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Tag: lagos

  • PTAD to verify 21,295 pensioners in Lagos

    PTAD to verify 21,295 pensioners in Lagos

    About 21,295 pensioners are expected to participate in the second phase of the South West verification exercise being conducted by the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) in Lagos state between Monday, September 18 and Friday, September 29, 2017.

    A statement from the agency said eligible civil service pensioners under the defined benefit scheme will take part in the two week exercise which will be supervised by the Executive Secretary of the PTAD, Barrister Sharon Ikeazor.

    The first phase of the exercise for the south west took place in August and covered three states of Osun, Ondo and Ekiti, while Oyo and Ogun states are expected to be covered during the final phase in the zone.

    Similar exercise has been concluded in four zones of the country involving 64,825 pensioners who were not payrolled for years but now verified and being paid with arrears. 

    The statement said the over 21000 pensioners are expected to be verified in five centres in Alausa, Yaba, Ketu, Amuwo Odofin and Agege. 

    It said further that the process will take four distinct steps for capturing their biodata and other relevant documents for them to be suitably placed in the payroll and database for payment of their monthly pension. 

    The sick and infirm will be covered in their locations, pointing out that total of 108 PTAD staff are being deployed for the exercise. 

  • 11 secondary school students arrested for cultism

    11 secondary school students arrested for cultism

    The police and some members of the Lagos State  Neighbourhood Safety Corps (LNSC)  have arrested 11 secondary school students suspected to be cultists terrorising members of the public with dangerous weapons in the state.

    The Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Olosan Police  Station, CSP Adekunle Omisankin, who confirmed the arrest to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday, said all the suspects belonged  to the ”Gang Star’’ cult.

    Omisankin said the suspects claimed to have been in existence since 2013 operating as students, stressing that they were between 17 years and 18 years old.

    “One student-suspect was brought to our station by LNSC on Friday. Our  investigation led to the arrest of 10 other students, including a female student,” Omisankin said.

    The spokesman for the  Lagos Neighborhood Safety Corps, Mr Adewale Afolabi, said that they had also arrested a JSS3 student, who was allegedly terrorising members of the public with dangerous weapons such as knives and machetes.

    Afolabi said that the suspect, who resides at No. 243, Agege Motor Road, Ojuwoye in Mushin, Lagos Mainland, was alleged to be a student of a secondary school in Igbo Owu, Kwara.
    “He had been terrorising the people and students of the area. The LNSC operational team arrested the suspect following intelligence information from the public.

    ”He confessed to the crime and also exposed his 16-member gang by giving their names and their hideouts to the LNSC.

    Afolabi said that the suspect had been transferred to the Olosan Police Station, Mushin for further investigation. (NAN)

  • Lagos, Ogun as industrial hubs

    It is clear some commentators are living in the past. Indeed, the Ogun State governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, was prescient enough to warn against creation of mind boundaries as South-west marches towards economic integration: “Instead of building bridges, some of our people are digging trenches for protection against their own brothers and sisters. And to further worsen the situation, some of our people are also making themselves available as instruments of division because of their selfish political gains. The consequence is that our people begin to see themselves as a people of one state or the other rather than as a sub-unit of the Yoruba entity.”

    Our founding fathers built Lagos State. They built Ogun State. Not many may even remember that the old Ogun stretched into many parts of today’s Lagos State. Those writers trying to create a wedge between the two brother states had better watch it. We are one people, one culture. Despite the excision of the Lagos Municipality from the Western Region in 1954 following the inauguration of the Lyttleton Constitution, the bulk of the territory of today’s Lagos State, consisting of Ikorodu, Epe, Somolu, Ikeja, Mushin, Ajegunle, Yaba and Badagry remained part of the Western Region. Lagos State is today a member of the Odu’a Group and the march towards economic integration of the old Western Region is on course.

    Ogun! Lagos! What’s the difference between the two? Millions of workers in Lagos reside in Ogun. Many companies in Ogun have their headquarters in Lagos. Many firms in Lagos have equally expanded to Ogun. Many indigenes of Ogun have their houses in Lagos and vice versa. So there is so little to choose between the two states.

