The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Gusau

  • Kebbi assures residents of improved fuel supply

    Kebbi assures residents of improved fuel supply

    The Kebbi Government, on Tuesday, assured residents of its commitment to resolve the lingering fuel scarcity in the state.

    The state deputy governor Alhaji Samaila Yombe, gave this assurance at an interactive session with stakeholders from the state Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the state monitoring committee on distribution.

    He said the State Government would not relent in its efforts to ensure that all the necessary measures be put in place to resolve the problem within the shortest possible period.

    “Considering the fact that the majority of the people in the state are farmers, who mostly depend on petrol to operate their farming activities, especially during the dry season”.

    Read also: SMEDAN empowers 160 in Anambra, Kebbi

    According to him, the State Government will not disappoint the people of the state.

    Earlier, the Chairman of the Petroleum Distribution Committee, Alhaji Aliyu Ahmed, called on the State Government to intervene in the problem with a view to ending the scarcity.

    He said the committee was already working with the NNPC depot in Gusau, where 16 trucks had been reportedly allocated to the state.

    NAN

  • PDP: Jonathan, IBB boys, Gusau, Sambo, governors battle to hijack party

    PDP: Jonathan, IBB boys, Gusau, Sambo, governors battle to hijack party

    Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan is rolling out his political armour against several Peoples Democratic Governors ( PDP ) in a fierce battle for the soul of the party at Saturday’s crucial national convention.

    Also scheming  for  control of the party’s machinery are ex-Vice President Namadi Sambo; ex-Vice President Atiku Abubakar (who is yet to officially join the party); ex-governors,  loyalists of ex-President Ibrahim Babangida led by a former National Security Adviser, Gen. Aliyu Gusau; ex-President of the Senate, Chief David Mark; Deputy President of the Senate, Chief Ike Ekweremadu; ex-Deputy President of the Senate, Sen. Ibrahim Mantu; members of the party’s Board of Trustees being coordinated by its chairman, Sen. Walid Jibrin, Sen. Ahmadu Ali and Prof. Jerry Gana, a former Minister of Information.

    Serving governors are being coordinated by Mr. Nyesom Wike (Rivers) and Ayo Fayose.

    Former governors of the party including Ibrahim Shema (Katsina), Rashidi Ladoja (Oyo), Gabriel Suswam (Benue), Ibrahim Idris and Idris Wada (both Kogi) are not left out.

    Investigation revealed that almost every godfather in PDP is backing one candidate or the other for election into the National Working Committee (NWC).

    The objective is to enable the godfathers have a say in the management of the party especially in the choice of the party’s presidential candidate for the 2019 election.

    It was gathered that the interest of the godfathers has complicated the intrigues surrounding the contest for party offices at the December 9 convention.

    Although some party leaders are pushing for merit, some other leaders believe that all the candidates have been tested in the past.

    The positions of  National Chairman, National Secretary, Deputy National Chairman (North); Deputy National Chairman (South) , the National Organizing Secretary and the National Publicity Secretary are attracting more interest from the godfathers.

    The top contenders for the national chairmanship are a former Acting National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus; a former Minister of Education, Prof. Tunde Adeniran; a former Deputy National Chairman, Chief Olabode George; a former Minister of Sports, Prof. Taoheed Adedoja; a former Governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel; ex-Governor of Oyo State, Sen. Rashidi Ladoja; a media mogul, High Chief Raymond Dokpesi; and a former governorship candidate in Lagos State, Mr. Jimi Agbaje.

    A breakdown of the support base of the chairmanship aspirants is as follows:

    • Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu; Wike, Fayose, PDP governors, state PDP chairmen
    • Tunde Adeniran—-Jonathan, IBB Boys, Gusau, Gana, Ali, Mantu, BOT members
    • Otunba Gbenga Daniel—-Ex-governors, a splinter of IBB Boys,
    • Olabode George—-Some BOT members
    • Taoheed Adedoja—-BOT members, some Northern delegates
    • Jimi Agbaje—–South-West delegates, BOT members
    • Rashidi Ladoja—-Ex-governors but under pressure to accept concession of Deputy Chairman slot to his choice

    A top party source said: “The jostle for offices at the national convention is going to be a battle royale because the godfathers in the party and the governors want to slug it out to install their loyalists.

    “For ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, the convention will be a litmus test for his plans to be a father-figure for PDP. But if he fails, it might be another political setback for him after the loss at the poll in 2015.

