The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Yobe Government

  • Yobe Govt. creates account for N11bn cargo airport

    The Yobe Government said it had established a dedicated account to ensure the completion of the N11billion Damaturu International Cargo Airport before the tenure expiration of the present administration.

    Gov. Ibrahim Gaidam made the disclosure on Tuesday while inspecting work on the project in Kalallawa village, 17 kilometres from Damaturu.

    ‘‘We have opened a dedicated account called the Airport Project Account, money is there waiting for payment at any time,’’ Gaidam said.

    The governor expressed satisfaction with the speed and quality of work at the airport.

    Gaidam said the contractors should complete the project on time because government has the money to execute the project.

    He said the state government had paid N5.6 billion out of the N11.3 billion contractual fee.

    According to the governor, the project is cost effective compared to airports constructed at over N63 billion in other states.

    Gaidam said work has reached 51.5 per cent completion with impressive speed and quality.

    News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the contract was awarded in September 2017 with 15 months completion period.

  • Yobe reunites 216 Libya returnees with families

    Yobe reunites 216 Libya returnees with families

    The Yobe Government on Saturday reunited additional 216 persons deported from Libya with their families in the state.

    The state Commissioner for Justice, Alhaji Ahmed Goniri, disclosed this while handing over the deportees to their respective local council chairmen in Damaturu.

    He said 182 out of the 216 persons were indigenes of the state, while 33 others were from Niger Republic and one from Borno.

    “They initially claimed to be from Yobe State but on profiling, we realised that 33 were from border communities in Niger Republic while one was from Borno.

    “We have now handed over the Nigeriens to the state Controller of Immigration for onward repatriation to their country,” he said.

    The commissioner lauded Governor Ibrahim Gaidam for his speedy approval of the returnees’ evacuation from Libya.

    The Permanent Secretary, State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Alhaji Musa Jidawa, said the evacuation of the returnees has given the deportees and their families a sense of belonging.

    He said the returnees were screened by relevant security agencies, medical personnel and humanitarian organisations.

    “We have put a technical mechanism in place to effectively monitor the delivery of the returnees to their communities,” he said.

    NAN

     

  • Grazing Reserve: Yobe provides 2,500 hectares of land to FG

    Grazing Reserve: Yobe provides 2,500 hectares of land to FG

    Yobe government has provided 2,500 hectares of land to the Federal Government for the establishment of grazing reserves and development of fodder banks for animal feeds production.

    Dr. Mustapha Gaidam, Manager, Yobe Livestock Development Programme (YSLDP), told News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Damaturu on Monday that the land was provided in Nasari and Gumsa villages of  Jakusko and Gaidam Local Government areas.

    The Manager said YSLDP had demarcated 1,510 km of stock routes across the state in the last seven years to ease movement of animals, thereby curbing conflicts between farmers and herdsmen.

    According to the Manager, the Programme has consistently engaged farmers and herdsmen in dialogue to ensure that there was no encroachment by farmers into the routes, as well as avoid grazing on farmlands.

    Mustapha said government provided boreholes with generators along the stock routes, which guaranteed availability of water and encouraged grazers to move on the demarcated routes, thereby avoiding encroachment on farmlands.

    The Manager said the Programme had developed demonstration fodder bank,  growing varieties of grass species.

    “This process has yielded fruitful results across the state as we have not recorded a single conflict between farmers and herdsmen in the past seven years.

    “Within the same period, we have also vaccinated over 5.6 million herds of cattle, sheep, goat and dogs, against transboundary diseases,” he said.

    He said the programme would train local livestock farmers to cultivate their farms with a view to boosting the quantity of animal feeds to enhance meat and dairy production.

  • Ramadan: Yobe orders 12 hours restriction on vehicular movement

    Ramadan: Yobe orders 12 hours restriction on vehicular movement

    The Yobe Government has issued a 12-hour restriction on the movement of vehicles in the state from 10.p.m. on Saturday  to  10  a.m. on Sunday  to ensure security during the ‘Eid prayers.

    The government made the order known in a statement issued by Abdullahi Bego, Director of Press to Yobe Governor in Damaturu on Saturday.

