The Nation Newspaper

Tag: excellent

  • Akeredolu charges political appointees, public workers on excellent service delivery 

    Akeredolu charges political appointees, public workers on excellent service delivery 

    Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, (SAN), has reiterated his promise to run a government where capacity building and service delivery would be the watch word.

    The governor also charged political appointees and top echelon of the bureaucracy in the State to work assiduously at translating the vision and mission of the present administration to ensure the provision of  good life for the people of the state.

    Akeredolu, who vowed to build a new and functional state, made the remarks yesterday while addressing the participants at the first Ondo State Cabinet Retreat, in Owo. The governor said the people are expectant, and urged the participants, including cabinet members and top civil service workers in the state to work towards making life worth living for the people.

    Governor Akeredolu reminded the functionaries of the promises of better life made to the people of the state during the electioneering campaigns consequent upon evident challenges of hunger, misery, anxiety, pain and frustration in the state.

    ”In our journeys to every nook and cranny of this state, we promised our people to mobilise the inner strength within us all as a people, to take a decisive leap to optimally harness our overall potential for greatness, prosperity, peace and stability.

    “We promised to build a new Ondo State where honesty, prosperity and confidence can, once again, be our identity, he said.

    While appreciating the facilitators and resource persons for their interest at building the capacity of the participants for efficient service delivery, which he said will ultimately develop the state,  Akeredolu expressed optimism that the 4retreat will be the catalyst for the workings of government for an all round development of the Sunshine state.

    According to him, “ This event, therefore, is a key ingredient in the fulfillment of such promises. It provides us with that opportunity to bond together, interrogate our mandate, encounter our tasks and retool ourselves to run the huge engine of government in a seamless, precise, deliberate and productive manner.

    ” Our ultimate aim should be to use the legitimacy which that popular approbation confers to engender unprecedented opportunities and prosperity for the benefit of our people.

    “This retreat, its curriculum and methodology also establish a clear self-definition for all of us here present. It indeed challenges our leadership ability and traits. In point of fact, it clearly separates and draws a line between our personalities as politicians and our identities as formulators and drivers of government’s policies and actions”, the governor asserted.

    Akeredolu used the occasion to list the strategic steps so far taken by his administration at entrenching  good governance in Ondo State through the Programme for Change, as defined in the Blueprint to Progress document that was based on the Report of Strategic Development and Policy Implementation Committee inaugurated immediately after the Governorship Election of 2016.

    He said: “In specific terms, the Blueprint is anchored on five cardinal principles which are popularly known as our Programme for Change. These are:

    Job Creation through Agriculture, Entrepreneurship and Industrialization; Massive Infrastructural Development and Maintenance; Provision of Functional Education and Technological Growth; Provision of Accessible and Qualitative Health Care and Social Service (delivery); Rural Development and Community Extension services.

  • Reward for Excellent Performance

    Reward for Excellent Performance

    It was the week of celebration in Taraba State. The drums were rolled out and prominent sons and daughters of the state all came out to join Governor Darius Dickson Ishaku and his wife, Anna, to celebrate success, the second anniversary of his administration. Former Governor Jolly Nyame was there and so were some members of the National Assembly from the state. Governor Ishaku was in high spirits throughout the period of the celebration as he proudly told the story of the difficult but sure steps that led to the successes achieved in all sectors of activities in those first two years.

    It was an occasion for lavish praises and encomiums. Governor Ishaku deserved them all. His administration is one of the best achievers in the country. Speaker after speakers said so. Thisday Newspapers also said so in its annual rating of the performances of state governors which was released during the week of the anniversary celebration. Ishaku was rated sixth among the ten best performers among the 36 governors in terms of excellent delivery of relevant services to the people.

    Ishaku’s rating is particularly outstanding and significant. Taraba State’s monthly allocation from the Federation Account is the lowest of all the ten so rated. What this suggests is most judicious in the application of funds. It also means that if Taraba under Ishaku had had even half of what the other states in the group of 10 receive monthly from the Federation Account the number spot would have been his. The rating is a loud statement of acknowledgement of his concern for the welfare of the people and of his prudence in the management of resources. That makes him the hero of the 2017 Democracy Day celebration.

    The anniversary celebrations in Taraba was not only about eating, singing and dancing. It was an opportunity for prayers and thanksgiving, to showcase the huge potentials of the state and for the Governor to unfold his plans for the state in the remaining two years of his first four-year mandate. The event started with special prayers by the Muslims throughout the state on Friday May 26 followed on Sunday by special church services. An interdenominational church service was also held at the headquarters of the Christians Association of Nigeria, CAN, in Jalingo on Sunday afternoon. It was yet another opportunity to commit the administration and the state’s first family into the hands of the Almighty for protection.

