The Nation Newspaper

Tag: GOVT

  • Minister: govt is committed to youth employment

    Minister: govt is committed to youth employment

    The Federal Government is committed to its youth empowerment programmes. It is also considering adopting capacity to create jobs as one of the criteria for offering contracts and assistance.

    Budget and National Planning Minister Udoma Udo Udoma, who gave the indication at a forum with members of the 25th Regular Course on Policy, Strategy and Leadership of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) in Abuja, said unemployment  was giving the  Federal Government great concern.

    Consequently, it has made job creation one of the major objectives of its Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP).

    A statement by his Media Aide, Akpandem James, said the plan was aimed at creating jobs by developing labour-intensive sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, housing and construction while also launching a number of public works programmes and encouraging private-sector participation in the economy.

    Government, he said, was developing infrastructure in sectors with the capacity to create demand for labour and would sustain the N-Power programmes, as well as continue to support small scale enterprises to maximise their potential for job creation.

    He added that there are other policies to encourage job creation, including apprenticeship programme, supporting and patronising Made in Nigeria Initiative to encourage local manufacturing.

    To further give impetus to the drive, he said government would give necessary support to institutions that focus on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics as a veritable foundation for building a knowledge-based economy.

    He pointed out that the bulk of the job creation initiatives would prioritise youth as beneficiaries and is being pursued through direct job creation by the Federal Government and those created in the informal and formal sectors by the private sector, and skill-building programmes.

    Udoma emphasised that government would no longer give incentives to private investors on the basis of intentions but of results; and that the driving principles would depend on how many jobs would be created, how much value would be added to the economy, the quality of goods produced and how much foreign exchange they could generate.

  • Govt tackling challenges facing police, says Osinbajo

    Govt tackling challenges facing police, says Osinbajo

    The Federal Government is making efforts to address the challenges confronting the operations of the Nigeria Police Force, Acting President Yemi Osinbajo said yesterday.

    It was at a two-day national security summit organised in Abuja by the Office of the Inspector-General of Police in conjunction with Leadership group and the Council of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria.

    The summit has as its theme “Forging partnership for effective strategies to curb the menace of kidnapping, recurring farmers-herders clashes and criminality in Nigeria.’’

    The Acting President, who was the Special Guest of Honour, was represented by Interior Minister Lt-Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau.

    Osinbajo said: “I want to assure the NPF of our administration’s support in carrying out institutional reforms and restructuring geared towards reviving the police in line with global best practices.

    “We are keenly aware of the enormity of the task at hand, ranging from manpower shortage as a result of recruitment and training challenges and inadequate operational tools.

    “It is paramount to note that efforts are already advanced to tackle these challenges with the recruitment of 10,000 policemen to address manpower challenges as well as improved budgetary allocation.”

    He called on the organised private sector to intensify efforts in complimenting government efforts to invest in the security sector.

    Osinbajo expressed confidence that the ideas generated at the summit would assist in surmounting the security challenges facing the country.

    The acting president noted that any serious government would pay attention to issues of security.

    He said that security, anti-corruption and the commitment to provide good governance, formed the cardinal programmes of the President Muhammadu-led administration.

    He said that the security challenges facing the country had reduced as a result of the commitment of the administration to address them.

    “This administration has also entered into bilateral and multilateral collaboration with other nations and international organisations to improve on the nation’s security challenges”, he said.

    He said that the police had re-established civil authority in liberated areas in the Northeast.

    Speaking in his capacity as Interior minister, Lt.-Gen. Dambazau said the ministry would build capacity of security agencies to tackle challenges.

    He said that farmers/herdsmen clashes involved regional dimension as the sub-region recognised free movement of persons and goods.

    Dambazau urged governors to domesticate the Criminal Justice Act in their states to fast-tack cases in the courts and as well decongest the prisons.

  • Adeleke family rejects inquest ordered by govt

    Adeleke family rejects inquest ordered by govt

    The late Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke’s family yesterday denounced the coroner’s inquest ordered by the Osun State government to determine the cause of his death.

    It advised indigenes to discountenance “this kangaroo inquest into the death of our beloved Senator Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke.”

