The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Holidays

  • Holidays for PVC

    Sir: I write to request the authorities to declare a week’s holiday to enable Nigerians go get their Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVC). Many Nigerians are still unable to get their PVCs mostly because the process takes place on work days and hardly at weekends.

    Events in governance and the speed at which the world is moving should be one reason why we must ensure that the decision-making process must be all-embracing. The other reason is that with as many Nigerians as possible taking part in the election process, we are assured of square pegs in square holes.

     

    • Bob Etemiku, Benin City.

  • FG declares Monday, Tuesday, Jan 2 public holiday

    The Federal Government has declared Monday 26th, Tuesday 27th December, 2016 and Monday 2nd January, 2017 as Public Holidays to mark the Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year 2017 Celebrations respectively.

    The Minister of Interior, Lt Gen Abdulrahman Dambazau (rtd) who made the declaration on behalf of the Federal Government enjoined all Christian faithful and Nigerians in general to remain committed and supportive of the Government of President Muhammadu Buhari, in his sustained efforts towards building a peaceful, united and prosperous nation.

    According to a statement issued by the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Interior, Alhaji Muhammadu Maccido, the minister also urged Nigerians to use the occasion to pray for peace, unity and peaceful co-existence across the country.

    The minister wished all Nigerians at home and abroad, a Merry Christmas and prosperous New Year 2017.

  • Nigeria’s unending public holidays

    SIR: Nigerians as a people are the most pleasure loving people in the world. Nigerians have the penchant for easy life and merriment and would stop at nothing in creating any opportunity simply to fully enjoy themselves.

    It is inconceivable and the height of absurdity that in this period of global economic meltdown and at a time when other nations are struggling to put their economy back on track, the Nigerian authorities seem to be oblivious of the economic catastrophe facing the nation by still embarking on what could rightly be described as frivolous public holiday jamboree. A common adage says “A person whose house is already on fire does not go about pursuing rats in his house”.

    There is no gainsaying the fact that the Nigerian economy is in dire distress and in the doldrums due to the sharp fall in oil price in the international market. Many state governments are already on the verge of insolvency even as they are presently incapable of discharging their statutory obligations to their people including the payment of the workers monthly salaries in their employment.

    The Federal Government on the other hand is presently in a precarious situation as to how to implement the budget for the 2016 fiscal year.

    The present economic woes facing the nation are legion and therefore, any responsible and responsive government that is conscious of its obligations to the people must be able to adopt certain stringent measures that would encourage and promote the optimum level of productivity so as to stimulate and sustain the economy rather than engaging in unnecessary and frivolous celebrations of public holidays.

    Nothing illustrates the lack of seriousness and gross insensitivity on the part of the federal government than the recent declaration of one additional day to celebrate the Moslem festival of Id-el-Fitri which was earlier celebrated for two days running. It is indeed heart breaking that Nigeria lost billions of Naira due to the abrupt stoppage of economic activities during the three long days of public holidays at a most critical period when the nation’s economy is already fast grinding to a halt and needed urgent measures to revitalize it.

    It has become imperative for the nation to make a choice either to rapidly develop her economy through increased level of national productivity or remain perpetually a consumption nation with stunted growth and grossly underdeveloped. Should the nation therefore decide to speedily diversify her economy, then it must be prepared to work very hard for its realization since no meaningful success could ever be achieved in life without hard work, dedication and the spirit of perseverance.

    In the light of the foregoing, the nation must be prepared to jettison the observance of certain public holidays which are unnecessary and inimical to optimum productivity in the nation’s economy. The nation must equally move back to the observance of the religious public holidays originally adopted at independence in 1960 namely: the Christmas and Easter celebrations for the Christian faithful as well the Id-el-Malud and Id-el-Fitri for the Islamic adherents.

    Only very important events in the nation’s history ought to be observed as public holidays such as the independence or national day anniversary. Other events such as democracy day among others should be completely abolished. The workers’ day otherwise known as May Day as well as children’s day celebrations should only be observed as work free day and after the traditional march past ceremonies, the workers should immediately return to their duty posts.

    In the same vein, the aforementioned public holidays must be strictly observed on the days which they fall on and the idea of shifting the holidays to any other working days whenever the holidays happen to fall on weekends as is the common practice must be stopped forthwith.

    Nigeria cannot afford to the remain slavish to certain unproductive traditions or practices such as the observance of unnecessary and utterly ridiculous public holidays in the face of the current extremely harsh economic realities and uncertainties in the country.

     

    • NzeNwabuezeAkabogu (JP),

    Enugwu-Ukwu, Anambra State.

