The Nation Newspaper

Tag: FCT

  • FEC approves N100.2b for roads, others

    FEC approves N100.2b for roads, others

    The Federal Executive Council () yesterday approved N100.2 billion for road projects in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the East-West road and Molete water project.

    The Supervising Minister of Information, Nurudeen Mohammed who spoke to State House correspondents at the end of FEC meeting presided over by President Goodluck Jonathan, said the Council approved five different project memos for the Federal Cpaital Territory (FCT) during the meeting.

    Accompanied by the Ministers of FCT, Bala Mohammed, Water, Sarah Ochekpe, and Niger Delta Affairs, Steve Oru, Mohammed said: “The FCT Minister presented a memo seeking for the upward review of the contract sum for the provision of engineering infrastructure of Wuse District. The Minister informed Council that the purpose of the memorandum is to seek Council’s approval for the upward review of the contract sum for the provision of engineering infrastructure at Wuse District in favour of Messrs Arab Contractors (OAO) Nigeria Ltd, in the sum of N3,431,290,231.20 thereby revising the contract sum from N39, 681,137,736,46 to N43,112,427,967.67 to accommodate the construction of a flyover bridge at Wuse District, the interaction of of Arterial Road N1/Ring Road 1 being Nnamdi Azikiwe Road, as additional work to the contract with an additional completion period of 20 months.”

    He said Council deliberated extensively on the history of the project which was first awarded in August 2009 and expressed satisfaction with the 67 per cent level of completion attained.

    On the second memo, he said: “The Minister of FCT presented a memo for the award of contract for the construction of one service carriageway (14km) of Inner Northern Expressway (INEX) from ring road 111 to ring road IV Abuja Industrial Park in favour of Messrs Salini Nig Ltd, in the sum of N7,179,322,294.15 with a completion period of 24 months.”

    According to him, the INEX is one of the key planned expressways provided in the Abuja Master Plan connecting the ring roads from the central area through phases I,II, III and IV, terminating at the outer Northern Expressway (ONEX).

    anticipatory approval was granted by President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2006  for this consultancy services and the several due processes, procedures and negotiations over these years involving the BPP FCTA and the Consultants.” He said

    On the fourth memo, the Minister said: “Council approved another award  of contract for the provision of access road and engineering infrastructure to plot 1458 and adjoining plots around Hot FM in Gudu District in the sum of N1,794,778,172.88 in favour of Messers Sageto Limited with a completion period of 17 months.”

    For the last FCT memo, he said: “Council further approved the award of contract for the extension of Inner Southern Expressway from Southern Parkway (58/59) to ring Road II in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja in favour of Messers CGC Nig Ltd in the sum of N43,458,849,973.94 with a completion period of 30 months.”

    On the water project, he said: “Council approved a memo for the award of contract from the Minister of Water Resources for the revised estimated total cost of the contract for the construction and upgrading of the Molete Water Works in Kwara State in Favour of Messers Turning Point Engineearing limited in the sum of N117,483,450, to bring the total cost of the project from the initial contract sum of N903,669,651.29 to a revised total cost of N1,021,153,101.29 with an extended completion period of 3 months.”

    He said that N43.869 billion was approved for 15 KM of the East-West Road Section III.

    The Minister said: “Council also approved the award of contract for the upgrading of the 15KM of the East-West Road Section III: Port Harcourt (Eleme Junction) to Onne Port Junction Road in Rivers State in favour of Messers Reynolds Construction Company in the sum of N43,869,381,730.23 with a completion period of 18 months.”

    “Council noted that when the original contract for the dualisation of the East West Road Section III (Port Harcourt to Eket) was awarded in 2006, the 15KM section between Port Harcourt and Onne Port Junction which was dualisms in 1999, was in fair condition and was therefore not included in the major reconstruction.”