    What is more, Lagos and Ogun are headed by progressive governors of the All Progressive Congress (APC). It is true that the Ogun State counterpart had to do twice as much to get the state on the present progressive lane of development because of the depredations of the past, which is known to the progressive governors. If Ogun State has now become an industrial hub just like Lagos is, should that not be celebrated? Isn’t that to the good of the neighbouring states? Are the masses of the two states not the ultimate beneficiaries? Will these leaders remain the governors of their respective states forever? Can we ever separate Lagos from Ogun or Ogun from Lagos?

    We must be wary of fifth columnists, political opportunists, profiteers and racketeers who wish to clog the wheel of progress and the march of the two friendly states to economic prosperity.  Having lost on the electoral field, they try to create a non-existent friction, provoke unwarranted malice in order to oil their dubious political machinery. We will not fall for their antics.

    To quote Senator Amosun once more, “We cannot allow artificial boundaries such as geography, religion, politics, etc. to hinder our joint development. We should explore the common heritage in culture and tradition as a spring-board for the development of our different states and the entire region as a whole.”

    Just last week, a leading financial newspaper, Business Day, had this report on its front page: “Lagos and Ogun states are fast moving away from other states in the country in financial capacity, following their ability to generate over 60 per cent of their revenue internally. The two states generated 73 per cent and 63 per cent of their revenue internally in 2016. This means that in the event of a failure or shortfall in allocation from the Federation Account, the two states can internally generate at least N63 out of every N100 needed monthly. Lagos and Ogun are closely followed by Rivers, Kano and Edo States, which generated 43 percent, 38 percent and 35 percent respectively of their total internal revenue…”

    It is this kind of cheery news we should celebrate rather than create a non-existent rivalry between brother states. How meaningless will the agitation for full (fiscal) federalism become if states cannot fend for themselves, if they cannot look inward and provide enabling environment for business growth with an eye on backward integration!

    In 2013, the governor of Ogun State invested in heavy land-clearing equipment on a scale never witnessed in the annals of the state. Just recently, another massive investment was made on farm machinery. Hundreds of acres of land have been cultivated. More hectares are being cleared for rice production. Many private investors are making their presence felt in the sector with thousands of direct and indirect employment generated. With the encouragement from government, many rural farms have been established and hundreds of agriculture cooperative societies have benefited from the commercial agricultural loan of the state government. In one year alone, the Ogun State government produced and sold one million cocoa seedlings to farmers at highly subsidized rate in order to reinvigorate the industry. Seventy hectares of cassava multiplication plantation were cultivated for the generation of cassava cuttings that meet industrial and nutritional needs of the populace. The state government equally built model farm estates with modern houses in order to encourage graduates of agriculture and allied disciplines to practice and make the sector attractive to youths, among other achievements in the sector.

    Just as Lagos partners Kebbi State, it has agriculture land leased to it in Ogun State in a win-win partnership between states of the same parents and common heritage. The six South-west governors have begun moves to harness the “competitive advantage of all the states in the region for sustainable regional development.”

    Finally, we should have expected arm-chair critics – politicians in the robes of writers – to learn from history. The late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, was criticised for being ahead of his time. When he mooted the idea of free education, he was criticised. When he built the first industrial and housing estates in Nigeria, what was the socio-economic situation at the time? When he established the first television service in Africa, how many Nigerians at the time had television sets? When he constructed the Liberty Stadium, the first in Nigeria, what was Western Region’s position in the world in relation to sports or how many children of the region were in school?

    The simple fact is, you do not wait for tomorrow before you plan for it. Those writers trying to ingratiate themselves with either of the top-notch governors of Lagos and Ogun are simply wasting their time. “Ambode and Amosun no get their time.” They should invest their time (pens) in more productive ventures.

     

    • Soyombo, a journalist, sent in this piece from Abeokuta via densityshow@yahoo.com

  • Lagos to host confab on e-payment system

    To boost shopping and other electronic payment system in the country, a summit on Point of Sales (PoS) terminal transactions, speakers will converge in Lagos  September 29, 2017.

    The programme which is an intervention to address the gaps noticeable in the expectations of stakeholders and the reality in the PoS business sector of the payments system has been put together by one of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) licensed Payment Terminal Service Provider (PTSP), Global Accelerex Limited.

