The Nation Newspaper

Tag: News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

  • Ondo CAN preaches religious tolerance among Nigerians

    Ondo CAN preaches religious tolerance among Nigerians

    The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Ondo State Chapter, on Thursday urged Nigerians to imbibe religious tolerance.

    Rev. John Ayo-Oladapo, the CAN Chairman in the state,  told the News Agency of Nigeria  (NAN) in Okitipupa  that religious tolerance was a key factor in  fostering  development and nation building.

    He said that intolerance would only cause chaos and retrogression politically, economically and socially in the country.

    According to him, Nigeria has many religions and no one should be forced to practise any in order not to threaten the corporate existence of the country.

    Ayo-Oladapo spoke with NAN shortly after the swearing-in ceremony of new CAN executives for Okitipupa Local Government Chapter held at Saint John’s Catholic Church, Okitipupa.

    He urged the new executives to be diligent in preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ while living in peace with one another.

    Primate Elisha Akinsulere, the new CAN Chairman, while speaking with NAN, thanked God and the Christian community for the opportunity to serve a second term.

    He also thanked the state chapter of CAN for the assistance rendered to him during his first term in office and promised to work harder to move the association forward.

    NAN reports that other officers of CAN in the council area included Pastor Peter Akinyelure, Vice-Chairman; Rufus Omosule, Secretary, Rev. Emnanuel Tehingbola, Treasurer and Folorunso Akinkuoye, Public Relations Officer.

     

  • Lawyer urges Nigerians to stop celebrating corruption

    Lawyer urges Nigerians to stop celebrating corruption

    A Legal Practitioner, Mr Stanley Dien has called on Nigerians to stop celebrating each time the Federal Government loses its case against alleged corrupt individuals in court.

    Dien made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja against the backdrop of corruption cases the Federal Government has been losing in courts.

    According to him, “I shudder at the rate at which some Nigerians celebrate people that were alleged to have made away with the country’s money.”

    He called on the citizenry to have a sober reflection on the way they celebrate allegedly corrupt people whenever they won their cases in court.

    He said that such could send the wrong signal to the international community.

    The legal practitioner said that though the decision of the court had been very worrisome, especially in the fight against corruption by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, the law must however be allowed to take its course.

    Dien said that there was no point to celebrate such losses, adding that since Nigeria operates a democratic government, the rule of law must be allowed to prevail.

    He said that a situation where the court would keep relying on technicalities to rule on a case would not augur well in the fight against corruption.

    He said that the judge handling the case involving Justice Adeniyi Ademola should have gone into a full trial, adding that the justice should have been allowed to state how he came about the money

    The legal practitioner said that the judge should have allowed the case to go on its merit and people should not be allowed to celebrate it.

    The News Agency of Nigeria, (NAN) recalls that an FCT High Court in Abuja had on April 5, dismissed the 18-count criminal charges brought by the Federal Government against Ademola of the Federal High Court and his wife.

    Also, the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos on April 3 ordered the unfreezing of the account of Lagos lawyer, Mike Ozekhome (SAN), with a sum of N75million professional fee paid to him by Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State.

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had alleged that the money was proceeds of corruption.

    The initial forfeiture of the sum of 900,000 dollars found in an account of former First Lady, Mrs Patience Jonathan was similarly reversed on the order of another court.

    Former Minister of Niger Delta, Elder Godsday Orubebe was also discharged and acquitted on offence bothering on corruption after the Attorney General for the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami told ICPC that the case filed against Orubebe did not exist.

  • More art theatres will provide employment opportunities – Terra Kulture boss

    More art theatres will provide employment opportunities – Terra Kulture boss

    Mrs Bolanle Austen-Peters, the Managing Director, Terra Kulture, an art firm, on Wednesday called for the building of  more modern art theatres to generate employment opportunities for Nigerians.

    Austen-Peters told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that more people were willing to patronize art theatres to relax from the hustling and bustling of the society.

    She said that the theatres would create employment opportunities for many who could be employed as ticket sellers, film operators, cleaners, food sellers, guards and security men.

    She said that they would also serve as veritable platforms for artists to showcase their talents and their creativity to the world.

    According to her, many budding artists can be discovered and be groomed, and thus reduced social vices in the country from there.

    They could also double as movie-screening venues, hosting of live comedies and entertainment shows, stage plays, art exhibitions and musical concerts, she said.

    Austen –Peters said that her organization recently inaugurated a 400- sitting capacity private art theatre in Lagos as part of its contributions to support government’s initiative to develop the sector.

    According to her, the multi-million naira private art theatre will be of use to artists, creative managers and producers to showcase their talents and handworks.

