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Tag: Ogun

  • Ogun nurses bemoan personnel shortage

    Ogun nurses bemoan personnel shortage

    The Ogun State Chapter of National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) has urged the state to reposition the health sector and increase its personnel to improve physical and mental needs of patients, and attend to the overall wellbeing of nurses.

    Its Chairman, Comrade Roseline Solarin, who made this known in Abeokuta, the state capital as part of activities to commemorate this year’s International Nurses Week,  said nurses are the first point of contact in health services delivery and the heartbeat of health care service. Nurses, he said, play pivotal role in disease prevention, promotion and healing of both the mind and the body of patients.

    Solarin said it was worrisome that  Ogun State has about 3,000 nurses, including those at the state and Federal health institutions, as against 7,000 nurses it had five years ago to cater for about four million people. He  noted that many Nurses have retired and a few that were employed by the state do not match the number of those that have retired. “This has brought about gross shortage of manpower in our health facilities, coupled with the expansion of units in hospital. The nurses/patient ratio supposed to be one to four, but presently in Ogun State it is one Nurse to 20 patients, which is totally outrageous and unbearable,”Solarin said.

    According to her, lack of adequate security in most hospital poses a great threat to nurses in the state. He also identified lack of adequate equipment/and instruments to work with and where there are available, many of them have become obsolete, which have caused major challenges on service delivery in most general hospitals across the state.

    She pleaded with the state to do the needful to reposition the health sector, noting that out of five Nursing Schools belonging to the state, only one is functioning, while the other four have lost their accreditation.

    She urged the nurses to put more efforts into their profession in order to be relevant in their respective positions. She noted the importance of education in nursing practice, saying that some Nurses tend to hold on to previous knowledge and skills without making efforts to improve and maintain new ones.

    “Many Nurses nowadays are not willing to accept the challenges of staying abreast with education and development of new skills in their areas of nursing practice. They don’t make the move to forge ahead which is inimical to this noble profession,” she said.

    For the nursing practice in Nigeria to develop, the Nurses, she said, must rededicate their commitment to the professional ethics of nursing and acknowledge that their primary assignment is to the welfare of the clients, regardless of the client’s status. They must also participate in development of the profession through continuous education, research and clinical studies. “We nurses need re-orientation about our attitude to practice, profession, society and clients and then eradicate our resistance to change and global professional, clinical, technical, and theoretical advancement,” Solarin said.

  • Osinbajo seeks Reps’ approval for $1.5b external loan for 10 states

    Osinbajo seeks Reps’ approval for $1.5b external loan for 10 states

    The House of Representatives is set to consider the approval of $1.5b external loan for 10 states.

    The states are Abia, Ebonyi, Enugu, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Plateau, Ogun and Ondo.

    The loan request presented to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara by the Acting President was meant infrastructural development for the affected states.

    In the letters dated 25th May, 2017, he stated that the request was in tune with the 2016-2018 External Borrowing Plan earlier approved by the National Assembly.

    Osinbajo stated that the total loans being presented for special consideration and approval is US$1,492,400,000.00.

    While soliciting for the approval of the House, he added, “It will be highly appreciated if you could kindly give this request an expedited consideration and approval to enable the states meet up with all other effectiveness conditions for implementation of the projects in their respective states”.

    The breakdown showed that Kaduna is seeking $350m from World Bank; Ogun, $350m (World Bank); Ebonyi, $70m (AfDB); Abia, $100m (AfDB); Katsina, $110m (Islamic Development Bank), Jigawa, $32.4m (Islamic Development Bank); Ebonyi, $80m (Islamic Development Bank); and Kano, $200m.

    Enugu, Kano, Plateau and Ondo loan requests totaled $200m from French Development Agency.

  • Ogun begins council workers’, pensioners’ screening today

    The screening of Ogun State local government pensioners among retired primary school teachers and pre-1991 retired teachers will begin today.

    The screening is expected to end on June 13.

    A statement by the Permanent Secretary in the Bureau of Local Government Pension, Mrs. Irene Afolashade Kokumo, said the screening for retired local government workers would today.

    The permanent secretary said it would be held at designated centres in the 20 local government areas and 37 local council development areas (LCDAs).

