The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Federal government

  • Abuja Airport Closure: FG assures 24 hours security

    Abuja Airport Closure: FG assures 24 hours security

    The Federal Government has said that it will ensure that road; rail and air space between Abuja and Kaduna are water-tight during the closure and repairs of Abuja airport runway.

    Abuja airport runway will be shut for repairs between March 8 to April 18, 2017.

    During the six weeks closure, Kaduna airport will be used for passenger operation

    This was disclosed in Abuja Thursday by the Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika during the inauguration of the Security Sub-Committee on the Abuja airport runway closure.

    Highlighting the functions of the Committee, he said: “you will note that there is so much hype in our media recently over the proposed closure and repair works to be carried out on the Abuja runway and the perceived security threats on the roads, and rails to Kaduna.

    “You are to provide security at the Abuja and Kaduna airport including road, air and rail transportation, monitor traffic movement from Abuja to Kaduna airport, and provide security to passengers and cargo between Abuja to Kaduna.

    Continuing, he said: “You are required to ensure the safety of lives and property of passengers and other citizens during this period by enhancing your security activities.

    “I hope that this committee will live up to its bidding by making sure that with six weeks period of closure, security should be water-tight for the massive movement of passengers, cargo, luggage and other logistics to and from Kaduna”.

    Sirika also charged members of the Committee to be proactive on any security challenge.

    The committee will be Chaired by Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), Alkali Baba and has Director of Safety and Technical Policy, Office of the National Security Adviser, Department of State and Security Services, Nigeria Air Force, Nigeria Army, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Immigration, FAAN Aviation Security and department of Air Transport management as members.

    Responding, the chairman of the Sub-Committee, AIG Baba assured: “there will be air surveillance, motorised patrol, and we will provide the rail tracks with necessary security from Abuja to Kaduna.

    On logistics needed to ensure the desired security, he said: “We require patrol vehicles and the vehicles will need to be fueled, serviced and we require dry ration for officers who will be on special duty and other things.

    On the present security situation in Southern Kaduna and on whether it will pose threat to passengers, Baba said: “we are assuring Nigerians that we will provide adequate security throughout the movement? We are going to provide security 24 hours throughout the period”.

  • Tuface vows to proceed with planned protest against FG

    Tuface vows to proceed with planned protest against FG

    Popular Nigerian singer Tuface Idibia, has vowed to proceed with his planned nationwide protest against the Federal Government on Feb. 5 in spite of mixed reactions by some Nigerians.

    2baba, as he is fondly called by fans, made his stand known on his Facebook page on Wednesday.

    According to him, the protest will go on as planned since it is meant to tell Nigerian leaders the need to ‘connect with the people’.

    He said: “I will not keep quiet. I’m just a musician with a point of view and the ear of my fans.

    “I have dedicated my time and resources to peace building, voter’s education towards peaceful elections and youth engagement in governance in Nigeria.

    “This match is about demanding that our leaders connect with all the people of Nigeria.”

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the ‘African Queen’ crooner had earlier in January announced his intention to lead a nationwide protest against the current Federal Government.
    He noted that many “Nigerians, especially the youths, were languishing in poverty with little to be hopeful for about the future.”

    However, the call by Tuface to protest against the government was welcomed with mixed reactions.

    While many of his fans, politicians and artistes alike, said the protest was timely and necessary, others said it was ill-conceived and politically motivated.

    Some of his fellow artistes noted that they would not be available for the protest, while others frowned at it in strict terms.

    While some celebrities like, Burna Boy, Davido and Alibaba are in support, others like comedian Bovi, actress Funke Adesanya said otherwise.

    Also, former ‘Plantashun Boiz’ member Blackface, who had not been in goo terms g with his former band mate, Tuface, is apparently not in support of the Feb. 5 protest.

    However, Tuface has remained undeterred saying “it is just a peaceful protest aimed at demanding answers from the government over different issues in the country.”

     

  • FG won’t succumb to threats, Ngige tells labour unions

    FG won’t succumb to threats, Ngige tells labour unions

    The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige on Wednesday declared that the Federal Government will not succumb to threats from labour unions in the country.

    The labour unions, he said, cannot achieve anything through threats except dialogue.

    He spoke with State House correspondents after FEC meeting.

    He said “Government is on the issue of industrial relations as possible as we can, especially with an economy that is in technical recession like ours.