  • Nigeria better for summer holidays, says teacher

    Rather than costly summer holidays abroad, head teacher of Hallmark School, Ikeja, Mrs Uju Ifeako has advised parents to choose some of Nigeria’s exciting locations to relax and engage their wards.

    Speaking to The Nation during the school’s cultural day last weekend, Mrs Ifeako said she hoped parents would discover the richness and beauty of Nigeria’s cultures at the celebration.

    She said: “The main aim for this cultural day is for the children to know that we have different cultures in Nigeria but we are still one. It is meant to enlighten parents about the rich culture of our country so that they don’t have to travel out for summer holidays anymore. Nigeria has beautiful, rich culture with lots of places they can go and have as much fun as they would have had if they had travelled out. And the children would even learn more about the cultures.”

    The school divided parents and pupils into four major geopolitical zones in the country: North Central, Southsouth, Southwest and Southeast, and tasked them with the responsibility of presenting dances, cultural heritage, customs, norms and food of various tribes of each zone.

    The coordinator of the Southsouth zone, Mrs Kemi Okezie said it took parents’ cooperation and humility to work together, as the programme afforded them the chance to get to know one another.

    A parent from the zone, Mr Ayodeji Oni said he particularly enjoyed the marriage rites display of the Northerners and the fishing profession demonstrated by the children from his zone.

    He said: “Children of nowadays miss out on our culture due to contemporary situations where they are confined to their homes, video games, etc. So this programme exposes them to the various cultures of the country. The attires, the food, marriage rites, professions and basically how we enjoy ourselves in our own little way in Nigeria is exposed to them and broadens their previously narrowed scope. You see Yoruba children speaking Urhobo and a Hausa boy speaking Igbo. It is so fantastic.”

     

  • Healthy detox after the holidays

     

    The Christmas/New Year holiday season is often a time to celebrate with family, friends and others with so much food and drinks being consumed. Unfortunately, for many, this period becomes a time for over-eating and weight gain. If you have over indulged during the holidays and you feel tired and bloated, it’s time to do a detox or body cleansing to remove all the toxins and waste that might have accumulated in your system during the festivities.

    When deciding to cleanse, the first thing to remove are all processed foods and refined foods. Meats, dairy, eggs, seed or nut oils, and grains are all very strengthening to the body and it is best to leave these out of your diet during the cleansing process, which can be anywhere from 1 – 3 days.

    Beginning and ending your day with a warm cup of lemon juice and water will support the detoxification process. In the body, lemons are alkalizing and according to Chinese medicine theory, they disperse phlegm and mucous. Also, be sure to include probiotics, the friendly microflora that benefit the immune system and help break down toxins and carcinogens in the intestinal tract.

    Throughout the cleanse, avoid toxins and allergens such as processed meat, sugar, wheat (or any kind of gluten), dairy, soy, peanuts, coffee, any artificial colors or flavors and other processed foods of any kind. Stick to whole foods, fruit, vegetables, and gluten-free grains.

    Drink a lot of fluids especially water during the cleansing period to help remove toxins from the system. A juice fast is also a good way of detoxifying the system, leaving it clean and toxic- free. It’s advisable to make your own juices rather than store bought, packaged ones which contain additives and sweeteners that are often toxic.

    Fruits and vegetables that are suitable for juicing include grapefruit, oranges, lemons, paw-paw, apple, cucumber, pineapple, coconut, tomatoe, carrot and mango. You can add some spices such as ginger, turmeric or a pinch of pepper to your juice for extra taste.

    For those who do not mind the bitter taste, bitters are also good cleansers. They help in purifying the blood and support the liver and large intestine, two of the main organs involved in the cleansing process.

     

    Benefits

    The benefits of detoxification are many. These include, increasing energy and vitality, boosting immunity thus reducing ailments and diseases, clearer skin and sparkling eyes, shiny, luscious hair and improved mood among others.

     

    Foundation, St Nicholas Hospital honour Majekodunmi

     

    THE life and times of the late eminent medic and former Administrator of Western Nigeria  Dr Moses Adekojo Majekodunmi were remembered at a public lecture at the MUSON Centre, Onikan, Lagos.

    The event, held by the Dr Moses Majekodunmi Foundation(MAMF) in conjunction with St Nicholas Hospital (SNH), Lagos, projected the ideals, especially in the field of medicine, that the late Dr Majekodunmi promoted in life.

    Majekodunmi also a Health Minister in the Western Region founded MAMF in 2002, the year he  died. But the foundation took 12 years later.