    The Managing Director, Global Accelerex, Mr. Tunde Ogungbade, said the motivation behind the summit is the need for stakeholders to jointly address issues mitigating the achievement of optimum performance and results in the PoS business in the country.  Going down memory lane, he said effective and full-scale introduction of PoS terminal as a recognised channel of transaction occurred with the introduction of the cashless policy by the CBN in 2012 and that prior to this time, transactions via the PoS occurred in trickles. The introduction of the cashless policy gave rise to a lot of interest in the PoS business with resultant investment by various stakeholders – banks, terminal suppliers,PTSPs, Payment Terminal Application Developers (PTADs), payment card manufacturers etc. However, few years down the line, a review of the performance of the PoS sector revealed a very wide margin between stakeholder expectations and realities in terms of performance, adoption and of course Return on Investment (RoI) in spite of the potentials and the opportunities available in the industry- PoS penetration is still low as there is need for more devices with innovative retail offerings.

    He said summit would be held on a quarterly basis as an intervention designed as a platform to address the noticeable gaps in the PoS business in Nigeria as well as to promote the adoption and usage of innovative PoS solutions in order to achieve the objectives of attaining sustainable growth in the sector.

    Notable leaders of thought and industry experts invited as resource persons at the summit include – Dr Doyin Salami from Lagos Business School, Mr Musa Jimoh – Deputy Director, Banking & Payments System, CBN, Mr Sarafadeen Fasasi – Chairman, Association of Mobile Money Operators, Mr Prakash Keswani, the Managing Director – Artee Industries Limited (SPAR), the Managing Director, Hard Rock Café and Mr Tunde Ogungbade, Managing Director, Global Accelerex.

    Participants at the summit will include representatives of all major stakeholders – banks, terminal manufacturers, merchants, system aggregators and regulators among others.

  • Lagos screens 36,000 for HIV

    Lagos screens 36,000 for HIV

    To achieve Lagos State’s plan to eliminate the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV/AIDS) by 2030, the state aids control agency (LSACA)  is screening of over 36,000 residents of Ikorodu.

    According to LSACA Director- General/CEO Dr. Oluseyi Temowo, who spoke at Ijede in Ikorodu, the story of HIV/AIDS has changed because 30 years ago, HIV was unknown and it killed a lot of people.

    “But today, HIV is no longer a death sentence; rather it is a life sentence. People can live their normal life because there are drugs, prevention and control measures put in place. So, if anybody dies of HIV/AIDS, it is because he or she did not take care of himself or herself or did not avail himself or herself of drugs and proper treatment,”Temowo said.

    He said the exercise in Ikorodu would be replicated in other parts of the state, adding that the reason for the exercise was to stop mother-to-child transmission and achieve the target of Vision 90-90-90 initiative by 2020.

    “So long as pregnant women that are positive to HIV take their medication properly, the child she will deliver will not have it because the drug would have suppressed the influence of transmission. So, we believe the way forward in eradicating HIV/AIDs in our generation is for the younger ones not to be positive any longer,”Temowo said.

    The most likely mode of transmitting HIV among youths, according to him, is unprotected sexual behaviour. “Once that is taken care of, there is no longer the fear of HIV transmission or existence among the youth,”he said.

    He continued:”We will be talking about older generation and how to teach them how to take care of themselves. Our commitment is that by 2020, 90 per cent of people living with HIV would have known their status, 90 per cent of those that are positive will be taking their drugs regularly and 90 per cent must have viral suppression,” he stated.

    Participants were also screened for other non-communicable diseases and drugs were dispensed.

  • First lifestyles clinic opens in Lagos

    Glover Medical’s LifeStyle Clinic, described as Nigeria’s first lifestyle’ clinic, has opened on Victoria Island, Lagos.

    Its Chairman, Chief Anil Glover, said the facility was the brainchild of his wife, Arvinder, and himself. He said they were touched by Glover’s father-inlaw’s death, which was caused by diabetes. His parents also urged him to build a clinic that would cater to lifestyles diseases.