    “We have limited art theatre halls in the country. The facility will encourage stage productions by local and foreign producers which her organization had been popularized over the years.

    “This initiative will give the theatre industry a boost and reinforce the position of Lagos as the leading destination for premier entertainment in Nigeria.

    “The theatre will also double as a movie-screening venue, hosting of live comedy and entertainment shows, stage plays, art exhibitions and musical concert.

    “It will also provide Lagos, its environs, and the country a wide schedule of theatre, comedy, music and dance shows,’’ she said.

    They are essential facilities needed to boost activities in the art industry, she said.

    “It will be an avenue where up-and-coming artists can exhibit and showcase their creativity and talents to the world and learn from the outstanding ones.

    “It is also an avenue designed for art practitioners to meet, train and groom talented individuals in art, drama, culture, comedy and music,’’ she said.

    According to the Terra Kulture chief, her organization is consulting for the Lagos State Government in building theatre art halls across the state.

    She said with more art theatres in place, it would boost employment opportunities for youths.

    She said that other art theatres would complement Terra Kulture as training centres for people who wanted to learn more about African cultures and lifestyles.

    Austen-Peters lauded Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State’s efforts to develop the theatre industry in the state through the building of  art theatre arenas.

    NAN reports that Gov. Ambode in January expressed his administration’s commitment to build art theatre arenas across the state to boost activities in the sector.

    “The building of art theatres will go a long way in re-positioning the face and image of the industry in the state and in Nigeria at large,’’ she said.

  • NPS establishes second female prison in Nigeria

    NPS establishes second female prison in Nigeria

    The Nigerian Prisons Service (NPS) on Wednesday announced the establishment of a second all-female prison in Nigeria.
    Mr Peter Tenkwa, the Controller of NPS in Adamawa, confirmed the development in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Yola.
    Tenkwa said that the development followed the ongoing restructuring of the Nigeria Prison Services to be gender sensitive.
    “The Nigerian Prisons Service has established the second female prison in Nigeria after that of Kiri-kiri Female Prison in Lagos.
    “The Numan Old Prison in Adamawa is now the second female prison in Nigeria with a total capacity of 400 inmates; currently there are six inmates in the prison,’’ Tenkwa said.
    He said that seven out of the 17 prisons in the state were destroyed by the Boko Haram insurgency when he assumed duty in June 2016.
    According to him, with the collaboration of state government and the prison department the Mubi, Maiha and Ganye prisons were renovated and put back to operation.
    Tenkwa said that Mubi, Maiha and Ganye prisons currently had 184, 43 and 145 inmates, respectively.
    NAN reports that sequel to establishment of the female prison in Numan, the male prisoners in the Numan Old Prison were taken to a new prison that had been opened in Numan.

  • Gombe spends N900m on Kaltungo snakebite centre

    Gombe spends N900m on Kaltungo snakebite centre

    The Gombe State Government on Tuesday said it spent N900 million to equip the snakebite treatment hospital and research centre in Kaltungo.

    The state’s Commissioner for Health, Dr Kennedy Ishaya, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Gombe that the equipment had already been installed in the 200-bed capacity hospital.

    He said “the newly constructed centre is now fully set; we have received a consignment of hospital equipment and had installed some and now in the process of installing the others.

    “We have employed the first batch of workers, about 42 labourers, cleaners, gardeners and security guards; we are just waiting for the inauguration of the hospital.”

    According to him, the centre also has an eye clinic and dental unit.

    “The eye clinic is for patients who were bitten by spouting cobra, as they may likely be affected in the eyes,” he explained.

    Ishaya said the dental unit would take care of those bleeding in the mouth and other complications caused by snakebite.

    He explained that the hospital would be linked with the Specialist Hospital Gombe in case there were patients that would need dialysis after snakebite because of renal failure.

    “Snake poison is terrible, virtually every system of the body could be affected,” he said.

    He added that nurses would be deployed from other hospitals, as well as those that would graduate from the sShool of Nursing, Gombe, to the centre.

    The snakebite treatment centre is currently occupying one ward at the General Hospital, Kaltungo.

  • ‘Fashion can boost Nigeria’s iconic cities’

    ‘Fashion can boost Nigeria’s iconic cities’

    The founder, Africa Fashion Week London/Nigeria, Ronke Ademiluyi, says that fashion can be used as a veritable platform to enhance the profile of the nations iconic cities.

    Ademiluyi made the assertion during a visit to the Lagos office of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Tuesday.

    According to her, we realized that most of our historic monuments are going down and we need to sell it to the outside world to draw them into our country.

    “Nigeria has the potential to become one of the biggest tourism havens in Africa, if we do not promote what we have as our own heritage, no one will do it for us.

