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Tag: minister

  • Minister inaugurates school as council marks 100 days

    Minister inaugurates school as council marks 100 days

    The FCT Administration would continue to support and encourage any Area Council in its domain which initiates people-oriented projects.

    FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Bello gave this assurance while commissioning a primary school in Iddo-Ma’aji, a village located along Airport Road.

    The new school was constructed by the Abuja Municipal Area Council chaired by Abdullahi Candido in his 100 days in office.a

    Bello said that what the people in the rural areas need is thae basic necessities of life and insisted that the Area Councils that are closer to the grassroots must strive to achieve more of such laudable projects.

    According to a statement issued by the Deputy Director/Chief Press Secretary, Muhammad Sule, the Minister emphasized that his Administration will continue to provide the enabling environment for all the Area Councils to perform optimally.

    He reminded the council officials that the people were anxiously watching how they would fulfil the campaign promises they made.

    The Minister, who lauded the AMAC chief for bringing education to the doorsteps of the people that genuinely desire it, also urged other Area Council chairmen not to betray the confidence reposed in them by the voters.

    Bello remarked that education remains the bedrock for any meaningful development; adding that the choice of the project embarked upon by the AMAC Chairman will go a long way in liberating their minds.

    The Chairman of the Abuja Municipal Area Council, Abdullahi Adamu Candido appreciated the kind gesture of the Minister who took time out of his busy schedule to personally commission the school.

    “This shows that Malam Muhammad Musa Bello is truly with the people despite his exalted position in the society,” he added.

    Several APC leaders in the Federal Capital Territory like Hajiya Ireti Kingigbe, Hon. Tanko Abari and a host of others also attended the ceremony.

     

     

  • Niger Delta: Minister says violence won’t solve problem

    Niger Delta: Minister says violence won’t solve problem

    Information and Culture Minister Lai Mohammed has declared that violence will not resolve the Niger Delta issue.

    He admonished those aggrieved by the plight of the region to embrace peaceful tools of seeking redress.

    Speaking at the command screening of the action thriller movie ‘Oloibiri’ in Abuja on Thursday night, the Minister said that in violence, “there are really are no victors, for whichever end of the divide one falls, there remain only the wounded and trauma of bloody memories.

    “In its essence, ‘Oloibiri’ the movie speaks of the Niger Delta to us Nigerians, to our essence as humans, as a nation, as students of history and hopes of our tomorrows. ‘Oloibiri’ in its form points out to us that in addressing wrongs, the place of diplomacy can never be successfully replaced with violence; for the violent creates victims of himself and others, and in all of these it is the land who loses precious citizens.”

    He said that the Buhari Administration, in laying a strong foundation for the speedy development of the Niger Delta, has begun the implementation of the recommendations of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) on the Environmental Assessment of Ogoniland, which was launched last June.

    Alhaji Mohammed also noted that the federal government has commissioned the Central Ogbia Regional Water Supply Project in Bayelsa, as part of efforts to complete all abandoned water projects to improve livelihood.

    Among those who witnessed the command screening of the film were the Minister of Environment Amina Mohammed, Minister of Labour and Employment Chris Ngige, Minister of State for Environment Ibrahim Usman Jibril and the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Paul Boro.

    Also in attendance were some of the stars who featured in the movie, including Mr. Olu Jacobs and Mrs Taiwo Ajayi Lycett.

  • Low WAEC results: Minister reads riot act

    Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Malam Muhammad Bello has challenged school principals in the FCT to ensure that from next academic session, all secondary schools in the Federal Capital Territory attain at least 50 per cent success in the West African Examination Council (WAEC) and National Examination Council (NECO).

    Bello who gave the challenge during a meeting with school principals in the Territory said that the 30 percent success recorded in 2016 WAEC and NECO in FCT schools is no longer acceptable.

    The minister who was represented at the meeting by the FCT Permanent Secretary, Dr. Babatope Ajakaiye insisted that students must achieve at least 50 per cent or the principal will be penalised.

    According to a statement issued by the Deputy Director/Chief Press Secretary, Muhammad Sule, the Minister warned that the FCT Administration will no longer accept excuses of poor infrastructure or inadequate teachers; saying that school principals must do everything to ensure that this situation is changed.

    He said it is unthinkable that the FCT with the largest concentration of the elite, which should be setting the pace for other states, is now turning out a measly 30 percent success in very critical examinations as WAEC and NECO.

