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Tag: Ilorin

  • Eid kabir: 500 to ride 500 horses in Ilorin durbar

    No fewer than 500 dignitaries are expected to ride on 500 beautifully decorated horses in an Ilorin emirate grand durbar.
    The grand that would take place on Wednesday next week, would be by the Emir of Ilorin ,Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari to mark this year’s Eid-el-kabir festival.
    The cultural celebration has been slated for the second day of Eid-el- kabir celebration at the frontage of Emir’s palace in Ilorin.
    The chairman of the durbar committee, Yahaya Alapansanpa, an engineer told reporters in Ilorin, the Kwara state capital.
    He said unlike in the past, this year’s durbar will be extended  beyond the emir, and royalty .
    “Durbar is the unique ceremonial display and cultural processionsb of well decorated and garrisoned horses usually and beautifuly mounted by the royals , chiefs, princes and some other eminent citizens of a given emirate to celebrate an important cultural epoch or religious event or , sometimes ,the presence or visit of an August dignitaries.Thus ,the forthcoming durbar cultural festival has no any political intention”,he said.
    Alapansanpa said the event was being organised to promote the rich cultural heritage of Ilorin emirate and guard against cultural imperialism that was fast eroding the cultural values of the people.
    “Durbar is to prepare the entire Ilorin emirate community against the deep danger inherent in unguarded Cultural dynamism of our contemporary time and the threat of growing cultural imperialism which if left unchecked may destroy the fabrics, essence and organic foundation of our basis as a unique people within the context of the Nigerian nation”
    “The organisation of durbar will also discourage the penetration of foreign culture into the psyche and consciousness of our often impressionistic younger ones who opened and often exposed to “attractive “ but destructive cultural products of the western world and their allies. With the continuous future and regular organisation and their participation in one way or the other by our growing population they will surely develop affinity for what it is ours and do away with what is detestable”.
    “Durbar will also douse the acrimonious tension and socio-cultural apathy the perennial haphazard staging of baseless, meaningless and pernicious social carnivals by some restive, and poorly guarded youthful groups across the emirate and halt the appalling tendencies of promoting cultural illicities , drug addiction, thuggery and sexual misdeamour that come with it and among participants and which are sometimes visited on innocuous, helpless and innocent young members of our community “,he said.
    According to the committee chairman, “on that day, the emir will ride on his decorated horse through Isale -oja to General hospital along Baboko through Taiwo Oke to Taiwo Isale ,Emir’ s road and to the palace where he will be welcomed by all and sundry.”
    He dismissed the insinuations making the rounds that the durbar was being organised to achieve political interests.

  • KWIRS spends 13.5b on infrastructure in Kwara

    The Kwara State Internal Revenue Service (KWIRS) on Wednesday said that the service has contributed about N13.5 billion to the state’s infrastructure development fund (IF-K) since the fund was inaugurated in September 2016.

    IFK was established the Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed to fund all infrastructural projects across the state.

    Chairman of KWIRS Dr Muritala Awodun briefed reporters in Ilorin, the state capital on the service’s performance for the second quarter of 2018.

    Dr Awodun said the evolution of IF-K had significantly assisted the state in executing capital projects across the state.
    He said the service now remits the sum of N530 million to the fund on monthly basis, as opposed to the initial N500 monthly remittance.

    He said: “In 2015, there were over 60 projects abandoned across the state and there was no money but with the coming on board of the fund all the projects were completed and by 2016 given the available scenario government would not have been able to start any new project.

    However with the IF-K government was able to start several new projects and most of them are still ongoing across the state. ”

    On the service’s performance in the second quarter of this year, Awodun said “the service collected the sum of N1.3 billion in April, N1.2 billion in May and N1.3 billion in June to make a total of N3.8 billion. When added to the N6. 44 billion collected in the first quarter, he said the agency had collected a total of N10. 32 billion into the state’s coffers in the first halt of this year.”

    He conceded that the influence of political environment had impacted negatively on the service’s performance.

    Awodun said his team has put in place strategies to ensure the continued success of the service in coming years.

    He said: “In the second quarter we started a process of engaging to be taken through the process of international certification; the ISO in two major areas; quality management system and business continuity management and we are going to be the first revenue agency in Nigeria to do this and we expect that by the end of this quarter we would have been certified.

    “The essence of this is that whoever comes into the system would have a seamless process that does not depend on an individual to succeed.”

    He also revealed that the service has so far expended N52 million on various community impact projects out of the N100 million budgeted for such projects this year.

  • Why we welcome Saraki, Ahmed, others – Kwara PDP

    Stakeholders in the Peoples Democracy Party ( PDP ), Kwara State say the gale of defections hitting the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has given the party the numerical strength to dislodge President Muhammadu Buhari from Aso Rock Villa in 2019.

