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  • Presidential poll: Atiku is a Nigerian, says Yakasai

    Alhaji Tanko Yakasai, a former Adviser to the late Second Republic President Shehu Aliyu Shagari, has said the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, is a Nigerian citizen who is qualified to contest for any position in the country.

    Yakasai was reacting to recent application by the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) at the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal that Atiku was unfit to contest for the office of the President of Nigeria in this year’s presidential election because he is Cameroonian.

    In a statement in Kano, the former member of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the defunct All People’s Party (APP) berated APC for referring to Atiku as a non-Nigerian.

    He said: “It is, therefore, strange for leaders of the ruling party in Nigeria, the APC, to claim that former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar is not qualified to seek to be the President of Nigeria.

    “This is a display of ignorance of the highest order on Atiku’s status, as enshrined in our Constitution. In fact, APC is the least among political parties in Nigeria to make such unpatriotic statement.

    “There are people sponsored by the party who contested and won elections to elective offices and are today occupying such positions. Atiku is equally or even better qualified to hold any public office in Nigeria than some of such people.”

    The elder statesman also recalled that, “before October 1, 1960, both Southern and Northern Cameroons were trusteeship territories under Nigeria, in accordance with Article 76(b) of the United Nations Trusteeship Agreement of 1946.

    Read also: Kanu: I’m vindicated about Atiku’s birth place

    “This situation dates back to the period of World War I. Prior to that war, some parts of the old Adamawa Emirate were occupied by Germans. Southern and Northern Cameroons were parts of the territories colonised by the Germans along with Togoland, Tanganyika, Southwest Africa, which we now call Namibia.

    “That was after the partition of Africa in 1884/1885. After the conquest of Germany in 1919, territories under German occupation were taken over by the newly formed League of Nations and were assigned to different colonial powers as Mandated Territories. Tanganyika, Southwest Africa and Southern and Northern Cameroons were mandated to Britain.

    “Citizens of the mandated territories were accorded the same rights and privileges as citizens of the colonies. Britain decided to administer its mandated Cameroons as part of Nigeria. Their citizens of the colonial mandated territories had the same rights and privileges as citizens of colonial Nigeria.”

    Yakasai added: “In 1946, with the demise of the League of Nations and the emergence of the United Nations (UN), the Mandated Territories were taken over by the new world body and reassigned to the same colonial powers as Trusteeship Territories. Still Britain continued with administrative structures of the territories as same.

    “Before Nigerian independence, many citizens of the trusteeship territories held important public offices at federal and regional levels in Nigeria. Other than the fact, they were elected members of parliament and regional Houses of Assembly, making laws for Nigeria, holding Nigerian international passport. They also served, among others, as Nigeria’s Federal and regional ministers and other civil service and public offices in the country.

    “After independence, they decided their future in plebiscites. Those in the Eastern Region chose to merge with the Republic of Cameroon, while those in the North decided to remain with Nigeria. The area of Northern Cameroon after the plebiscite was declared as the 13th Province of northern Nigeria.

    “The province chose a name for itself. The name adopted was Sardauna Province. Jada, together with other areas formally known as Northern Cameroon Province, now became known as Sardauna Province.”

    The former presidential adviser insisted that Atiku was eligible for any elective position in Nigeria by virtue of his citizenship.

    He said: “Atiku is an indigene of Adamawa whose father was an indigene of Sokoto and his mother a bona fide indigene of Adamawa. Many indigenes born before and after him have been accorded full recognition as Nigerians”

  • Buhari will intensify fight against corruption – Mohammed

    The fight against corruption will be intensified under President Muhammadu Buhari’s second term, Information, Culture & Tourism Minister Lai Mohammed has assured the international community.

    Mohammed, who gave the assurance in an interview with the Voice of America (VOA) in Washington  said the President would not compromise his anti-corruption programmes and policies.

    The minister is in Washington to engage international media and think tank, promote and reiterate the successes of the President Buhari’s administration.

    In the interview anchored in English by Aliyu Mustapha of the VOA Hausa service, the minister said the anti-corruption fight would be frontal in the agenda of the government “because corruption is one of the major causes of poverty and underdevelopment in the country.”