    “I mean 10 top countries, its going in billions and trillions, look at little Gambia, in fact, their economy is on tourism, nine months of the year, they are earning from tourism,’’ she said.

    Ademuliyi said that African Fashion Industry was worth about 31 billion dollars and still growing by the day.

    “There is recognition for the African fashion industry across the globe, and we are trying to encourage upcoming designers to have a platform that will boost our tourism industry,’’ she added.

    In the same vein, Aiki Odiawa, a partner in the Africa Fashion Week London/Nigeria, said there was a cyclical effect of the fashion industry on the economy

    “Nigerian designers are very vibrant and unique, they have what it takes to turn the fashion industry into economic gain by diverting fashion traffic into the country,’’ she said.

    She said that Africa fashion week started in London with over 50 designers of which 40 were from Nigeria.

    “The Nigerian fashion industry sets the pace in the fashion industry. When we set the ball rolling, everyone will follow.

    “In Brazil, they want to know everything about African culture and Nigeria has it; we have reached the historical “Point of No Return’’ that the government has just refurbished, let the foreign visitors go there.

    “At the end of the day, we are looking at a balance of payment in terms of Forex; we are talking about Forex not coming into the country.

    “But when these people come in they spend foreign currency, and we must grow the market ourselves and show them what we have.

    “I’m sure people in Lagos haven’t even been to Tinubu Square in recent times, it is an amazing place to go to now, the National Theatre is an edifice that is worth coming down to look at.

    “We all queue in front of Madam Tussaud in London, we queue in front of Eiffel Tower in Paris, it’s the same thing, and we are even better off because we’ve got stories to tell.

    “We’ve got tales to tell, those are all artificial pieces that were made there, but we have stories to tell about all the things we have.

    “For the country, we are talking about hospitality business, we are talking foreign exchange, we are talking inflow of air travel and road travel.

    “And even tourism within the country would be improved by the time people know that there are things for them to see, it will educate our children.

    She told NAN that the forthcoming 2017 Africa Fashion Week, Nigeria, tagged “The Iconic Catwalk Show’’ would take place at the National Theatre and Tinubu Square on April 1 and April 2 respectively.

  • Suicide: Psychiatrists urges quick passage of mental health bill

    Suicide: Psychiatrists urges quick passage of mental health bill

    Worried by increasing rate of suicides and attempted suicides, two psychiatrists have called on the senate to pass the Mental Health Bill into law to address mental disorders including depression.

    Dr Moruf Mustapha and Dr Oluwadamilola Ajayi said in Lagos that a mental health law would go a long way to address the huge burden of mental disorders and prevent suicides in the country.

    Mustapha and Ajayi jointly made the call in a statement they made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday.

    The doctors made the call against the backdrop of the March 19 suicide by a medical doctor, Dr Allwell Orji, who jumped from the Third Mainland Bridge into the Lagos lagoon.

    According to the doctors, mental health burdens are hidden and can culminate in suicide.

    “Mental disorders remain hidden, and as a result, such disorders are not being diagnosed and treated.

    “It is estimated that one in four individuals globally will go through a mental health challenge in their life time.

    “One of the commonest mental disorders with significant morbidity and widespread notoriety is depression.

    “Depression is not profound sadness; it is not just an inability to cope with life experiences; it is not caused by a character or personality flaw; it is not a moral failing, neither is it a spiritual affliction.

    “It is an illness, a mental illness, that may end in mortality, possibly through suicide,“ the doctors stated.

    They regretted that the Mental Health Bill had yet to be passed into law since 2008.

    “The proposed Mental Health Bill has been bouncing back and forth between the legislative and executive arms of the Nigerian Government since 2008.

    “In the meantime, Nigerians make do with an antiquated law, the Lunacy Ordinance, passed in 1916.

    “This outdated document provides outmoded procedures, terminologies and processes which, sadly, most states in Nigeria must use because this is the only legislative framework in mental health practice that our country recognises.

    Mustapha and Ajayi said that the Nigerians had been expressing divergent views on the possible cause of the March 19 suicide but talked little about the possibility of a mental disorder.

    The doctors said that more than four-fifths of all suicides could be attributed to mental illness, with depression having a large proportion of the statistic.

    They also decried dearth of psychiatrists in the country.

    “There are less than 500 practicing psychiatrists in Nigeria, which has a population of more than 180 million people.

    “This gives a ratio of one psychiatrist to about 360,000 citizens.

    “The panoramic picture of mental health in Nigeria is not only gloomy, it is dire.

    “In the middle of this challenge, doctors, old and young, specialists and generalists, surgeons and physicians, are negotiating their way out of the country’s borders,’’ they added.