    The Kwara State Deputy Chairman of PDP, Alhaji Sanni Abubakar who led other major stakeholders of the party, including a former deputy governor and a former Speaker of the state House of Assembly, stated this in Ilorin on Friday during a Press Conference at the Press Centre of the Nigeria Union of Journalists.

    According to the stakeholders, which also included the party’s Treasurer, Assistant Secretary, and State Women Leader, the party gladly “welcomes the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, the State Governor, Alh. Abdulfatah Ahmed and other returnees to the party”.

    “The defection has increased the numerical strength of the PDP across the country and positions it to dislodge the All Progressives Congress-led federal government”, the group said.

    “It is with great delight and enthusiasm that we welcome these honourable and distinguished members to our party. It is, indeed, a reunion of old and long time friends and associates who have jointly contributed in no small measures to the development of Nigeria; a day we in the Peoples Democratic Party have long anxiously waited for”, the group said.

    The stakeholders accused some of their members of “having nocturnal meetings in Abuja with a view to mortgaging our collective destiny on the alter of personal but selfish gains”, saying that “such members are not only egocentric but driven by inferiority complex and pathological hatred and envy for Saraki”.

    Read Also: 2019: Defections won’t stop Buhari’s victory – Tony Momoh

    The group believes that “if Saraki, as the Senate President and chairman of the National Assembly, can be treated with so much disdain and disrespect despite his contributions, along with others, to the success of the APC in 2015, one can imagine what is likely to befall folks without any political pedigree, like those crying wolfs where none existed”.

    The stakeholders called members of the party in the state to respect the right of every member and work in unison in the interest of the party and the country at large.

    “We appeal to all members of the PDP to be receptive to the new members and prospective members and build a stronger, united and acceptable party at all levels”.

    Also speaking, a Former Deputy Governor of Kwara State, Chief Joel Ogundeji charged politicians in the country to eschew politics of bitterness.

    Chief Ogundeji who noted that politics is a game of numbers said making Kwara state a better place under the tutelage of Peoples Democratic Party is paramount.

  • Kwara council chairs defect to PDP

    Chairmen of the sixteen local government areas of Kwara state on Thursday announced their defection from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP ).

    The chairmen with their decision toed the line Senate President Bukola Saraki and Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed who dumped APC about three days ago for PDP.

    The state chairman, Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) Joshua Omokanye told reporters yesterday in Ilorin, the state capital.

    Mr. Omokanye who is also the council boss of Oyun local government area, said that their decision was not in conflict with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and supported by Section 109 (1) (g).

    Omokanye said that the defectors are going along with it all political office holders at the third tier of government, added that it included council chairmen, vice chairmen, Speakers, LG secretaries, supervisory Councillors, 193 elected councillors and other political appointees.

    Said he: “It is our collective resolve to join the Peoples Democratic Party PDP as the worthy alternative platform to further our political careers and work for the advancement of the generality of our people. Since we are welcomed by the party, we have no doubt it wouldn’t be like the conglomeration of strange bedfellows that APC had been in the last four years.

    “We have in the recent time experienced untoward developments within the political party we all claim to belong and loyal to. Precisely, it would be noted that All Progressives Congress APC is being controlled by a cabal who are hellbent in destroying its ever -rising acceptability before the populace.

    “They have surreptitiously made it lose the compass of inclusiveness. It can today be said that APC is lacking internal democracy. It has sunk into an abysmal level of political decorum, regaling in civil misconduct and lagging behind in ethical standard, thereby impairing the growth of democratic culture in the political arena.

    “It is, to many of us, disgusting to note that all what the cabal controlling the party is doing is to cater for the personal interest and marshal the ego of a few interest groups within the party.

    “Noticeably, since the completion of Congresses and convention of APC, there has been flagrant disregard for decorum, disobedience and inconsistence in following party guidelines as well as subjugation of rules with impunity. These among others led to the emergence of a faction named rAPC within the party.

    “It would be recalled that recently there was an attempt to unlawfully dissolve the state executive of the party in Kwara state by the national working committee. Aside, there have been long drawn unrelenting assaults on some personalities whose views differ at some points. All these are injurious to the tenets of democracy.“

  • Retired policemen accuse PENCOM of mishandling of pension

    Retired policemen have accused the Pension Commission of Nigeria (PENCOM) of alleged  mishandling of their pension.

    The retired police officers who retired from service between May last year and this year have called on the federal  government  to intervene on the matter.

    The retired police officers said that while none of them including  those who had retired since last year were yet to be paid any money from their contributory pension scheme,  the PENCOM had decided to reduced by half the lump sum it ought to pay them.

    The retirees who disclosed that while still waiting to be paid, many of them had  died of starvation, fallen sick or incured a lot of debt said the about N1.5m which the PENCOM wanted to pay them as lump sum would  be too meagre to meet their needs.