    He recalled a saying by President Buhari that ‘if we do not kill corruption, corruption will kill us’ and reiterated the government’s commitment to the fight.

    Mohammed said: “The President is committed to the fight against corruption and the administration will continue with it.

    “For example, the Treasury Single Account (TSA) has instituted accountability in government‘s earnings and spendings and the whistle blower policy has led to the recovery of billions of naira.

    “It takes more than four years to clean a country endemic in corruption. However, it is on record that this administration has driven corruption under the carpet in four years.

    Read also: Buhari rallies APC Reps for Assembly leadership battle

    “In the next four years, therefore, the government will consolidate on the achievements recorded particularly in the fight against corruption.”

    On insecurity, the minister said the administration would apply multi-dimensional approach besides the deployment of forces.

    He said the government was not unaware of other remote causes of the crises in the affected areas, including economic and social reasons, non-inclusiveness, lack of infrastructure and job opportunities.

    Mohammed noted that the administration had performed well in addressing insecurity and the country is safer than it was in 2015.

    He said the government had successfully secured the entire territory of the country from the Boko Haram while the farmers/herdsmen clash in Benue had been curtailed.

    The minister said the fight against banditry, killings and banditry in Zamfara and Kaduna has “been put under control” in the last two weeks because of the synergy among the security forces.

    He assured that the government will continue to strengthen partnership on the regional and international levels in addressing the challenges.

    The minister also said the administration has made progress in economic recovery with deliberate programmers of diversifying the economy through agriculture and other sectors, as well as developing infrastructure.

    On Buhari’s victory at the February 23 presidential election, the minister said President Buhari’s victory was well deserved and represented “the triumph of the ordinary Nigerians over the elite.”

    He said having delivered on his electoral promises, the people voted for Buhari and he won the elections fairly and squarely, with about four million votes.

    Mohammed said with the wide margin of winning, the government did not envisage “any attempt to delegitimise the will of the people”.

    Former vice president and Buhari’s main challenger at the poll, Atiku Abubakar and his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have approached the tribunal to upturn the President’s victory.

  • Ex-lawmaker assassinated in Anambra

    A former lawmaker of the Anambra State House of Assembly, Mr Anthony Igboka, was on Tuesday night shot dead by unknown gunmen.

    Igboka was reportedly assassinated at his Oye Nimo village market square in the Njikoka local government area of Anambra State while returning from a meeting.

    The Nation gathered that the incident might not be unconnected to lingering
    chieftaincy tussle in the community following the demise of the last occupant of the seat some years back.

    Confirming the incident, Police spokesperson, Haruna Mohammed, said the deceased was shot in his car near Nimo Market.

    He said the state Commissioner of Police, Mustapha Dandaura had ordered a full-scale investigation on the matter.

    He said, “At about 8:18pm of April 16, there were sporadic gunshots around Nimo Market in Njikoka Local Government Area.

    “Police patrol team attached to Nimo Division rushed to the scene and discovered one Chief Frank Anthony Igboka on the driver’s seat of his Chevrolet SUV vehicle lying unconscious in the pool of his blood.

    “His body was riddled with bullets. The victim was rushed to Beke Hospital, Nimo, where he was confirmed dead by a medical doctor and the corpse was later deposited at the hospital morgue.”

    Mohammed added that preliminary investigation showed the victim was shot at a close range by four armed men who escaped in a pickup van towards Abacha-Eziowelle road.

    He revealed that 25 expended 7.62 mm ammunition was recovered at the scene.

    “The state Commissioner of Police, Mr Mustapha Dandaura, has visited the scene and ordered a full-scale investigation to ascertain circumstances surrounding the incident and bring perpetrators to justice,” Mohammed added.

    The spokesperson appealed to the public to avail the command with information that could help in arresting the perpetrators of the dastardly act.

    Meanwhile, the state Governor, Willie Obiano has announced a N5m reward to any person who can provide useful information on the identity of the killers.

    A statement by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, C. Don Adinuba, said the governor has also directed the state Commissioner of Police to personally lead a team to apprehend the killers immediately.

    The statement partly read, “He has, in addition, directed the Department of State Security, intelligence officers in the Nigerian Army and the Nigerian Navy as well as the Nigerian Security and Defence Corps to join the Nigeria Police Force in the task to bring the culprits quickly.