    “We have cooperation from most of the unions: the NLC and the TUC. We have maximum cooperation from them.

    “On the minimum wage issue, we have a technical committee that is working and members of the two congresses are members of that committee. We are almost finishing our work and we are handing over next week.

    “Everybody knows that prices have gone up and in some states, workers are not getting salaries. They are unable to pay the minimum wage. These are the things we have taken into account in our discussion.

    “We also have warnings from doctors’ union and ASUU as well as NASU. We are discussing with them but we want to appeal to all of them that there is nothing like warning strike.

    “There is nothing you cannot get by negotiation and you cannot get certain things by threats. Warning strikes as far as government is concerned are threats. I have made it clear to them.” he said

    Government and labour laws, he said, make provision for social dialogue and collective bargaining agreements.

    “It also makes provision for the review of the agreements. Nigerian unions should imbibe the culture of social dialogue. They can go on strike after giving the mandatory notices but the same law says in Section 43 that if you withdraw your services, your union is supposed to pay you. Your employer will not pay. That is how the issue of no work, no pay came up.

    “It is in the country’s labour. For the period you withdraw your services, it will not count for you in your pensionable times. It is taken as broken service. The unions have the responsibility to lecture their members on this.

    “If your employer has not complied with an agreement, you take him back to negotiation table or he can ask you for a re-negotiation.

    “Everything is about money and funding. Most of those agreements are not backed by appropriation. Government at times because of threats and pressures from the unions succumb to certain conditions that are not implementable.

    “We have a lot of them and that is why the university unions will now have to go back for renegotiation for the 2009 agreement they had with the Federal Government.

    “We want them to give government a chance. Government has a human face; we are human,” he stated

     

  • Agric varsity: FG bans admission of students without farming interests

    Agric varsity: FG bans admission of students without farming interests

    The Federal Government says it has henceforth banned the admission of students who do not have farming interests into its Universities of Agriculture.

    Chief Audu Ogbeh, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, said this at a stakeholders meeting with registrars and pro-Chancellors of the universities in Abuja on Tuesday.

    He said the decision was to reposition the institutions with a view to involving youths in agriculture, training them to proffer solutions to the multi-faceted problems in the sector.

    The minister, who expressed regrets that non-agriculture-based courses like engineering was being thought in the schools, directed that only agriculture-related disciplines be thought.

    Ogbeh said the Federal Government’s decision to relocate its three Universities of Agriculture from the Federal Ministry of Education to Agriculture, was to refocus the schools as globally acclaimed citadels to move the agriculture sector forward.

    He assured the universities that the government would actively support them by providing funds and grants to assist in research to move the agriculture sector forward.

    “The domiciliation of the universities in this ministry is a commendable effort by the Federal Government based on sound reasoning and logic.

    “Your return will effectively help us to reposition the three universities of agriculture as centres of excellence for the rapid development of the agriculture sector.

    “There is no place where the competence and capacity to drive agriculture resides outside the Universities of Agriculture. We need to achieve a hunger-free Nigeria.

    “Henceforth, students who are not interested in becoming farmers should be made to seek admission elsewhere.

    “We are determined to offer you the necessary support for your transformation, for research for a healthier realm of discovery and self-actualisation,’’ the minister said.

    Mr Mohammed Munguno, the Chairman, House Committee on Agricultural Production and Services, advocated a bill to establish the National Universities Agricultural Commission to regulate operations of the Universities of Agriculture.

    He said that the National Assembly would amend their rules to make sure that the universities were adequately domiciled in the ministry for effective monitoring by the assembly.

    “There is need either through an executive bill or bill to be sponsored by the House and Senate Committees on Agriculture for the establishment of the National Universities of Agricultural Commission.

    “The commission will be charged with the responsibility of regulating the universities of agriculture to effectively perform their statutory roles in tandem with the laws establishing them,’’ Munguno said.

    Prof. Anya O. Anya, the Pro-Chancellor of the Micheal Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia, applauded the Federal Government for the relocation.

    Anya, who raised concern over disconnect with the science and practice of agriculture in the country, expressed hope that the domiciliation of the universities in the ministry would reposition the sector.

  • UN urges FG to focus on corruption prevention

    UN urges FG to focus on corruption prevention

    Country Representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Cristina Albertin, has urged the Federal Government to focus more on prevention corruption in its fight against the scourge.