    Glover said the clinic, which is in partnership with Artemis Hospitals, a global brand, took nine months to build and it is to deliver quality services. ‘’We’ll deal with clinical care and management of lifestyle diseases. We have a dream to be first choice for Nigerians and others,’’he said, announcing that he would offer free services to indigent old ones or those whose children live abroad.

    Indian Second Secretary/Head of Chancery, Subbu Ramesh, who represented the High Commissioner,  congratulated the Glovers on the inauguration of their clinic. ‘’We are proud that an Indian is making its presence here,’’ he said, adding that the clinic would not only provide medicare, but aid technology transfer and skills acquisition.

    Rotary International 9110 District Governor, Dr Wale Ogunbadejo, said it was good that the Glovers went into that area, noting that poor lifestyles were the main cause of some deadly ailments.

    Lanre Adedoyin, a medical doctor, who represented Ogunbadejo,  said Rotary emphaises quality health, which is why the organisation made it one of its six focal areas.

    Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Director-General, Alhaji Muda Yusuf, urged the government to give incentives to investors in the healthcare sector. He said since the government could not provide adequate health care alone, there was the need to encourage individuals going into the area through tax cuts, adding that its officials should not be seen to be harassing clinics and hospitals owners for multiple tax collection.

    Artemis Hospitals, India, Managing Director Dr Anil Khetrapal, a Brigadier-General, said the company’s deal with Glover Medical Life Style Clinic would strengthen medicare provision in the country, affirming that many Nigerians would benefit from it.

    Head of Endocrinology Department, Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi Araba, Prof Olufemi Fasanmade, who spoke on Emerging trends in lifestyle diseases, warned against poor lifestyles to avoid diseases associated with them.

    He listed obesity, hypertension, peptic ulcer and anxiety as the consequences of bad lifestyles, such as excessive drinking, smoking, consumption of excessive sugar,and salt, stress at work and sedentary. He said while the diseases are expensive to manage, they are cheaper to prevent. ‘Go for regular checkups, exercises and you will live longer,’’ he added

  • Nigerians urged to embrace STEM

    Nigerians urged to embrace STEM

    The need to introduce pupils early in life to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education has prompted the pupils of Carol School, Agidingbi, Ikeja, Lagos to pay a visit to the Lagos office of Huawei Technologies Ltd, Lagos office.

    The pupils whose  ages were  between four to 14 were welcomed in Huawei Innovation and Experience  Center by the ICT giant’s staff.

    Speaking at the Huawei Innovation and Experience  Center , Mrs. Okorodion Juliet who led the pupils to the center said any nation that really loves her  youths must be ready to promote and embrace STEM education, which is right tools for the children.

    According to her, “STEM as a tool will not just excite the children to learn, it will also make them be eager to learn difficult things in an entertaining mood. They will be proud later in the future in any field they found themselves because the culture has been imbibed in them very early in life.

    “The importance of STEM cannot be waived asides by any nation that wants to grow, mostly in these millennium age where ICT has made may jobs easier and has also allowed income earners to earn more with less stress,”. Okorodion said.

    Welcoming the pupils, Product  Manager,  Huawei  Technology,  Mr.Oluwaseun Ologun, said that  such occasion was part of his organization’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) drive in ensuring that children were not left out of the digital race in a developing environment.

    Oluwaseun who took time to listen and answer the  pupils question said the   development of ICT culture amongst children was  crucial to the growth  and development of a nation.

    According to him, globally, the impact of ICT education in children would help their learning experiences  both at home and in schools. Not only this, imbibing the ICT culture in them will enable them grow with it and be at the same level with their counterparts worldwide. They will superior and not inferior.

    Also, the head of the Public Relations, Mr. Quanwei,  said Huawei is dedicated to popularizing information  technology and knowledge, developing ICT professionals, and increasing educational opportunities in any environment it operates.

    “We just don’t believe in making profit alone, we  strive to make our CSR visible in all our operational areas. Having these children here today is that we believe that they will grow up to become leaders of tomorrow. And promoting ICT education for them at this age will broaden their knowledge and ability to learn, putting in mind that children learn faster most times than adults” Mr. Q declared.

