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Tag: genuine

  • Ortom: we’ll continue to support genuine Christian causes

    Ortom: we’ll continue to support genuine Christian causes

    Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom has assured the Christian community that he will always support their pursuit of genuine causes.

    Ortom, who spoke yesterday at St Joseph’s Parish, Akpehe, Makrudi, at a thanksgiving service for him, promised to include the Akpehe-Iorhom road in the contract for the construction of township roads in Makurdi and provide a transformer for the area.

    He also donated towards the completion of the parish adoration centres.

    He thanked the parishioners for their support during the 2015 polls, and appealed for their sustained prayers for him to take right decisions and overcome challenges of statecraft for the benefit of the people.

    The governor stated that he had found a solution to the difficulty in paying salaries, saying he would remove illegal workers from the payroll so that genuine ones can be paid promptly.

    He hinted that 20 herdsmen and three youths have been arrested and are being prosecuted for contravening the anti-open grazing law, promising that every offender will be treated equally.

    President of the Parish Laity Council, Mr. Matthew Atondo, said Ortom had exhibited the fear of God, truth, transparency and concern for the plight of the people, which has endeared him to the parishioners who requested the mass to seek divine intervention for him.

    Parish Priest Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Adagba hailed the governor for enacting the anti-open grazing law, and for sponsoring the treatment of snake bite victims, saying such were some of the acts that could lead to a person’s canonization as a saint.

    The Christian leaders requested the repair of the road which leads to the church, a transformer to boost electricity supply to their area, as well as assistance for the completion of their adoration centre.

  • NIA: Only eight million vehicles have genuine insurance

    NIA: Only eight million vehicles have genuine insurance

    •Underwriting hits N380b  

    The Nigerian Insurance Industry Database (NIID), a platform floated by the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) six years ago to capture genuine insurance policies in the country, has issued over eight million motor insurance certificates.

    Also, the industry’s estimated volume of business underwritten rose to N380 billion in 2016 as against N311 billion in 2015.

    NIA’s ts Chairman, Eddie Efekoha, broke the news at the 46th Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos.

    Its Chairman, Eddie Efekoha, said the price of crude oil, epileptic power supply, cut throat inflation, internal conflicts between herdsmen and farmers; a near comatose economy and the prolonged recession had serious consequences on the operations of insurance companies.

    He said the association was working on the establishment of a common platform for the sale of third party motor insurance policies.

    He said: “The estimated volume of business underwritten by the industry in 2016 was estimated at N380 billion as against N311 billion underwritten in 2015. The price of crude oil, epileptic power supply, cut throat inflation, internal conflicts between herdsmen and farmers a near comatose economy and the prolonged recession had serious consequences on the operations of insurance companies.

    “In spite of the challenges posed by the economy, the suspension of the Federal Reporting Council Code of Corporate Governance, implementation and improved compliance with no premium no cover, especially by the federal parastatals and ministries’ departments and agencies, the improved Anti-Money Laundering mechanism, full implementation of the International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS), improved enforcement of the compulsory insurances, renewed vigour by the government to improve the Ease of Doing Business and other efforts, the  industry has continued to be the preferred investment destination for reputable players in the global insurance.”

    He said the platform was demonstrated at the last association’s retreat for chief executive officers of member-companies last March, adding that the association and the service provider would ensure that all the issues raised at the presentation were addressed and NSICOM’s buy-in was obtained before the proposed launch date of July 1.

    He said in the association’s desire to extend the NIID’s coverage to other states, it encountered  network coverage and Internet connectivity challenges.

    He stressed that the association would solve the problems through the deployment of Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) code.

    He noted that the marine module had been running and member-companies were uploading on the platform, adding that at the end of last May, 33 member-companies had  uploaded 65,000 marine policies into it.

    He called on members to continue to upload their policies, adding that plans were afoot to bring other stakeholders in.

    NIA Acting Director-General, Mrs Lawunmi Idowu, said the NIID has been hitch-free in the last 12 months.

    She said the motor module has  changed the face of insurance in the country as incidences of fake motor insurance certificates have reduced.