    “Chief Obiano asked the intelligence and security officers to reenact the same level of enthusiasm and competence they exhibited in the arrest two weeks ago of Ikechukwu Udensi, the most wanted murder suspect in Anambra State, immediately he entered the state to collect illegal revenues.

    “You have to display the same commitment and competence this time in tracing the killers of Chief Igboka, who was also a former chairman of Njikoka Local Government Area.”

    Describing the killing as utterly heartless, Obiano added, “It is a shame that the killing of Chief Igboka should take place in the week leading to Easter when men and women of goodwill throughout the world are reconciling themselves with God and fellow human beings.”

    Obiano emphasized that no stone would be left unturned in the effort to ensure the state remained the safest and most peaceful state in Nigeria.

    “Anyone who thinks that he can spill the blood of an innocent Anambra person and go scot-free is living in a fool’s paradise.

    “All the persons who have in the last five years attempted to spill blood in the state have been caught up by the long arms of the law. Chief Igboka’s killers cannot be different,” he insisted.

    The deceased, until his death, was the President-General of Nimo Town Union.

  • Kanu: I’m vindicated about Atiku’s birth place

    Leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has said the claim by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) that former Vice-President and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubarkar, is a Cameroonian has vindicated him.

    Addressing his members through his broadcast on Radio Biafra, Kanu said: “The headline: ‘Atiku Is Not A Nigerian, APC Tells Tribunal’, is a vindication that everything I say on Radio Biafra is the truth. It may appear outlandish and unbelievable at first, but eventually history always vindicates me.

    “As everyone can see very clearly, it is unambiguously stated that for you to become the President of Nigeria, you must be born a Nigerian. Simply put, your birth certificate or any official notation must say clearly that you are a Nigerian. As at the time Atiku was born, the citizenship on his birth certificate read Cameroonian.”

    The sex-exiled pro-Biafran leader described the 1999 Constitution, as amended, as clearly defective because those who crafted it were neither philosophers, social scientists, thinkers nor constitutional experts.

    According to him, the argument by some people that if Atiku was a Cameroonian, he could not have been the Comptroller of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and Vice-President, will not hold water.

    He noted that Section 131(a) of the Constitution is clear on who should be the President of the country.

    Kano said: “The incontrovertible truth is that His Excellency, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the former Vice-President of Nigeria for eight years, became a Nigerian by virtue of the referendum of February 11, 1961. He was not born a Nigerian and as such he became a Nigerian as a result of the British organised plebiscite held in British Cameroons to give the people of Adamawa, where Atiku comes from, the opportunity to choose where they would like to belong.

    Read also: Presidential poll: Atiku is a Nigerian, says Yakasai

    “When I first raised this issue, which incidentally has been ignored by all arms of government- including the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), whose duty it is to ensure that candidates meet all stipulated constitutional requirements – it was not to insinuate or imply that Atiku is not a Nigerian. Rather, it is to highlight the very constitutionally critical point at the heart of IPOB agitation for Biafra independence, which is that asking for a referendum is never a crime in any law known to man…”

    He berated Atiku’s defence team for what he called their weak and porous argument that if the PDP chieftain was not a Nigerian, he wouldn’t have become Nigeria’s vice-president, lived, invested and paid tax in the country for years as a citizen.

    The proscribed IPOB leader noted that by virtue of relevant sections of Nigeria, anybody born in Adamawa between 1946, when Atiku was born, till 1960, was not qualified to contest election as President of Nigeria.

    He added: “Atiku Abubakar was born on November 25, 1946 in Jada, now Adamawa State, then in Northern Cameroon. He was a citizen of Cameroon but now a Nigerian by plebiscite. This information has always been in the public domain. What I did was just to flag it…”

     

  • Skipping Rope Sport: US coaches to arrive Nigeria Wednesday

    Former world champion and the President/founder of the International Double Dutch League (IDDL), Laila Taliba Little and four other world rated trainers and coaches from USA; Cynthia Banks, Geraldine Code, Emma Barnes and Ayanna Atsu Haarul will arrive Nigeria on Wednesday for a two-day workshop on Skipping Rope Sport.