    Speaking on behalf of the family, the deceased’s younger brother, Dr. Adedeji Adeleke, at a news briefing in Ede, described the inquest as self-serving.

    Accompanied by the late politician’s son, Dele and siblings, Dupe Adeleke-Sani, and Demola, Dr. Adeleke said: “We condemn the continuous politicisation attempts by the state of this great loss to our family, particularly the ordering of this inquest at a time we are still coming to terms with the harsh reality of his sudden departure and the pain and grief therefrom.

    “As part of our attempts to reach closure and begin our healing process, the family had ordered an autopsy to be carried out. This is the only scientific and globally acceptable means of objectively determining the cause of his death and we look forward to the reports. This is irrespective of the obvious infrastructural and technological limitations of medical laboratories.

    “We have been informed by sources that the outcome of the ‘kangaroo inquest’ is predetermined by the state and designed to serve its own interest with distorted facts and misinformation, which will not be in the interest of the people of Osun State in general and the Adeleke family in particular.

    “We have, therefore, as a family resolved not to participate or cooperate with the ‘kangaroo’ styled panel set up by the government, as it was clearly to serve the state’s political interests and ultimate establishment of its own self-serving ‘facts.’ While everyone, including any government, is entitled to his/her own opinion, the government inquest is an attempt to create its own ‘alternative facts.’ Facts are sacred and truth is constant. Alternative facts are nothing but falsehood.

    “We are, therefore, compelled to reject the inquest with its predetermined outcome. We enjoin the peace-loving people of Osun State to discountenance this ‘kangaroo’ inquest into the death of our beloved Senator Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke.”

    He challenged the government to explain to the people why it was in a hurry to order an inquest, when report of the autopsy ordered by the Adeleke family is yet to be delivered to the family.

    “We wish to reiterate in strongest terms that the report of the autopsy ordered by the family must be released to no one else other than the Adeleke family. To do otherwise by the medical team conducting the autopsy will be tantamount to gross professional misconduct actionable with appropriate sanctions in law.

    “We hope the concerned pathologists, who we regard and recognise as eminent and thoroughbred practitioners, will act according to their professional calling and oath by expeditiously concluding the autopsy and delivering the report to the Adeleke family, who are the only ones entitled to it.”

  • ‘Govt’s step most acceptable standard in civilised societies’

    Osun State government has said its coroner’s inquest into the death of Senator Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke is the most acceptable standard in civilised societies.

    The government, in a statement yesterday by the Director, Bureau of Communication & Strategy, Mr. Semiu Okanlawon, said: “The attention of the Osun State government has been drawn to a news conference purportedly held by the family of the first civilian governor of our state, Senator Isiaka Adeleke, where it rejected the coroner’s inquest instituted by the government into the unfortunate and sudden death of our beloved former governor.

    “This is rather unfortunate. As a government, the step that has been taken is the most responsible and most acceptable standard in any civilised society.

    “The decision to institute an inquest into this sudden death was not to please or satisfy anyone. It was set up for the good of the society. And to the extent that this was set up not to please anyone but for the good of our society.

    “We are all bereaved and mourning the unfortunate death of one of our illustrious sons and most importantly a former governor of our dear state.

    “It will not be in the best interests and honour of the departed soul for the government to engage the family in a matter of this nature.

    “It is, therefore, trite to state that the Adeleke family has a right to the choices open to it, just as we are sure this is a matter that is already in the court of public opinion.”

  • Govt to build N50b roads in Bauchi

    The Federal Government is to build roads across Bauchi State, worth over N50 billion, the Speaker of House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara has said.

    Dogara, who spoke on Saturday while launching road projects in his Dass/Tafawa Balewa/Bogoro Federal Constituency, said the project is a joint effort of members of the National Assembly from the state.

    He said the roads to be built are Bauchi-Gombe Federal Highway, Kano-Bauchi North and Bauchi Central, up to Maiduguri.

    According to him, if the roads were to be done by the state government, it would take 10 years.

    “I want to say these are not the only roads we will do, there are others and by the grace of God, we will finish them in the next two years.

    “The contractor hired to build the roads is here and he will start work soon. We will ensure the highway from Kano-Bauchi, North-Bauchi Central, down to Maiduguri, attracts the appropriate funding to finish it in time.

