic policy which would provide a positive, viable and sustainable direction to promote their growth.

    The Commissioner disclosed this at a sensitisation meeting for policy makers in key Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) on the development of the Lagos State Youth Policy, held at the State’ Secretariat, Alausa in Ikeja.

    She said the proposed policy will enhance development and create opportunities for the youth in the state.

    She said: “This policy document will define the state government’s vision for the youth. It provides a crucial framework guiding the state’s approach to ensuring that the large number of youth population in the state is provided with a high quality of life, their potentials are realised and they become a veritable asset to the state’s economic and social development.”

    The commissioner reiterated that the policy would identify crucial areas of development of the youth.

    She appealed to the MDAs in line with their statutory responsibilities to inculcate youth development programme into their budgeting process and give prominence to the implementation of youth development activities in the state.

    Representative of United Nation Population Funds Dr. Momoh Aruna said the agency is working with the state government in all areas gearing towards uplifting and developing youths in the state.

     

  • Commissioner: zoning has no place in Ondo politics

    The Ondo State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Kayode Akinmade has given reasons for the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) decision against the zoning of its governorship post ahead of the November 26 election.

    Speaking in Akure at the weekend, Akinmade said no governor has ever been elected in the state on the basis of ethnicity, adding that competence had always been the major  factor considered.

    “If you go into history, between 1999 and 2012, all the candidates of PDP in those elections have been coming from a particular zone and at that time we never thought of zoning.

    “In 1999 when the late Adebayo Adefarati wanted to contest election, the late Dr. Olusegun Agagu contested against him, the people of Ondo State voted for Adefarati. They did not vote for Adefarati because he was from Akungba-Akoko in Ondo North Senatorial District. They voted for him because he was central to the agitation for the emancipation of Nigeria from the military junta in Ondo State.  He was a leader of Afenifere in Ondo State. He was voted because he was vocal and was able to achieve a lot in galvanizing the people towards a common goal.

    “In 2003, he also stood for  election with late  Dr. Olusegun  Agagu from the South. At that time, Dr. Agagu won the election.  Dr. Agagu did not win the election because he was from the southern senatorial district. He won the election because of the political structure of that time. In 2007, the same re-contested election with some other people from other zones. You will recall that Prince Ademola Adegoroye from Akure contested the election and Dr. Olusegun Mimko from Ondo contested the election. It was not based on any primordial sentiment.

    “At that election, Dr. Mimiko won and he was rigged out. But thank God, he got his mandate back through the judiciary. People voted for Dr. Mimiko in 2007 not because he is from Ondo, they voted for him because of what he has consistently stood for in terms of progressivism politics. They voted for him because he has used the instrumentality of government to better the lot of the people of Ondo State. They voted for him because he has pedigree.”

    He said there is no agitation about zoning in the PDP as being portrayed by some individual, submitting that what is being witnessed at the moment was that aspirants were moving round the state to canvass for support and candidate would emerge at the primary.

  • Govt committed to flood-free Lagos, says commissioner

    Lagos State Government is committed to ensuring a flood-free city in its fight against the damaging effects of climate change, Commissioner for the Environment Dr Babatunde Adejare, has said. Speaking at a media workshop organised by Coastal Cities at Risk Project in Lagos last Thursday, Adejare said the government invested in effective drainage system and has created an enabling environment for private sector participation in waste disposal and flood prevention.

    He decried the attitude of those who still defecate and also dispose their waste improperly, saying about 13,000 tons of waste are generated in the open daily. The government, he said, lacked the financial and technical capacity to evacuate the waste and needed private participation sector’s support to do it.

    “There are houses in Lagos which do not have proper toilets and the landlady is collecting rents there, people throw away their refuse in our drainages causing flooding. Lagos does not have the capacity yet to take waste management to the level it should be so we need more capacity in that respect. We need to realise that governance is shared responsibility between those in government and the people,” Adejare said.

    The workshop with the theme:  “Building capacity towards effective communication and agenda setting for enhancing resilience to climate change in Lagos,” focused on the report of a research project on coast al cities at risk of climate change.

    The project was carried out by researchers at the Department of Geography, University of Ibadan and it focuses on the effects of climate change on the coastal city of Lagos. Other cities involved in the project include: Bangkok in Thailand, Vancouver in Canada and Manila in the Philippines.

    According to the research team leader for Lagos, Dr Ibidun Adelekan, Lagos is one of the 10 cities in the world at most risk of climate change.

    She said by 2030, the city will be one of the five cities in the world.  Adelekan said sea level has risen by 63.6mm over the 20 year period with an average rate of 3.18mm per year.

    The team leader also said increased urbanization especially in Lekki and Ajah areas of the state has given rise to heavy rainfall and urban flash flooding, storm surge, windstorm and frequency and severity of climate hazards and associated risks have increased in Lagos since the turn of the century.