    The team is expected to arrive the Muritala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos by 3.pm, NationSport has been informed.

    The workshop scheduled to hold at the Lagos State Sports Center, Mobolaji Johnson Sports Hall, Rowe Park, Yaba, Lagos from Thursday 18th – Saturday 20th April, 2019 is organized by the Nigeria Rope Skipping Federation to blend new skills among youths in African nations with the understanding of introducing new gimmicks and styles of rope skipping and double dutch to other rated nations.

    Secretary General of the federation, Olusesan Olukoya told  NationSport that Nigeria’s hosting of the other African nations in the skipping rope sport is very timely considering the latest trend in the sport worldwide and the impact of the Nigerian federation on the sport.

    He said delegates from other countries including Botswana, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, Togo and Benin Republic will be attending the workshop.

    According to Olukoya, the Vice President of the Africa Jump Rope Federation (AJRF) and Project Coordinator at the South African Gymnastic Federation (SAGF), Keo Mokolopo would be representing the World Jump Rope Federation (WJRF), a board member of the International Jump Rope body would also be co-training at this intercontinental workshop.

     “Apart from the foreign guests coming from around the world of jump rope to attend the timely training in Nigeria, 1,000 school kids/students will be trained as new entrants to the sport. The educational opportunity will also be geared to some over 200 teachers who will be instructed on the techniques of rope skipping so as to ensure that those in the sport will have all the necessary tools to work with many children and families in not only schools but communities as well,” Olukoya told NationSport.

    Dignitaries expected at the opening session of the workshop on Thursday 18th April are Distinguished Senator Oluremi Tinubu (OON), who indeed stands as the chief host /Distinguished Guest of Honour while its special guests of honour are: Dr. Daniel Kolawole Olukoya; Rev. Mother Esther Abimbola Ajayi, Chief Segun Odegbami (MON), Bash Ali, (OON) (Bashiru Ali); Prophet Israel Oladele Ogundipe among other dignitaries. while Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola and Senator Adebayo Osinowo would be the host, Hon. Jide Jimoh and Moshood Oshun will be co-hosting the timely training workshop.

    List of the awardees based on their supportive roles to Youth sports and community developments mostly in the area of kids and youth sports over the years which have earned them the International Sports Excellence Awards (ISEA) are: Sen. Oluremi Tinubu, Dr. Daniel Kolawole Olukoya, Rev. Mother Esther Ajayi, Chief Segun Odegbami, (MON); Bashiru Ali OON(Bash Ali); Prophet Israel Oladele Ogundipe (Genesis); Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola (Yayi); Senator Adebayo Osinowo, Rev. Sam Ikpea; Oba Gbolahan Timson, the Jagunmolu of Bariga; Alhaji Musiliu Akinsanya (MC Oluomo); Hon. Jide Jimoh, Hon. Moshood Olanrewaju Osun; Barr. Adebisi Adegbuyi; Mr. Aigoro Kehinde Tajudeen, Alhaja Modupe Saani and internationally Shaun Hamilton, President, World Jump Rope Federation (WJRF); Laila Little, President/coach, International Double Dutch League, (IDDL) New Jersey, USA; “Missy” Melissa Dubois, founder of Rhody Ropers Jump Rope, Rhode Island, USA; and Keo Mokolopo, Vice president of the African Jump Rope Federation and project coordinator at the South African Gymnastic Federation.

    “Donations received generously from the awards would be used to officially establish the national junior team (Skipping Eaglets) and the senior team (Bouncing Eagles), and also use to get more ropes to schools and communities around the nation of Nigeria” Olukoya added. “So lots of financial supports would be appreciated from well meaning Nigerians, corporate bodies and organizations so as to have the Nigerian teams as well just like other rope skipping nations” he concluded.

  • High debt profile not worrisome to us, says Edo Govt

    GOING by the record of the Debt Management Office (DMO), Edo State is trailing Lagos State on Nigeria’s foreign debt profile list.

    However, the government (Edo) said that “there is cause for alarm”, allaying fears that the state’s foreign debt profile was worrisome.

    It argued that the credits which the state enjoys were accessed as a result of the state’s transparent governance and prudent financial management.