    Speaking during the National Workshop on Corruption prevention for Anti-Corruption Agencies in Nigeria funded by the European Union under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF) in Calabar on Monday, she said it was also pertinent to involve the private sector in the fight against corruption.

    “I think there is a solid foundation for anti-corruption work in Nigeria because there are lots of institutions that work on anti-corruption. I think focus has been very much on law enforcement and criminal justice response, and I think it is time to give more time to the prevention of corruption. The war on corruption shall also involve the private sector, especially on public procurement that uses private sector. And it also has to deal with transparency and accountability of budgets in the involvement of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) that can help in setting up transparency measures.

    “We are hosting the workshop together with anti-corruption agencies on corruption prevention and it is happening within a project that we have with the government of Nigeria, the European Union and UNODC.

    “UNODC is providing comprehensive assistance to 14 agencies in Nigeria on anti-corruption in the framework of the United Nations Convention against corruption. That is a convention that sets out a comprehensive set of measures against corruption, which includes criminalization, and penalization of corrupt offences.

    “We render assistance to Nigerian Government in a series of areas in line with our mandate under this regard to drug control, anti-human trafficking, combatting smuggling of migrants, counter terrorism, HIV prevention and prevention of corruption,” she said.

  • African Union: FG intensifies Nigeria’s campaign

    African Union: FG intensifies Nigeria’s campaign

    The Federal Government says it is intensifying campaign for Ms Fatima Mohammed, the Nigeria/ECOWAS’ candidate for African Union (AU) Commissioner for Peace and Security.

    Amb. Enikanolaye, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated this in a statement made available to Newsmen on Thursday in Abuja.

    Enikanolaye said that Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, the special envoy appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari was leading Nigeria’s delegation in the campaign to African countries.

    He said that the delegation, which was in Ethiopia on Monday, was received by the Ethiopian Foreign Minister, Dr Workneh Gebeyehu.

    Gebeyehu, he said, promised to convey President Buhari’s request to his Prime Minister and was optimistic of a favourable response.

    He said the delegation was also received by the President of Burundi, Pierre Nkurunziza in Bujumbura on Wednesday.

    Nkurunziza, according to him, indicated that Burundi also has a candidate for the same position, but expressed his readiness to support Nigeria’s candidate if the election goes into the second round.

    The president also expressed his admiration for Nigeria and President Buhari’s constructive role in peace, security and development of the African continent.

    Enikanolaye said Onyeama was currently on his way to Angola where he is scheduled to meet with the Angolan President on the issue.

  • Kalu to FG: Harness potentialities in arts

    Kalu to FG: Harness potentialities in arts

    Former Governor of Abia, Chief Orji Kalu, has urged the Federal Government to harness the potentialities in arts, to boost the country’s economic development and make recession a thing of the past.

    Kalu made the observation in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Wednesday, noting that the government would gain tremendously if proper attention was given to arts.

    “If we are going to come out of a recession, then, we need an incentive to do so. Visual, literary and performing arts are at the fiscal heart of any thriving community.

    “Theatres, cinemas, galleries and museums encourage people to visit. They make people want to stay, and then restaurants, hotels, bars and shops will thrive alongside.

    “We have quite a number of jobless young people that can take up any part of the art as profession and make good money out of it. They just need to be encouraged.

    “ Culture is not merely a luxurious extra-curricular solely for the rich and privileged; it is a reflection of who we are as a community and as individuals.

    “It is crucial for tomorrow’s world that the arts remain accessible to children and young people. It pains me at times when I see children that cannot speak their local language.

    “We have to wake up to our culture and values before they go into extinction,’’ Kalu said.

    He said the country was blessed with vast forms of arts that could boost the economic situation of the country and could be exported to other countries.

    “I want to draw the attention of state governors to look inward in their respective domain, to see a culture that is peculiar that can be developed to showcase to the world, and improve their financial status.

    “Culture helps to promote social mobility; it encourages lateral thinking and allows us to challenge our perceptions as well those of others.

    “Arts and culture matter; they are not just a tonic in times of trouble; they are also part of the solution,’’ Kalu said.

  • Striking workers: FG threatens no work, no pay

    Striking workers: FG threatens no work, no pay

    Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige on Monday reminded trade unions in the country that there was nothing like warning strike in the nation’s industrial relations circles, warning that the government may be forced to invoke the no work no pay rule on striking workers.

