Tag: Fed Govt

Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed has reiterated the Federal Government’s commitment to rescue the abducted Chibok girls from Boko Haram terrorists.

The minister spoke on a live television programme on Independence, titled: “Nigeria at 56: Recursive, Resilient, Rising.”

Mohammed said no group, local or international, could claim to have more stake or to be more committed to the rescue of the girls than the Federal Government.

He added that the issue was a humanitarian one everyone or group should be “passionate but rational about”.

The minister said contrary to the position of critics, government had a robust counter-terrorism policy, and had recorded success in fighting Boko Haram in the Northeast.

He noted that although the Chibok girls were yet to be rescued, this must not be a yardstick to write off the achievements of government in decimating Boko Haram.

Mohammed recalled that upon assumption of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, many parts of the Northeast were under control of the Boko Haram, and were unsafe and inaccessible.

The minister said the situation was not the same today, as no part of Northeast region was under control of the group.

He reiterated that Boko Haram has been decimated, and government would ensure release of the abducted girls.

“The Northeast is free now, students are returning to schools, all towns and communities hitherto under control of the terrorists have been liberated and those who fled their homes are gradually returning,” he said.

The minister also recalled that when the Buhari administration assumed power, it was 410 days after the Chibok girls were abducted without any clue to their rescue by the previous government.

He noted that in all cases of abduction, especially by terrorists, 24 hours was critical to ensuring prompt rescue, adding that the government in power then did not utilise the intelligence then.

The minister said the present administration had three times established links with Boko Haram for exchange of the abducted girls with arrested members of the terrorist group.

He explained that on each occasion, the efforts were thwarted by either the link with the terrorist, fresh demands by Boko Haram or division in the camp of the terrorist group.

Mohammed said government had not foreclosed negotiation with the group but it wanted to ensure the link was genuine and credible.

He said government appreciated the “Bring Back Our Girls” (BBOG) group but noted that “the administration is as concerned as it is and ready to work with them in ensuring release of the girls.”

Mrs Oby Ezekwesili, a leader of BBOG, reiterated the position of the minister that 24 hours was critical to ensuring success or failure in cases of abduction, adding that the past administration failed in that regard.

Ezekwesili, however, said the BBOG group was disappointed that more than 900 days after the girls’ abduction, there was no tangible evidence or convincing plans by government for their release.

She said the group resumed its agitation with vigour to canvass citizens engagement in the release of the girls and ensure that government did not stay away from the parents of the girls.

She underscored the need for government to carry along the group in its rescue efforts and be consistent in its messages and briefings.

She pledged the support of the group to the government in ensuring a safe rescue of the abducted girls.

CHAIRMAN of the Senate Committee on Land Transport ‘Gbenga Ashafa has joined the call on the executive for the early transmission of next year’s budget to the National Assembly for consideration.

Ashafa, who is representing Lagos East in Red Chamber, highlighted some of the efforts being made by the National Assembly to strengthen the economy and encourage more local content.

Speaking on the fourth day of the Made-in Nigeria (MAiN) summit at the Eko Atlantic City which has “Pathways to building the main economy: Legislative agenda for the main economy” as its theme.

He said: “The fundamental role of the National Assembly in the area of the economy remains providing the requisite legislative support for both the executive and indeed the Nigerian populace to thrive in their areas of business.

 “The Eighth Session of the National Assembly is very well aware of the task ahead of it in this period of economic challenge and we are alive to this responsibility.

“I will give you some instances: one is the amendment of The Public Procurement Act which has effectively reduced the time it takes government to process the award of contracts. Also, that law is to make it compulsory for government to patronize locally produced goods.”

The senator also spoke on the passage of the Nigerian Railway Bill 2016 which was spearheaded by the Senate Committee on Land Transport, expressing optimism that the new law will help open up the oil sector to private sector participation.

Ashafa stated that the stage has been set for the National Assembly to receive the 2017 Budget, urging the Executive to send the appropriation estimates to the National Assembly in good time for the lawmakers’ consideration.

“I agree that the National Assembly can do more to encourage local content in the economy. However, I think it is important to state that since it takes the National Assembly averagely about four months to scrutinise the budget, we in the National Assembly are ready to start work on the 2017 budget. If we receive the budget estimates early, it gives us the opportunity of carrying out a thorough examination and timely passage of the document.”

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed yesterday said the Federal Government was yet to decide on sale of national asset.

He said although the National Economic Council (NEC), chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, last Thursday supported such measures for economic revitalisation, the final decision on assets sale, will be taken by the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

He spoke with State House correspondents at the end of the FEC meeting presided by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Mohammed was with the Minister of Water Resources, Sulaiman Adamu.

The Information minister said: “Government is still working on the most comprehensive manner to reflate the economy and the government will make its position known.