    “Jonathan and others, especially loyalists of ex-President Ibrahim Babangida, are working hard for a national outlook for PDP but some of the governors think otherwise. They said they are already conducting some permutations.

    “Our greatest fear is that all these forces are trying to outsmart each other. If the party leaders can cage the governors and allow the delegates to have a final say, we will be opening a new chapter for PDP.”

    A member of Board of Trustees of PDP said: “we are all worried because if we do not get it right, we might as well say goodbye to our chances in 2019.

    “The party is on the edge again. We are however struggling to appeal to all groups to sheathe their swords and avoid implosion at the convention.”

    Responding to a question, the BOT source added: “All our leaders are conscious of the 2019 poll and they are struggling to be relevant. You cannot blame them because in politics, relevance matters.”

    A governor, who spoke with our correspondent last night, said: “I think the way out of any crisis at the convention is to allow for a free and fair contest. We need to live up to our appellation as a democratic party.

    “We are already working on a unity list because we do not want to play into the hands of the ruling party. Certainly, there will be more horse-trading in the days ahead but we will survive it.

    “We urge the judiciary not to entertain any frivolous application to stop the convention from holding.”

     

  • Aisha Buhari provides free medical services for 3,000 patients in Zamfara

    Aisha Buhari provides free medical services for 3,000 patients in Zamfara

    The wife of the President, Hajiya Aisha Buhari, through her NGO “Future Assured Initiative”, on Thursday flagged off her free medical services for 3,000 women, children and the aged in Zamfara.

    Aisha Buhari, who was represented by the Coordinator of the project, Mrs Zuwaira Gambo, said in Gusau that the project was aimed at providing free and improved health services for the vulnerable groups.

    She said that is was also aimed at assisting the Federal Government in addressing the health problems affecting women and children.

    The 3,000 beneficiaries of the prgramme were from the 14 local government areas of the state.

    She commended the efforts of the wife of the state Governor, Hajiya Asma’u Abdul’aziz-Yari and the state Ministry of Health for their support to the programme.

    She urged the beneficiaries to cooperate with health personnel in the state to ensure the success of the programme.

    The wife of the president said the NGO had launched similar programme in other states across the country.

    Hajiya Abdul’aziz-Yari thanked the wife of the president for initiating the project, saying that it would assist the people of the state.

    In his remarks, the state Commissioner of Health, Alhaji Sulaiman Gummi, also thanked Buhari for her intervention, describing it as timely and a welcome development.

    Gummi said the state government in collaboration with some development partners had been making efforts to improve health care delivery in the state.

    The free medical outreach would provide assistance to patients with high blood pressure, eye problems, diabetes and children in need of de-worming.

    NAN

  • NYSC to offer free medical services in Zamfara

    NYSC to offer free medical services in Zamfara

    No fewer than 10,000 residents are expected to benefit from the 2017 Health Initiative for Rural Dwellers Scheme ( HIRD ) being organised by the National Youth Service Corps ( NYSC ) in Zamfara state.

    The state coordinator of the National Youth Service Corps, Hajiya Rahamatu Sanda, made the disclosure on Monday in Gusau in an interview.

    She said the medical outreach, which would commence on Tuesday in Nahuche town, Bungudu local government area in Zamfara, and would end on Friday.

    She added that the 2017 NYSC U-report week would also been unveiled during the four-day exercise.

    The coordinator said that residents of several communities in the state had been selected for medical outreach.

    She added that the outreach is expected to provide free medical and healthcare services to over 10,000 beneficiaries.

    “In each of the selected communities, we are targeting a large number of beneficiaries,” she said.

    Sanda explained that the scheme was initiated by the NYSC to assist rural dwellers with free medical and healthcare services.

    She noted that several people from the rural areas suffer from various diseases and could not afford to seek medical help in hospitals due to financial constraints.

    “That is why the NYSC came up with this initiative to assist people, especially the poor at the grassroots.

    “Various diseases such as malaria, diabetes, cholera and typhoid will be treated during the outreach,” she said.

    Sanda said that medical doctors, nurses, pharmacists, medical laboratory scientists, community health officers, NYSC health officials and members of the NYSC Health Community Development Service ( CDS ) group, had been mobilised for the exercise.

    “We have also invited other stakeholders such as health care service providers, including government and private health institutions for the exercise.” she added.

    The coordinator appealed to the benefiting communities to cooperate with the NYSC by availing themselves for the exercise.