    She urged pensioners to present their valid identification cards, two passport photographs and other necessary documents for the screening.

    The statement said the verification will begin daily at 9 a.m.

  • Ogun to stop paying WAEC fees

    Ogun State is no pushover among states in Nigeria that have produced great minds in education. Nobel Laureate Prof Wole Soyinka remains one of her living legends. However, the standard of education in the state in recent years has nosedived owing to social decadence among youths, corruption, and compromise of standards, among other factors. Last week, the Ogun State government held its maiden education summit that featured over 2000 participants, including teachers, parents, union leaders, educationists and other experts,  some of who gave various opinions on how Ogun could secure her right of place. AJOSE SEHINDEMI was there

    As from next year, the Ogun State government may put a stop to paying WAEC fees of students in the state.

    The government says it hinges its decision on the success of the 2016 National Examination Council (NECO) results, which ranked Ogun as outstanding among the 36 states nationwide, including FCT.

    This was contained in a 28-paragraph communiqué that climaxed the two-day maiden education summit which began on Monday, last week.

    However, participants urged government that money that will  accrue to the state from such action be rechanneled into other developmental needs.

    The over 2000 participants comprising educationists, technocrats, seasoned administrators, parents and unionists, argued that the ranking of the state in NECO shot up because parents, who had to part with their hard-earned naira,  monitored and  ensured that thier wards studied hard for the examination in order to justify the fees paid by them. This is the more reason why candidates did better in NECO as against WASSCE that government pays for.

    Participants also urged governments to henceforth redirect funds from theTertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) toward beneficial projects. This is in addition to digitalising education via ICT for teaching, learning, examination, reviews and other deliverables.

    “The government is also enjoined to set up Examination Ethics Group to monitor Computer Based Test (CBT) centres and other examination venues to ensure that all forms of sharp practices, irregularities and examination malpractices are eliminated,” participants stated in the communiqué.”

    At the summit, stakeholders were not happy that despite her enormous intellectual deposits Ogun ranked 19 out of the 36 states in the 2015 WASSCE. The scenario is further complicated by the sprawling 498,154 secondary school enrolment figure, spreading across 474 public secondary schools and 568 private secondary schools respectively, they said.

    According to information made available to reporters, Ogun State government in 2016 paid N489,792,695 as WAEC fees for the state’s 41,421 candidates.

    To address the shortfall therefore, the government was advised to introduce concepts like Opon Imo (digital learning tablet) to fast-track learning and cut cost. To make the opon imo optimally functional, experts admonished government to expand bandwidth for internet connectivity in schools.

    It was also agreed that competitive promotional test must be extended to all public secondary schools across the state in order to allow for a level playing- ground for all learners.

    Registrar, JAMB, Prof Ishaq Oloyede who was one of the lead presenters, said he was not particularly excited that of the eight federal and state tertiary institutions domiciled in Ogun, only Tai Solarin University of Education, (TASUED) Ijagun was able to access N35 million of the  N1,459,521,658,00 TETFund’s National Research Fund allocated to 61 higher institutions across the nation between 2013 to 2016.

    Oloyede, who spoke on the topic: ‘Baseline and assessment: Improving Access, quality and equity in Tertiary Education in Ogun State’, noted that though TETFund gives fund to every tertiary institution, only institutions with quality and outstanding research takes pre-eminence over others.

    “Though TETFund has been the saving grace for virtually all government owned institutions in Nigeria, tertiary institutions in Ogun state need to do more to attract more funds for research as it is very competitive amongst all the tertiary institutions in the country, ” noted Oloyede, who was former vice chancellor of the University of Ilorin.

    On funding of education in Nigeria and Ogun State in particular, a senior lecturer at the Lagos Business School (Pan African University), Dr Doyin Salami, said governments across board have defaulted in meeting the 26 per cent of budgetary allocation recommended for developing countries by the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisations (UNESCO)

    Salami spoke on: ‘Funding vs results: A critical review’, saying though Ogun State budget to education currently stands at 20 per cent; yet it has not lived up to expectation in investing appropriately in learners at their formative years.

