The Nation Newspaper

Tag: DON

  • Don seeks price control

    Don seeks price control

    Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife,  Vice Chancellor Prof Anthony Elujoba has called for tighter regulation of food commodity prices to help entrepreneurs.

    He gave the advice at the Annual In-House Review Exercise of the Institute of Agricultural Research and Training(IAR&T), Moor Plantation, Ibadan, Oyo State.

    The yearly review is done to appraise the institute’s challenges, achievements and prospects.

    Represented by the Provost, Post-Graduate College, Prof. David Alebiowu, Elujoba said farmers were taking many risks in marketing their products, urging the government  to  take a hard look at its potential impact on food prices volatility.

    He said: “The government must also standardise price control because local market volatility is the biggest threat to entrepreneurs in agriculture. The farmers are taking a lot of risks in marketing their products due to  unstable prices.”

    IAR&T Executive Director Professor James Adediran said that no fewer than 4,000

    farmers have benefited from the institute’s training programmes during the review.

    “During the year under review, some achievements apart from areas of research have been recorded in areas of infrastructure and human resources developments.

    “Over 4,000 farmers, intending farmers, non-governmental organisation, women and unemployed youths benefited from training programmes conducted by the institute. The objective was to carry out training that will lead to poverty reduction, job and wealth creation. The farmers in turn were mandated and empowered to train other  farmers in their various  locations.

    In staff development, Adediran said: “This year, four scientists and technical staff attended both international and local conferences where they presented their research findings.”

  • Don makes case for students in distress

    Don makes case for students in distress

    •CU holds 9th Inaugural lecture

    professor of Counseling Psychology at the Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Amos Alao, has urged tertiary institutions nationwide to have a Career and Counseling Centre that can assist students during their difficult moments.

    He spoke at the ninth inaugural lecture of the school with the theme: Can two walk together except they agree? A psychological perspective of a journey of a helping relationship and behaviour change.

    Alao is optimistic that the unit would help students have access  to career information, counseling, exploration, experimental education, job search and skills among others.

    “The rationale (behind the proposed unit) being that as the primary educational function of the university takes place in the lecture rooms, learning also occurs beyond the lecture hours, in the halls of residence, in  relationship students established and other experiences students go through.

    “University students also need services that will enable them acquire and develop positive attitudes, gain insight and understanding about themselves, their environment, which are necessary for optimal growth.

    Alao explained that oftentimes, students are faced with daring challenges that need “a helping hand.”   He said most times they resort to harmful decisions like abuse of substance, suicide or simply wallow in grief.

    Alao said findings from some researches he embarked on years back in the University of Botswana, showed that alcohol and substances are a challenge in tertiary institutions. The resort to these substances by youths when depressed, he explained, has led to its abuse, and necessitating the need to address the phenomenon by authorities of various institutions.

    Alao also called to mind the prevailing anomaly of suicide in the country.  He said it is important to set up preventive and protective measures to guard against suicide conception, attempt and action.  He said such preventive measures may include: training in self-esteem; social connection, especially with family friends; sustaining social support; religious or spiritual commitment; and provision of recreation facilities.

    “It would be helpful for all staff who handle students welfare matters within the university to have some level of competence in recognising students in distress and refer appropriately. As part of orientation, students should be informed as to where they can receive help when they are in difficulty or distress. Such areas should not only include physical contacts, but also accessing help from hot-line and internet.

    “Suicide ideation and attempt deserve our serious concern as an institution of learning. Suicide ideation can also affect effective functioning of students, thus interfering with their learning. Consequently, there is need to engage students in activities and provide services that would discourage suicide ideation or suicide attempt,” he concluded.

  • Don wants special attention to anti-corruption fight

    A don, Dr Ferdinand Ottoh, has urged the judiciary to give special attention to the anti-corruption fight of the Federal Government by accelerating hearing of corruption-related cases.
    Ottoh, a lecturer in the Department of Political Science, University of Lagos, made the appeal in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
    “Nothing meaningful will be achieved in the current anti-corruption fight without the unalloyed support of the judiciary. If it requires reviewing its jurisprudence in matters of corruption cases, let it be so,’’ he said.
    Ottoh said that corruption in public offices was a major setback to Nigeria’s development, warning that the country would not be able to record any meaningful progress until eradication of the menace.
    “We can only talk of the Nigerian state when it has the capacity to provide welfare for the people and meet its obligations as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution.
    “The corruption in the country before the Muhammadu Buhari administration rendered Nigeria incapable to protect lives and property and provide education and other necessities to its citizens.
    “A situation in which individuals have pillaged the resources of the country, thereby making Nigeria unable to meet the obligations of a state will further her dependency and crises.
    “The truth is that the Buhari administration’s stance on anti-corruption is a redemption course that this nation needs for sustenance,’’ he said.