    NAN

  • Partly cloudy, thunderstorms, rains expected on Tuesday

    Partly cloudy, thunderstorms, rains expected on Tuesday

    The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) has predicted partly cloudy weather conditions with isolated thunderstorms in the central states’ cities of Makurdi, Abuja, Jos, Lafia, Mambila and Yola on Tuesday morning.

    NiMet’s Weather Outlook by its Central Forecast Office (CFO) on Monday in Abuja also predicted thunderstorms over Yelwa, Jos, Abuja, Kaduna, Ilorin, Minna and Lokoja in the afternoon and evening hours.

    It added that the central states would experience day and night temperatures in the range of 28 to 32 and 17 to 23 degrees Celsius respectively.

    The agency predicted that southern states would experience chances of morning thunderstorms and rains with localised thunderstorms and in the afternoon and evening hours.

    It states that the southern states would have day and night temperatures in the range of 28 to 31 and 20 to 28 degrees Celsius respectively.

    According to NiMet, northern states will experience partly cloud-to-cloudy conditions in the morning hours with sunny to partly cloudy conditions later in the day.

    “The region will experience chances of thundery activities with rains over Jalingo, Bauchi, Gombe, Gusau and Yelwa with day and night temperatures of 31 to 35 and 20 to 24 degrees Celsius respectively.

    “We expect cloudy and partly cloudy conditions in the northern cities while thunderstorms and rain showers are likely over most places around the central cites and southern states in the next 24 hours,” NiMet said.

  • NLC suspends strike in Zamfara

    NLC suspends strike in Zamfara

    The Nigeria Labor Congress ( NLC ), Zamfara chapter, on Monday announced a conditional suspension of the indefinite strike it embarked upon a fortnight ago.

    The announcement was made by the state NLC Chairman, Comrade Bashir Mafara, after a meeting of the State Executive Council (SEC) at its secretariat in Gusau.

    He said the conditional suspension followed the intervention of various stakeholders, including members of the state house of assembly, religious and traditional leaders as well as the state’s Elders Forum.

    Mafara said the conditional suspension of the strike would be for four weeks, during which the workers’ seven demands were expected to be met by the state government.

    “We are not doing this out of fear or intimidation but for the respect we have for the different categories of people that intervened in the matter,” the labour leader said.

    He directed all workers in the state to immediately resume work and await further instructions from the union’s leadership.

    The chairman commended the resilience of the workers, goodwill and support of the people of the state, as well as journalists and assured that the NLC would continue to do its best in meeting the expectations of the people.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the strike followed the failure of the government to pay arrears of entitlements including promotion, gratuity of pensioners and full implementation of the N18, 000 minimum wage.

  • Hajj: 2,700 pilgrims return in Zamfara

    Hajj: 2,700 pilgrims return in Zamfara

    No fewer than  2,700 pilgrims out of  the 4,793  that performed the 2017 Hajj exercise from Zamfara  have so far been transported back home.

    Alhaji Ibrahim Tanko, the Chairman of  the  State Transportation Committee on this year’s Hajj, stated this while receiving the fifth batch  of the pilgrims at the State Camp in Gusau on Tuesday.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the fifth flight,  which conveyed pilgrims from Kaura-Namoda, Anka and  the remaining pilgrims from Maru and Bungudu Local Government Areas, arrived  at the Sultan Abubakar lll International Airport, Sokoto,  at 3.30 a.m.

    According to him, the pilgrims later arrived Gusau at about  10. a.m.

    Tanko, who is also the Chairman of  Gusau Local Government Council,  said the pilgrims were transported by Max Airlines, adding that all of them were in good health.

    “We are expecting the sixth flight between today and tomorrow Insha Allah; we are hoping to complete the transportation of all our pilgrims before the deadline given by the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON),” he said.

    Tanko said that  the transportation exercise of this year’s hajj was moving on successfully while  the pilgrims in the state  had  behaved remarkably well during the Hajj .

    He thanked the state government, NAHCON, Max Airlines, State Amirul Hajj Committee and the media for their support.

    Tanko also thanked the State Mass Transport Service, security agencies, the Federal Road Safety Commission  and various volunteer groups for their support.

  • Zamfara workers begin indefinite strike

    Zamfara workers begin indefinite strike

    Workers under the employment of  Zamfara government on Monday embarked on an indefinite strike for the failure of the government to meet their several demands.

    The workers had earlier given the government a 21-day ultimatum to meet certain demands or face industrial action.

    The Chairman, Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) in the state,  Bashir Mafara, announced the decision after  a joint meeting of the affiliated unions in Gusau.