“What the government will do is to reflate the economy, everything you have heard is just suggestion. Until the government makes its position known, these assets sale, assets leasing, whatever is being bandied about, are nothing but speculation.

“The government is yet to come out with its position on how to bail out the economy and it will take that position.

“NEC will recommend but it is the Federal Executive Council that will decide and what we decide will be the position of government,” he stated

Mohammed and Adamu said FEC approved three memos from the Federal Ministry of Water Resources.

Mohammed said: “Water today as no other time has become one of the most important resource with economic, social and political implications. And the judicious use/allocation of water for human, animals, livestock, industry has become more than ever one of the serious issues facing humanity.

“As a matter of fact many countries have gone to war over the issue of water. So I believe it is only timely that Nigeria is proactive, and consider the issue of water resources as not one that should be left in the hands of anybody but the Federal Government.”

Adamu listed the three memos as National Water Policy, National Irrigation Policy and Draft National Water Resources Bill.

He said: “National Water Policy seeks to provide  strategies to improve management and delivery of water in the country in particular reference to water supply.

“It is followed by the enabling law, that is National Water Resources Bill, which essentially consolidates existing laws, Water Resources Act, River Basin Development Authority Act, National Water Resources Institute Act, National Hydrological Services Act, and other Acts put together to form a national law that conforms to international standard and international best practices.

“By so doing, we have been able to streamline many of the overlapping laws, sometimes we have conflict in laws, as  the one we have with NIWA, some laws relating to environment, mining. This bill seeks to sort out those issues so that we have a standard national law, also so that we can set up a proper regulatory agency to regulate the water sector.”

With the new development, he said the door is open for the private sector to come in to invest in water supply schemes in the country.

Adamu said irrigation and drainage policy seeks to recognise and bring in water users association and generally improve not only irrigation infrastructure but irrigation management in the country.

He said: “Nigeria has the potential of 3.4 million hectares of land for irrigation,  and  only about 130,000 have been developed formally and about 70,000 is being utilised.

“So there is a huge gap and we feel that introducing this policy will help us work along at federal and regional levels with states so that we will have an all-encompassing policy to help our agriculture agenda.

“And also support our national irrigation policy introduced under a roadmap that is supposed to be from this year to 2030. It won’t go well without this policy.

“So it is a good thing that we brought the three policies together, and we believe the water resources sector is going to be entirely different ball game from now on,” he added

The Federal Government yesterday denied the claim that President Muhammadu Buhari is ‘taming’ Nigerians with the Change begins with me campaign.

British newspaper The Economist in a report at the weekend entitled: “Nigeria’s war against indiscipline, Behave or be whipped” wrote that President Buhari wanted to “tame” Nigerians with the “Change Begins With Me” campaign.

But in a statement yesterday, Information, Culture and Tourism Minister Lai Mohamed, said the word “tame” suggested that Nigerians were “some kind of wild animals that must be domesticated.”

“This is not true. In his speech at the launch of the campaign on September  8, the President,  a globally-acknowledged leader, who believes strongly in the rule of  law, left no one in doubt that moral suasion, the very antithesis of  force, will be employed to achieve attitudinal change among Nigerians.

 “In that speech, the President said I am therefore appealing to all Nigerians to be part of this campaign. To the best of our knowledge and, surely the knowledge of those who own the language, the words “appeal” and “enforce” are not synonymous.

 In its rush to discredit the “Change Begins With Me” campaign, The  Economist, a widely respected newspaper, fell below its own standards by choosing to be economical with the truth. Enforcement is not part  of the strategies to be employed under the Campaign, and nowhere has it been said that the ‘moral polic’ will be unleashed, as reported  by the newspaper.

“In writing the story, the paper did not even deem it  necessary to speak with any official of the government, thus breaching  one of the codes of journalism, which is fairness. It chose instead to  quote a ‘critic’ of Mr. President in a perfunctory manner.

The statement also accused the magazine of making the same mistake that most critics of the “Change Begins With Me” campaign have been making.

He said that the details of the programme were yet to be unveiled. “The campaign, which the President said will help restore our value  system and rekindle our nationalistic fervor”, is not designed to  shift any responsibility to Nigerians, as many have erroneously said.

 It is an all-inclusive campaign that was designed to start with the  leadership. That much was explained by the President when he said the  government would “drive the campaign” and that it must be strongly supported by all concerned individually. “Change Begins With Me” was designed to start from the President, then trickle down to the Vice President, ministers, other top government officials and to all citizens.  “What is the campaign asking Nigerians to do? Be the change  they want to see in the society. In other words, if we all want an  orderly society, for example, the motorists among us must obey traffic  rules, our aggrieved youth must stop destroying public property,  patent medicine sellers must stop selling fake drugs, commercial  vehicle drivers must stop taking alcoholic beverages before driving  etc.