    “This critical road also gives access to the strategic Onne Tree Trade Zone where 15 companies erase with a total investment worth $6billion USD. The overall cost of the project was also extensively deliberated with six bridges, anticipated axial load and the pavement section and approved the memorandum.” He stated

     

  • Cancer: ‘Mammogram is the in-thing ’

    Cancer: ‘Mammogram is the in-thing ’

    Women have been urged to shift focus from self breast examination (SBE) to mammogram.

    A mammogram is an x-ray of the breasts to detect and diagnose breast diseases. Mammography is the most effective method of detecting cancer at an early stage, before the woman or a physician can feel it.

    The wife of the Lagos State Governor, Mrs Abimbola Fashola gave this advice at the MTN Foundation (MTNF) breast cancer awareness campaign walk.

    According to her, it was mammogram that saved her from being a victim of breast cancer.

    She said: “I was losing weight without realising it. Some people noticed and called my husband’s attention to it. I was feeling alright and healthy, and constantly doing the self breast examination (SBE). There was no lump. I went for my usual routine medical check up and mammogram examination was included.

    “That screening picked early formation of a lump in my breast lobes. Thankfully, when it was removed and examined, it was not cancerous. I am alive, hale and hearty. But how many women are that lucky and have access to mammogram and early detection of lump formation in their breasts? I will, therefore, commend MTN Foundation, the corporate social investment vehicle of MTN Nigeria, that has begun its free breast cancer screening for 1,500 beneficiaries across the six-geopolitical regions of Nigeria.”

    Mrs Fashola, who described herself as now a ‘breast cancer survivor,’ said consistent screening and early detection saved her from the killer disease.

    “This initiative is a welcome idea as more people will become better informed about this silent killer disease, and participate in the free screening provided by MTN at the MTN Foundation mammography centres across the country. Women should avail themselves of this opportunity,” she said.

    MTNF Director Mr Akinwale Goodluck said: “The free mammography screenings will be carried out in partnership with Deux Projects under the MTNF Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign. This is one of the many projects that the MTN Foundation is particularly very passionate about because of the positive impact it will make on people’s lives.

    ”This initiative, which underscores the essence of the Foundation to positively impact the lives of Nigerians, by providing free breast cancer screening at MTN Mammography centres located at the General Hospital, Marina, Lagos State; Federal Medical Centre, Lokoja, Kogi State; Federal Medical Centre, Nguru, Yobe State; Usmanu Dan Fodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto State; University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu State and Specialist Teaching Hospital, Irrua, Edo State.”

    The foundation will be sponsoring free mammography screening for 1,500 beneficiaries at MTNF mammography centres in Lagos, Enugu, Edo, Sokoto, Kogi and Yobe.

    During the awareness walk, which kicked off from Falomo roundabout and terminated at Freedom Park, Marina, Lagos, MTN executives, stakeholders and others distributed fliers and educated the public on breast cancer.

    ”This walk will be replicated in beneficiary states which include Edo, Enugu, Sokoto, Yola and Kogi, to sensitise the public about breast cancer, with medical practitioners and specialists on ground to enlighten people and encourage women to get screened at designated points,” Goodluck stated.

    Dr. Femi Olaleye, medical director, Optical Cancer Care Foundation, said breast cancer kills one in every 25 Nigerian women and urged women to get screened yearly to prevent untimely death.

    “The incidence of breast cancer is one in 25, but because we don’t screen our population, it’s actually a death sentence. Here in Nigeria, most of the diagnoses are made when it is too late, thereby leading to several needless and painful deaths of our beloved mothers, sisters, aunts, friends and colleagues. One or two in every 25 Nigerian women are at risk of breast cancer, but higher risks exist for women who are older than 45, older than 30 at birth of their first child, and women with family history,” he added.

    At the event, Olaleye demonstrated how breast self-examination to check for lumps, thickenings and nipple discharge is done.  Medical practitioners were also available to perform clinical breast examination and offer free advisory services.

    The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared breast cancer as the number one scourge afflicting people, and one in eight women is at risk of having breast cancer in their lifetime.

    ”Breast cancer is currently the commonest cancer in Nigeria. Early detection can help put a check on several needless and painful deaths of our women” Goodluck said.