  • Don seeks end to open defecation

    An environmental health expert, Dr Oladapo Okareh, has called for aggressive sensitisation against open defecation, saying the practice could lead to outbreak of diseases like cholera and diarrhoea.
    Okareh, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences (EHS), University of Ibadan, made the call while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ibadan, Oyo State capital.
    He said: “Open defecation is the practice whereby people go out in fields, bushes, forests, open bodies of water or other open spaces rather than use the toilet to defecate or pass bodily waste.
    “Open defecation constitutes a major public health problem due to rapid urbanisation, lack of public toilets and low level of awareness.”
    According to him, open defecation is a public menace because it could easily lead to outbreak of communicable diseases like cholera, typhoid, diarrhoea, intestinal infections, respiratory diseases and tuberculosis.
    He said it also causes air and water pollution when human faeces are washed away during the rainy season.
    “Water supplies can become contaminated with such faecal matters; we all know that human faeces contain bacteria and germs which consequently contaminate water people use for drinking,” he said.
    Okareh said in order to curb the menace of open defecation, government at all levels should increase public awareness on the health risk it poses to the populace.
    “Government can also exhibit political will to stop open defecation through construction of public toilets in strategic places, stringent sanitation laws and proper waste disposal,” he said.

  • Don gives scholarships at birthday

    Olu Akeusola Foundation, has awarded scholarships to 18 indigent students in the country.

    The foundation established by the Provost, Michael Otedola College for Primary Education, (MOCPED), Noforija, Epe Lagos Prof. Olu Akeusola, kicked off since 2011 as a yearly event to mark his birthday.

    This year’s edition, which also marked the 55th birthday of the founder at MOCPED premises, saw the students smiling home with cash awards.

    Akeusola said the gesture was his own way of giving back to the society and appreciating God for His kindness.

    “How will I say thank you to God and to the society that made me a prominent person from my humble background? Everybody knows I have a grass-to-grace story. People once saw me as a never-do-well but God in His mercy has made me a leader and controller of men. Therefore I have decided on my birthday that I should be able to give anything within my power to help the students that are coming up.”

    Akeusola recalled that the foundation started with nine students in 2011, three each from primary, secondary and N.C.E, adding that this year, the number increased to 18.

    Others, according to him, include three physically challenged, three university undergraduates and three from other states.

    He urged the students to continue to excel in their studies as this is the only way they could appreciate the foundation’s gesture.

    Explaining the criteria for the scholarship, the chairman of the foundation, Dr. Ojetunde said the beneficiaries were chosen through their outstanding performance in their various schools.

    She disclosed that beneficiaries from primary and secondary schools receive N25,000, and N30,000. Undergraduates of colleges of education and universities received N40,000 each, while external awardees got N40,000 each except those in primary school who received N25,000.

  • Don seeks use of research findings

    A professor of Sociology University of Lagos (UNILAG) ‘Lai Olurode has canvassed the application of scholarly research to reduce human suffering.

    Olurode regretted that science and other academic disciplines have “largely failed in reducing human anguish, loneliness and suffering in the midst of plenty.”

    A sociologist, Olurode advocated the bridging of the gap between social research and public policy, noting the former should impact on governance.

    Olurode spoke at his inaugural lecture at UNILAG. It had as theme: ‘The slaughter’s slab as a metaphor.’

    He described his brand of sociology as “interventionist and practical… driven by civic tradition and social commitment,in opposition to armchair sociology.”

    Using that approach to interrogate the violence that is typical of Nigerian elections, he proposed a cut in the wages of political office holders to lessen the desperation for political power.

    According to the scholar, politics in Nigeria has become redefined as an opportunity, not for service but for personal gains.

    He said: “The disparity in salaries and allowances between political office holders (whether appointed or elected) and public/private workers should be narrowed so that public office seekers will not be given to aggressive and deviant behaviours.”

    Olurode, a former National Commissioner at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), linked the desperation for political office to the collapse of the country’s agriculture-based rural economy and the shift to centralised oil rents that could be accessed only through political power. One of the factors that encourage electoral violence, according to him, is economic deprivation of a majority of citizens, which make them vulnerable to inducement by desperate politicians.

    He cited throngs of Nigerians who go to bed hungry because of poorly managed economy, and others who couldn’t access healthcare because of the collapse of the sector, as instances of what he described as ‘state murder.’