    “The system features are constantly being enhanced to meet user’s requirements and expectations,’’ she said, stressing that in the period under review, more features, such as upload of short term policies, SMS alert of claims upload, mobile app of ask NIID and enhanced reporting facility were added.

    She said the marine module is being  embraced by member-companies pending its full utilisation by relevant agencies.

    “In years to come, the association’s expectation is that the NIID platform will fully integrate with all government agencies portals for real-time verification and thereby become an indispensable tool in carrying out their statutory functions and process,’’ Mrs Idowu added.

  • Govt’s textile revival effort genuine, says Aremu

    Govt’s textile revival effort genuine, says Aremu

    Labour is upbeat about the Muhammadu Buhari administrations plan to revive the textile industry.

    It was part of its campaign, National Union of Textile Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN) Secretary-General  Issa Aremu has noted.

    Speaking at the 27th Annual National Education Conference in Kaduna, organised by NUTGTWN,  Comrade Aremu, said: “Our chosen theme this year is to assist Buhari’s administration to consolidate on the few gains of the past, avoid policy mistakes of the past and above all, revive all closed factories where past governments, in spite of their efforts, could not stop the free fall.”

    Aremu quoted Buhari as saying:”I have made a promise to Nigerians that jobs will be created as part of efforts to revive the economy and that promise will be fulfilled. We will move as fast as we can to resuscitate the textile and mining industries, and improve production in our agricultural sector. We cannot allow industries and factories to close down. Instead, we should be making every effort to ensure that we re-open the closed ones and attract new ones to reduce unemployment.”

    He also urged President Buhari to ensure that smuggling and counterfeiting of textile materials are  halted, adding that if such socio-economic activities are allowed to thrive, they would rub on his good image.

    Aremu said: “We were encouraged during Gen Buhari’s campaign that he has resolved to revive textile and garment industry as part of his party’s overall strategy to re-industrialise the county and create mass employment for the millions of unemployed.

    “We recall that in the 70s and up to early 80s, (when General Buhari and his patriotic team were in power) Nigeria was the largest producer of different range of textile, garment and carpet products surpassed in production only by Egypt and South Africa. We are willing to partner with his administration to reinvent this sector, which has propelled newly industrialised countries in recent times such as China, India, Balgadesh and Indonesia among others.

    He said 26 out of the 36 states grow cotton of both long and short stable lengths; in addition as an oil-producing country, Nigeria boasts of a large polyester base.

    “Combined with the 170 million population rich in fashion and clothing and huge labour force of some 70 million potential workers, Nigeria has the potential of producing 1.2 billion meters of cloth per year. When we factor the ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) sub-regional market, Nigeria is a natural textile destination point in the world.

    “The major threat to the realisation of the great potential of Nigeria in textile production is high influx of counterfeit and smuggled goods. The real acid test of Gen Buhari’s incoming administration’s anti-corruption is how he frontally fight smuggling.

    “Over 90 per cent of Nigeria’s huge market size is dominated by smuggled and counterfeit goods, killing local companies in Kano, Kaduna, Lagos, Guzau, Aba and Port Harcourt, and millions of direct and indirect associated local jobs. In addition, smuggling denies the government the much needed revenue in unpaid custom duties. While private sector is the engine of growth, it is the government that must “oil” this engine, failing which it will crash as it has with the textile industry,” Aremu said.

    He said nations want to employ their youths, produce goods and services, overcome poverty and under-development. To this extent, he said every nation protects its own industry, whether the industry is in ‘infancy’ or ‘adulthood’, adding that Nigeria cannot be different under Gen Buhari’s administration, which has commendably raised expectations to fight unemployment and grow the economy.

  • Mark advises Buhari on genuine reconciliation

    Senate President, David Mark, yesterday advised the in-coming administration of President-elect, General Muhammadu Buhari, to make the genuine reconciliation of all Nigerians top priority.

    Mark spoke at a thanksgiving Mass ahead of the end of the 7th Senate at St. Mulumba Catholic Chaplaincy, Apo in Abuja, according to a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Paul Mumeh.