    MTN Foundation is executing various projects in 341 locations across the 36 states of Nigeria, including the FCT. The foundation has spent over N10.5 billion on social projects in health, education and economic empowerment. Recently, the it deployed state-of-the-art mobile clinics stocked with medical equipment and drugs to states. The mobile clinics have helped to reduce the incidence of maternal and child deaths, especially in rural communities.

  • Ochei: I’m not afraid of anointed candidate

    Ochei: I’m not afraid of anointed candidate

    Former Delta State House of Assembly Speaker Hon. Victor Ochei is a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant. He spoke with reporters in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on his ambition, zoning and preparations for primaries.  Assistant Editor GBADE OGUNWALE was there: What is your position on the zoning of the governorship to Ndokia aresa, Delta North District? Delta North is one entity and you cannot excise a part of it and say they cannot run for governor. For whatever reason, why do you want to do that? Why would you say we are zoning to the North, but this part will not benefit from it? Are they from another part of the state? Are they third-class citizens in the senatorial zone where they come from? It doesn’t make sense and I can tell you that Governor Uduaghan will never say that . Are you saying people are dropping his name? I want to believe so because he hasn’t made that statement anywhere. I believe he is ruling a Delta that is united and he wouldn’t use his own hands, his own instrument of office, to divide it. Why are you contesting for governor? I am in the race because I want to offer service to the people of Delta State; service based on proven track record, service based on building a generation of Deltans that is yet unborn and planning for them. Service based on a pan-Delta approach where, at the end of the day, our diversities would turn out to become our strength. It would soon be obvious that no one really cares where you come from, but how much of work you have done and what you have been able to do for Delta. That’s my first consideration for wanting to run for the  governor. I bring the leadership that will foster greater unity; leadership that would bridge a generation of the old and the young. I bring the leadership that would bring us in tune with the realities of tomorrow; I bring the leadership that will make every Deltan, all Deltans proud to say, I am part and parcel  of the success story of Delta. I also describe myself as wanting to build on the foundations of the forebearers of Delta State. Would you say your experience as the Speaker has prepared you for this role? Well, it is part of it because the legislature is a strategic arm of government and I have been privileged to have headed the legislative arm as the Speaker, which gave me the opportunity to become both the administrative and political head at the same time. Well, it is at the risk of sounding immodest; a lot of people said I have performed well. Having done well, I have no doubt that in the executive arm, I will be excellent. I believe in putting my all in everything I do and bringing out the best of any situation that I met. So, I believe that it has prepared me. I come with an offer to ensure that at the end of the day, that the experience I have garnered through the legislative process makes the difference. If you go through the constitution,for instance, the legislature is the first arm of government; it is the laws that you make that you use to run the administration. I am seasoned in that area. Coming into the area where you come to implement the laws, there will be a synergy, which you cannot buy in terms of experience. Bringing that to bear, I believe it gives me an edge of competence and skill to perform maximally.  What have you done to galvanise support from stakeholders from South and Central senatorial zones? Consultations are still on-going, because coincidentally, Delta State is on a tripod of the North, the South and the cCentral and no senatorial district can go it alone. That’s how God has made us. And for you to win, you definitely will reach out. For you to rule Delta, you must be someone that is acceptable across the board and that’s where I come in. Having been Speaker of Delta State, it gives me the opportunity to see Delta State as my platform There is this insinuation that the governor has already anointed a candidate… The PDP’s rotation and zoning principles favour Delta North because Delta Central has produced a governor. Delta South produced one  the incumbent governor. It is only fair and equitable that the North produces the next governor, which is an advantage, comparatively. Even though you have other persons who are from other senatorial districts who are in the race, you don’t have to push anybody out. But, basically, if the party takes a position that its candidate is going to come from the North, so be it. That the governor has a candidate makes it better. It makes the battle defined that you know, okay, the governor has a candidate. But, that doesn’t foreclose that other candidates cannot run. It makes it easier for me, because I now know who I will be contesting with. It is a contest, it isn’t a selection process. You were close to the governor. Are you disturbed by the turn of events? Not at all; it is a contest. I wasn’t going to run for the office of governor of Delta State because I was close to the governor. That wouldn’t be what Deltans want to vote for. Deltans want to vote for somebody who can deliver the dividends of democracy to them; somebody who can take them to the very next level and beyond.  