    “Though Ogun State budgeted 20 per cent for education, the early stages of learning between age one to six where children develop their cognitive skills are not catered for by all arms of government as the 6.3.3.4 (education model) is flawed right from the start,” Salami said.

    “Modern science has revealed that children developed their cognitive abilities between two to five which the6.3.3.4 doesn’t take into consideration and this means that we are already at a disadvantage right from the start,”, he added.

    Chairman Phillips Consulting limited Mr Foluso Phillips, harped on the urgency of deploying technology into the state’s school.

    “Technology should be quickly introduced to primary education so that it can be quickly grasped and understood,” Phillips recommended in his lecture themed: “Technology: A tool for Eeducation advancement”.

    Others papers presented include: ‘It’s possible: ‘The successful turnaround of a tertiary institution’; by the outgoing Vice Chancellor of Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU) Prof. Saburi Adesanya; ‘Ogun standard education: The way forward’ by the Managing Director of Proshare Mr Olufemi Awoyemi ; and ‘Human capital: Classroom to boardroom’ by the Managing Director People Temp, Mrs Nike DeSouza, among many others.

     

  • Ogun warns illegal miners

    Miners without the requisite approval by the state government risk  sanctions, the Ogun State government has said.

    The warning came on the heels of the continued operation of unlicensed miners. The government advised miners  to follow due process by obtaining necessary documents for their work.

    The Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Bolaji Oyeleye, spokewhile inspecting an illegal mining site at Atan Ota in Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area (LGA) of the state.

    Oyeleye, who was represented by the Head of Environmental Task Force Team B, Mr. Kunle Adeotan, said miners should desist from illegal mining as it leads to desertification, flooding and other natural disasters.

    “Miners should desist from illegal mining to avoid desertification, flooding and other natural disasters,” Oyeleye said.

    The Commissioner, in a statement signed by the Ministry’s Press Officer, Mrs. Patience Idowu, said the miners  at the site were doing so without mining lease, Environmental Impact Assessment certificate and other requisite documents.

    She said the government would not watch such illegality in any other part of the state.

    Mrs Idowu urged miners to get the documents.

  • Ogun assures residents of adequate water supply

    The Ogun State Water Corporation has re-assured residents of Ifo, Arigbajo, Papalanto, Akinsinde, Itori and Ewekoro of adequate potable water supply after rain storm had destroyed electric poles and other properties of the corporation. The destroyed poles have been replaced by the corporation.

    The General Manager of the Corporation, Engineer (Mrs.) Monsurat Agboola made this known while inspecting Ifo/Akinsinde water scheme at Ifo Local Government Area. She revealed that no fewer than 10 power poles, including building housing the pumping machine and office block for members of staff were destroyed by the rain storm.

    “As a result of the damage caused by the thunder/rain storm to Ifo/Akinsinde Water Scheme, supply of water to the axis was initially put off for about two weeks in order to restore the damaged poles and other properties of the corporation. Now that normalcy has returned to the scheme, residents of the areas can now enjoy uninterrupted water supply,” Agboola said.

    She added that kiosks, shanties and illegal structures mounted around the water scheme usually constitute nuisance, as some of the roofs of the shanties were blown off and caused some damage to the water scheme. She urged the owners of the shanties to remove them before the corporation clamps down on them.

    Mrs. Agboola said the corporation had replaced the poles and other properties damaged by the thunder storm, noting that supply of water to areas such as Papalanto, Ifo, Itori, Arigbajo and their environs had commenced.

    She appreciated the residents of the areas and other customers for their patience during the trying period, adding that the damage was a natural occurrence. She enjoined the residents to promptly pay their water bills as the corporation is poised to provide them potable water.

    On behalf of other residents, Mrs. Akinwande Ayomide thanked the corporation for always justifying the confidence reposed in it, pledging that the residents would reciprocate the corporation’s readiness to supply them water by paying their bills as and when due.

  • 2019: 10 for governor in Ogun

    2019: 10 for governor in Ogun

    The political atmosphere in Ogun State is beginning to come alive, with the discreet moves by a motley crowd of aspirants cutting across major political parties to position themselves for the 2019 governorship election. Correspondent ERNEST NWOKOLO examines the strategies of the aspirants and the issues that will shape the contest.