    “The roads will be built at about N50 billion. If we were to rely on the state government alone, this cannot be done in 10 years. So who says there’s no benefit in representation?”

  • ‘Govt set to reposition tourism’

    ‘Govt set to reposition tourism’

    THE Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said the Federal Government is irrevocably committed to the development of the tourism sector.

    The minister made the statement, while speaking at the Annual General Meeting and conference of the Nigerian Association of Tour Operators (NATOP) in Lagos.

    The theme of the conference was “Positioning Tourism Within Nigerian Economic Space”

    He said the government was mustering the right political will and taking a number of result-oriented steps to develop and reposition the sector.

    Mohammed described tourism as “the oil that never dries”, saying the government would harness the potential of the sector to boost the revenue of the country.

    “This government is committed about the development of the tourism sector and we are mustering the political will to reposition the sector.

    “We recognise the potential of tourism to propel the growth of the economy and we will do everything possible to develop this sector and make it a major revenue earner for the country,” he said.

    The minister explained that the government was focusing on the development of domestic tourism, while putting in place the right infrastructure to attract foreign tourism.

    He said domestic tourism was not fully explored in view of its importance to the economy of the country.

    Mohammed added that the government was giving those areas like entertainment, fashion in which the country had comparative advantage over some other countries priority attention in its tourism development agenda.

    Highlighting some of the steps being taken by government to develop the sector, the minister said the Presidential Council on Tourism was being revived.

    He said the resuscitation of the committee would engender the rapid development of the sector though policy directions.

    He said the issuance of tourist visas was being simplified and issuance time reduced to 48 hours to attract foreign tourists.

    He added that a committee to implement the tourism roadmap had been set up and that a task force on creative economy had been put in place.

    He said the government had designed a festival calendar for the country to stimulate internal tourism and attract foreign tourists.

    The minister, however, said the government could not develop tourism alone, calling for the partnership of private sector and other stakeholders to develop the sector.

    A former governor of Cross River State, Dr Liyel Imoke, in a speech at the conference said the state’s success story was proof that tourism could be a big mover of the economy.

    He said with the right policy, vision, infrastructure and attitude, the country could make tourism as its major revenue earner.

    He regretted that the greatest problem to the development of the sector was the misrepresentation of Nigeria by its citizens to the outside world, saying the practice must stop if tourism should grow.

    “The greatest problem facing the development of tourism in the country is what I call ‘Naija Bashing’

    “Nigerians, running Nigeria down, especially some of our people abroad.

    “This is not good for our tourism as foreigners would have wrong perceptions about us. We need to believe in the country for tourism to grow.

    “We need to speak well of the country everywhere we go. It is when we stop writing those negative headlines that the perception will change and people will visit our country,” he said.

    He urged the country to focus more on domestic tourism as a strategy to develop external tourism.

    Imoke  canvassed harmonisation of festivals in the country to stimulate patronage and reduce confusion associated with simultaneous holding of festivals.

    Also speaking,Director-General Nigeria Tourism Development Corporation,Mr Folarin Coker, said the agency was working hard to retain every dollar spent abroad on tourism in the country.

    He said NTDC was engaging the relevant stakeholders to promote domestic tourism and win tourists to the country.

  • Enforce standards on block moulding, govt urged

    Stakeholders in the block moulding sub-sector of the country’s building and construction industry have called on the Federal and state governments to institute a body empowered by legislation to monitor the quality of building blocks being produced in the country. They are convinced that such effort will help prevent cases of collapsed building in the country.     The consensus was made last week at a workshop organised by the Building Collapse Prevention Guild (BCPG) Igando-Ikotun Cell, Lagos. The theme of the workshop was: “Economic Recession and Inflation: Sustainable quality in the production of Sandcrete Blocks and Allied Products.”

    At the workshop, the BCPG Ikotun Cell Coordinator, Mrs. Adekemi Okusaga, a quantity surveyor, said the theme was carefully selected to address one of the main challenges in the built environment.