    He said the action had become imperative in order to assuage the feelings of some aggrieved persons.

    He said: “What the nation needs now is genuine reconciliation of all sections of the country.”

    He said despite different political affiliations  on which public officers were elected, “what must be paramount is the service, welfare and security of Nigerians, irrespective of ethnic, religious or political differences.”

    He further stressed the need to address the insecurity situation, especially in the North East zone ravaged by Boko Haram.

    He advised public office seekers against desperation for power, saying: “There is no need to be desperate for power, since power comes  from God. Once we acknowledge this, we will not be at each other’s throat.”

    Mark gave credit to Almighty God for sustaining him throughout his tenure as the President of the Senate.

    He said: “My 16 years in the Senate and eight years as the President of the Senate is the Lord’s doing, not by my own wisdom, power, intelligence or fame and influence.”

    He specifically expressed appreciation to his colleagues in the Senate and by extension the House of Representatives for the support and cooperation which he said helped him to succeed as the President of the Senate.

    He added: “It has been a unique opportunity to serve in a public office. If God has not permitted us, we could not have achieved the much we have done for the people and above all for God.”

    Earlier in his homily, the Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, advised politicians to reduce the political tension in the country by avoiding the winner takes all syndrome.

    Onaiyekan urged the in-coming  administration of Buhari to take the nation as his constituency and carry everybody along in the scheme of things, adding, “Mr. President-elect should see himself as the President of Nigeria and not of the All  Progressives Congress (APC).”

    He further admonished the incoming  administration to use its  campaign mantra of change to reorientate and indeed change the attitude of Nigerians for good.

  • The beauty of genuine primaries

    The beauty of genuine primaries

    This is a season of contests for political power, no doubt. And obviously, the season is witnessing one of the fundamental problems of all political orders – succession. The current political turmoil is spurred by the question of whether some current leaders should retain power and who replaces others whose terms of office will be expiring on May 29 next year. The Nigerian constitution provides for periodic elections every four years for those elected into the executive and the legislative arms of government and an individual can only be elected twice for same office.

    This is why the battle of succession rages across the federation. And expectedly, the problem of succession is imposing great strains on the political order simply because the continuity of some rulers’ reign is about to be broken, while their established patterns of action may be interrupted. Now, the future suddenly becomes uncertain for most incumbents, leading to struggles between established rulers and their rivals. This political crisis, in all climes, tests the character of regimes and that of sitting leaders.

    The time to test the character of leaders in positions of authority is now. Yours sincerely, like millions of other right-thinking Nigerians, wants to know those among these leaders who are good students of history. It is trite that power is the most transient of all human possessions and it is quite worrisome why some leaders would take it as do-or-die in their desperate bid to keep it till eternity. That is what the primaries for election of candidates into the about-to-be-vacant seats had taught us.

    From the war field of political party primaries, the battle on who governs what state across the states in the country is moving to the public sphere where the people, looking at the candidates presented by the various political parties, will have to make a choice. Basically across the country, it is by now cleared issues on who is running for what office and against whom. The ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and its virulent opposition, the All Progressives Congress (APC) have concluded their primaries and had come up with elected candidates from a crowd of aspirants that would fly their flags in the February, 2015 elections.

    Though the primaries are over, its reverberating aftermath cannot be easily forgotten. While it lasted, it became an amphitheatre wallowing in sometimes perfidious hypocrisy; an arena that turns to a bizarre sinkhole of character assassination and smirking self-righteousness. This is something that cannot easily be eradicated from politics for as long as the differences and diversities of mankind exist which is why Eugene McCarthy espouses that ‘democracy must allow for compromise, for accommodation, and for the recognition of differences.”

    Strategically, the time to apportion blames is not at the end of primaries for the daunting task of the main election needs to be tackled. The time for compromise, accommodation and the recognition of differences is now – apologies to McCarthy. But that is not to say that at the appropriate time, all identified disloyally treacherous elements will not be put where they belong, else, they destroy their political party platforms in future.