    “The mandate I will give you that goes with sanction; for this new session, every principal must be determined that for WAEC and NECO in 2017, any principal that does not achieve 50 percent success should just quietly leave that school because the principal is going to be removed. If you don’t achieve 50 percent success in WAEC and NECO 2017, you are no longer fit to be a principal in FCT and I mean it. That is the minimum that we want for every school and you must work towards it,” he stressed.

    The Minister added, “We want the success rate to change. That is very important. We cannot be gathering students and at the end of their final year, all they will have is three credits. I don’t know whether you are proud as a principal that in your school, the success rate is five percent. I want principals that will be determined to say in my school, things must change.

    Infrastructure or no infrastructure, resources or no resources, I want to put myself as a sacrifice and change things.  That is what I want to do before I leave the service. I want to be known to have done something good for Nigeria.”

    Bello also warned principals to desist from charging illegal fees of any sort when provisions have already been made through the FCT Secondary Education Board to run these schools; emphasizing that principals who persist with this ignoble act would also attract heavy sanctions from the FCT Administration.

    His words: “My mission is not to come and make you sad; but the situation is bad and you know it and we are ready to tackle it. But you must be up and doing too and that is why I said I must call all the principals and talk to you to do the right things. That is what this Administration is about. We are ready to put the right things in place. We are ready to work for Nigeria. But we want people that will join us to do this. That is why when you come to FCT today, it is not business as usual and we want to send that message down to our institutions.”

     

  • Boko Haram: Minister orders speedy completion of UN House

    The rehabilitation of the United Nations House in Abuja destroyed by Boko Haram in 2012 should be completed in time for its handover, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Malam Muhammad Bello has directed.

    The minister gave the directive to the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) when he paid an unscheduled visit to the House in the Central Business District, Abuja to ascertain the level of completion.

    The Minister said that the completion would allow the UN agencies presently staying at different locations in the FCT to return to base, thereby making their operation more efficient.

    It would be recalled that the UN House was bombed on August 26, 2012 by Boko Haram terrorists and the Nigerian government awarded contract for its rehabilitation on the 27th December, 2012 and the project is 80 per cent complete as at today.

    Bello stressed that the authorities of the FCDA should sit down with the contractors, Julius Berger Nigeria PLC and the UN Resident Co-ordinator in Nigeria to resolve all grey areas that would lead to the completion and early handover.

    According to a statement issued by the Deputy Director cum Chief Press Secretary, Muhammad Sule, the minister said:  “It is all our duty to see that all the United Nations agencies staying around Abuja are back here. And I think it will send a strong signal to those that bombed this place. Whatever they do to us, we will continue to be strong.”

    He used the opportunity to thank the UN for the support it has been giving to Nigeria; stating that such humanitarian gesture would always be appreciated.

    Taking the Minister round the site, the UN Resident Co-ordinator who is also UNICEF Country Representative, Jean Gough thanked the Minister for the special attention he has been giving to the rehabilitation works.

    The FCDA Executive Secretary, Mr. Adamu Ismaila and some officials of the FCT administration accompanied the Minister on the unscheduled visit.

     

  • Minister condemns theft of traffic light tools, others

    The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Muhammad Bello, has condemned vandals destroying and stealing public facilities, such as covers for storm water drains on the highways, streetlight electrical cables and bulbs as well as traffic lights equipment.

    Bello enjoined residents of the FCT to report suspicious persons to law enforcement agents.

    Bello spoke at a special congress meeting of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) in his honour yesterday at the council Secretariat in Utako District, Abuja.

    He said the FCT Administration would strengthen institutions in the Federal Capital Territory, and maintain extant rules in carrying out its statutory activities.

    The minister stressed that institutions would be allowed to do their work to ensure that past wrongs in are made right.

    In a statement by the  Deputy Director/Chief Press Secretary Muhammad Sule, the minister said Abuja is the only city in Nigeria that is a creation of the law, and in administrating it; the rule of law should take precedence to instil discipline.

    According to him, “we need to strengthen institutions to eradicate individual or selfish interests in our actions and inactions”.

    His words: “I want the Federal Capital Territory and indeed Nigeria to get to a stage where for instance, the director of Urban & Regional Planning will tell the minister or any political appointee that the plot of land you are asking me to earmark cannot be allocated because it is a green area meant for aesthetic, beautification or relaxation points for generations yet unborn”.

    He said the Abuja Light Rail project is 70 per cent complete, and that his administration would get it ready by December 31, 2017.

    The minister hailed the media for supporting him, and appealed for understanding.