    The General Manager, New Towns Development Authority, Lagos, and Chairman, Association of Professional Bodies of Nigeria (APBN), Lagos State Chapter, Mr. Wasiu Akewusola, urged all stakeholders to close ranks and work towards forestalling collapse building in the country. He said it was wrong for anybody to wait for disaster to occur before rising up to the challenge. He urged all stakeholders to be proactive in their efforts to having a better country and safer building industry.

    In his keynote address, president BCPG, Mr. Kunle Awobodu, noted that in times past, the quality of blocks used for construction was not in doubt. However, he regrets that the story is not the same in the present times- a development that has become a source of concern for construction professionals.

    Awobodu, a builder, lamented the absence of a regulating body for blocks’ production, adding that the time had come for the governments to rise the occasion. “Lack of regulation in the production of blocks has been the major source of this problem. Block making business has become an all-comers affair. The machine for manufacturing blocks is easily fabricated in all nooks and crannies without strict specifications and standard. There is no monitoring system for the quality of sand and water being used for block production,” he lamented. He however assured that the BCPG would not relent in its efforts towards having a safer building industry in the country.

    The President, National Association of Block Moulders of Nigeria (NABMON), Alhaji Rasheed Adebowale, however said apart from regulation issue, some block moulders are also in the habit of looking for cheaper blocks, which in turn leads to inferior block production. A former president, Nigerian Institute of Structural Engineers, Dr. Victor Oyenuga, submitted that block production is an engineering business.

    “Block making is not an all comers affairs, it is a serious engineering business and must be taken as such. It becomes imperative when the building is to be a load bearing form of construction which is the most widely used method here for bungalows and two storey (one suspended upper floor) buildings,” he said, adding that all efforts should be made to meet the standard requirements of the Code in the  production of sandcrete blocks.

    The Head of Department of Building, University of Lagos, Prof. Godwin Idoro, identified four main factors affecting block making in the country. These are: government-related causes, design-related causes, construction-related causes and material-related cause.

    According to the Don, a study by the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON), suggested that that only five percent of Nigerian blocks are produced (moulded) to specifications. This, he said, presupposes that 95 per cent of the sandcrete blocks in circulation or that are used for construction are substandard.

    He argued that there must be development of codes and standards on sandcrete blocks by government agencies in collaboration with research institutions and professional bodies and regular training of block manufacturers on the standards.

    “Governments should make it mandatory for blocks to carry the name of producers, brand name, date of manufacture and expiration like other manufactured products.  Development and adoption of standard production flow chart by block producers. The issue of task force is a government responsibility and no private body can do that all alone,” Idodo said.

  • Govt must punish corrupt Nigerians, says Alakija

    Govt must punish corrupt Nigerians, says Alakija

    Africa’s richest woman and Chief Executive Officer of Rose of Sharon Foundation Mrs Folorunsho Alakija has urged the Federal Government to ensure looters of public funds are punished accordingly to halt the increasing depletion of the national treasury.
    Mrs Alakija, who spoke at Rose of Sharon Foundation Youth Empowerment Seminar for some beneficiaries in Surulere, Lagos, said the government could only drive home the war against corruption by penalising fraudulent operations of economy managers.
    She, however, urged the Buhari administration to build structures and policies that encourage the thriving of terrain and business development.
    “We got our priorities wrong by losing all interest in agriculture and other sectors. And it is only now that we are beginning to look inwards. I believe that this particular government is doing the right things as far as tackling corruption is concerned. We must tackle corruption and when the erring ones are found, they need to be punished because the money generated in this country is ending up in the pocket of a few due to corruption, and there would continue to be corruption if they are not punished. I believe new set of corrupt people will gain confidence and continue to deplete the wealth of the country if the current ones are not punished. We have seen smaller countries generating from tourism. Dubai had little in comparison with Nigeria and they used it properly. You can see improvement in that country every six months. It’s the reverse in Nigeria. We need to put systems and policies in place that will work and the first point of call is corruption,” she said.
    No fewer than 500 graduates and undergraduates were exposed to training sessions on talent development, career guidance, skill acquisitions, business grooming and market place readiness skills. The beneficiaries were recipients of the scholarship initiative for orphans and widow’s children. According to Mrs Alakija, the economy could only soar with adequate support for the next generation entrepreneurs, adding that the youth need necessary skills to solve social problems and meet emerging needs.
    Addressing job seekers, she said: “You may sound like the best candidate but the very second we notice that you have told a lie, we drop you like a pack of cards. Let it be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. If you have received any kind of training apart from education, list it there. It helps the employer to decide about you. If you have received any commendations, however you have received it, highlight it.”
    Alakija added that the foundation has partnered the Lagos State Empowerment Trust Fund to provide soft loans for start-ups.  She identified technology and healthcare as areas of need for the foundation, saying: “You can’t say to a widower or an orphan, be thou warmed without taking an action and the practical need is to meet their needs. One of the major needs for a widow is to be able to send their children to school. So we provided scholarship for them. We empower the widows as well with funding to be able to learn a skill or even go back to school themselves. We have about 11 widows who even went to the university. We need medical partnership. They need those that can send them to the hospital to look after them when they are sick.”