    THE next governorship election in Ogun State is about two years away. But, many crowd of aspirants cutting across major political parties and senatorial districts are already jostling to succeed Governor Ibikunle Amosun. The aspirants on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) include: Suraj Adekunbi (Ogun West), the Speaker of State House of Assembly; Kola Lawal (Ogun West), the commissioner for Forestry; Chief Tolu Odebiyi (Ogun West), who is Amosun’s Chief of staff; Senator Solomon Adeola (Ogun West);  and Rotimi Rahmon (Ogun West), who is the Chairman of the Local Government Service Commission.

    Others are Senator Iyabo Anisulowo (Ogun West); and Otunba Bimbo Ashiru (Ijebu East), the Commissioner for Commerce and Industry.

    In the race on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)  are Ladi Adebutu (Ogun East) who represents Remo North, Sagamu and Ikenne Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives and a two-time governorship candidate of the party, Prince Gboyega Isiaka (Ogun West).

    But, some of the aspirants appear more committed than others.

     

    Odebiyi

    Odebiyi, son of late politician, Chief Jonathan Odebiyi, who hails from Iboro community in Iju Local Council Development Area (LCDA) that was excised from the Yewa North Local Government Area, is one of such. The 54-year old Chief of Staff, who was once a member of the State Judicial Service Commission and Transition Committee on Housing, is a professional domestic and international real estate player.

    Odebiyi is believed to have been brought in by Amosun to understudy the system – the politics, the governance and the intrigues at a close range, in the hope of becoming his successor. But, the perceived preference of the Chief of Staff to other aides by Amosun is causing bad blood in the Governor’s camp. A number of the governor’s close associates feel he should have made the contest open.

    Many of them see Odebiyi as a political neophyte. A source within the camp said the governor has since started shopping for another person who could wider acceptability.

     

    Adekunbi

    Adekunbi, who is from Aiyetoro, the headquarters of Yewa North Local Government Area, is another strong contender. He is a faithful ally of Governor Amosun and banks on the renewed strident clamour for “Yewa-for-Governor” as an opportunity to aspire for the governorship seat. He is hoping that the party would zone the ticket to the axis in 2019, as widely expected.

    Adekunbi has been consulting quietly and widely; his foot soldiers have continued to market him openly and clandestinely in many quarters. He is expected to take a definite stand in the months ahead and formally declare his intention to run.

    The Speaker believes that the support of the Egbas and Ijebus are also pivotal to the success of a Yewa person for 2019 and that the alliances outside Yewaland should be courted without hurting the rights of others.

    By virtue of his office as Speaker, coupled with his closeness to the governor, Adekunbi is largely perceived as someone who has acquired more than a passing knowledge of the intricate, sophisticated and complex nature of governing the Gateway State. Such an experience is valuable to a would-be governor. But, many citizens consider him to be weak and pliable in the hands of the executive and this could affect his chances.

     

    Ashiru

    Ashiru, a technocrat, joined Amosun’s government from inception in 2011. He rarely talks about politics and it is not clear if the promoters of the Ijebu Agenda for 2019 have him in mind. But, the commissioner who has continued to attract investors to the state, has integrity and a pool of goodwill on his side.

     

    Adeola

    Adeola is the senator representing Lagos West at the National Assembly. He has become a household name with his 2019 governorship aspiration. If the ripples generated by his ambition to govern the state are anything to go by, the lawmaker popularly called Yayi, may be the veritable vehicle to actualise Ogun West’s long quest to occupy the number one office in the state. He is well accepted in every zone.

    Adeola once disclosed that he has not formally notified Amosun of his 2019 governorship ambition, but he quickly added that his relationship with the governor is very cordial. The senator believes his faith in God and the good people of the state would see him through. He believes that only God and the people can determine who the governor of the Gateway State would be in 2019.

    Adeola intends to re-invent governance, reverse the pitiable fortune of the local governments through massive rural development, youth empowerment, food subsidies, and emphasis on education, if given the chance.

    The trio of Anisulowo (Ogun West), Lawal and Rahmon are also consulting separately in respect of Ogun 2019 governorship race.