“There is nothing extraordinary or over-burdening in all these. We are the fundamental units of the society. If we are not willing to  change our ways for the better, we cannot expect a better society.”

The Federal Government and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have called for appropriate technology to address health challenges in the country.

Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole and the Country Representatives of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Mairo Mandara, agreed that the future of healthcare in the country would be in e-health.

They said it would help to reduce the burden of patients seeking care and hasten medical attention.

The duo, who spoke at the Future Health Conference in Abuja, noted that the technology to be deployed must be user-friendly and simplified.

Mandara urged technology providers to come up with tools that would be easy for all to adapt.

She said: “How to do we ensure that we have people-centred technology? Such technology, for me, is not just about the primary healthcare nurse, the midwives and the scan. For me, it is that the person who you are serving understands. Do the women understand what you are doing? Empower the people themselves so that they are no longer dependent. To what extent do they understand your language?”

She also urged the service and technology providers to use the language of the people they serve, saying: “The biggest lesson is humility. Education gives us a lot of arrogance.”

Mandara added: “In situation of health, in situation of life and death, in situation where we have the singular honour of having the ability to develop a tool to serve the people, I think we do need to learn the humility of listening to the people we serve and actually address the things they need.

“In Gates Foundation, we believe all lives have equal values. I know that health is not about diseases, and health is not static. Health is about complete, physical mental and social wellbeing. It is about the eco-system of this variable that no one stays in one place. So, it is creating the balance in this eco-system.

“If technology is going to serve health – because I believe that every tool is suppose to serve humanity and not the other way round – so, we need to look at technology within the context of what is health. Therefore, we look at prevention, curative, maintenance, wellbeing, psycho-social balance and inner peace. All of these encompass health. Therefore, I will want to challenge you to look at health beyond diseases.

“If technology is to serve health in Nigeria, where is the burden of health in this country? Where is the largest proportion of our people? What percentage of our people live below $1.5 a day? Where does 80 per cent of our population lie in the pyramid of the wealth and equity of social justice?

“I am saying this because the status of health in Nigeria has been static for a long time. If you look at the area of maternal health indicators, the 1960s and early 1970s were better than what they are now. The services functioned better and things were moving better. So, if we are going to look at that, the state we are in Nigeria has to be a tough reality analysis.

“What can we do to leapfrog? We cannot go at the pace we have been going for years. If we do that, I can tell you it is going to be a disaster. So, it has to be leapfrogging; and in leapfrogging for health, we need to look at integrated approach.

“We can have technology that can teach rudimentary but life-saving skills. If we can take care of these little things I have talked about, I am sure we would probably decrease our maternal and child mortality by a quarter…”

 “I hope the fiscal, when we look at the economic situation in this country now, this is not the time to experiment, this is a time to get solution and just get on. We probably have only three to five years as country to make or mar, to move or to destroy period.

“Therefore, the role of the ministry of Health and National Primary Healthcare cannot be overemphasised. We need to get technology people to understand the basics of healthcare in lay people’s language.

When a tech person understand the basics of healthcare, they then understand how to deal and then to give us solutions to this.

The last but not the least, we need to look at reaching the last man. As we develop technology, we must ensure that we are able to reach human being.”

Also, a strategic product partnerships manager for facebook, Mr. Emeka Afigbo, has pledged to work with another health organisation to provide solutions that would enable healthcare providers to solve the health challenges in the country.

Prof. Adewole said the ministry recognised technology as a key factor in achieving a healthy future for Nigerians.

Adewole, who was represented by the Director of Special Duties in the Ministry of Health, Dr. Ngozi Anazodo, said: “We in the Health sector recognise that technology is a key factor in a achieving our dreams of a healthily future for all Nigerians. Advancements in information gathering, research, treatments and communication have provided the Health sector with new tools to work with and fresh way to practise curative and preventive medicine.

“…New technology has also improved research. So, experts can make healthcare even more effective. Information technology is also on track to improving the safety and reliability of patient care. By analysing health information that users search for online, search engines, such as Google, will help medical experts to respond to outbreaks, such as flu, more quickly as well as take preventive measures.

“Mindful of the critical role of technology in health and all its benefit derivable therefrom, the Federal Ministry of Health started the process of the development of an health strategy. This health strategy, which defines the e framework for the use, regulation and expansion of technology in health, was approved by the National Council on Health in March 2016.

“A major challenge to all of this in our country is, of course, the issue of intermittent and unreliable electricity nationwide. We have been taking steps to mitigate this by providing health facilities with solar power. But that in itself has challenges of insufficient resource, maintenance, security and quality of the installed equipment.

“The current administration has shown that it considers health an important priority.”