    Welcoming guests, NUJ Chairman in Abuja, Mr. Paul Abeche Ella, noted that since 1976 when FCT got its first minister, none of the other 16 ministers had attended the NUJ Congress, just as Malam Bello did today.

    He said the Abuja council is 30 years,  but has no permanent secretariat.

    Ella appealed to the minister to assist in completing the secretariat, presently under construction.

  • No results, no payment, minister tells states

    No results, no payment, minister tells states

    Minister of Health Prof Isaac Adewole has warned that there will be no more payment for states and others that fail to deliver in the ministry’s Saving One Million Lives Programme for Results (SOMLP4R) project.

    Adewole spoke at a meeting with representatives of the states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Kaduna, after the disbursement of $1.5 million to each of them.

    It was organised by the Federal Ministry of Health with Maternal, new born, and child health (MNCH2) programme.

    Adewole said the programme was motivated by the desire to pay for results, rather than for processes and reimbursments.

    The programme has six major pillars and two enablers that can change health outcomes in Nigeria. Adewole listed the pillars as maternal new born and child health, childhood essential medicines and increasing treatment of childhood diseases, improving child nutrition, immunisation, malaria control and elimination of Mother-to-Child Transmission (eMTCT) of HIV.

    The enablers are: promotion of innovation and use of Information Communication Technology (ICT) and improvement of supply and distribution chain.

    The minister said each state received 82 percent of the grant and that more disbursements would be made based on five factors.

    Kaduna State Governor Nasir el-Rufai, the chief host at the meeting, thanked the Minister, assuring him of his commitment to SOMLP4R.

    el-Rufai emphasised his state’s commitment to completing the establishment of Primary Health Care Under One Roof (PHCUOR) and announced efforts by his government to improve the 255 PHCs and 23 comprehensive health centres, as well as other efforts related to the indicators, such as encouraging routine immunisation through meetings with local government chairpersons and traditional rulers.

    “We welcome SOMLP4R and embrace it. I and other Northwest governors are committed to improving healthcare in our states,”  el-Rufai said.

    el-Rufai pleaded with the Federal Government to support states to implement the State Based Health Insurance Scheme (SBHIS) to reduce out-of-pocket spending and enable the poor and vulnerable to afford medical care.

    MNCH2 National Team Lead, Dr. Salma Anas-Kolo, said the SOMLP4R aligns with her programme’s mandate to reduce maternal deaths and improve survival rate. She said the country contributes more than 10 percent of the global burden and highlighted that about 70 percent of the burden in Nigeria is brought by the six Northwest states.

    Dr. Anas-Kolo called for an integrated approach to deliver MNCH services using Primary Health Centres (PHCs) as the platform, calling for increased government funding.

    She praised the Kaduna State government, saying the programme has witnessed significant improvements in the state, especially in human resources. “If by 2019, MNCH2, in collaboration with the government and relevant partners, are able to improve maternal health and strengthen health systems in the Northwest region, the overall health indices in Nigeria will improve,’’ she said.

    Chief of Health, Nutrition and Population, World Bank Dr. Benjamin Loevinsoh, explained that the philosophy of the SOMLP4R programme was around these cardinal points: Robust measurement of results, responsibility of states, competition, relevant performance not absolute and reducing risk. He however noted that states would compete against themselves based on their own baseline as progress and improvement is of the most importance to them.

    The meeting was attended by key stakeholders in the sector. They include Hajiya Binta Lami Adamu Bello; Permanent  Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health; Director of Family Health, Dr. Adebimpe Adebiyi; National Programme Coordinator, the SOMLP4R, Dr. Ibrahim Kana; and   President, Society of Gynaecology and Obstetrics of Nigeria, Prof. J. I.Brian Adinma.

  • Minister, LCCI, telcos condemn Communication Tax Bill

    Minister, LCCI, telcos condemn Communication Tax Bill

    Communications Tehnology Minister,  Adebyo Shittu yesterday in Lagos joined other stakeholders in condemning the Communication Tax Bill pending before the National Assembly, warning that it is capable of threatening the acheivement of the 30 per cent broadband penetration level set by the National Broadband Plan of the Federal Government.

    Shittu, who delivered the keynote address at a forum organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), said the sector has created jobs with its multiplier effect on other sectors of the economy including e-commerce and online shops.

    He said the proposed bill has been criticised by experts who argue that over 60 million Nigerians would be unable to afford basic broadband connection.