    Lagos, Edo, Kaduna and Cross River states, in that order, topped the list of sub-nationals with high external debts, according to the DMO record.

    In a statement, Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on Media and Communication Strategy, Crusoe Osagie, said the state government prioritises sustainable development and judicious use of state funds, which is what has enabled it to promptly access the low-interest credit from multilateral organisations.

    He argued that it was erroneous to assume that foreign credits are bad, noting that they help to fast-track development at the lowest cost of funds possible.

    The statement reads: “Foreign credits usually come with single, lower digit interest rates, ranging from one to five per cent. They carry many years of moratorium, that is, a period within the tenure of the loan when the borrower is not required to make repayment. This gives the borrower more time to bring development to the people and therefore increase the capacity to repay the loan.

    “Contrary to opinion by less informed people that ranking as the second state in the country after Lagos with the highest foreign debts portfolio is a negative feat, it is actually a positive development because this simply indicates that Edo State, like Lagos and Kaduna states, are the few states in the country with the requisite level of transparency in governance to access the huge international pool of development financing to help improve infrastructure and enhance the living standards of the ordinary people.”

    He stressed that what the most important was that the Governor Obaseki-led government is putting every penny sourced from the Federation Account, Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and international development financing to judicious use to improve the lives of the people.

    He said: “In less than three years, Obaseki’s government has constructed more roads than previous governments were able to do in 16 years. We have revamped and rebuilt basic education almost to the point of re-invention.

    “There is a primary healthcare revolution currently going on in Edo State, as well as the big-ticket transactions of the Benin River Port, Benin Industrial and Enterprise Park, the Benin Modular Refinery Project and many more, where we are making steady progress.”

    According to him, many of the states that are ranked low on foreign debts in the DMO records would have preferred that they had the requisite governance structure and transparency in financial management to access funds from international development finance institutions.

  • Nigeria ready to host Africa Nations Beach V’ball Cup, says Nimrod

    The Chairman Nigeria Beach Volleyball, Engineer Musa Nimrod says the country is ready to host the 2019 Africa Senior Nations Beach Volleyball Cup, scheduled to hold from 21st to 28th April, 2019 at Jabi Lake Park, Abuja.

    Nimrod who doubles as the President of Nigeria Volleyball Federation told NationSport at the ongoing 2019 Zone 3 Africa Volleyball Club Championships in Lagos, that the nation accepted to host the competition due to its consistency in beach volleyball on the continent.

    He said the federation is working around the clock in order to ensure the championship is a success.

     “I want to tell the world that all is set for Nigeria to host the Africa Senior Nations Beach Volleyball Cup for both men and women. It is also my joy to see Nigeria host an Africa championship because Nigeria has been consistent in the beach volleyball for over a decade.

    “Last year, the country host the U21 Africa men’s Championship and we got good commendation from CAVB for our organisation and attitude towards the growth of developmental programs. This time around, we will not let the Africa body down.

    “I want to thank the President of CAVB, Dr Amr Elwani for the moral support he has been giving to Nigeria Volleyball. I want to assure him that Nigeria will not let Africa down in the age grade tournaments this year,” Nimrod told NationSport.

    Meanwhile Nigeria Customs Service men’s volleyball team continued their dominance at the Zone 3 Africa Volleyball Club Championships on matchday 2 with a 3-1 (25-23, 25-15, 22-25, 25-18) victory over Finance of Benin on Tuesday, while Entente of Benin defeated AS OTR of Togo 3-0 (25-20, 25-20, 25-23).

    Nigeria Immigration Service defeated Nigeria Army 3-1 (25-12, 18-25, 27-25, 25-23) in the women’s event.

  • Barcelona reach Champions League semi-finals with Messi exhibition against Manchester United

    Lionel Messi produced another masterful Champions League performance to knock out Manchester United and fire Barcelona into the semi-finals in a 3-0 home win on Tuesday.

    It was Barcelona’s first time of reaching the semi-final of the competition in four years.

    Barca, who toyed with United for the majority of the encounter, sealed a 4-0 aggregate victory and will meet either Porto or Liverpool in the last four.

    Messi had failed to score in his last 12 quarter-final appearances, but he settled his side’s nerves after a bright start from United.