  • Govt urged on incentives to e-payment operators

    The Chief Executive Officer, Unified Payments, Agada Apochi, has advised the Federal Government to give tax incentives to electronic payment operators as a means of increasing government revenues.
    He said many payments today were out of tax net because they were done by cash, saying that the government can actually reduce the tax rate and yet generate more revenue.
    in an interview in Lagos, Apochi, however, said payment system in the country had improved over time, evolving from a manual processing of transactions to a semi use of technology. He, however, noted this evolution had only been at the banking end, urging the government and stakeholders to ensure end user experience.
    He said the evolving eco-system of payment in the country was offering enormous changes in the e-commerce industry enabling customers to pay for goods and services, receive money transfers as well as providing retailers with efficient and ease to integrate tool for accepting online, offline and near field communication (NFC) payments.
    He said innovations in high tech information technology (IT) applications and business models would improve service greatly, provide for efficiency and safety in payment systems, adding that the government needed to do more on infrastructural development.
    According to him, there will be an increased convenience; more service options; reduced risk of cash-related crimes; cheaper access to (out-of-branch) banking services, access to credit and financial inclusion, account could be accessed almost anywhere in the world.
    At the government level, technology speeds up greater financial inclusion; increased economic development and increased tax collections he added.
    He said: “Payment system infrastructure has evolved, there is a lot of improvement, we have seen a lot of innovations in payment system infrastructure, certainly we have more to do but we have seen a lot of improvement.
    “There is a greater level of confidence than we used to have, more channels are being opened to members of the public to use and more businesses are adopting electronic payments.”
    He said electronic payments have brought about positive impact on the economy because there are a number of companies that are into financial technologies, adding that its commercialisation is the next thing that Nigeria has to go into.
    According to him, what happened is that the country had always depended on foreign technologies,adding that there are many Nigerian owned technologies that have been developed and would help in the adoption of electronic payments, he stated.
    Apochi said challenges of electronic payments are due to poor infrastructure arguing thatNFC technology was now being leveraged to overcome the challenge.

  • Group urges Lagos govt to stop execution of death row prisoners

    The Nigerian Anti-Death Penalty Group (NDELPEG) has urged the Lagos State government to rescind its reported plan to commence the execution of death row prisoners in the state.

    In a statement issued on Friday in Lagos, the human rights group described the move by the state government to execute death row inmates as ‘’unfortunate, retrogressive and unjustifiable as there is no verifiable evidence to suggest that the death penalty deters crime more effectively than other punishment or that it serves any useful deterrent purpose.’’

    While urging federal and state governments to abolish executions of prisoners on death row, the group noted that death penalty was a violation of the right to life as captured in the Universal Dcelaration of Human Rights. ‘’Our concern in the plight of the prisoners on death row in Nigeria is predominantly reliant on the research and findings of several individuals and Civil Society Organizations, including the Federal Government on the use of death penalty.

    ‘’Recall that in 2004, the Federal Government set up a National Study Group on the Death Penalty in Nigeria. The group had consultations with mainly groups and individuals in the justice and other social sectors, and produced a report recommending moratorium on executions while longer term steps should be taken to move Nigeria towards total abolition.

    ‘’We strongly believe that the execution of prisoners on death row will not solve the problem of prison congestion in Nigeria. “