     

    Adebutu

    On the platform of the PDP, Adebutu has not concealed his ambition to govern Ogun in 2019. This son of the billionaire philanthropist, Sir Kensington Adebutu, controls a faction of the PDP which has also zoned its governorship ticket to Ogun East. He is expected to be the beneficiary of the zoning arrangement, which is enshrined in the PDP Constitution, when the race begins in earnest.

    The federal lawmaker, who is the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Rural Development, is adjudged to be credible. For one thing, he is not a controversial character and, for another, his financial strength is expected  boost the quest of the PDP to return to power in the state in 2019.

    But, his biggest challenge is the factional crisis tearing the party apart at the national and state levels.

    One of the biggest advantages for Isiaka is that he has contested for the position twice – in 2011 and 2015. On those two occasions, he made an impressive showing.This time around, the man, who is popularly known as GNI believes he has a good chance of winning.

    Isiaka now has a quantum of experience on his side. He is a familiar political brand and a technocrat, who is intelligent, cool-headed and youthful.

    The zoning arrangement may work in his favour. He hails from Ogun West, which has not produced the governor since the creation of the state 40 years ago.

    The agitation is on for the Ogun West district to produce the next governor, in the spirit of equity, justice and fairness. So, the political climate appears favourable for the quest for power shift. All of these represent huge political assets and, if harnessed effectively, could place Isiaka miles ahead of others politically in 2019.

    Isiaka has no baggage, but the disunity among the Ogun West people  may affect his calculations.

    To address the problem, indigenes of the area have teamed up and vowed to do everything possible to make their people to close ranks when the time comes.

    A group, the Ogun West Liberation Movement (OWELIM), is mobilising the people to speak with one voice on the choice of who becomes a candidate for the zone in 2019.

    However, the group has no particular aspirant in mind. One of its strategies is to solicit for the support of leaders of thought from other zones ahead of the election.

    Recently, they took their case to the Egba Traditional Council of Obas at the palace of the Paramount ruler of Egbaland, the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, appealing to them to support an “Ogun West man to succeed” Amosun in 2019.

    The group’s chairman, Adebayo Sheriff, who led the delegation, recalled that in the past Ogun West had profited from long-established interactions with Egba people before the British set foot in Nigeria, but lamented that due to conflicts of interest, the Egbas’ support to the area to produce a governor in 2011 and 2015 respectively was aborted.

    Sheriff assured the Alake, the Osile of Oke-Ona Egba, Oba Adedapo Tejuoso and a dozen of other Egba traditional rulers that helping an Ogun West indigene to succeed their son, Amosun, would “not rock the boat”.

    He said the Ogun West people are men and women of “highest standards of service, probity, integrity and always loyal to a system and preserve relationships”.

    But a common challenge facing all the aspirants is the one posed by Governor Amosun, who is desirous of producing a successor on the ticket of the APC, like his colleague has done in Edo State and elsewhere.

    His motive is to achieve a continuity and sustainability of the progress so far recorded in the last five years and 11 months and those that would be recorded in the remaining two years. Amosun’s body language in recent times has shown that he is unlikely to support a successor that would not fit into his designs.

    Amosun is said to be romancing his hitherto political foes, including his two-time challenger, GNI, ostensibly to ensure that he has his way. The governor has left no one in doubt late last year that he would have his way in the end. He had declared that he may not know yet who would succeed him come May 29, 2019, but that he certainly knows those who will not be governor in the state.

    Amosun said specifically that there were about seven persons aspiring and working to succeed him in 2019 who fit into the category of those that would become governor, in his estimation. The governor’s position stemmed from his conviction that he, as an indigene born and brought up in the state, who knows better what is best for the people. He is determined to ensure the continuity of his vision for the state.

    He said: “Let me say this for us in Ogun State, I may not be able to tell you quickly and say this is who our governor will be, but we know those who will not be governors. This is Ogun State, this is where I was born, my primary school, secondary school, and tertiary institution took place here. So, if I am speaking, I am speaking from the position of strength.

    “And I know with all our elders even those that are political, I know those who will not be governors. So, I know that at the appropriate time we will get our people together and say this is your sons and daughters, we will pick and whoever we pick is going to be governor.”