    Collecting a misplaced pass from Ashley Young, Messi curled the ball into the bottom corner in the 16th minute.

    The Argentine then pounced on another lapse from United’s defence four minutes later to win back possession high up the pitch and fire a shot from outside the box.

    The ball then slipped under the arms of visiting keeper David de Gea.

    Philippe Coutinho finished off a therapeutic win for the Catalans, after three quarter-final failures in a row, by curling into the top corner in the second half.

    United coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s greatest night as a player came at the Nou Camp.

    But after losing the first leg at Old Trafford 1-0, his team needed to become the first side to win a European game there in 31 matches in order to progress.

    They clung to the hope of another famous European escape act after last month’s miraculous 3-1 win at Paris St Germain and made a strong start as Marcus Rashford hit the crossbar in the opening stages.

    They also survived a scare when a penalty awarded to Barca for an apparent foul by Fred on Ivan Rakitic was overturned after a VAR review.

    Yet their hopes were soon extinguished when Young was caught in possession on the left wing and Messi seized the ball.

    He scurred across the pitch and held off more United defenders before bending a superb shot past the outstretched De Gea.

    The Spanish goalkeeper was left embarrassed for Messi’s second goal as the Argentine’s tame shot crept under his body.

    United looked down and out and Messi nearly dealt them further pain before halftime by sparking another quick break, but this time De Gea thwarted the Catalans.

    De Gea was taunted by Barca fans in the second half, which turned into a procession for the home side and the out-of-form Coutinho turned up the party atmosphere with his sensational strike.

    The nearest United came to finding the target after the break came when Barca keeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen turned an Alexis Sanchez header around the post late on. (Reuters/NAN)

  • Buhari rallies APC Reps for Assembly leadership battle

    President Muhammadu Buhari has urged All Progressives Congress (APC) House of Representatives members-elect to stand firm in the battle for the Ninth Assembly’s leadership.

    Over dinner last night at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja, the President made the plea to, according to a source, ensure unity among the newly elected members of the National Assembly ahead of the election of their leaders.

    The Ninth Assembly opens in June.

    The party’s leadership has maintained that its candidates must lead the National Assembly.

    National Chairman Adams Oshiomhole and National Publicity Secretary Lanre Issa-Onilu have told members that as the party with the majority, they must produce the leadership of both houses.

    The party nominated Senator Ahmed Lawan and Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila for Senate President and Speaker.

    This, however, did not go down well with former Senate Leader Ali Ndume who wants to run for Senate president  despite the endorsement of the Senate Leader, Lawan, for the job.

    House spokesman Abdulrazak Namdas (APC, Adamawa), Ahmed Wase (APC, Plateau) and Umar Bago (APC, Niger) are  challenging  Gbajabiamila for speaker.

    Read also: Corruption will be tackled ‘frontally’ in Buhari’s second term, says Mohammed 

    Addressing the members-elect at the dinner, President  Buhari urged them not to break ranks in the choice of the Assembly’s  leadership.

    Oshiomhole, according to Hon. Abdulmumini Jibrin,  presented Gbajabiamila, the House Leader, to the President as the party’s candidate.

    He was also presented to members as the party’s choice.

    Hon. Ahmed Wase (APC, Plateau) was said to have caused a stir as he stood up after the presentation of Gbajabiamila to express surprise, that after meeting Mr. President to step down and take over as deputy speaker, his name was not mentioned at the dinner for the position.

    The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, told State House correspondents that Buhari called for unity among party members.

    ”90-95 percent of them are in unison, seem to agree on the position of the party.Unanimity ran through the meeting. We cannot speak for five per cent. The President urged them to maintain the unity referring to what transpired in 2015…if there is disunity in their ranks, then anything can happen,” Adesina said.

    He also urged them “to maintain the unity and stand by the position of the party.”

    Oshiohmole vowed that the party will not repeat the mistakes of 2015 in the election of the Assembly’s leaders.

    He said: “In life, mistakes are permitted but it becomes a problem if the mistake is repeated twice.

    “We are determined not to repeat the mistakes of 2015 in 2019, we have learnt our lesson.”