    For now, the will of majority of party membership, through the delegates actually prevailed, thereby corroborating the saying that the best weapon of a democracy is openness – contrary to that of a dictatorship, which is secrecy that is usually devoid of any iota of accountability or transparency. Perhaps, the necessity of primaries for all political parties is more apt now than ever before. The gains of party primaries as exemplified by the way and manner the APC conducted its own deserves credible mention this week. This column wants good governance in all parts of the country but is particularly interested in who governs Lagos and who occupies the presidency in Abuja come May, 2015. Before the primaries was agreed upon, some disgruntled elements led by Muiz Banire, APC national legal adviser, commenced an unnecessary affronts against the person of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, former governor of Lagos State and national leader of the party.

    His clamour and that of his co-travellers in political bellyaching was not sincere as previously highlighted in this column but it turned out to be a good thing that the leadership of the party in the state agreed to conduct the primaries. At the end of the day, most aspirants of the party and Banire who was their front – even though he was not an aspirant, that were hitherto beneficiaries of imposition and have even grown to become master of the art of imposition – realised their follies. The APC primaries turned out to be one of the freest and fairest of its type in contemporary Nigeria. Akinwunmi Ambode won with 3735 votes. The next person to him, Obafemi Hamzat scored a distant 1201 votes. The third person, Ganiyu Olanrewaju Solomon scored a laughable 272 votes. Other aspirants could not score above 121votes and it will amount to cheer waste of space to be discussing these political weaklings with over-bloated self-impressions against the man that made them what they are.

    Comparatively, the APC primaries in the state stands far above that of PDP that was marred with gun shots and in which at the end of the day, the number of votes cast outnumbered accredited delegates. This column still marvels at how accredited delegates of 806 rose to 867 at the PDP governorship primaries. Even at the centre, the ruling PDP merely converged to ‘coronate’ President Goodluck Jonathan as its sole candidate rather than toe, in this regard, the responsive APC line by conducting a real presidential primaries. This is explicitly PDP abracadabra at work! The APC also conducted their presidential primaries in Lagos in a free and transparent manner that saw Mohammadu Buhari emerge as its presidential candidate.

    The APC primaries has done a lot of good to the political image of Tinubu and has confirmed the democratic emptiness of those that are for selfish reasons, blatantly opposed to his leadership. The outcome of the governorship primaries confirmed that the Jagaban of Borgu land remains the ultimate political leader of progressives in the commercial nerve centre of the country. It is now known through the APC primaries that most of the contestants are mere noise makers that should drop the malicious bickering of the past and quickly join the APC governorship candidate’s train before they are permanently left behind. This is the only wise option left for them to embrace as the primaries unfurls on the horizon a new vista of hopeful politics. The battle for political succession should not be a do-or-die affair.

  • Mark: ASUP’s demands are genuine

    Mark: ASUP’s demands are genuine

    Senate President David Mark has said the Federal Government is committed to addressing the challenges in the Education sector.

    Mark spoke yesterday in Abuja when executives of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), led by its President, Dr. Chibuzo Asomuogha, visited him in his office.

    The Senate president noted that ASUP’s demands are genuine.

    He said the biggest investment any government could give its citizens is effective education at all levels.

    A statement by his Chief Press Secretary Paul Mumeh on the visit, quoted Mark as saying the union had a genuine case.

    Mark said: “ASUP’s demands indicate that the union is not selfish. They are requesting for not only their welfare but infrastructural development that would promote learning in the polytechnics.

    “I was delighted when I heard that the union gave room for the new Minister of Education to settle down and look into the demands of the union. This shows some level of understanding.

    “We must continue to dialogue. What we need is to resolve all the issues raised and bring back our students to the class. Polytechnic education is a unique form of education no nation desirous of development can ignore.”

    He said the Senate under his leadership would ensure that normalcy returns to the polytechnics.

    Mark said: “The Senate will continue to do the needful to bring back our students to classes and ensure normalcy returns to the sector.”