  • Ambode keen on flood-free Lagos, says commissioner

    Ambode keen on flood-free Lagos, says commissioner

    Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode will ensure a flood-free Lagos in his fight against the effects of climate change, Commissioner for the Environment  Dr. Babatunde Adejare has said.

    Adejare spoke at a one-day media workshop organised by Coastal Cities at Risk Project in Lagos.

    He said the state invested in effective drainage system and created an enabling environment for private sector participation in waste disposal and flood prevention.

    The commissioner, who decried the attitude of some residents practising open defecation and improper disposal of waste, said about 13,000 tons of waste are generated daily, which the state lacks the financial and technical capacity to evacuate.

    This, he said, necessitated  heavy participation by the private sector.

    “There are houses in Lagos, which do not have proper toilets and the landlady is collecting rents, people throw away refuse in our drainages causing flooding, Lagos does not have the capacity yet to take waste management to the level it should be, so we need more capacity in that respect.

    ‘’We need to realise that governance is shared responsibility between government and the people,” Adejare said.

    On waste management, the commissioner said the Olusosun dump would be shut by December.

    “The governor has directed and I will do it, we want to have a standardised waste management system in place,” he said.

    The workshop, with the theme: “Building capacity towards effective communication and agenda setting for enhancing resilience to climate change in Lagos,” focused on the report of a research on coastal cities at risk of climate change.

    The project was carried by researchers at the Department of Geography, University of Ibadan, and focuses on the effects of climate change on Lagos, and other cities, such as Thailand’s Bangkok, Canada’s Vancouver and Manila in the Philippines.

    The team leader for Lagos Dr. Ibidun Adelekan said Lagos would be one of the five cities at most risk of climate change by 2030, from 10.

    Adelekan said sea level has risen by 63.6mm over the 20 year period with an average rate of 3.18mm per year.

    The team leader also said increased urbanization especially in Lekki and Ajah areas of the state has given rise to heavy rainfall and urban flash flooding, storm surge, windstorm and frequency and severity of climate hazards and associated risks have increased in Lagos since the turn of the century.

  • Commissioner advocates religious harmony, tolerance

    Lagos State Commissioner for Home Affairs Dr AbdulHakeem AbdulLateef has enjoined faithfuls across the country to promote religious harmony, tolerance and peaceful co-existence.

    Speaking at Bola Ahmed Tinubu Ramadan Lecture, Held at Combo Hall, LTV, Agindingbi, Ikeja, AbdulLateef chided those who take religion to the extreme, saying there is no compulsion in Islam.

    He said: “Anyone who attacks non-Muslims for not fasting is an ignorant Muslim and enemy of Islam because Allah has not compelled non-Muslims to fast. Ramadan fast should be done by Muslims and even not all Muslims are compelled to fast. It is Muslims who are strong and able to observe the fast that were compelled. If you are sick and you observe the fast, you don’t really have reward because you killing yourself gradually.

    ‘’For anybody to now take it upon himself to be a fighter for God, such a person is an ignorant person and we must avoid all forms of violence and anything that will constitute man’s inhumanity to man.

    ‘’The month of Ramadan is meant for us to engage in Ibaadat (acts of worship) by performing all the obligatory prayers, reading and mastering the Quran and engaging in supplication to remember Allah.”

    He also called for an end to insurgencies in the North east and South south by Boko Haram and Niger Delta militants.

    Senator Ganiyu Solomon implored the Muslims to be steadfast and prayer for the nation.

    “We needed to offer pray to God for the growth and delivery of the nation. Nigeria is today, challenged on many fronts but though the storms gather, clear skies are ahead. Nigeria and her people will outlive the current challenge and will see a new day,” he said.

  • Commissioner: Govt’ll now treat land grabbers as criminals

    Commissioner: Govt’ll now treat land grabbers as criminals

    LAGOS State Government will, henceforth, treat those who grab other people’s land as criminals, Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice Mr Adeniji Kazeem said yesterday.

    He was inaugurating a five-man Special Task Force to curb the activities of land grabbers aka Omo Onile at the state secretariat in Alausa, Ikeja.

    The task force’s terms of reference include: “to reduce to barest minimum the activities of persons or corporate entities who use force and intimidation to dispossess or prevent any person or entity from acquiring legitimate interest and possession of property acquired state government or private transactions; to coordinate the efforts of the various agencies of government charged with enforcing the government rights over land in Lagos and to work with all security agencies to ensure enforcement of government and private property rights in Lagos State”.

    Kazeem said the government raised the task force because land grabbers have caused havoc and unrest in different parts of the state by dispossessing legitimate land owners of their properties, thereby stifling commercial activities in the state.

    “It is, therefore, important that the government not only identifies the effects of the problems being perpetrated by these unscrupulous elements on commercial activities and peace of the citizenry but also find lasting solutions to the menace”, he said.

    The task force, the commissioner said, would ensure protection of investors and maintain law and order adding, “this by implication will encourage the verification of legal claimsý through litigation rather than resorting to violence”.

    Kazeem described land as an asset and title, security “And therefore, anybody who uses threat of arms or physical threat to dispossess people of their legitimate property will be treated as criminals.