    The church service provided a major opportunity for one of Governor Ishaku’s most elaborate and eloquent speeches during the anniversary events. He spoke of the series and long drawn court cases that had trailed his victory in the 2015 gubernatorial elections in the state, all of them a device of his opponents and detractors to frustrate him and compel him to lose focus. He praised God for not allowing that to happen and promised to rededicate himself to the service of the people, adding that he would not be deterred by the antics of the opponents.

    Peace was the central theme of his speeches during the events. He said Taraba was in need of development but peace comes before development and so, “let there be peace.” He reminded the people of his popular mantra of “Give me peace and I will give you development” and urged them to make it the guiding philosophy of their utterances and attitudes towards other people so that peace which his administration has achieved can be consolidated. Ishaku condemned herdsmen attacks which recently occurred in some communities in the Taraba South senatorial zone and urged the people to be on the watch-out for unusual influx of strangers into their communities.

    Chairman of CAN in the state, Rev (Dr) Ben Ubeh, praised Governor Ishaku for the numerous achievements of his administration in such a short time, especially in agriculture, poverty alleviation, water supply which he said, had become digitalised, roads construction, electricity and above all, regular payment of salaries. Taraba is the only state in Nigeria today where water to the public is dispensed through water dispensing machines. The system has made water cheaper than it is sold anywhere in the country.

    Monday, May 29, was the grand finale of the anniversary events and it featured a grand reception, presentation of awards, cultural display and dinners which were attended by Taraba State’s men and women of the moment. They came from Abuja, Lagos Kaduna and other major cities and all the 16 Local Government Council Areas of the state. Governor Ishaku later flagged off the construction of the state government 5,000 housing units. The project is intended to ease the problems of housing deficit in the state.

    Speaking at the event, Ishaku urged civil servants, particularly new entrants into the service, to take advantage of the project to own houses of their own. He said the houses would be affordable and allocation would be open to civil servants and non-civil servants. The project is expected to be completed in one year and it is designed to be a village of its own, with facilities and amenities that will not be dependent on those in Jalingo. The village will have its own source of power, water and sewage system and a police station.

    From the venue of the flag-off, the convoy of the Governor which included his wife, Anna, Jolly Nyame and many other prominent sons and daughters of the state drove round project sites in Jalingo. One of the major stops during the projects inspection tours was the Green House, a model farm project which grows assorted species of vegetables. The project is the first of its type in the country and has earned Ishaku a lot of commendation, especially by those who have had the opportunity of seeing for themselves what has been done on the farm. Products of the farm are already in major markets in the country, particularly, Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt.

    Speaking to reporters after touring the project, Jolly Nyame praised the foresight that gave birth to the Green House project. He said he was impressed with what has been achieved with the farm and called for its sustenance. Nyamme also spoke generally on the achievements of the Ishaku administration. He said most of the projects executed by the government were people-centred. “They are targeted at the poor and the vulnerable. This stands the administration out as focused and deeply concerned about the welfare of the people.” Nyame noted that the good thing about Governor Ishaku is that he remained focused throughout the period the court cases lasted. “As a former governor, I know that court cases against one’s electoral victory can be very distracting. But the projects we have seen implemented by the Governor are a proof that the litigations did not do any damage to his concentration on his mission in government.

  • Ambode’s excellent stewardship

    SIR: When he was barely a few weeks in office, The Economist wrote a scathing criticism against his competence to run the demanding task of governing Lagos. The magazine concluded that Governor Akinwumi Ambode cannot fit into the big shoes left behind by his predecessor, Babatunde Raji Fashola, currently Minister of Works, Housing and Power.

    It didn’t take long for naysayers to start devouring their words as Governor Ambode struck a remarkable impression in virtually all sectors of governance in Lagos in record time. He first decided to quickly arrest the security deterioration in Lagos by launching a very ambitious security outfit that aimed at tracking, arresting and dealing with incidences of crime in any part of the Mega City. He was as swift as he was thorough as he mobilised several billions of Naira to fund what should be the most ambitious security outfit in the country. He purchased drones, helicopters, hundreds of cars, patrol vans, motorcycles, all kitted with state of the art security gadgets to arrest the worsening security situation in Lagos. With a bang, he reversed the temporary glitch and criminals found the sprawling Mega City, a no go area for their nefarious businesses. Not only that, Governor Ambode’s Security outfit ensured that no criminals walks away with any crime in Lagos and with that, Lagos, a state of over 21 million citizens, has become perhaps the safest state in Nigeria today.

    Few days back Governor Ambode raised the bar once again by staking a whopping sum of N10 million on the head of any security personnel that goes down in active service.