That’s what they are looking forward to.  So, I am close to the governor, no doubt and we are still very close. The fact that he has an anointed candidate like you said, not because he has told me. I am not aware because he hasn’t come out to say, he has a candidate. If he has, he has a right as a Deltan to have someone to support and it doesn’t have to be me. But, that doesn’t take away the fact that we are close and we are still friends and we respect our relationship. I will respect his choice, the same way he will respect mine.  That doesn’t make us fall apart and it doesn’t mean that because the governor has a candidate, others will not be in the race.He will support his anointed and I will also have other Deltans who will support me and we go it that way. The Asagba of Asaba set up a committee to set criteria for the selection of a candidate from the North… I was there and the process was quite laudable. The committee was made up of credible sons and daughters of Delta North and headed by the Asagba. I subscribed to it because I submitted my documents to them and I eventually had a chat with them. The process might not be entirely fool proof, just like any other process put in place by humans. But, they did a good job, taking their time to sit down and interact with us without rancour. Everybody has the right to say they want to be governor. But, at the end of the day, only one person will become governor. That does not suggest that the process was exhaustive. But, I least we made an inroad; they were able to reduce the number through the process. But, that does not suggest that it is final because you cannot force it down anybody’s throat. The PDP National Vice Chairman, (Southouth) is from Delta North. Is that not a minus for the aspiration of people from the zone? It’s a plus and not a minus. The former National Vice chairman was from Delta Central before he got appointed as a minister and another one has been appointed from the North. It is good because it swells the number of appointees from the zone. He is working for the whole South-south region. So, we are lucky to have produced him. What are the challenges you have envisaged before joining the race? Of course, it is not going to be easy. As a matter of fact, I have never run any easy election in my whole political life. I have won three elections and they were not easy. However, one significant denominator is that at the end of the day God always shows up for me and I will stand out. What is your selling point, which  may give you a competitive edge? My unique selling point is that I have a pan-Delta approach and acceptance across board. I have been a Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly and that has given me the experience to have served the state across board. I have handled issues involving people from different parts of the state; from the north, south and central because Delta State is a mini Nigeria. I understand the complexities of Delta State. When these complexities are well managed, they become a source of massive strength to be used for the development of the people. It takes vision to turn these complexities into strength for the development of the state. Age also gives me a competitive edge. I am like a role model to many of our youths who have nothing doing. I always say that it takes young people to take the kind of development risk that is required to succeed. At a certain age, one becomes careful in taking certain risks. I believe I am a bridge between the young and the old. I relate with the young as one of them; just as I relate with the old and understand their temperaments. Put together, it is a comparative advantage for me. Why were you not at the meeting of aspirants convened by Chief Edwin Clark? Chief Edwin Clark is a father to all of us, not only in Delta State, but the entire country. So, we all go to him from all parts of the globe because we seek his fatherly blessing. I have consulted with him privately and I will also go to him to pay homage. My visit to him will not be a consultation. I can see him in his county home in Kaigbodo or in his house in Abuja. I enjoy a cordial relationship with him. I am going to get his blessing as a father. The fact that I was not there when others went there does not mean that I don’t enjoy a cordial relationship with him. My relationship with him has always been cordial.

  • Kudos to FCT minister on land swap policy

    SIR: Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Senator Bala Mohammed has continued in his trend of developing Abuja through private initiatives with the recent signing of land swap agreement between the FCTA and four Land Swap investors – System Properties Development Consortium Limited, Urban Shelters Infrastructure Limited, AMPM Limited and BGD Properties Limited.

    According to the agreement signed on September 22, these investors are to provide some N170 billion worth of infrastructure in some Land Swap districts in the Phase IV of the southern part of the Federal Capital City, Abuja.