    The pupils were treated to  ‘magic’ moments where they learned how to make conference phone calls through television. They were paired into two; written on their faces were smiles that they could interact without being in same location.

  • Ambode: Lagos to get first woman governor soon

    Ambode: Lagos to get first woman governor soon

    •One-day governor, deputy get scholarship, N1m each

    Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has expressed optimism that the state will soon produce its first woman governor.

    The governor spoke yesterday when he hosted the One-Day Governor, Miss Zuffon Bukola, with members of her State Executive Council (Exco) at the Exco Chambers of Lagos House in Ikeja, the state capital.

    He said the victory of Miss Zuffon, and her deputy, Miss Rosemary Ogidan, was a signpost of what the future holds for the state.

    Miss Zuffon, a 16-year-old Senior Secondary School (SSS) II pupil of Awodiora Senior Secondary School at Ajegunle became the One-Day Governor after she won a keenly contested Spelling Bee competition in June.

    Miss Ogidan, also an SSS II pupil of Methodist Senior High School at Badagry, was the runner-up.

    Ambode said the victory of two girls as one-day governor and deputy governor showed that a woman could be elected governor of the state.

    He said: “This is a significant day for Lagos State. It also signals what the future holds for the state. We have seated here two females, who are strong members of the new State Executive Council. We have a female governor and a female deputy governor.

    “This is also telling us a story about what the future of Lagos is all about: that one day, we would find seated here, not just a day governor, but for a period or tenure of four years, there would be a female governor in this state.

    “We’ve had female deputy governors in this state. It also says something that these younger ones are telling our women in Lagos to rise up and take their position.”

    The governor hailed Miss Zuffon and her Exco members, saying their feat was an indication that the funds the state government spent on improving the Educational sector were not wasted.

    He assured all that his administration would further develop the sector.

    Ambode said: “I want to congratulate her and her Exco members for also showing to us that the future of education in Lagos is strong. We believe that the resources we are spending in the Educational sector are not going to be waste. They have also shown that they are ready to succeed us as long as we encourage them.

    “So, we’ll do everything, as what we have been doing in the last two years, to continue to pay greater attention to education and make sure we do so much in youth development to allow them become mentally capable of succeeding us, even as we move away from all the things we have done in the public service.”

    The governor awarded full scholarship to Miss Zuffon and Miss Ogidan.

    He also announced a cash gift of N1 million to each of them.

    Ambode donated N500,000 to each member of the One-Day Governor’s Exco, consisting of Master Tovishede Ayobami (Secretary to the State Government); Master Philip Daniel (Speaker of the House of Assembly); Master Durojaiye Oluwasegun (Commissioner for Education); Master Atabo Ufedojo (Commissioner for Science and Technology).

    Miss Zuffon hailed the governor for his visionary leadership and achievements, especially in the Educational sector.

    She noted that despite the economic challenges, teachers’ salaries and entitlements were paid as when due.

    The aspiring lawyer requested for a school bus, the renovation of the multipurpose hall as well as the construction of drainage channels in her school.

    Ambode granted her requests.

  • Refuse, illegal refining threaten transmission facility in Lagos

    Refuse, illegal refining threaten transmission facility in Lagos

    A transmission tower’s integrity in Lagos is being threatened as miscreants have turned its location to a dump site, illegal refining and burning of rubbish, it was learnt.

    The tower, located in Surulere area of Lagos, according to the Acting Managing Director/Chief Executive of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Mr. Usman Gur Mohammed, is being threatened by the nefarious activities going on under it.

    Such activities, according to the TCN chief, compromise the integrity of towers, adding that the maintenance team of the company would not be able to access the facility for repairs in the event of a problem.

    “Should the tower also collapse as a result of the compromise, the entire Apapa and environs would be out of power supply,” he said.

    He continued:”Therefore, it is imperative I came to see things, discuss and collaborate with Lagos State Government to find a solution to the problem, and permanently stop the nefarious activities going on under the tower,” he added.

    Mohammed further said: “People dump and burn refuse and other materials under the tower and as you can see, there is oil bunkering and illegal refining here. These activities definitely will compromise the integrity of the tower. If the tower is comprised and it collapses, the entire Apapa and environs will be out of power supply.