    “The higher the level of socio-economic deprivation, the higher the level of violence in the electoral process under conditions of weak institutionalisation of social norms,” he added.

    Olurode proposed measures the government could adopt to reduce electoral violence, one of which is the reactivation of the rural economy to redress the impoverishment of citizens.

    “The transformation of Nigeria’s rural sector will certainly resolve basic existential challenges and attract some away from the slaughter slab,” Olurode advised.

    He also said the nation’s law should be rewritten to reflect a people-driven document, in lieu of the one Olurode described as ‘military imposed’.

    He suggested a reduction in the cost of elections, as well as promotion of sustained vigilance and active participation by citizens in the electoral process, among others.

    At the event, were top principal officers of the university led by its  Vice-Chancellor Prof Rahmon Bello. Guests included former Lagos Governor Alhaji Lateef Jakande, and his wife, Abimbola; former INEC national commissioner,Ambassador Mohammad Wali, who represented  former INEC Chairman, Prof Attahiru Jega; former Inspector-General of Police, Alhaji Musiliu Smith; the Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu, was represented by one of his chiefs; the Oluwo of Iwo Oba Abdulrasheed Akanbi; and wife of the late legal icon Gani Fawehinmi, Ganiat.

     

     

     

  • Don seeks clampdown on producers of substandard water

    Agencies of government have been urged to begin clamping down on producers packaged water found to have contravened regulations.

    Dr Peter Oyewusi, an Analytical Chemist and Chief Lecturer in the Department of Science Technology at the Federal Polytechnic, Ado-Ekiti, spoke at the institution’s 22nd edition of the Prof. E.K. Obiakor Lecture Series.

    He advocated a strict compliance with policies laid down by regulatory agencies like the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON).

    Oyewusi advised government at all levels to devise creative means of providing potable water for the general public, saying such would go a long way to ensure zero level outbreak of waterborne diseases in the country.

    Speaking on the topic: Analytical Chemistry: An invisible presence in our everyday lives, Oyewusi advised the public to endeavour to store water using glass or ceramic bottles.

    He called on manufacturers and the organised private sector to harness all relevant data generated during chemical processes in the nation’s ivory towers.

    If they must  use plastic bottles, “they should use the ones that are free of hisphenol A, an organic synthetic compound that is capable of inducing some cancers in humans, Oyewusi warned.

    He further enjoined governments to devise creative means of providing potable water for the public, saying such would go a long way to ensure zero level outbreak of water-borne diseases in the country.

    He further explained that this could be achieved through a new method of water treatment, which according to him, is cheap and easily affordable by government and the general public.

    The Rector of the Polytechnic, Dr Taiwo Akande, advised producers of packaged water to always employ the services of a water analyst to ensure maintenance of quality and standards.

    She urged relevant government agencies to take Oyewusi’s recommendations seriously.

  • Don campaigns against environmental abuse

    A professor of Material and Corrosion Engineering, Landmark University (LMU) Omu Aran in Kwara State, Makanjuola Oki, has challenged Nigerians to make concerted effort to save the earth from despoliation due to industrialisation.

    Oki said this while delivering LMU’s third inaugural lecture titled: ‘The tripodal connection-Man, material and environment: Agricultural inputs in corrosion’

    An engineer, Oki said his research findings are geared towards preventing environmental pollution through the metal finishing industry.

    He said his research applies tanning obtained from onion skin and bud and another plant to reduce the effect of chromate, a chemical substance used in treating aluminum surface before painting, which is harmful to humans.

    Oki said: “Within the confines of the metal finishing industry, we have been able to add value to some of the activities there by utilising tanning from both onion skin and bulb as well as from Rhizophera racemosa in the formation of durable nano conversion coating on aluminum.

    “The carbon coating of the pre-treatment section of the process of coil coating has been cut down by more than a half by the combination of the tanning, a poly-hydroxyl extract from plant with chromates. Although the use of chromate has not been completely eliminated, we have been able to drastically reduce human interaction with the chemical during roller coating operative.”

    Further, Oki said his research findings are being considered for commercialisation by the university.

    As an expert in Corrosion Engineering, Oki said Nigeria stands to profit a lot through conversion of waste to wealth. Aside improving the nation’s finances, he said it would reduce environment abuse.

    He said the first step is to provide households with multiple dustbins to dispose organic and non organic wastes. However, he fears the cost implication of such exercise might scare people away.

    He advised that the government should provide the dustbins since it would benefit from the revenue generated by the waste.

    “We can as well turn waste to wealth in Nigeria. But can the people alone afford it? What we need do is for government to encourage more provision of dustbins. Some of them will be dedicated to organic and inorganic waste so that it will be easy for those who pack to separate.