    As the Minister noted while signing the agreement, the deal which was achieved through intense negotiations and hard work between the FCTA and the land swap investors, has the multiplier effects of creating about 500,000 new jobs in the Federal Capital Territory. It would also fetch the FCT administration about N170 billion – being the total money paid by the investors – while additional N600 to N700 billion will be recouped when 11 other investors who bid for the contract are brought on board.

    It is noteworthy that when Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed came on board as Minister in April 2010, plots in such popular districts as Durumi, Wuye, Jahi, Katampe Gwarinpa and so on had been delineated and fully allocated without caring a hoot about their infrastructure. The result was that individuals and corporate institutions had land titles but could not develop them, not necessarily because they didn’t have money but due to the absence of infrastructure in these districts. To reverse the unsavory trend of allocation of plots without consideration for infrastructure and up the momentum for standard engineering infrastructure provision in the nation’s capital, the Mohammed administration was compelled to introduce land swap as a policy which entails granting agreed percentage of land in a greenfield district to a developer for real property development under a special contract envisaged by the Land Use Act. In exchange for the grant, the developer is to provide primary infrastructure in the agreed district without any financial, technical or demand risk on the part of the FCTA or the Federal Government.

    Land swap was therefore devised to catalyze the development of districts within Phase IV of the Federal Capital Territory and open more doors and windows for all interested Nigerians and non-Nigerians to live, work, relax and do business in the territory. The idea is to open up more areas of the Federal Capital City (FCC) via accelerated infrastructure provision in new districts because in Abuja, infrastructure development must necessarily precede construction of residential, commercial, institutional and office buildings.

    The minister really deserves kudos for these innovations that have been commended by both the World Bank and the Nigerians in Diaspora as a policy that actually has the key to unlock Abuja’s huge development potentials.

    • Ibrahim Serki-Yaki,

    Gadowa District, Abuja

  • Judge refuses to hear suit seeking to void PDP’s zoning policy

    Justice A. S. Umar of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja has said he cannot hear a suit seeking to declare unconstitutional, the zoning policy of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    The judge, in a ruling yesterday, declined jurisdiction on the grounds that his court lacked the territorial integrity to hear the case.

    The judge’s ruling was on the preliminary objection by the party against the suit marked: CV/1471/2014, filed by a lawyer and

    a governorship aspirant of the party in Akwa Ibom State, Leo Ekpenyong.

    Justice Umar upheld the argument by the respondent that the suit ought to be instituted in Akwa Ibom and not Abuja.

    Ekpeyong said he would appeal the ruling. He argued that the judge erred in his decision because “we did not sue the Akwa Ibom chapter of the PDP. We sued the national body and challenged the zoning policy contained in its constitution. The Akwa Ibom branch did not create the policy, it was a creation of the national PDP, which its state branches have adopted.”

    The plaintiff contended in the suit that the policy contained in the PDP’s constitution was not only discriminatory, but also negated the constitutional provision for the right of every citizen to contest election without being discriminated against, regardless of his place of birth.

    He said in a supporting affidavit that the suit was informed by a recent publication by the Akwa Ibom chapter of the party, in The Nation of April 24 (pages 59 and 60), indicating that it had zoned the governorship position to Eket Senatorial District.

    Ekpeyong said he is a member of the PDP, an indigene of Akwa Ibom State, from Etinan Local Government in Uyo Senatorial District.

    He contended that the party, by the publication, which it said formed the communiqué from its state’s Executive Committee meeting of April 22, was determined to discriminate against him and frustrate him in his aspiration for the governorship position.

    Ekpeyong said the party’s indication that its decision to zone the position to Eket Senatorial District did not preclude other aspirants from other districts from pursuing the aspirations, was insufficient to assuage the disadvantage the party’s publication had placed his aspiration in, in the context of the state’s governorship primary election.

    The plaintiff urged the court to decide whether he or any other aspirant

    could be excluded from contesting the party’s primary election or placed at any disadvantage on account of his senatorial district, local government or ethnicity.

