The Federal Government has declared Tuesday Wednesdayas public holidays to celebrate Eid-el-Kabir.
Minister of Interior Abdulrahman Dambazau, according to a statement by Dr Mohammed Umar, the Permanent Secretary of the ministry enjoined the citizens to use the period to embrace the virtues of love and sacrifice for the unity and development of the country.
He urged Nigerians to support the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari in its determination to foster a peaceful and united Nigeria.
THE Federal Government has declared Monday December 25 and Tuesday 26 as well as Monday January 1, 2018 as public holidays to mark Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year.
Minister of Interior, Lt. Gen. Abdulralman Dambazau (retd), who said this on behalf of the Federal Government, enjoined the Christian faithful and citizenry to use the period in praying earnestly for Nigeria’s betterment and growth.
According to a statement issued yesterday by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Abubakar Magaji, the minister called on citizenry to strengthen their resolve to maintain peace and unity.
Dambazau urged Nigerians, both at home and abroad, to support the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari in its determination in improving the quality of life of Nigerians.
He wished the citizens a Happy Christmas and New Year celebrations.
The yearly national business challenge of the Entrepreneurial Action In Us (ENACTUS), an global non-profit organisation, begins next Tuesday. The three-day event with the theme: Building a leadership pipeline, will hold at the Civic Centre on Victoria Island, Lagos.
Students’ teams from no fewer than 35 tertiary institutions are expected to compete for the national championship, which would give the winning team an opportunity to represent Nigeria at the ENACTUS World Cup holding in London, England from September 26 to 28, 2017.
Enactus is a global network of young entrepreneurs who are improving the quality of life of people around the world by teaching them the principles and values of free market economics and entrepreneurship.
The mission of the organisation is to equip youths with leadership and business skills to help them create a better world through free enterprise.
Students of the Federal Polytechnic, Kaduna (KADPOLY) represented the country at the last year’s ENACTUS World Cup held in Toronto, Canada, where they finished in fourth position. The event offered the KADPOLY students a platform to showcase their projects that placed them among the top four out of 45 countries that participated in the contest.
It was the seventh time a Nigerian team would be ranked among the best four teams in 12 international appearances.
The Federal Government has declared Tuesday and Wednesday holidays to celebrate the Muslim festival, Eid-el Fitri.
Interior Minister Lt.-Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau (retd) said this in Abuja.
In a statement signed by the Permanent Secretary, Mr Bassey Akpanyung, the minister enjoined Muslims to exhibit the sprit of Ramadan, which are love, peace and justice, and contribute to the development of the country
He urged Nigerians to reflect on the significance of unity and peaceful co-existence in strengthening the bond of togetherness.
“I wish Nigerians a peaceful celebration and urge total support for President Muhammadu Buhari’s avowed determination to bequeath to the nation an enduring political legacy,” he said.
Eid -el- Fitri is celebrated by Muslims after 29 or 30 days of fasting in the month of Ramadan.
SIR: It is an incontestable fact that America parades the best and most effective presidential democracy in the world. The origin of this democracy began almost with the emergence of United States of America with the declaration of independence in 1776. After the initial challenges associated with nation building, and after a several trials and errors in fashioning out the best political system for the new nation, the continental congress of 12 consenting states agreed to adopt Presidential Democracy. Since then until now, United States political system had endured a lot of political, social and economic thick and thorns. Beginning with the first president, George Washington, the nation had continued to grow and expand in all aspects of nation building.
As at today, it has had 44 Presidents, endured war of revolution, civil war, several years of segregation against blacks, social inadequacies and major economic down turn and up turns. Yet, the country had continued to absorb and assimilate every social, political and racial upheaval and has grown from strength to strength in its 240 years, it has never had any violent regime change i.e. coup de tat, rather every democratic regime had been through democratic process as outlined in the country’s constitution and its amendments. The kernel of America’s democratic processes lies in the rule of law and the people’s adherence to political process for the election of their presidents and other political offices.
For example, American presidential election takes place on first Tuesday of every November in every four years. Every presidential election is preceded by what is known as party primaries and caucuses. This is a process through which party presidential candidates are selected. The process sometime is highly complicated but once understood, is smooth and peaceful. In each case, each of the two main political parties: the Democratic Party and the Republican Party conducts its primaries in accordance with the laid down procedures.
In the past few months, these two political parties have been engaged in their party primaries. The climax of American party primaries comes up first Tuesday in March of election year known as “Super Tuesday.” It is referred to as a Super Tuesday because it is the only period that a large number of convention delegates are selected. It is a deciding moment for such presidential aspirants to bow out of the race if they have not done fairly reasonable, because Super Tuesday to many aspirants is the most effective acid test as to whether an aspirant should continue the race or not. For example, after the last Super Tuesday primaries, it has become evident that on the Republican Party side, Donald Trump is the front runner while on the Democratic side; Hillary Clinton is the person to beat.
From the beginning of the party primaries exercises last January, some aspirants have bowed out, including Jeff Bush, the younger brother of a former US President, George W. Walker Bush. In fact, American presidential party primaries must be seen as a gradual elimination process for all the presidential aspirants because this process is spread across the country over about a period of six months. So by the end of the party primaries in June, each of the presidential candidates must have known the prospects of their electability depending on the number of convention delegates each must have garnered.