    On roads, Governor Ambode moved in with such speed that has not been known in the country before now. He not only improved on the ambitious road construction projects of his predecessor, he embarked on massive construction of new roads in all nooks and crannies of Lagos as he vowed to open up all parts of Lagos. He was to start the construction of two roads for each local council that targeted all 57 local councils in the state and the first tranche of these roads have been delivered, complete with such appurtenances as street lighting, walkways, drainages. The construction of the second tranche is on-going now. These are apart from kilometres of urban roads, bridges and linkages which have either been completed, about to be completed or newly started. Today, no part of Lagos can claim to be cut off from other parts as a result of bad roads. What is outstanding in this massive road construction is the speed and clinical efficiency with which these projects are being delivered. Ambode has set a frenetic pace in infrastructural development that will certainly be difficult to contest with.

    What of the massive street lighting project that has seen almost all  the major roads in the state brightly lit up in Governor Ambode’s resolve to lighten up the state, drive criminality away and extend the frontiers of security in Lagos?

    The Ambode regime has built on a rich commitment to environmental sanity that has transformed Lagos from a sprawling urban slum to perhaps, Nigeria’s most beautiful state today. The present regime continues to invest in building a stately environment by developing more open spaces, building parks and lawns in every part of Lagos. Equally, the government has restored environmental sanity by ensuring wastes are appropriately discharged, street trading are outlawed, pedestrian bridges are built in strategic locations across the state and citizens are discouraged, through strict enforcement, from illegally crossing roads.

    The Ambode regime continues to expand the state healthcare delivery through the continued expansion of the state health facilities and equipping them to meet the growing demands of a fast growing Mega City. Equally, the state educational sectors has continued to receive prime attention of the Governor

    Even in the period of recession Governor Ambode has demonstrated through synergy and clinical financial engineering  that Lagos can still make the difference. Governor Ambode’s Lagos has raked N287 billion IGR as at December 16 2016 against N268.2 billion it generated in 2015. He attributes this achievement to synergy between the state government and the governed, insisting that Lagos is working because Lagosians understand the need play their own part as partners.

    All said, Governor Ambode’s has been a glorious era in a very short span and with his spectacular achievements. He has ingrained added confidence in governance in Lagosians and of course Nigerians. He has solidified trust and belief in the capacity of governance in Lagos and he continues to expand the frontiers of governance beyond the ordinary. The governor has not only justified the huge support Lagosians gave him to govern them but he has silenced his critics, disorganized the opposition and made every Lagosian proud with his achievements thus far.

    • Joe Igbokwe,

    Lagos.

  • LOVE…The Most Excellent Way 1

    The four letter word LOVE, though the most excellent way to live and needed most in our lives, yet the most lacking in our lives and society. So widely talked about but also the most abused. Where there is love, there is peace and of course progress, where there is no love the opposite is the case. Many claim to love and know love but their actions are contrary to what love is.

    What then is LOVE?

    Let’s start by looking at the characteristics of love:

    • Love is very patient
    • Love is kind
    • Love is never jealous or envious
    • Love is never boastful or proud
    • Love is never rude
    • Love is never selfish
    • Love is not provoked, irritable or touchy
    • Love thinks no evil
    • Love does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice when others do it wrong
    • Love does not rejoice in iniquity but rejoices in the truth
    • Love bears all things
    • Love believes all things. It will cause you to believe in someone without giving up on him/her.
    • Love endures all things
    • Love never fails. There is no end to love.

    If you say you know and practice love, then can you score yourself from the above characteristics of love? Love is active not passive. Surely I need help here and I believe you too. Jesus made us to know that the greatest of the commandments is LOVE- love for God and love for our neighbours.

    If the above is the character of love, I want us to know that love is a person and without knowing the person of love, no one can ever truly practice love. Who then is love? This person is GOD. He is love Himself, without Him there is no love and without knowing Him one can not truly love, you will only keep struggling, living in deceit until frustration sets in. When you know God then helps you to truly love. The scripture says “beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love”. God demonstrated His love towards us by sending His only begotten SON into this sinful world to set us free from sin and reconcile us to Himself, this He did while we were yet sinners. Not that we loved God but He loved us in spite of our sins and sent His Son to die and free us from sin so we can enjoy a good relationship with Him and be able to love. God sent Jesus to come in human form to show us what it means to love; Jesus laid down His own life for us to be free. He showed love all through His stay on earth and He still loves us being seated at the right hand of God praying for you and me. He was always busy while on earth doing good, He didn’t have a home of His own, He worked tirelessly showing love; healing the sick and setting free the captives of the mighty. While in great pain on the cross He prayed for those who crucified Him, not bad prayer that they should die but that God forgives their sins. Even in death Jesus was forgiving and set free the thief being crucified alongside Him on the cross-oh! What manner of love…! He had the power to call down fire to destroy those who crucified Him, He could have even commanded the ground to swallow them up but all these He didn’t do, rather He chose to submit to God’s will to deliver mankind from sin. In place of the word love in the characteristic listed above put Christ. This same character God wants you and me to emulate.