    The retirees told reporters at the weekend in Ilorin,  Kwara  state,  wondered why the pension commission would decide to pay, as lump sum, 25- 30 per cent of their pension when it was, as they claimed, paying  53 per cent to their predecessors.

    ASP Samuel Anzo (rd) who spoke on behalf of the people said the PENCOM did not consult them or give them any consent form for them to fill as agreeing to the reduction before it carried out the arrangement.

    The spokesman described the new arrangement as bad as he alleged that PENCOM deliberately did it to achieve a selfish purpose at the expense of the retirees.

    He said.: “The order which has been sent to all the 21 pension administrators in Nigeria is too bad. It is wickedness because who knows who among the retirees could live long enough to maximally benign the piecemeal payment of the remaining pension. PENCOM want to use, for their investment, the money the pensioners suffered to save compulsorily during their service year and which they hoped to enjoy immediately  after they retire.”

    Anzo  who said they would not collect the money except it is at least 50 per cent of their pension  entitlement called on the federal  government Labour union and other relevant organisation to prevail on the PENCOM  to rescind its decision.

    “We use this medium to  draw the attention of President  Muhammad Buhari,  the Senate and the House of Representatives, Nigeria Labour Congress and all relevant Human Right offices and activist to urgently come to our aid on this issue as PENCOM has finally ordered to pay us peanuts money that could not pay our outstanding debts and pain we have suffered  for.

    “We,  the retirees under the contributory pension commission  of Nigeria and all the 21 Pension Fund Administration (PFA)  hereby want the Federal Government  and all other powerful authorities mentioned above to prevail on the PENCOM not to implement such unjust recent order as it will cause more serious injuries to our lives,” he said.

  • NiMet predicts thunderstorms, rains, cloudy weather for Monday

    The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) has predicted morning thunderstorms over cities in the Central States of the country such as Ilorin, Minna, Abuja, Jos, Lafia and Bauchi on Monday morning.

    NiMet’s Weather Outlook by its Central Forecast Office in Abuja on Sunday also predicted day and night temperatures in the range of 25 to 33 and 18 to 23 degrees Celsius respectively.

    It added that there were chances of thunderstorms over Gombe, Lafia, Jos, Kaduna, Abuja, Makurdi and Lokoja axis later in the day.

    The agency predicted that southern states would experience prospect of cloudy morning with chances of rains over places like Awka, Ikom, Abakaliki, Obudu, Ogoja, Port Harcourt, Eket, Warri, Calabar, Ijebu-Ode and Lagos.

    It also predicted chances of thunderstorms and rains over most parts of the region with day and night temperatures of 27 to 31 and 21 to 24 degrees Celsius respectively.

    According to NiMet, Northern States will experience cloudy condition over the Inland of the south west with possibility of light rains over the remaining parts of the region in the morning.

    It also predicted thunderstorms and rains over the entire region with day and night temperatures in the range of 27 to 32 and 20 to 25 degrees Celsius respectively.

    “Cloudy conditions with prospects of thunderstorms and rain in varying intensities are anticipated over the country within the next 24 hours” NiMet predicts.

  • ‘Number of orphans increasing’

    An Ilorin, Kwara State-based Islamic Orphanage Foundation lamented the growing number of orphans in the various internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps in Nigeria.

    The foundation is worried because the trend is being caused by the spate of killings going on in parts of the country.

    It also expressed worries about the safety of those in IDPS camps amidst persistent insecurity and killings in some parts of the country.

    The foundation which was established 13 years ago currently has 276 displaced orphans in its care.

    Chairman of the foundation Ahmad Allege said this in Ilorin, the state capital, at this year’s annual meeting of the IOF.

    He urged the federal government to as a matter of urgency stop the killings.

    “We appeal to the federal and state governments, traditional and spiritual institution leaders to address the issue of insecurity in the country as we all know that the result of this will produce a lot of orphans all over. Our IDP centres are also not safe with incessant attacks on the innocent people. We want to see the whole scenario as being politically motivated. [Those behind the] killings must be identified and brought to book,” he said.

    Allege, an architect, said the foundation was always overwhelmed at the beginning of every academic session when raising funds for the payment of orphans who were in higher institutions.

    He said, “As at today I wish to let you know that our children are 276 in number out of which 84 of them are in tertiary institutions all over the country, while 9 are receiving training on in different professions out of which four will be empowered today.”

    He urged government at all levels to “create a window” through which they would engage orphans who graduate from school under the foundation’s care to reduce the rate of unemployment.

    He expressed displeasure that some parents have not been taking good care of children in their custody saying that the foundation would take custody of most of the children when its centre is completed.

     

  • Outcome of Ekiti poll will determine 2019 election, says PDP

    National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Prince Uche Secondus Saturday said that the result of the governorship election in Ekiti state would determine the 2019 general elections in the country.