    He also wanted the court to decide whether the resolution of the Akwa Ibom State chapter of the party, published in The Nation, was not unconstitutional, null and void.

    In resolving the questions, the plaintiff wanted the court to declare that he or any aspirant to the governorship position in the state could not be excluded from the primary election or placed at any disadvantage on account of his senatorial district, local government or ethnicity.

    He also sought a declaration that the Akwa Ibom PDP’s resolution, published in The Nation of April 24 is unconstitutional, null and void.

  • Professors campaign for el-rufai

    A group of professors at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, the Kaduna State Good Governance Project, has urged residents to vote for former Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Malam Nasir el-Rufai in next year’s governorship election.

    The group’s coordinator, Professor Adamu Ahmed of the Urban and Regional Planning Department, said el-Rufai’s “tremendous experience, vision, bravery, precision and patriotism” qualify him for the position.

    Ahmed said Kaduna was too strategic to be governed by a politician without experience, political will and the ability to make bold decisions.

    He urged residents to always vote for credible candidates, adding that el-Rufai would rescue the state from “its pathetic state”.

  • Police chiefs for 21 states

    Acting Inspector-General of Police Suleiman Abba has approved the posting of new Commissioners of Police (CP) for 21 states.

    They are: Usman Yakubu (Nasarawa), Isaac Gabriel Achong (Akwa Ibom), Paul Okafor (Kogi), Hyancith Dagala (Benue), Idris Faruk Umar (Jigawa), Salihu Garba (Kwara), A. K. Shodipo (Oyo), Abubakar Marafa (Osun), Clement Adoda (Borno), and Kayode Aderanti (Lagos).

    Others are: Usman Baba (Delta), Dan Bature (Rivers), Karma Hosea Hassan (Anambra), Titilayo Busari (Cross River), Valentine Ntomchukwu (Bayelsa), Taiwo Lakanu (Ekiti); Ademola Omole (Taraba), Olusola Emmanuel Amore (Niger), Adejoh Gabriel Adaji (Adamawa), Ishaku Barau (Kebbi) and Wilson Inalegwu (FCT).

    A statement yesterday by the Force spokesman, Emmanuel Ojukwu, said the exercise was in line with the determination of the police authorities to reposition the Force for improved service delivery.

  • Mogalu: APC ‘ll not impose candidates

    Mogalu: APC ‘ll not impose candidates

    Former National Secretary of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) Chief George Moghalu is the National Auditor of the All Progressives Congress (APC). In this interview, he speaks about the party’s preparations for next year’s elections. TONY AKOWE met him in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). 

    Could you shed light on the proposed composition of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Board of Trustees (BoT)?

    The formation of the BOT is a constitutional matter.  It is the responsibility of the BOT to choose its chairman, its secretary and its leadership. It is not for the party to do, but for members of the BOT to decide who will lead them. It is their internal affair and they have to vote among themselves to chose their leaders. We cannot influence them from outside or sit in the national secretariat and say that the Chairman must come from this place or that place. If you have an opinion, you can canvass it through the national chairman who is also a member of the BOT. It is not all of us in the NWC that are members of the BOT because there are people who are statutorily members of the BOT as provided for by our constitution. Issues of the BOT is strictly the affairs of the BOT.

     What is the position of the party on the zoning of elective positions?

    One thing I know for certain, which I can tell you, is that we are going to provide the enabling environment for everybody to express him or herself. As a party, we have agreed that there will not be any imposition. We want a situation where the best candidate will emerge. But when you are looking at zoning, you must not also lose sight of the fact that in our constitution, there is provision for federal character, there is provision for balance and for you to achieve this, you must out of political exigency be compelled to bring in zoning. So, the essence of it is that one thing we will do ,which I can tell you we will do is that the leadership of the party believes in fairness, equity and justice. We are going to create an enabling environment for anybody who desires to aspire to any office to go ahead, right from the counsellorship up to the president. We are not going to impose anybody because we want the best to emerge. We want the best for the country. We want whatever we do, let the people be the reason. Let the Nigerian people count first before anything. That is certainly going to guide us.

