The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Nigeria newspapers

I remain focused in spite of coming elections – Ambode

Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State on Thursday said his administration would remain focused on all its development plans and programmes in the state in spite of the coming elections.

Ambode made the declaration while declaring open a three-day retreat for members of the state Executive Council and Body of Permanent Secretaries with the theme “Effective Strategic Planning for an Emerging Smart City” in Epe.

The governor, who is spending his first term in office, is still eligible to seek another term in 2019, and primary elections of political parties for the coming elections are to hold this year.

He said though people believed governance would slow down this year because of the next elections, his administration would remain focused and ensure steady progress is achieved in the state.

The governor said both local and international development indices reflect that steady progress had been recorded in the task of making the state one of the foremost commercial and social hubs in Africa.

He, however, acknowledged that the government reforms had not been without challenges.

Read Also: Ambode deserves re-election, says PDP lawmaker in Lagos

“Some of our reforms remain challenging because of institutional difficulties and corruption. We presently experience this in some of our on-going reforms,” Ambode said.

He reiterated his commitment to the people-oriented style of governance in spite of the challenges being faced.

Ambode said the theme of the retreat was apt, but that the constraint was how to effectively and strategically plan to actualise the vision, considering the state’s peculiar challenges.

The governor commended the participants for the successes so far recorded, but said a lot still needed to be done.

He urged them to put forward ideas and suggestions that could further enhance the status of Lagos.

According to him, the state, with their cooperation, will become as a globally competitive Smart City.

He charged them to continue with “Strategic planning Template’’ which was working for the state, and to let their institutions, Ministries or Agencies speak for them.

“To plan effectively and strategically requires us to think, not just outside the box, but to think globally and act locally. We must look beyond our borders for ideas but consider all our local situation.

“We must do things differently, be ready to be called names and to encounter resistance.

“However, we must remain steadfast and let posterity judge our actions and intentions; someday, the resistance will become support and endorsement,’’ he said.

NAN

January 25, 2018
AU urges Member States to work towards financial independence

African Union (AU) Chairperson, Moussa Mahamat Faki, on Thursday called on member states to strengthen efforts towards the pan African block’s financial independence.

Faki made the call during the opening session of the AU’s 32nd Executive Council’s meeting, comprising AU member states’ foreign ministers, at the pan African block’s headquarters in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa.

Faki, who stressed the need to strengthen efforts to support AU’s ambition towards financial independence, said that “Without its independence Africa is nothing, with its independence Africa is everything.”

According to the chairperson, the year 2017 has witnessed an increase in AU member states financial contribution to the Union, while helping to decrease financial contributions from non-African partners.

According to Mahamat, the contribution from non-member partners for the AU’s Peace Fund was reduced to 74 per cent during 2017.

He also disclosed the plan to further down the number to 59 per cent during the year 2018.

AU leaders had adopted a financing proposal at the 27th AU Summit, which was held in Rwanda in 2016, to direct all.

AU member states to implement a 0.2-per cent levy on eligible imports from non-member countries.

The initiative mainly aspires to create an equitable and predictable source of financing for AU and to reduce dependency on partner funds.

The financing proposal targets to cover 100 percent of the Union’s operational budget, 75 per cent of its program budget and 25 per cent of AU’s peace fund.

As of December 2017, 20 member states were at various stages of implementing the decision.

NAN

January 25, 2018
NDLEA arrests 646 suspects, seizes 1,238,45kgs of illicit drugs in Jigawa

The Jigawa command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency ( NDLEA ), arrested 646 suspects and recovered 1,283.54 kilograms of narcotics in 2017, according to its spokesman, Mairaga Ya’u.

Ya’u, in a statement on Thursday in Dutse, said that 112 of those arrested had been convicted and were serving various jail terms.

According to him, 416 persons were counseled by the agency within the period under review.

He said that 40,000 persons benefited from the agency’s 68 drug preventive education lectures/advocacy talks conducted in primary, secondary and tertiary institutions.

The spokesman said that the agency had arrested 30 persons over drug-related crimes this year, while 4.51 kilograms of assorted drugs were also recovered.

Read Also: Suspected drug traffickers kill NDLEA officer in Kano

“Already, 11 persons, out of the 30 arrested this year, have been convicted and sent to jail, while 13 persons are currently undergoing counseling,” he said.

The spokesman decried the rising spate of drug-related crimes in Jigawa, and called for concerted efforts to rid the state of the menace.

“The drug war should not be left to NDLEA alone; everyone has a role to play in the effort to rid the country of drug trafficking and abuse,” he said.

NAN

January 25, 2018
Nigerian banks not structured to fund SMEs – Chamber

Mr Adetokunbo Kayode, President, Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), says the management of the funds for Small, Medium and Enterprises (SMEs) by banks in Nigeria is a weak link in the financing of small businesses.

He said this during his inauguration as the 10th President of the Chamber in Abuja on Tuesday.

“We all appreciate government’s interest to support SMEs, especially on the issue of funding. But the management of the SME funds by the banks is a very huge issue, a weak link in the chain.