    Asomuogha hailed the National Assembly for taking decisive steps to resolve the ASUP strike and return the lecturers to the classroom.

    The union leader urged Mark and the Senate to prevail on the Federal Government to accede to the demands of the union before the expiration of the three-month suspension of the strike.

  • ANPP to Jonathan: You are not genuine

    President Goodluck Jonathan came under fire yesterday over comment that his administration is slow because it does not want to make mistakes.

    The All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) said Jonathan lacks creativity, adding that slow motion will destroy Nigeria’s democracy.

    In a statement issued in Abuja by the National Publicity Secretary, Hon. Emma Eneukwu said: “Recently, President Goodluck Jonathan, while addressing a Christian congregation during the Christmas celebration, said that his government is actually slow because it does not want to make mistakes.” According to him, ‘‘by human thinking, our administration is slow; I won’t say we are slow, but we need to think through things properly if we are to make lasting impact. “

    While decrying the parlous state of the economy occasioned by corruption at the highest level of government, the ANPP chieftain said the nation is in dire need of “a leadership that inspires, directs and gives hope at all times.”

  • ACN has provided genuine opposition, says Senator

    ACN has provided genuine opposition, says Senator

    Senator Domingo Obende of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has described the contribution of the opposition to national issues and development of the country at the National Assembly as vibrant.

    The Senator representing Edo North senatorial district on the platform of the ACN, who spoke to The Nation at the weekend, remarked that without meaningful opposition to put government on its toes the affairs of the countries would be tackled with ignominy and such countries would s uffer for it.

    He said: “National Assembly performance by ACN is fantastic; we have intelligent members there and our contribution has been impartial. If you check the contribution of all the members of the National Assembly, you will not see anybody going on party lines, we are one on national issues.”

    The senator noted that genuine opposition was expected to bring development and that in other advanced countries, opposition are even rewarded for their courage because it had led to stability and development.

    In his words: “I think genuine opposition is not just about opposing what is right or wrong. It is about opposing what is wrong and when you oppose it, you must proffer solution and it is your convincing projection that will bring about the understanding of the main ruling body”

    The senator who was on his way to Canada to attend the Inter-parliamentary Union explained that if the opposition was against a wrong decision, it must be prepared to give an option.

    “If the opposition is saying that this decision is not right, they are giving us an option of reasons so let come together and have a common ground. That is why a couple of things have been changing and of course in this seventh assembly. Everybody knows that the National Assembly is full with credible people who are prepared to take Nigeria to the next level.”

    On what to expect from the Inter-parliamentary Union, the senator remarked that it has to do with the regions. This according to him was the European Parliament which major interest was to galvanize legislative activities that would make impact on the affairs of Europe and other regions like the Economic Communities of West African States (ECOWAS).

    “The ECOWAS Parliament sends representatives and I am one of the people they have sent. There is supposed to be a new executive and this will include what they will do on the region. And of course everybody ought to go and study them and it is way of improving parliamentary activities.”

    “The parliament is expected be very energising and crossbreeding of ideas, this will make us to improve in our legislative function. It is about legislation, what is practicable internationally should be practised in Nigeria, in West Africa and it’s about improvement in legislative function and good governance.”

    Obende who gave kudos to the ACN legislators, explained that true federalism was the way out of the mirage of the problems confronting the country and solicited for more emphasis on this when the constitution was being reviewed.

    “True federalism is the real issue, in a federating state which says that whatever we do should be on equal terms must be reflected in the case of Nigeria. And if you check for instance when you go to the House of Representatives you see that some zone having the membership twice the number of some zones. I do not see any need for that, I believe that if you want us to distribute the liability and wealth of the country it should be evenly shared.”

    He stated that the issue of the Niger Delta could still be looked into because so much money is being made from the area to develop other parts of the country. “How well have we improved the lives of the people of the Niger Delta area? They cannot farm, they cannot fish, yet their roads are not good. Just imagine what is happening now in the flooding arena that we found ourselves, go to Niger Delta it is a terrible situation and there is nothing positively the government is doing about it.”