    Secondus said this in Ilorin, Kwara state in an interaction with reporters during a condolence visit to former nPDP National Leader, Alhaji Abubakar Baraje, who lost his mother during the week in Ilorin, Kwara state.

    He berated the federal government over its inability to share the monthly federal allocation for June 2018 after three meetings with state and local governments in the country.

    Read Also:Ekiti 2018: PDP deplores alleged attack on members, ballot snatching

    The PDP chairman described Baraje as a brother and friend as well as former chairman of the PDP.

    He said that  the Ekiti election will the beginning of the general elections coming up next year and as such that anything short of a credible poll would spell doom for the nation.

    Said he: “I’m here on condolence visit to my former chairman of the PDP and by the grace of God our friend and our brother.

    “We expect the Ekiti election to be credible, we believe anything short of that will cause crisis and you know Ekiti election is the beginning of all elections that will come in 2019. If Ekiti election is not properly conducted then there will be no election in 2019”

    Asked about alleged overtures from the camp of the nPDP, to rejoin the PDP, Secondus said everyone, including the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki,is welcome to the party and that in any case they are already working together under the grand alliance.

    “Everyone is welcome, it is a large house and you know above all we have a larger gathering; the grand alliance and so we are working together,” he said.

    Asked about the failure to share the federal allocation after three meetings, Secondus said. “You can see how they are running the economy”, to which Baraje added:  “it is a sign of failure” before they both went to sit with the Islamic cleric preaching at the venue.

  • ‘Number of orphans increasing’

    An Ilorin, Kwara State-based Islamic Orphanage Foundation lamented the growing number of orphans in the various internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps in Nigeria.

    The foundation is worried because the trend is being caused by the spate of killings going on in parts of the country.

    It also expressed worries about the safety of those in IDPS camps amidst persistent insecurity and killings in some parts of the country.

    The foundation which was established 13 years ago currently has 276 displaced orphans in its care.

    Chairman of the foundation Ahmad Allege said this in Ilorin, the state capital, at this year’s annual meeting of the IOF.

    He urged the federal government to as a matter of urgency stop the killings.

    “We appeal to the federal and state governments, traditional and spiritual institution leaders to address the issue of insecurity in the country as we all know that the result of this will produce a lot of orphans all over. Our IDP centres are also not safe with incessant attacks on the innocent people. We want to see the whole scenario as being politically motivated. [Those behind the] killings must be identified and brought to book,” he said.

    Allege, an architect, said the foundation was always overwhelmed at the beginning of every academic session when raising funds for the payment of orphans who were in higher institutions.

    He said, “As at today I wish to let you know that our children are 276 in number out of which 84 of them are in tertiary institutions all over the country, while 9 are receiving training on in different professions out of which four will be empowered today.”

    He urged government at all levels to “create a window” through which they would engage orphans who graduate from school under the foundation’s care to reduce the rate of unemployment.

    He expressed displeasure that some parents have not been taking good care of children in their custody saying that the foundation would take custody of most of the children when its centre is completed.

     

  • NiMet predicts cloudy weather, thunderstorms for Friday

    The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) has predicted prospects of thunderstorms and moderate rains over the Central States such as Minna, Abuja, Jos, Lafia, Kaduna, Bauchi, Gombe, Jalingo and Lokoja on Friday morning.

    NiMet’s Weather Outlook by its Central Forecast Office in Abuja on Thursday also predicted day and night temperatures in the range of 26 to 33 and 18 to 23 degrees Celsius, respectively.

    It added that there are also chances of thunderstorms over places like Makurdi, Abuja, Mambilla Plateau, Jos, Yola, Ilorin and Ibi in the evening and night hours.

    The agency predicted that the Southern states would experience morning cloudiness with prospects of light rains over the coastal cities such as Ikom, Calabar, Ijebu Ode, Lagos and few cities around the South-West.

    Read Also: NiMet predicts thunderstorms, rains in central Nigeria on Tuesday

    It also predicted thunderstorms and moderate rains over Osogbo, Akure, Ado Ekiti, Benin, Asaba, Abakaliki, Enugu and Owerri including the coastal cities like Port Harcourt, Yenagoa, Lagos and Ijebu Ode respectively.

    NiMet further predicted that the region would have day and night temperatures in the range of 29 to 32 and 20 to 24 degrees Celsius, respectively.

    According to NiMet, Northern States will experience cloudy to partly cloudy situation with chances of thunderstorms over Sokoto, Gusau and Kebbi during the morning hours.

    “Northern States will also experience day and night temperatures in the ranges of 32 to 36 and 22 to 24 respectively.

    “Cloudy to partly cloudy condition is expected with prospects of thunderstorms and rains with varying intensities over the Country in the next 24 hours,” NiMet predicted.

     

    NAN