“We all know our banks are not structured to fund SMEs. The organized private sector is therefore ready to help canvass and develop new concepts of alternate funding mechanism for SMEs. This will include finance leasing, peer certification for scrutiny of facility for SMEs,” he said.

Kayode also called on the Federal Government to fully operate the National Economic Council and urged state governments to replicate same.

According to him, that is the body that will help plan the economy, where critical policies are determined.

He said this would bring the era of reactionary and ad hoc policies to an end.

Read Also:‘We are growing SMEs to drive Bayelsa’s economy’

He advised that government at all levels should imbibe the ideal that governance was for the welfare of the people, and that to achieve that, there must be a national vision.

He explained that vision 20:20:20 died the day it was launched because the government did not conceive, birth and own it.

“A government must set up its own high ideals and with passion, chart a mission course to achieve that vision,” he said.

The ACCI president called for an end to the emphasis by government agencies on revenue collection.

“All these agencies have their core mandates; we want agencies in 2018 and beyond to concentrate on their core function which is to support enterprises to grow, rather than their unbridled demand for payment of revenues.

“All these make doing business very harrowing and unprofitable. It is unacceptable for a people to pay for compliance with the law. Agencies ought to make it easier, cheaper, to obey the law, then make breaking the law very expensive,” he said.

Kayode said the chamber would move from an amorphous organogram to a structured organisation. According to him, the chamber will set up a secretariat with four centres, including business entrepreneurship, skills and technology centre and the Abuja trade and convention centre.

Mrs Iyalode Lawson, the National President, Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), also called for support from members to achieve its planned goals for the benefits of the association.

Lawson advised the president to carry out his vision through public policy advocacy tools and in-depth knowledge.

“The association believes that with the inauguration of the president, the chamber will achieve more remarkable increase in prestige, membership and finances.

“I look forward to the establishment of new ventures while existing ones continue to thrive,” she said.

Lawson said NACCIMA would support Abuja Chamber to advocate for policies and programmes that could benefit the private sector and encourage the growth and development of enterprises in Nigeria.

NAN

January 24, 2018
Police reiterates ban on fireworks

The police command in Imo on Wednesday reiterated the ban on sale, possession or discharge of any kind of explosive or fireworks.

A statement by the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, Andrew Enwerem, noted that the ban was still in force.

He added that “the use of fireworks not only constitute threat to fire outbreak but a threat to security.”

The PPRO advised parents and guardians to educate their children and wards on the consequences of such acts, especially during the Christmas and new year celebrations.

He also warned that any person found selling, possessing or discharging fireworks of any kind in the state would be arrested and made to face the full wrath of the law.

He advised the public to contact the police command distress control room on
the following numbers — 08034773600 and 08098880197 — for information on any security threats.

NAN

December 6, 2017
Saraki, Kwankwaso, others should return home – PDP

The Board of Trustees of Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP ) has called on aggrieved members who left the party to follow the footsteps of former Vice President Abubakar Atiku “and return home.”

The Chairman of the board, Sen. Walid Jibrin, made the call while briefing journalists on Wednesday in Abuja.

He said “as the party joyfully welcomes Atiku back to his home PDP, we are equally waiting to receive more members.

“We are waiting for the President of the Senate, Sen. Bukola Saraki, Sen. Rabiu Kwankwaso, other senators, members of House of Representatives and APC governors who left the PDP.

“Let all of us unite and take back power from APC come 2019.”

Read also:I represent new face of PDP – Dokpesi

Ahead of the December 9 PDP Convention, Jibrin urged aspirants to develop the spirit of sportsmanship.

He urged aspirants to accept the verdict of delegates, cooperate with the winners and remain loyal to the party as power comes from God.

Jibrin said the BoT had not anointed any contestant, saying the board was ready to work with whoever emerged victorious.

“I want to assure our party members that whoever emerges as National Chairman, the BoT is ready to cooperate and work with him or her for the progress of the party.

“I will like to reiterate our position that the BoT has not anointed any candidates for now,” he said.

He commended the Judiciary for saving Nigeria’s democracy by putting and end to the crisis in the party.

NAN

December 6, 2017
I represent new face of PDP – Dokpesi

Founder of Daar Communications, Chief Raymond Dokpesi, said he represented the new face of Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP ) where political aspirations of members would be attained.

Dokpesi, a national chairmanship aspirant of the party, stated this at a news conference in Owerri, on Wednesday as he rounded off his nationwide campaign ahead of Saturday’s national convention of the party.

He said that his leadership would mark a departure from the culture of imposition and impunity of the past, and urged Imo delegates to the convention to vote for a new beginning in the party.

“Vote for a new beginning and a new PDP that will ensure and give each member of PDP a level-playing ground to attain their dreams.

“Vote for leadership that will be respected by all and sundry, leadership of the party that will recapture power in 2019.

“That is the kind of leadership Chief Raymond Dokpesi is offering,” he said.