    He argued that if the country must move from the current 10 per cent broadband penetration level, there is need to incentivise the populace by through access to low cost data subscription.

    Shittu also said the bill was discriminatory because it targeted only the communication industry to the exclusion of other sectors of the economy.

    He said rather than overtax an already overburdened industry, there is need for government to stimulate the economy and encourage the adoption of communication service by both the rich and poor. The minister said though the government needed money to fund projects, the expected earnings of N20 billion per month from the proposed bill may not be in the interest of the generality of the populace.

    Also, the LCCI and telcos took their turn to highlight the dangers the proposed tax would have on the economy.

    Chairman, LCCI, Communication Law and Taxation Committee, Mr. Bimbo Atitola said the bill, if passed into law, will adversely affect the economy, adding that it could easily be challenged in court as operators will see it as double taxation and illegal since they are already paying value added tax (VAT).

    He cited the  case between Lagos Inland Revenue Service (LIRS) and Eko Hotel where the court held that sales tax amounted to double taxation.

    He said the bill will further compromise third party privacy as safety of data cannot be guaranteed. Atitola advised that additional costs will lead to increase in cost of production, affect consumer behaviour and negate the principle of neutrality. The LCCI committee chairman further said countries with higher taxes have been known to have lower broadband penetration which is a disincentive to foreign direct investment (FDI).

    He urged the National Assembly to suspend the bill or exempt  telcos as they are currently over-taxed. He also added that it was ill-timed and that if it must be passed into law,  the tax should be reduced to below five per cent. In his comparative analysis, he said Cameroon was considering 0 per cent VAT on all ICT products including handsets and computers while Kenya recently removed taxes on all telecoms equipment in a bid to drive growth.

    President, Association of   Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), Mr. Olushola Teniola also called for the discontinuance of debate on the bill as it would not add any value to the economy.

    He said the telcos are currently made to pay over 15 taxes either directly or indirectly not minding the fact that they have contributed enormously to the growth of the economy. “The perceived benefits of the tax will erode the gains; there will be decrease in foreign direct investment (FDI) and its implementation would lead to increase in unemployment,” Teniola warned.

  • Education minister must hear this!

    Sir, This is calling attention to the fate of some graduates of Language and Communication Arts, from the Distance Learning programme of the Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola. Two years after completing their programmes, they are yet to receive their NYSC exemption letter and certificate. Upon inquiries by restless graduates, they were told that the reason that the NYSC did not send the exemption letter was that the course was not accredited by the National Universities Commission.

    If the National Universities Commission did not accredit the course, why did the university continue to run the course and at the same time, offer admission to hundreds of unsuspecting students? Is the university not deliberately ripping off the students knowing that the course is illegal?                        

    It is not acceptable for a university to be offering admission for a course that has not got the approval of the National Universities Commission, the body charged with regulating the activities of the universities in Nigeria. It is imperative for the National Universities Commission to wade into the matter particularly now that it has thrown hundreds of students who have graduated after studying the course into a dilemma. Currently, those who want to use the certificate in their place of work for advancement cannot.           

    More annoying is that the management of the university has failed to take any definite action to sort out the problem with the National Universities Commission.  And this is despite the fact that some of the students had already been given the NYSC exemption letter and the certificate – leaving out those who had some deficiencies in their Ordinary Level results.

    Each visit to the office of the Dean, Student Affairs – the story is the same: the NUC did not accredit the course. We implore the Hon. Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, to cause the management of the Modibbo Adama University of Technology to explain why some students who graduated have received the NYSC exemption letter and certificate, while others were not given and are being told a different story.

    It is unacceptable for the institution to rip off unsuspecting students, especially the working class, that are mostly the students under its Distance Learning programmes. It is hoped that the Minister of Education and the management of the university would treat the issue at hand with the seriousness it deserves to avoid litigation by the aggrieved students.

     

    • Usman Santuraki,

    Demsawo, Jimeta-Yola.  

     

  • Minister, perm sec disagree on hike in Unity School fees

    Minister, perm sec disagree on hike in Unity School fees

    •Adamu: I’m not quarrelling with Anwukah 

    Minister of Education Mallam Adamu Adamu yesterday denied knowledge of increase in the school fees of Unity colleges.

    But the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Folashade Yemi-Esan, confirmed the increase.

    Yemi-Esan admitted there was an increase which, she said, is not up to 300 per cent.

    Parents, under the aegis of National Parent and Teacher Association of Federal Government Colleges (NAPTAFEGC), had protested the increase in fees of Unity colleges, describing it as “commercialisation of education.”