    He said, Zamfara workers were faced with a number of problems which include failure to pay the salaries of 1,400 recruited by the government more than two years ago, non payment of backlog of pension and gratuities, non payment of minimum wage to primary school teachers and local government employees as well as non payment of  annual salary increment.

    He said the two labour unions, Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress, had  decided to declare an indefinite industrial action throughout the state from Sept. 12.

    Mafara urged all workers to stay at home and pray.

    The chairman said three  ad hoc committees have been constituted to ensure the success of the strike.

    He  also called of understanding among the workers in the state noting that, the action was aimed at improving the workers’ welfare and development of the state.

  • Admission: Federal University Gusau sets 170 as cut-off marks

    Admission: Federal University Gusau sets 170 as cut-off marks

    The Federal University Gusau (FUGUS) has announced 170 as minimum mark for the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) cut-off marks for admission into the University for the 2017/2018 academic session.

    The Information Officer of the University, Malam Umar Usman disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Gusau on Saturday.

    Usman said that the university management had arrived at the decision to set 170 as minimum cut-off marks after getting statistics on the candidates who applied for admission into the institution.

    The Information Officer added that the 170 was arrived at after getting a statistic that most of the candidates who applied for admission into the University scored 120 and above in their JAMB exams.

    He said the university was only given a quota to admit 1,500 students through JAMB and Direct Entry for the coming academic session.

    According to him, over 5,000 applicants applied for admission into the University.

    “If we will stick to the 120 minimum cut off marks given by the JAMB, majority of applicants who are going to attend the University’s aptitude test for the admission will not get it.

    “We decided to minimize the difficulty by raising our points to 170 so that most of those that will pay for post UTME in the university will get the admission,” he said.

    He noted that the University also run Pre-degree programme in Science, Art and Social Science based courses which would also be considered in the admission to make up the 1, 500 required students for the session.

    Usman said the university is soliciting more assistance from well-to-do individuals and private organisations to provide more infrastructure that would make JAMB increase the quota given to the institution.

    He said that for the admission quota to be increased there must be adequate structures and facilities in place.

    NAN reports that JAMB had on Tuesday announced 120 as cut-off marks for admission into Nigerian Universities for the 2017/2018 session while 100 marks was for Colleges of Education and Polytechnics. (NAN)

  • Supreme Court voids sack of Customs chief

    Supreme Court voids sack of Customs chief

    …Orders reinstatement of Comptroller Gusau

     

    The Supreme Court has set aside the compulsory retirement of Comptroller Abdullahi Gusau from the service of the Nigerian Customs Service (NGS).

    The court, in a unanimous judgment of a five-man panel, ordered the immediate reinstatement of Comptroller Gusau, who was retired o December 21, 2009 by the NGS’ management allegedly on the directive of the Finance Minister.

    Justice Ejembi Eko, who read the lead judgment in an appeal marked: SC/491/2014, said Gusau was wrongly retired.

    The judgment, copy of which The Nation obtained Wednesday, was delivered on April 7.

    The relationship between Gusau and the NCS was with statutory flavour and not that of ordinary master-servant in which the servant holds his employment at the pleasure of the master.

    Justice Eko upheld the July 11, 2014 judgment of the Court of Appeal in appeal marked: CA/A/248/2013, voiding Gusau’s premature retirement.

    Other members of the panel included the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen, Musa Dattijo Muhammad, Kudirat Kekere-Ekun and Sidi Dauda Bage.

    NCS was said to have retired Gusau on the ground that he stayed more than 10 years in a rank.His mates then are now Deputy Comptrollers General (DCGs), while others have since retired as DCGs two years ago.

    Gusau challenged his retirement at the Federal High Court in Abuja, but lost. He appealed to the Court of Appeal, which reversed his retirement and ordered his reinstatement.

    The NCS, the Comptroller of Customs, the Minis of Finance and the NCS Boa appealed to the Supreme Court, an appeal which the appex court dismissed in the April 7 judgment.

    Gusau, who was elated about the judgement, claimed that he was unceremoniously retiredfour days after he uncovered over N1.3 billion fraud via online audit through the Single Good Declaration (SGD) when he was Comptroller Post Clearance Audit ( PCA ) NCS HQ.

    H said the fraud was uncovered in only 20 SGD while hundreds of SGD were generated daily.

    Gusau said he wrote a report on the alleged fraud on December 17th and was retired on December 21, 2009.