Read also: Dokpesi calls for unity among PDP members

Dokpesi said that the party was on the rise again after its defeat in the 2015 general elections, adding that to sustain the achievement, it needed a leader who had what was required to properly project it.

In his response, Chairman of PDP in Imo, Mr Charles Ezekwem, said that the state was yet to decide on candidates to vote for at the convention.

According to Ezekwem, a collective decision on that will be made before the convention.

In his speech, Mr Chuma Nnaji, a running mate in the governorship election in the state in 2015, said that the delegates from Imo would vote for honest aspirants who understood the challenges of the state.

Nnaji described Dokpesi as one of such aspirants.

NAN

December 6, 2017
Army kills Three insurgents in Borno

The Nigerian Army on Tuesday said its troops had killed three Boko Haram insurgents in Sabsawa axis of Sambisa forest area of Operation.

Brig. Gen. Sani Kukasheka, the Director, Army Public Relations, made the disclosure in a statement issued in Maiduguri.

Kukasheka said that the troops killed the insurgents in an ambush on Monday at Sabsawa while trying to cross into Tangos area.

Read also:Army rescues 212 captives, capture one Boko Haram commander

He further disclosed that the troops recovered an AK-47 rifle and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) from the insurgents.

“Troops of 202 Battalion, Sector 1, Operation LAFIYA DOLE at the early hours of Monday Dec.4, sprang an ambush on unsuspecting Boko Haram terrorists along Sabsawa axis.

“During the encounter, the troops neutralised 3 Boko Haram terrorists trying to cross between Tangos.

‘’In addition, the troops recovered AK-47 rifles and Improvised Explosives making devices from the terrorists,“he said.

NAN

December 5, 2017
Imo Commissioner for Happiness and Couple’s Fulfillment blasts critics

Mrs Ogechi Ololo, Imo State Commissioner for Happiness and Couple’s Fulfillment, on Tuesday, advised those critical of her appointment, to `keep quiet.’

Ololo, who is also Gov Rochas Okorocha‘s sister, was among the 28 commissioners sworn in on Monday.

Ololo, on her twitter handle @MrsOgechiOlolo in response to series of criticism on her appointment expressed surprised at the outbursts of young Nigerians’ on Okorocha for such an appointment.

“Let me educate Nigerians on this, for those lacking knowledge, United Arab Emirates has ministers of happiness and they are ahead of us.

“I am truly surprised by the outbursts of young Nigerians on his excellency; Dr Rochas Okorocha. If you don’t understand something, keep quiet, read and research. Make good use of your senses.

The Commissioner said the mandate of her office includes ensuring citizens of Imo state remain happy despite the economic meltdown and Biafran fiasco.

Read Also: Okorocha appoints sister as commissioner for Happiness and Couples fulfilment

Others include ensuring couples in Imo state have a reduced divorce rate and better fulfilled marriages and cater to welfare for the average Imo indigene.

In a time where couple divorce is at an all time high, I will use my good office to ensure couples in Imo will be fulfilled and serve as an example to the world.

NAN

December 5, 2017
2018 Appropriation Bill passes second reading at Senate

The Bill for an Act to authorise the issue from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation the sum of N8.6 trillion passed through second reading at the Senate on Tuesday.

This followed conclusion of a week-long debate on general principles of the Bill by the lawmakers at plenary.

Out of the N8.6 trillion for the 2018 Budget estimates, N456 billion is for Statutory Transfer and N2 trillion for Debt Service.

It proposed N3 trillion for Recurrent-Non-Debt Expenditure and N2 trillion for contribution to the Development Fund for Capital Expenditure for the year ending December 31, 2018.

In his remarks, President of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki, commended the lawmakers for taking out time to make contributions to the general principles of the Bill.

He urged standing committees to work within the two-week time frame given for defence of the budget, which would commence on Wednesday through December 18.

Saraki called on Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to comply with invitations for the defence of the budget.

“We know that the time-table is very tight and we will be suspending plenary to enable us start the defence. Committee chairmen and members should please ensure to keep to the time-table.

“I want to therefore use this opportunity to issue a warning to heads of MDAs to strictly respect the letter of invitation to attend the defence.

“This is not time for excuse for ministers or heads of parastatals to be travelling and not be able to attend the defence.

“We do not have the time. It is a very short timetable so that the committees can wrap up to be able to present their reports by the time we resume on December 19.

Read also: Senate probe alleged human rights abuses by SARS

“Also, the Appropriation Committee should take note of the comments of the Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu.

“The committee should particularly note the aspect where he talked about making it mandatory for the executive to come back to us for expenditure in excess of the budget or the benchmark,’’ he said.

He announced that there would a public hearing on the budget in the course of the week to enable the public have input before its passage.

The Bill was referred to Committee on Appropriation with directive to return it to plenary on December 19 when plenary was adjourned to allow standing committees to commence budget defence.

President Muhammadu Buhari had on November 7, presented the 2018 Budget Estimates of N8.6 trillion to the joint session of the National Assembly.

NAN

December 5, 2017