    What is your reaction to the defection of APC chieftains to the PDP?

    One thing about an individual politician is principally the consequence of the person’s feeling of what he want and what he intends to achieve. What you cannot do about people is that you cannot question their ambition or desire because politics is something that has to do with an individual and its all about expectations, ambition and what you want to achieve at the end of the day. So, I wouldn’t be surprise when we have issues that have to do with movement, because as some people are leaving the APC, others are moving into the APC. Some are also going to other parties, it has to do with the individual and how he or she expects to achieve his personal ambition. Now coming to the issue of Malam Nuhu Ribadu; yes Ribadu is a friend and was a leader in our party. When he decided to go over to the PDP, he made his case very clear. He talked about his ambition, he talked about ones assessment of  himself and what he intends to achieve at the end of the day. So, his movement, I want to believe is a consequence of his desire to contest the election on the platform of PDP and so, you can’t stop him. I don’t think there is any other reason.  From what I can read and understand, I believe that his decision is a consequence of his ambition which he is entitled to. For somebody like Chief Tom Ikimi, I feel sad no doubt about it having known him for quite a while and the fact that he played a very key role in the course of the merger of APC. He was like the coordinating chairman of the chairmen of the three parties  that came together to form APC and all the meetings we had about the formation were incidentally held in his house. So for me, it is a sad commentary. However, we will still not lose sight of the fact that he has his decisions to make. He is the person involved and knows his expectations and what he considers as his challenges. He knows where he feels injured. But if I had the privilege of being consulted by him, I would have advised that he should be a little patient and see how things unfold because some of us believe that whatever maybe the disagreement, there will still be room for reconciliation

    What is the implication of the defection for the party?

    I don’t think so. Why some of us feel sad that you lose people you have already built some level of affinity with, some other people are also coming in. its about individuals, its about ambition,  its about expectation. If you are not realizing your ambition, if you are not getting what you expect, that is enough reason for you to take a decision as to where, what to move at, but I don’t think there’s going to be any advance, I don’t agree with you.

    People are saying that there is no difference between the pDP and the APC. What is your position on the agitation for ideological politics?

    There is quite a word of difference between the PDP and APC. The APC is a progressive party and we look at progressivism from the standpoint of Nigerians. But, I will agree with you that probably, I don’t know whether it’s a case of im,maturity of our democratic process. But it’s a gradual process and I we are going to get to the point where the dividing line will be so clear that you can easily identify who is who and who is where at any given time. If you take our states for example, the states under the APC government, you will see a visible clear difference. Our approach to the issue of corruption, approach to the issue of poverty alleviation, approach to issue of education and health is entirely different from what we have in the system. And that will tell that there is a world of difference between us and them. You must also understand why we in this situation. One, because of the weakness of the private sector, government appears to be the only business. We are at the point where there is not much of party discipline because this anomaly of  the executive being the leader of the party. I have never subscribed to it because once the party structure is weak, people who selected this positions now see the party as vehicles for the actualization of their political power. But with the proposals being made for some levels of legislation that will curtail such movements, I think a little bit of discipline will come into it.

    How did your party resolve its post-convention crisis?

    I don’t think there is much. One thing you must understand is that we are talking about human being; we are talking about people’s ambition; we are talking about people’s expectations. So, there is no way you will finish it and not expect that some persons will be injured or some people may not actualize or get what they want at the end of the day. Then, there is the need for you to consult and talk to such people  and make sure everybody is carried along. So, the reactions after every congress or every convention is expected. But our position is that there must be justice in every given situation, because once there is no justice, the tendency for you to make peace is not there. Once there is justice, the route to making peace becomes wider and easier. When somebody is convinced through empirical evidence that this route you are following is not right, the tendency is there for the person to change route.  But when the person has not seen a reason for him or her to change route, it is always very difficult. So I agree with you that the few issues that came up where expected because we are dealing with human beings. But most of them have been resolved

    Is there plan by the APC to enlarge its coast, ahead of next year’s polls?