It is very different from party conventions in Nigeria where presidential aspirants usually go to conventions with trailer load of currencies and cash with agents to buy convention delegates. We can remember the show of shame in PDP convention at Jos where retired generals acted as purchasing agents to buy delegates for Obasanjo to defeat Ekwueme. That was the beginning of the downfall of today’s downturn in PDP fortune. Therefore, for the party to bounce back, it must adopt free and fair congresses and conventions. There is no alternative to this.
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Players of the Pride of Jalingo will smile to the bank on Tuesday as the Taraba State government has vowed to pay part of their unpaid wages
FC Taraba players are set to be paid two months’ salary arrears on Tuesday.
Goalkeeper Ikechukwu Obilo informed Goal that the Taraba State government has agreed to fulfill their demands after staying for a week in front of the state’s government house.
The League Management Company(LMC) paid the players, coaches and other officials of the Jalingo side a month’s salary before Christmas.
He confessed to Goal that things have been very tough for them for over a year as breadwinners of their respective families but are still grateful to God that nothing untoward has happened to them.
“We have been assured that we would get two months of our salary arrears paid on Tuesday. It was difficult to pay us on Wednesday because of some issues but we are around in Jalingo waiting for Tuesday to come before travelling to our base,” Obilo told Goal.
Meanwhile, Goal’s investigation reveals that officials of the club won’t receive a dime from the money to be released on Tuesday after it was alleged that the state government found them culpable of inciting the players to embark on their recent demonstration within Jalingo.
Due to financial crunches, FC Taraba were unable to hold their own in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) 2014/2015 season as they ended their two years romance in the elite division.
• Senate passes MTEF
• $38 oil benchmark approved
President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday wrote the National Assembly seeking permission to present the 2016 Appropriation Bill to a joint session of the Senate and the House Representatives.
Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Aliyu Sabi, who spoke with reporters in in Abuja, said the Senate granted the president permission to present the 2016 budget next Tuesday as requested.
The Senate also approved the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) submitted to the National Assembly.
The consideration and approval of the MTEF paves the way for the presentation of the annual Appropriation Bill.
The Senate retained the $38 per barrel oil benchmark as proposed by the executive.
The lawmakers also approved the exchange rate of N197 to $1 as proposed by the Presidency.
Insiders however described the approval of the benchmark of $38 as proposed as ambitious as the global price of crude oil has slumped to about $36 per barrel from the $40 per barrel when the fiscal document was proposed.
The Senate also approved the projection of 2.2000 daily oil production volume next year as proposed by the executive. It also approved the N5.720 billion non-oil revenue projection.
The approval of the document followed the submission, consideration and adoption of the report of the Senate Joint Committee on Finance and National Planning presented by the Chairman, Finance Committee, Senator John Owan Enoh.
•Six players,officials to get Belgian visas today
•Contingent to stop over in Frankfurt, arrive Belgium Wednesday
SportingLife can reveal authoritatively that the Belgian embassy will today issue visas to six Super Eagles’ players,their coaches and officials to enable them travel to the European country ahead of Nigeria’s friendly matches against the Leopards of Congo DR and the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon.
The team were initially scheduled to travel yesterday (October 4), four days before the first friendly on October 8 but the embassy failed to issue them visas last Friday citing the failure of the players to attach their bank statements and club licenses as reasons.
The players are Femi Thomas (Enyimba) , Ikechukwu Ezenwa, Prince Aggrey, Paul Onobi (Sunshine Stars), Austin Oboroakpo (Abia Warriors), Chima Akas (Sharks). Knowing the importance of these games,the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) top hierachy were said to have moved quickly to complement the efforts of the protocol department and the result was that the embassy finally agreed to issue Schengen visas to the Nigerian delegation today.
A top source in the NFF’s glasshouse while disclosing this information to SportingLife said that the team will eventually depart on Tuesday night through the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport, Abuja aboard a Lufthansa airline flight.
“The team could have travelled on Monday night after the Belgian embassy gave its word that visas will be issued on Monday (Today) but it was thought wiser to book their flights for Tuesday night,”the source said.
With the latest travelling arrangement, the team is expected to fly from Abuja to Frankfurt, Germany and then make the one hour flight to arrive in Belgium on Wednesday morning.
Coach Stephen Keshi alongside his assistants, the backroom staff and 20 home–based professionals yesterday arrived in Katsina for Tuesday’s commemorative match against Nigeria National League side, Spotlight FC.
Spotlight FC, who are in the Round of 32 of this year’s Federation Cup competition after defeating Idah United FC in the Round of 64, will try the Super Eagles B for strength as part of activities marking the commissioning of the brand –new, 35,000–seater Karkanda Stadium located in the capital city.
Picked for the assignment are Chibuzor Okonkwo, Rabiu Ali, Nelson Ogbonnaya, Gabriel Okechukwu, Azeez Shobowale, Moses Ebong, Chima Akas, Nathaniel Joseph, Chidiebere Eze, Olabisi Samuel, Esosa Igbinoba, Onyedikachi Bright, Idris Aloma, Charles Henlong, Kunle Odunlami, Ikechukwu Ezenwa, Tunde Adeniji, Onoriode Odah, Stanley Dimgba and Michael Egbeta.
A professor of Food Chemistry and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Ekiti State University (EKSU), Mrs. Ibiyinka Ogunlade, will on Tuesday next week deliver a lecture titled: “Food and Chemistry: Catalysts for Sustainable Development”.
The lecture, which is EKSU’s 41st inaugural, will have as its chairman, the school’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof Patrick Oladipo Aina. The Lecture holds at 2pm.