    The party chairman maintained that all ‘strategic committees’ in the two chambers of the National Assembly must be headed by members of the party, adding:  “We do not need to do business with the devil for us to survive in the Ninth Assembly.”

    “Out of 223 APC elected members, about 67 were re-elected, the rest are new members.

    “In other climes, you don’t go into coalition when you are in the majority; you do so when you don’t have the numbers. We have the numbers. Out of 306, Nigerians elected 223 APC members because they don’t want Mr President to face the trauma of 2015.

    “Most of those who decamped were rejected and even those who led them were uprooted. We cannot as a party which has a comfortable majority entrust critical committees in the hands of the PDP or opposition.

    “If Nigerians wanted them, they could have voted them. In the days of PDP, every committee was chaired by PDP members.”

    Oshiohmole, who described Senate President Bukola  Saraki and Dogara as “selfish, greedy” politicians, said both the re-elected and new members of the APC were entitled to head committees.

    He stressed that the APC would never share what belongs to it with the opposition.

    The meeting with President Buhari, Oshiomhole said, was meant to ensure a smooth election of officials of the Ninth Assembly.

    “In African family, we sit down in a closed door to address issues. The good news is that there is a role for everyone,” he added.

    Also speaking to State House Correspondents after the meeting with the President, the Director-General of Femi Gbajabiamila’s Campaign, Abdulmumuni Jibril, said the APC leadership officially presented Gbajabiamila to the President as the party’s consensus candidate.

    President Buhari had on March 26 also hosted APC senators-elect to a similar dinner at the Presidential Villa.

    In a statement, Issa Onilu said: “The APC has adopted Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, as its candidate for the position of the speaker of the House of Representatives in the Ninth Assembly.

    “This position was reached after an intensive deliberation with the APC’s House of Representatives members-elect at a dinner with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Banquet Hall of Aso Villa.

    “The Deputy Speaker’s position has been zoned to the Northcentral.”

     

  • Diaspora remittances hit $24.3b

    Diaspora remittances to Nigeria stood at $24.3 billion last year. It was the highest remittance to any country in sub-Saharan Africa and an increase of more than $2 billion compared to the previous year’s figure of $22.3 billion.

    According to the World Bank’s latest “Migration and Development Brief”, immigrants sent $46 billion to their home countries in sub-Saharan Africa last year, a 10 per cent jump in remittances in 2017.

    The growth in remittances was supported by strong economic conditions in high-income economies, the World Bank said.

    Remittances to sub-Saharan African countries last year contributed significantly to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of these nations.

    Looking at remittances as a share of the GDP, Comoros had the largest share, followed by the Gambia, Lesotho, Cape Verde, Liberia, Zimbabwe, Senegal, Togo, Ghana, and Nigeria, according to the Brief.

    Remittances to the Middle East and North Africa grew nine per cent to $62 billion in 2018. The growth was driven by Egypt’s rapid remittance growth of around 17 per cent.

    The Brief said: “Beyond 2018, the growth of remittances to the region is expected to continue, albeit at a slower pace of around three per cent in 2019 due to moderating growth in the Euro Area.”

    Remittances to low and middle-income countries also reached a record high last year. The bank estimates that officially recorded annual remittance flows to low- and middle-income countries reached $529 billion last year, an increase of 9.6 per cent over the previous record high of $483 billion in 2017.

    Global remittances, which include flows to high-income countries, reached $689 billion last year, up from $633 billion the year before.

    Such funds have become one of the most important external sources of finance for Africa over the years. Recent surveys state that most of the money migrant workers send home to sub-Saharan Africa is spent on education, health care, land, building houses, starting a business or improving farms.

    Research by Adams Bodomo of the University of Vienna argues that Diaspora remittance funds constitute a better alternative to Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) funds for the development of Africa for a number of reasons.

    He said: “The funds are less likely to be misspent as compared to the misappropriations and legendary inefficiencies in the foreign aid industry. Diaspora remittance funds, as gifts of love, are better focused on building the family and hence the nation.

    “The distribution of these Diaspora remittance funds is far more efficient than ODA funds since these monies go directly to paying school fees, building houses, and growing businesses.”

    As remittances make up a significant share of gross domestic product in African countries, they help boost the economies of the respective countries.