    Winning people to the party is a continuous process and we don’t intend to stop and we want you to join us too. So, anything we would do to get you to our side will be done. The important thing is that we have created a mega political platform that we have made available to Nigerians to express themselves. We have brought something that is different from the past, something that has never happened before. You know there have never been a successful merger in the history of Nigerian politics, talkless of a situation where parties with government at various levels collapsed their identities to come together. It is all because of the love for this nation and the desire that Nigeria has come to a point in our history where it is only the best that is good enough. We must create the enabling environment for the people to drive in and not until we do that, we have a problem and that is what makes the APC different from the other parties. First and foremost, you must have a pattern that others can build on by the time we finish our tenure.

    Does the likelihood exist that the APC presidential candidate can come from the Southeast?

    Yes. The possibility is there. There is no street in the Southeast that cannot generate a federal cabinet. I want to be challenged. Every street in the Southeast can generate a complete federal cabinet. We have presidential materials and so, you cannot shut out

  • Fed Govt to commercialise FHA

    Fed Govt to commercialise FHA

    THE Federal Government has started the commercialisation of the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) to reposition it, its Acting Managing Director, David Kpue, has said.

    Consequently,  stakeholders would be  engaged to run FHA to enable it stand on its feet.

    Kpue believes that when this is done, it will go a long way in addressing the needs of Nigerians who want their own houses.

    He said the FHA has delivered 40, 000 housing units. According to him, the Authority has deployed various strategies in ensuring that housing problem become a thing of the past in the country.

    He listed such channels of house delivery by the FHA to include direct construction, entering into public-private partnership (PPP) with estate developers as well as exploring cooperative and social housing avenues, adding that it has continued to encourage and promote housing regeneration.

    Kpue said the FHA planned to develop new estates and towns in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), where plans have reached an advanced stage for an estate in Zuba, which will accommodate 1, 200 houses.

    Also, the FHA is completing a process that will berth an estate or a new town in Gwari, which will deliver up to 20, 000 housing units, and also a new town in Kwali.

    Already, profiling of the off-takers has been concluded, while the Authority has concludeed plans with the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) so that it can pay the relevant compensations to those that would be affected by the exercise and then commence the delivery process.

    The FHA boss said the agency was in discussion with Nigerian Traders Association, Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), among others. These efforts are geared towards ameliorating the pressing housing problems in Abuja.

    Beyond the FCT, he revealed that the FHA is also into PPP in other states to deliver houses, an effort that has delivered 1, 753 units across the country. And to further boost the PPP, the FHA boss said the agency is also trying to streamline the would-be funding partners who can come in to assist in delivering the housing programmes.

    “The FHA has faced a lot of challenges but we are moving forward. A new FHA will work towards providing affordable and accessible houses because the consensus we had in the past is that most of these houses were not easily taken up by Nigerians but by profiling our off takers, we were able to service the needs of those who want the houses and the type they want,” Kpue said.

  • Firm sponsors 500 girls for enterprise acquisition

    Master Card has sponsored 500 girls across the country in various skill acquisition trainings.

    The scheme held under the Junior Achievement Nigeria (JAN) Girls Enterprise Programme initiative of the firm.

    Speaking at the closing ceremony of the programme in Abuja, the National programme coordinator of JAN, Mrs. Franca Thomas, said the scheme was carried out with the Agency for Science and Technology FCT as the implementing partner.

    She explained it was designed to empower the girls with skills for self-employment.

    “The students were taken through 17 sessions that teach self-esteem, goals setting, carrying out research, writing business plan, funding, financial management etc, while  the second part is the skill acquisition training.

    “ Some choose bead making, makeup artistry, computer appreciation while other choose pastry making.

    “We have 550 girls in the programme, 180 are being empowered in FCT, Lagos is 250 while Port Harcourt is 120 girls making a total of 550 being impacted on the programme,” she said.