    Participants, including the former vice chancellor of University of Ilorin, and a notable medic, Prof Oladipo Olujimi Akinkungbe, praised the two organisations for remembering their founder and for their giant strides. The retired don, who chaired the occasion, called for a retooling of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to accommodate those at the grassroots. For them, he said the NHIS, ‘’appears too sophisticated. He said the NHIS does not recognise those at the grassroots, adding that they see contributions to the scheme as too high.

    Former minister of Health Prof Onyebuchi Chukwu, hailed the National Health Act. He however urged the Federal Government to muster the political will to execute Act. He called for the composition of the National Health Council charged with collecting funds statutorily allocated to it to enable the council discharged its duties.

    Executive Director of the Foundation Mrs Omobolaji Fati called for volunteers to assist the group in its onerous task of promoting its corporate social responsibilities. She listed some of its achievements in the last one year in healthcare and education, saying that plans were afoot to build on these and move higher. MAMF touched people and inspired lives, he said. A participant asked the foundation to extend its tentacles beyond the Southwest to other parts of the country.

    At the event were MAMF Chairman, Femi Majekodunmi; Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) Medical Director Prof Chris Bode, who represented the Health minister, Prof Isaac Adewole; Mrs Desmond Majekodunmi, Mrs Folake  Akinkugbe, and Ms Kofo Majekodunmi, Medical Director, SNH, Dr Dapo Majekodunmi; Clinical Director Dr Ebun Bamgboye and Director, Hemstology and Oncology Services, Dr Obina Nwaneri

    Others were Director, Learning, Lagos State Ministry of Education Mrs J.O. Agunbiade, who represented, Tutor-General/Permanent Secretary, District 1.

  • Dec. 25, 26, Jan. 1 are holidays

    Dec. 25, 26, Jan. 1 are holidays

    The Federal Government last night declared December 25 and 26 as public holidays to mark Christmas. New Year’s Day January 1, 2016 has also been declared a public holiday.

  • Now that holidays are over

    Now that holidays are over

    Holidays are enticing and you just don’t want it to end.

    However, during this long enticing holiday, you probably miss school and you sometimes wish to resume. This is because school experiences are the most joyful, awful, fulfilled, unfulfilled and mysterious moment ever.

    As you get ready for resumption, you probably have a mix feeling of anxiety and excitement.

    You just want to resume school because you miss the school experiences such as meeting up with friends in the bathroom to have ‘girl talk’, talking to your friends about your crush and that ‘big boy’ in the class who asked you out.

    [ad id=”403656″]Strolling to class with your friends, school gist and fun, roaming through the hall during lecture hour and walking pass your crush, rushing down to the assembly hall and laughing at teachers whom make grammatical blunders, watching students get punished, lunch with friends, breaking school rules and regulations, bunking school, pretending to be sick, sneaking in phones, social programmes, cliques, gossips so much more.

    However, when you think about being away from home, waking up very early in the morning, that annoying school uniform, getting punished by seniors and teachers, assignments, fetching water to take your bath, getting to take variety of different classes in one day, types of food, that wicked principal, that annoying math class, stress, boring classes, tests and quizzes, bullies, annoying class mates, that really fat and slow guy seating next to you, there is this feeling of not wanting to resume yet!

    Resumption is here, and there is nothing you can do about it. You just have to prepare your mind and get ready for school, set your alarm time to be a little earlier, equip you book shelve in the preparation of learning, be mentally prepared and organized, free your mind, buy the supplies you will need before you start classes, prepare a daily or weekly plan that will guide you through and don’t forget to gist your friends about your holiday.

     

  • Enyimba City ticks again after holidays

    Enyimba City ticks again after holidays

    The hum lessened during the Yuletide. You could hardly hear the clang and jangle of the workmen’s metals or the sustained din of hagglers. Aba, the commercial headquarters of Abia State, lost much of its bustle. But now, it is ticking back to what the people used to know. Artisans, traders, commercial drivers and other residents who travelled out to their hometowns are returning and the Enyimba City is filling up again.

    Some returnees, especially parents making purchases for their children and wards lamented that the economic crunch was still taking its toll on their finances.

    One such parent, Mr. Frank Olewe, said, “I returned to Aba from Item on January 1 because one of my daughters’ school resumed on the 4th and her other siblings including those at the university will be resuming soon. So I am here to buy some of the things that they will need for the term. We thank God for granting us the grace into 2015, but the truth is that majority of the civil servants are finding it hard especially as some of us are yet to receive our salaries”.

    Another parent, Gideon Offor who said he worked in a private firm, said, he was in the market to buy things for his kids before prices of goods and other commodities got out of reach of low income earners as was usually the case in January when most traders capitalise on the limited goods to exploit traders.

    “Most companies from my experience usually take stock from December until sometime mid-January when they will start supplying goods in the market. So some of the traders who stocked products that are in demand will always hike their prices because from experience, it is usually like that in January and that is why I am here before the market gets crowded”.