  • Atan/Agbara alive for Ogun’s 600-metre bridge, road

    The Ogun State government has begun the construction of a six-lane 12-kilometre (KM) road and a 600 metre bridge in Atan/Agbara, Ado-Odo Ota Local Government Area of the state.

    The project is part of measures to  end the hardship being experienced by motorists and other road users due to the bad state of the road.

    The construction work, according to a from the state’s Ministry of Works And Infrastructure, signed by its Head of Media, Adekunle Ewuoso, said the road would be completed before the expiration this administration in 2019.

    The Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Mr. Olamilekan Adegbite, was quoted in the statement as saying: “The contractor has been mandated to start work at two locations. He is going to start the road from Atan and there is a great separator at Lusada and the contractor will start the bridge at the same time Lusada junction. We have given it careful planning, the contractor has been mobilised with substantial amount of money, so I think all things being equal we should complete it before the expiration of the second term,’ he said. Adegbite, the statement said, spoke with reporters in his Abeokuta office, after the demolition of some structure that would give way for the construction of the bridge.

    Reacting to the issue that the road in question is a federal road, Adegbite assured that the state government would continue to lay emphasis and priority on the comfort of the people irrespective of where they are from adding that as far as government is concerned there are no federal road when it comes to the issue of road construction.

    The statement said the Commissioner pointed out that most of roads that are classified federal  have become township roads, so there was no point referring to them as federal anymore, adding that state government was discussing with the Federal Ministry of Works on the need to release these roads to it.

    A resident of the area and the Otun Balogun of Igbesa, Chief Fatai Idowu, thanked the government for embarking on the construction of the road, saying that it was a long-awaited gesture which would bring succour to the hardship faced by motorists and other road users when completed.

  • Ogun begins pensioners’ verification

    The Ogun State government has begun a physical verification exercise for the over 12 thousand pensioners in the state in order to have an updated record of the pensioners in the state.

    The exercise which would last for 18 days according to a statement by the Press Officer, Bureau of State Pension, Taoreed Lawal, would be carried out in all the three senatorial districts of the State in order to ensure prompt payment of their pensions and safe funds for the government through the identification of ghost pensioners.

    He said further that the exercise would also afford the agency of capturing finger prints of pensioners which would be input on the data base of the Bureau for future purposes, as well as reducing the stress of pensioners by asking them to come for verification all the times.

    “This is the first time that we will be doing biometrics for our pensioners, next time when the Bureau will be asking our pensioners to come for physical verification, it will not involve any documents at all.

    “The moment you are here for another exercise like this, just come alone. Please ensure that you place your hand well on the scanner and once the scanner ticks your hands, it marks you right”, he said.

    He noted that the team have captured over three thousand pensioners in the first two weeks of the exercise, adding that when completed, the pensioners’ data base would be in the office of the state Accountant General, Auditor General and Bureau, noted that this would make it easier for any of this agencies to retrieve records of pensioners without any stress.

  • Ogun, firm partner on N5 billion road

    The Ogun State government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the a private firm, Sino-African Investment Free Trade Zone Company, for the construction of a four-lane, 10- kilometre Lusada-Igbesa Ogun Quangdong Free Trade Zone road in Ado-Odo Local Government Area.

    A statement by the Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Mr. Olamilekan Adegbite, after signing the MoU, said the road would be financed by the company. The statement was signed by the Head of Media in the ministry, Mr. Ayokunle Ewuoso.

    Adegbite, who described the  situation of the road as clay, dusty and dilapidated, said the company would reconstruct it into a four-lane rigid concrete pavement complete with median, walkways and green belt.

    “Our government recognises the importance of this road that is why we have bought into the proposal brought by this company to reconstruct it into a four-lane, 10km, rigid concrete pavement. This road would be tolled for 15 years and run by the company to enable them recoup their investment; 10 per cent of the annual collection on this road shall accrue to the state government.” The time frame for completion is between six to eight months,” Adegbite explained.

    The Commissioner pointed out that when completed, the road would increase economic and commercial activities of the area, attract more investors, increase the property value in the area and reduce the hardship faced by farmers when transporting their farm produce to the city.

    He revealed that government has set aside about N8 billion as compensation for those whose property may be affected by the project.