    “This tower supports the capacity from Ajah through the 330kv circuit line to Alagbon. If it collapses, supply to these areas will be jeopardised. Also, if there is a problem with the tower, it will be difficult for the maintenance team to access it. It is a big problem for these areas.

    “I will discuss with the Lagos State Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources. We are working closely with the Lagos State Government. We will ask the Energy Commissioner to ensure that the Commissioner for Environment clear this place and ensure it is permanently maintained away from the miscreants and refuse dump.

    “The clearing will be immediately because we are collaborating with the Lagos State Government. Through this collaboration, we are working to put significant transmission capacity between Lagos and Ogun states and ensure this kind of thing doesn’t happen again.”

    The TCN chief also said the transmission arm of the power supply value chain is not the weakest link as some people make power consumers believe, adding that transmission capacity has been substantially increased and, the transmission arm is ahead of other arms of the supply chain. “We are increasing our capacity across the country because the government is supporting us

    “This government has been putting money into transmission since it came on board. Money that has been put by this government into transmission has never been put into transmission in the history of Nigeria.

    “We have also secured a lot of funding from multilateral donors, backed by the Ministries of Power, Works and Housing and Finance, and this is being channeled into transmission. To me, funding is not so much a big issue to transmission now because we have got the support of the government.

    “Whoever says TCN is the weakest link in the power supply value chain is ignorant of the sector. Transmission is not the weakest link in the chain. Our capacity currently is higher than all the other arms of the industry. We also have plans to expand the capacity of the transmission more than any other arm of the sector. So, we are always ahead of them and will continue to be ahead of them,”he said.

  • Lagos orders transporters to vacate Ikorodu road

    Lagos orders transporters to vacate Ikorodu road

    The Lagos State Government on Wednesday issued a seven-day ultimatum to inter-state transport operators to vacate Ikorodu Road.

    Mr Steve Ayorinde, the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, disclosed this during the inspection of inter-state bus terminals on Ikorodu road.

    He said that Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode toured the area on Tuesday night and was very displeased with the manner in which the inter- state transport operators were using the main town.

    “We are, however, saying that henceforth, we will no longer allow inter-state buses to operate along Ikorodu Road; they will have to move to Ojota and Ojodu-Berger bus terminals designated for them by the state government.

    “And there is a seven-day ultimatum for them to move, starting from today. It is for the benefit of the residents because their operations here are not decent and tidy.

    “Take a look at the iron barricades mounted on our roads with tax-payers money, they are being destroyed by these bus operators. It goes to show how people abuse and disrespect the tax payers’ money, in spite of repeated warnings by government.

    “ We can no longer condone it and in the interest of the residents, what is decent, tidy and civilised is to move them to where they really belong, so that we can free the cities.

    “You can see what we are doing with the state city plan, more bus terminals are springing up in Yaba, TBS, Ikeja and other areas. The whole essence is to protect the sanctity of the environment and the public, ‘’ Ayorinde said.
    Also speaking to journalists, Mr Anofi Elegushi, Special Adviser to the Governor on Transport, said that arrangements had been made for the relocation and quit notice served.

    Elegusi said the relocation was to better utilise the flyovers for better purposes, such as beautification and security.
    He said that the government had been meeting with the stakeholders and spaces provided at Ojota and Ojodu- Berger could accommodate the inter-state transport operators from the Ikorodu Road axis.

    “The seven-day ultimatum is to allow them to organise themselves and come to us for allocation of spaces at the terminals and if by the end of seven days they refuse to comply, enforcement will commence.

    “We urge the operators to cooperate with government as the relocation will not affect their businesses or livelihood.

    Mrs Bilkiss Adebiyi-Abiola, General Manager, Lagos Parks and Gardens, said there was a beautification plan to the government’s city plan.

    Adebiyi- Abiola said that the agency had started working on the designs for the beautification of the reclaimed flyovers at Ikorodu Road, Mile-2, Festac and Lagos Island.

    According to her, the agency will be starting with these areas and later extend to other areas of the state.
    “This fits into the general Greener Lagos Initiative – we are going to introduce greenery, trees and plants that will help the environment and add value to the health of residents,’’ she added.