     

    When you believe in Jesus, He gives you His Spirit- the Holy Spirit who begins to help you to love like Him. If the Holy Spirit controls our lives then can we truly love, for the fruit of the Holy Spirit can be summarized to mean LOVE. We need love in our lives and to show love in our interpersonal relationships; in our families and in our nation Nigeria. If you will choose love (God) and believe in His Son Jesus whom He gave as an access to Him, then He will help us to love.  Without Jesus you can do nothing. Love is who a Christian should be, to love unconditionally as demonstrated by Jesus irrespective of our differences- religion, tribe, language, culture, tradition, social status and all. Jesus died for all. Nigeria needs love. You are Nigeria, I am Nigeria and we need to know and show love. Do not resist love for resisting love is resisting God.

    SONG: Let there be love shared among us

    Let there be love shared among us
    Let there be love in our eyes
    May now Your love sweep this nation.
    Cause us oh Lord to arise
    Give us a fresh understanding
    Of brotherly love that is real,
    Let there be love shared among us,
    Let there be love.

    TEXT: 1Corinthians 13, 1 John 4: 7-16, John 3:16, Luke 23: 13-49

  • Tips for excellent teaching

    Tips for excellent teaching

    The Faculty of Education,University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) has held an orientation for its students going for teaching practice. Teaching practice is a requirement for the award of a Bachelor’s degree in Education. AFIS ODEYEMI (300-Level History) reports.

     

    Their readiness to impart knowledge could be seen in their enthusiasm as they filed into the auditorium.

    Since they are being trained as teachers, the 300-Level students of the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) Faculty of Education seemed ready to teach others everything they had learnt.

    The school auditorium was besieged by the students for an orientation, which was part of the activities to prepare them for a 12-week compulsory teaching practice in line with the requirement for the award of Bachelor’s degree in Education.

    The event was attended by members of professional bodies, academics and stakeholders in teaching. A renowned education psychology scholar, Prof Olasehinde Williams, was the guest speaker.

    Williams, who had an interactive session with the students, said the process of imparting knowledge  must be holistic. She said if education must achieve maximum effect, it must furnish the learner with the right proportion of knowledge, valuable skills and improved attitudes for proper readjustment and general adaptation to his society.

    Learning, she said, must involve an embodiment of three parts of the human body – head, hand and heart. While using Waldorf theory of educating a child to buttress her points, the scholar said: “Meaningful learning will take place only when the head, hand and heart are involved in every bit of learning process to stimulate the interest of the learner.”

    The chairman of the occasion and the Vice-Chancellor (VC), Prof Abdulganiyu Ambali, represented by his deputy for Academics, Prof Nahimat Ijaya, urged the students to be peaceful and dutiful in their places of assignment, noting that students of the university were  welcomed for teaching practice by schools.

    The Dean of the faculty, Prof Alfred Adegoke, said the exercise was important to enable the participants acquire on-spot training in teaching. He said: “After you have had years of preliminary training in the university, the curriculum demands that you should also need to bring everything you learn to bear in practice. When you live university, you will be judged based on your performance on the job and not your qualification.”

    Adegoke, a professor of Counselor Education, urged the students show interest and dedicate their energy towards acquiring practical skills that would benefit their career. He advised them not to misrepresent the school by engaging in unwholesome conduct, saying: “You are the image of this university, because whatever you do during your teaching practice will come back at the university in one way or the other.”

    A students’ group at the faculty, 21st Century Pedagogy, urged trainee-teachers to keep faith with the ethics of the teaching profession and contribute their quota to the development of education. The group decried the influx of untrained teachers in the country, which it attributed to reluctance of graduates of education to teach.

    To encourage the students to give in their best and energy in teaching, the group presented certificates of excellence to honour some past participants of teaching practice.

    Fisayo Falusi of the Department of Arts Education was honoured as Trainee-Teacher of the Year for his outstanding performance last year.

    Coordinator of the group, Patrick Akorede, said there would be other mouth-watering benefits for subsequent awardees, noting that the aim was to dignify teaching profession.

    A student, who gave his name as Sanni, hailed the guest speaker for her inspiring lecture, saying: “Prof Olasehinde Williams has just made the task of a 12-week teaching practice much easier.”

    The event was organised by the faculty’s Teaching Practice Coordinator, Dr Charles Olumorin of the Department of Educational Technology, was attended by the Head Counsellor Education Department, Prof A.A. Talabi, Sub-dean, Students’ Affairs Unit, Dr L.A Yahaya and lecturers, including Dr A. Yusuf, Dr. M.I. Oniye, Dr U.A Ajidagba and Dr I.O. Amali, among others.