    The Minister said in accordance with the nation’s labour laws, a strike is a strike and is subject to all the rules governing strike in the world of work and appealed to members of the non-teaching staff of universities to call off their five-day warning strike and embrace the channels of dialogue already opened by the government.
    In a statement personally signed last night and made available to newsmen,  Senator Ngige said the government was committed to the full resolution of issues affecting the workers, pointing out that a meeting called by the government to discuss the issues had to be rescheduled at the instance of the unions.
    The statement reads: “I wishes to appeal to the National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT), Non – Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU), and Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) who have jointly declared intention to embark on a 5 – day warning strike effective January 16, 2017 to suspend action in the interest of the nation.
    “I wish to assure that the Federal Government is ready and willing to fully dialogue with the members of these Trade Unions, operating under the umbrella of Joint Action Committee. The Government has already opened an unhindered channel of communication with all Stakeholders and shall maintain this.
    “Today (Monday), January 16, 2017, I convened a meeting of all stakeholders in dispute for us to ventilate all issues and reach an amicable settlement. Unfortunately, the Trade Unions requested for a different date, and the meeting now re-scheduled for Wednesday, January 18, 2017.
    “The Federal Government, therefore expects that the Trade Unions should suspend the strike before the re-scheduled meeting to make way for untrammelled discussions.
    “It is important for Trade Unions to embrace social dialogue in the pursuit and attainment of the economic and social interests of their members anchored on equity and natural justice.
    “I hence thought it necessary to remind the Trade Unions that there is nothing like a “warning strike” in our National Industrial Relations System (NIRS) – a strike is a strike and is subject to all the rules governing strike in the world of work.
    “Accordingly, the provisions of Section 43 of the Trade Disputes Act, CAP. T8, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (LFN), 2004, will apply regarding the law of “no work no pay by workers/employees notwithstanding any other circumstances in any section of the Act.”
    “Once more, I wish to appeal to the trade unions to embrace dialogue as the Federal Government is fully committed to peaceful resolution of what the unions termed “Full Implementation of 2009 FGN/Non – Teaching Staff Union’s Agreement”.

  • Sambisa tour: BBOG joins FG’s search team

    Sambisa tour: BBOG joins FG’s search team

    The Bring Back Our Girls (BBOG) group has sent a delegation to join the Federal Government’s team on a day search sorties for missing Chibok girls to Sambisa Forest.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports the group reviewed the conditions it earlier gave to the government to travel with the team heading for the North East to witness first-hand the military’s ongoing search for the girls.

    The BBOG delegation included the convener of the group, Dr Obiageli Ezekwesili, the spokesperson of the Chibok community, Dr Manasseh Allen, Aisha Yusuf and Ibrahim Usman.

    It will be recalled that following the invitation extended to the group by the government to participate in the search mission the BBOG had given certain conditions before its members would join.

    Specifically, the group requested a  Pre-Tour Meeting with government officials and a retraction of some remarks allegedly made by the Chief of Army Staff, which it found to be slanderous.

    The government in a letter signed by the Minister of Information ad Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed had rejected the conditions given by the group and insisted that the team would proceed on the trip as scheduled.

    Following the position of the government, NAN reports that the BBOG reviewed the conditions and indicated acceptance to participate in the exercise.

    In a letter to the Minister on Sunday night, the group asked the government to “quickly provide us more details of the tour duration and detailed logistics including the names of the local and
    international media on the delegation.

    ” We need this information to enable us to send you a more substantial letter conveying our acceptance to join the Guided Tour”.

    NAN reports that the Minister responded to the request by giving details of the trip and other requests by the group.

  • FG commended for rehabilitating Chibok girls

    FG commended for rehabilitating Chibok girls

    The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has commended the Federal Government for its efforts to rehabilitate the Chibok girls.

    The association gave the commendation in a statement jointly signed by its President Prof. Mike Ogirima, and Secretary General, Dr Yusuf Sununu.

    In the statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja, the association also acknowledged the efforts of the government to restore peace in the North east.

    “We wish to state that efforts to rehabilitate the released girls by the Federal Government are commendable.

    “Our members, who are specialists in various fields of rehabilitation, are (and will continue to be) involved in the on-going care of the girls,’’ the association said.