    The association warned that the new fees, if not reversed, would force parents to withdraw their children from the Unity colleges.

    NAPTAFEGC, in a communiqué read to reporters by its National President, Dr. Gabriel Nnaji, at the end of its National Executive council meeting, said the increment from N20,000 to N75,000 was untimely and insensitive.

    According to him, the fee was increased on June 1 by the Federal Government.

    Both Adamu and Yemi-Esan differed during the inauguration and dissemination of the National Assurance HandBook for Basic Secondary Education in Nigeria, in Abuja.

    “‘Yes, the school fees of Federal Government colleges have been increased but not 300 per cent, as claimed.

    “You are aware of the realities in the country; it is important the colleges are able to maintain the students that are there and you must also be aware these schools are tuition free.

    ’’So, what has been increased is the boarding fees; I do not have the figures but it is not N75, 000. It is a list and when you check the breakdown, it is not up to 30 per cent, she said.

    Minister of State for Education Prof. Anthony Anwukah, who supervises basic education, was neither present nor sent any representative, thereby fuelling speculations that there had been a cold war between the two ministers.

    The case became compounded when Adamu refused to acknowledge him during protocols.

    But Adamu challenged anybody claiming he was quarrelling with Anwukah because he (Anwukah) was allegedly sidelined to provide evidence.

    “I am not aware of increase in the fees of Unity schools. I am the minister of Education and I am not aware. Well, you better try to find out. I am not aware that the minister of state has been sidelined. It is not true  that there is a feud between me and the minister of state,” he said.

    On why Anwukah was absent at the event, Adamu said he was not aware.

    He said: “I don’t know why he was absent because the last person I saw in the office was Professor Anwukah. I am not aware I didn’t acknowledge him in my protocol, maybe it was a mistake. The appointments into parastatals under the Ministry of Education is not one sided.”

    The minister defended the shake-up in the education sector, particularly the sacking of the Registrar/Chief Executive Officer of the Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB), Prof. Dibu Ojerinde.

    “As far as I am concerned, everybody was carried along in the appointments in Ministry of Education. The former JAMB Registrar (Ojerinde) was not fired; the tenure of some head of parastatals expired. We just replaced or retained some,” he added.

  • Minister rallies APC members

    Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, (FCT) Malam Muhammad Bello has called on leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the North Central zone to remain united and provide good governance to the populace.

    Bello who made this call when the Deputy National Chairman, North Central zone of the Party, Zakari Idde, led the state chairmen of the zone to pay him a courtesy visit in Abuja, said this was necessary if the Party were to prolong its electoral fortunes in the region.

    He noted that Nigerians were  yearning for change in the manner their affairs were being managed and that the Party should remain the arrowhead and the platform for people to realise that.

    “The Party is in control of all the states in the North Central and the only way it could go back to solicit their support during elections is by providing quality leadership at levels of government,” the Minister emphasised.

    He said, “This is an opportunity for us to show good governance because it is something that our members have been yearning for a long time.  We have to really govern properly to enable the people spot the difference so that next time, when we go back to them, they will receive us with open arms.”

    The minister while recalling that the APC in the FCT was polarised along diverging interests when he assumed office as Minister last year, noted that the Party leaders in the zone played very crucial roles in reconciling and uniting the aggrieved members under one front, which he said helped a great deal in achieving the landslide victory that the Party recorded during the last FCT Area Councils’ elections.

    His words: “You played a reconciliatory and fatherly role. You were able to talk to the aggrieved parties to bring people together. I think that gave us the necessary unity that made it possible for us to get the successes that we got during the last Area Councils’ election”.

    According to a statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary, Muhammad Sule, the minister further stressed the need for the Party to build upon this unity; adding that its electoral successes would always depend on it.

    “At the end of the day, no matter our differences, I think our objective is to win elections and to provide good governance. For that to happen, we have to be united, extremely patient and know that under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari, we will continue to show what good governance is,” he stated.

    The minister assured that the FCT Administration would continue to provide the moral and logistics support to the Party in order to strengthen its structure in the region as well as cushion some of the challenges being faced by the Party’s leaders across board.

    Speaking earlier, the National Deputy Chairman of the APC North Central zone, Zakari Idde, thanked the Minister for his efforts to win five out of the six Area Councils during the last Councils’ election.

    The Deputy National Chairman while commending President Muhammadu Buhari for his anti-corruption crusade noted that the zonal leadership condemns in strong terms the impeachment threat on him.