    A trader who sells textbooks at Ariaria International lamented low patronage blaming publishers for supplying books and other learning materials to schools that persuades parents to buy from the school instead of coming to the market to patronize them.

    The situation was not the same at school road market where parents and people that sells school bags in commercial quantity were seen making choices of school bags for sell and their kids. Some of them who commented said school bags were part of the inevitable that children needs and can be affordable for parents of any class depending on the person’s choice and taste.

    However, visit round some of the commercial park reveal that until the time of this report people are still coming back the hinterlands and other places where they spent their Christmas, a few of the commuters including Mrs. Ngozi Chika told our reporter that she was coming back from one of the northern states and would not be going until the 2015 election ends.

    According to Chika, there is so much tension surrounding this election. My family (Children) came back December. My husband is no more and I can’t risk my life and that of my children staying in the north until this coming election passes by. Until the election ends and swearing-in of whoever that will emerge the president takes place, we are not going to go back. At least, we can talk about feeding for now and talk about how my children can continue with their studies later”, she said.

    However, while the Christmas returnees were enjoying a relative peace and secured environment, the Aba Area Commander, ACP Peter Wagbara in a chat with The Nation attributed the peace recorded within his command during the festive period to the commitment of men and officers in his command towards achieving the instructions and directives of the Inspector General of Police, Suleiman Abba and Abia State Commissioner of Police, Adamu Ibrahim that police in Nigeria and Abia State should humble, loyal and dedicated to their duties.

    According to Wagbara, “we also adopted a proactive operational strategy such as visibility policing; where police were seen in almost all the nooks and crannies of the city, because we believe that high visibility policing will scare hoodlums from taking the advantage that people left their homes for the hinterlands to come and loot their properties. Our men patrolled with their vehicle and on foot including stop and search points, all in a bid to ensure a crime free festive period.

    “Adhering to the IGP’s and CP’s directives has helped in the reduction of crime and criminality drastically within the Aba and Abia Command. It might interest you to know that in this command (Aba Area Command) throughout the festive period and ass the moment that I am talking with you (Tuesday), we have not recorded any crime in the command.

    “We have enjoyed a robust relationship with Aba residents which also yielded to the success we recorded during the festive period and to ensure that we maintain the standard, we are going to organise routine seminars and lectures for our officers and men to ensure that they didn’t drift from the attitudinal change.

    “We are also collaborating with other security agencies in Aba, its environs and the state at large to ensure that we synergized to curb crime rate in Aba and its environs”.

    He further appealed to the general public to provide the police with valuable information that would to the minimal reduction of crime rate in the commercial city that host a lot of business groups and economic activities on daily basis.

     

  • Aug. 15, 22 holidays in Ondo

    The Ondo State government has declared August 15 and 22 work-free.

    Commissioner for Information Kayode Akinmade said it is to enable public servants to participate in the voter registration and collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).

    Prospective voters are expected to submit their temporary voter cards and pick up the PVCs from August 15 to 17. The registration of fresh voters will hold from August 20 to 22.

    The government urged civil servants to make good use of the holidays.

  • Keshi defies NFF over holidays

    Keshi defies NFF over holidays

    Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi is again on a collision course with his employers after he flouted an order to stay back for a Presidential reception for his team.

    Top officials informed MTNFootball.com that Keshi was ordered to stay back for Thursday’s reception for the Championship of African Nations (CHAN) Eagles by President Goodluck Jonathan, but he still went ahead and flew out to the United States of America on holidays.

    ‘The Big Boss’ was conspicuously missing at the reception, where the country’s President rewarded him with a cash gift of 1.5 million Naira after he led the country to finish third at the 2014 CHAN in South Africa.

    Keshi’s presence was also needed for Wednesday’s technical committee meeting in Abuja, where he was expected to defend his call-ups for next month’s World Cup warm-up against Mexico. He would later talk with the technical committee on phone from his house in the US.

    “Keshi was clearly told to stay back for both the technical committee meeting and the Presidential reception, but he chose to fly out to the United states for holidays,” a top official informed MTNFootball.com.

    Keshi’s latest defiance comes at the height of a controversy that he has been asked by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to recommend an additional assistant. However, the NFF have denied this.

    “We have faith in Keshi and we trust him. He is our coach for the World Cup,” said NFF president Aminu Maigari

    Keshi has endured a frosty relationship with his employers and this reached a peak when he quit his post moments after he led Nigeria to win a third Africa Cup of Nations a year ago.

    The former Togo and Mali handler has been rumoured to have interested several other countries with South Africa his latest suitor.