    NAN reports that less than a week after Orji`s death, the police rescued a 58-year-old textile merchant on Lagos Island , Mrs Titilayo Momoh, on the same bridge from jumping into the lagoon over an N18 million debt.

  • Ministry to review environmental laws to reflect global best practice

    Ministry to review environmental laws to reflect global best practice

    The Federal Ministry of Environment says it will review the country’s environmental laws to reflect global best practice.

    Mr John Alonge, the Director, Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), Federal Ministry of Environment, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

    Alonge said the review would help ensure sustainability of the environment

    “We are looking at a situation whereby we’ll have quality guidelines that will reflect the emerging global issues.

    “So we are also trying to see how we are going to revise old guidelines and also develop new ones and at the end of the day see that the existing ones are revised in line with emerging global trends.

    “And not only that, we are looking at the quality assurance of the process, that is, the process of EIA must meet international standards.

    “So we are looking at the situation whereby there will be periodic system of review of our process, see where we are meeting up and where we are not meeting up, so that we can bridge the gap.’’

    He said the act was presently in the Ministry of Justice after which it would be forwarded to the Federal Executive Council and later to the National Assembly.

    He said the department`s mandate was to ensure a cleaner and healthier environment by monitoring how the environmental assessment would be carried out across the country.

    The director said that the essence of reviewing the environmental laws and guidelines was to manage and control widespread environmental degradation in the country.

    Alonge said the environment act had been in existence for more than two decades and needed to be reviewed.

    He noted that the ministry had organised various stakeholder meetings on the issue with a view to ensuring effective implementation of the reviewed act.

    He also said the ministry collaborated with Ministries Department and Agencies (MDAs) and other relevant stakeholders to enable it to actualise the plan.

    “We discovered that there is deficiency in some environmental areas, such as climate change, environmental assessment among others.

    “There are plans, programmes and policy that are affecting the environment so if the act is reviewed, all the environmental problems will be addressed.’’

  • Anyansi urges contractor to hasten work on Enyimba Stadium

    Anyansi urges contractor to hasten work on Enyimba Stadium

    The Chairman, Enyimba FC of Aba, Felix Anyansi-Agwu, has called on the contractor handling the Enyimba Stadium to hasten work on the project to enable the team to return to their base.

    Anyansi-Agwu, who made the call on Monday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Calabar, commended Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia for his untiring effort to see that the team returns to its base.

    He said: “I thank the governor of Abia who has been putting in a lot of efforts to mak sure that we return to Aba.

    “So, we are very grateful to him, I call on the contractor handling the job to hasten up construction so that the team returns to its fortress’’.

    According to him, Enyimba has not performed well this season because they are playing away from home.

    He added that their opponents had taken advantage of that in most of their matches.

    “We have not done so well this season due to a lot of factors.

    “We are playing in Calabar and this gives opposing teams the impetus to prepare, knowing that we are playing away from home and this has been an added advantage to them.

    “This is unlike when a team is coming to Aba, you are already one goal down before coming.

    “But here in Calabar, they feel it is a neutral ground. These are some of the difficult situations we find ourselves in,’’ Anyansi-Agwu said.

    He said that, as soon as the stadium was ready, Enyimba would return to Aba to continue with their exploits.

    “We are a team with pedigree and a lot of flash-points. We have never been into any tournament just for participation.

    “We always want to win a trophy and when you win a trophy then you can now talk of representing the country.’’

  • King of Morocco congratulates President Buhari on safe return home

    King of Morocco congratulates President Buhari on safe return home

    King Mohammed VI of Morocco has congratulated President Muhammadu Buhari on his successful return from a medical vacation in London.

    Mr Femi Adesina, the president’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, said the King congratulated Buhari via telephone conversation on Thursday.

    Adesina said the Moroccan monarch expressed delight and happiness at the kind of reception Nigerians gave Buhari when he returned home.

    Mohammed VI said the reception was evidence of a leader widely loved by his people.

    The Monarch, who had been in Nigeria on a state visit last December, invited Buhari to also visit Morocco.

    Responding, Buhari thanked the Moroccan monarch for his call and the growing partnership between the two countries.

    Earlier today, a Moroccan delegation made up of top government officials had met with senior Nigerian government officials.

    The two leaders expressed happiness at the success of the meeting.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalled that King Mohammed VI on March 1, 2017 called to ask about Buhari’s health during his vacation in London.

    The two leaders also discussed the current stage of the Morocco-Nigeria Atlantic crude oil pipeline project.

    The king also thanked Buhari for Nigeria’s support in returning Morocco to the African Union and notified him of Morocco’s request to join the Economic Community for West African States (ECOWAS).