    The task force members are a deputy director in the Ministry of Justice, Mr. Akinjide Bakare who will serve as alternate chairman in the absence of the Attorney-General; representative of the Commissioner for the Environment Dr. Afolabi Abiodun, representatives of the Lands Bureau Olayinka Adebayo and Faiq Abou, Chief Security Officer to the governor Mr Saheed Kassim, Commander Governor’s Monitoring Team Mr Ganiyu Adebowale, a representative of the Commissioner for Physical Planning. A worker in the ministry, Ms Mosunmola Balogun is secretary.

  • Clearing of Ogun River begins today, says Commissioner

    Clearing of Ogun River begins today, says Commissioner

    The clearing of the dry part of Ogun River near the Ojodu-Berger end of Lagos-Ibadan expressway will begin today, Ogun State Commissioner for the Environment, Mr Bolaji Oyeleye said yesterday.

    He said the evacuation initially billed to start on Monday was delayed because of unavailability of the equipment needed for the exercise.

    He said the clearing would last for a week or more, depending operation goes.

    The Commissioner said: “We have been waiting since morning from about 9am for the arrival of the equipment. We need mechanised equipment such as barge and graft crane to begin the evacuation. We are expected to commence today but we can’t until tomorrow. By the grace of God with all certainty, work will begin this time tomorrow and hopefully, it should take a week or there about.”

    The Police, he said, had been drafted to the river to prevent people from commuting on the area.

    Oyeleye added: “The root of the hyacinth is fibroid in nature and weaves itself together in form of mat. So unexpectedly, it can give way and open up. People should stop walking on it.”

    People were still trooping to the place yesterday to behold the charming scene. They resisted the police move to stop them from walking and playing in the dry driver despite experts’ warning of the inherent danger.

    A Geologist at the Department of Marine Geology and Geophysics, Nigerian Institute of Oceanography and Marine Research (NIOMR) Dr Adegbie Adesina urged government to control the water hyacinth.

    Adesina told The Nation that water hyacinths have come to stay in Nigeria. The seeds of the plant, he said, were in the weeds and would remain there and continues to reproduce if not controlled.

    “Government must watch to prevent the reproduction of the weeds,” he added.

    He said the weeds were fresh water plants, seen yearly in waterways, in the lagoons or on the ocean, adding that the occurrence is not new but a normal phenomenon.

    According to him, such weeds normally multiply during the rainy season and they block the waterways. “The weeds have already blocked the river channel which is common all over the world but, there is need that they are controlled because the seed can reproduce itself rapidly. The plant is harmful, as it is taking over the whole environment and it can stop the development of other plants around that area.”

  • Oyo Assembly confirms 15 commissioner-nominees

    Oyo Assembly confirms 15 commissioner-nominees

    OYO State House of Assembly has confirmed the nomination of 15 Commissioner-nominees as forwarded by Governor Abiola Ajimobi last week.

    The names, which was confirmed at plenary include Ms Taibat Adaba; Prince Oyewumi Oyewole, son of the Soun of Ogbomoso, who contested the House of Representatives election in the 2015 general election and lost to a Labour Party (LP) candidate; and a governorship aspirant during the 2015 election, Dr. Azeez Adeduntan.

    Others are: former Deputy Chief of Staff to the Governor, Mr. Abimbola Adekanmbi; immediate past Commissioner for Women Affairs, Mrs. Atinuke Osunkoya; former Commissioner for Works, Abimbola Kolade; Abayomi Oke, son of Oyo State All Progressives Congress (APC) Chairman, Chief Akin Oke; Mr. Wasiu Dauda, a former Commissioner; Mr. Ajiboye Omodewu, a former Commissioner for Lands and Mr. Isaac Ishola Adisa.

    The Speaker of the House of Assembly, Michael Adeyemo said the nominees screened by the house were men of high quality and good pedigree.

    He added that their choice was a confirmation that the governor was a man of transparency.

    Reacting, Oke, a nominee from Ogbomoso, said: “Our nomination is a rare privilege and we will use our ideas and wealth of experience to positively transform the state in line with the vision of Governor Ajimobi.”

    Adeduntan, a former gubernatorial candidate of the Labour Party in 2011, said he would serve the people with his ability and strength.

  • Oshiomhole drops commissioner

    Oshiomhole drops commissioner

    Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhokle has dropped the Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Abdul Oroh.

    No reason was given for his removal.

    But a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor said Oroh was “dropped in the public interest”.

    The statement added that Oshiomhole had approved the appointment of Mr. Kerry Emokpare as a commissioner-designate.

    It said Oshiomhole thanked Oroh for his invaluable services to the state and wished him well in his future endeavours.

    But Oroh said he longed to return to private practice, adding that his sack would enable him to live as a private citizen.

    He said: “I have done seven years as a commissioner. I was in the House of Representatives. I have been longing to have a private life. The governor is my friend. We have achieved a lot in Edo.”