    “If the government can do that by providing three different dustbins to each household, that will go a long way in helping the situation,” Oki further explained.

    Commenting on the lecture, Chancellor, LMU, Dr David Oyedepo, said he was happy that the university which would turn five next month, was already on the path of groundbreaking research.

    Speaking through the vice chancellors Prof Aize Obayan, Oyedepo said: “Oki’s discovery is in line with the university’s vision of addressing challenges confronting the black continent rather than going cap in hand to the West.

    “If we don’t find a solution to our problems, nobody would do it for us! I see today’s lecture as addressing some of our human security issues-how to draw longevity, deal with pathogenic materials and other human conditions all round.”

     

  • Naira may plunge further, says don

    Naira may plunge further, says don

    THE Dean, Faculty of Business Administration, University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Leo Ukpong, has warned of a further plunging of the naira against other international currencies, especially the United States (USD) dollar.
    Ukpong, a Professor of Financial Economics, said given the relatively low crude oil prices, excess demand for imports, dwindling foreign reserves, inability to manufacture most of the country’s daily needed products, and the outstanding unfunded foreign exchange future contracts on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) books, the naira would fall to N620 by middle of the year.
    “This forecast assumes that the economy is prudently managed; otherwise, it could rise significantly above that rate,” he warned.
    He said many people had little confidence in the CBN’s exchange rate given its deviation from reality. The “black market” naira/dollar exchange rate, he said, remains the “real exchange rate” because that is what majority of businesses, consumers, and other active economic agents use to conduct their business activities.
    He explained that while multiple exchange rates were designed to assist vulnerable and strategic sectors of the economy, which depend on foreign inputs to grow and survive foreign competition, he, however, cautioned that such policy is not economically efficient and could lead to serious abuse and distortions within the domestic economy, as is the case in the country today.
    “Although I can’t tell you precisely by how much such policy has negatively affected the economy, I can say with a great amount of certainty that it has been significant as part of the factors responsible for the excessive depreciated value of naira and high inflation we face today in our country,” Ukpong said.
    He said the CBN should be blamed for this anomaly because officially the institution is responsible for foreign exchange policy. However, he said the economic team, the Presidency, and the legislature should also share in the forex blame. This is because they all have major roles to play in designing, influencing, and ensuring how the country’s foreign exchange policy is executed.
    “They are complacent partners with the CBN in this corruption driven foreign exchange policy regime. So, to harmonise and steady the naira, it is important that we get rid of all the multiple exchange rates; stop the foreign exchange sales to banks; and maintain one single market driven exchange rate, such as the interbank exchange rate,” Ukpong advised.

  • How to grow economy, by don

    For any economic system to grow, it must have an agenda focusing on production, distribution and consumption of resources, a senior lecturer in the Department of Actuarial Science, University of Lagos, Dr Tajudeen Yusuf, has said.
    Yusuf spoke at an annual lecture series organised by the Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria (MSSN), Lafenwa/Sabo Central Branch in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital.
    He attributed hoarding of goods, extravagant spending, budget padding, and non-execution of governmental projects among others as causes of the economic recession.
    Yusuf canvassed adoption of Islamic financial system as a step to take the nation out of recession.
    According to him, advanced countries like Great Britain, Germany, United States, South Africa, have key into the system.
    The Islamic financial system will rejuvenate the economic problem if well harnessed, he said.
    He urged Nigerians to explore the opportunities inherent in the system.
    This, he said, they could do through the Institute of Islamic Finance Professionals (IIFP), which is recognised by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
    Yusuf said: “The government has already key into it (Islamic Finance); government has given us licence; the institute has also been registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). It is now time for Nigerians, Muslims in particular, to embrace Islamic financing by patronising Islamic banks, Islamic insurance, Islamic institutions to transact their business and economic affairs.
    “Muslims should key into these products by ensuring that they run an interest-free account, insure their vehicles, their homes and others through the Islamic financial institutions,”
    Yusuf debunked claims that adopting Islamic Finance system could lead to Islamisation of Nigeria, explaining that the CBN Governor, who is a Christian, was the head of the International Islamic Liquidity Management based in Malaysia.
    “What evidence does anybody need besides this to key into it, all these banks (operating Islamic financial system), which of them have you gone to and has denied? it (Islamic Finance) is not discriminatory, it accommodates everybody except those who wants to be mischievous. How will it Islamise Nigeria? Did it Islamise Britain? Did it Islamise Germany? Did it Islamise US? In fact, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has a department for Islamic finance,” Yusuf said.