    “Gov. Ibrahim Gaidam has approved the placement of restriction of vehicular movement throughout the state as part of measures to ensure secure and hitch-free Eid-el-Fitr prayers marking the end of the Ramadan fast.

    “Accordingly, all vehicular movement in the state is restricted with effect from 10.00p.m. tonight (Saturday 24th June 2017) to 10.00a.m. on Sunday (25th June 2017).

    “The restriction is, however, conditional on the sighting of the new moon tonight and confirmation that the Eid-el-Fitr will be tomorrow, Sunday.

    “If the moon has not been sighted and the Eid will be on Monday, the restriction will apply from 10.00p.m. on Sunday (25th June 2017) to 10.00a.m. on Monday (26th June 2017),” ,’’ Bego said.

    He said the restriction order was placed in the interest of public safety after consultations with heads of law enforcement agencies in the state.

    He warned against people driving vehicles to prayer grounds and stressed that “no vehicle will be allowed in any Eid prayer ground throughout the state.”

    Meanwhile, Gaidam, in an Eid el-Fitr message to the people  urged Muslim faithful to use the season to pray for the country and improved health for President Muhammadu Buhari.

    “We should also, as good citizens, more than ever before, be prepared to work together, and act together in our resolve for the attainment of a happier and more prosperous future for our state and indeed our great country, Nigeria.”

    He commended the Buhari administration for its commitment in the fight against insurgency and concerted steps it had taken toward repositioning Nigeria on the path to glory and prosperous economy.

    In the recent past Boko Haram insurgents had used occasions of religious celebrations to attack worshippers in churches and mosques.

    Yobe is one of the frontline  states that have suffered attacks from the insurgents.

  • Post-Insurgency: Yobe to domesticate Administration of Justice Act 

    Yobe government has commenced the domestication of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (AJCA) as part of measures to recover the setbacks suffered by the justice sector from the insurgency era.

    The AJCA provides for the administration of criminal justice system which promotes efficient management of criminal justice institutions and speedy dispensation of justice.

    It also provides protection for the society from crimes and protection of the rights and interest of the suspect, the defendants and victims in Nigeria.

    Alhaji Ahmed Mustapha, the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice disclosed this on Sunday in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Damaturu.

    He said: “Gov Ibrahim Gaidam has also approved the setting up of the Administration of Justice Committee.

    “We have the Administration of Justice Commission at the federal level and the Administration of Justice Committee at the state level.”

    Mustapha said the process of domesticating the act has reached advanced stage and would be submitted to the state assembly for passage into law.

    The commissioner said courts were forced to close down while judges, lawyers and litigants avoided the courts during the insurgency era.

    He said that this brought untold consequences on administration of justice, adding that it also affected the rights of those awaiting trial and other litigants

    “We are grateful for the improvement in peace and security, the courts are now sitting and lawyers from all over the country now attend the courts,” he said.

    Mustapha said that the new atmosphere would redress some of the problems suffered in the administration of justice and contribute to the post insurgency era reintegration.

     

  • IDPs: Yobe plans effective post-crisis reconstruction

    The Yobe Government on Wednesday said it had mapped out areas of focus for effective post-conflict recovery and reconstruction of persons displaced by the Boko Haram insurgency and their communities.

    Alhaji Musa Jidawa, the Secretary, State Committee on Reconstruction and Rehabilitation, made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Damaturu.

    Jidawa said the recovery plan would focus on provision of food and non-food items, water and sanitation, shelter, health, education and protection of IDPs.

    Jidawa, who is also the Executive Secretary of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), said the recovery plan was developed at a retreat organised by the state government for stakeholders of humanitarian services in the state.

    “The recovery plan includes restoration of means of livelihood through agriculture by providing facilities and skill acquisition,” he said.

    He said the retreat recommended “identifying the root cause of the crisis and addressing same as part of the recovery plan and establishment of trauma centre to address psycho-social and mental health problems among displaced persons”.

    According to him, stakeholders in humanitarian services operating in the state have advised government to prioritise the recovery projects in accordance with peculiarities of the returnee communities.

    “The stakeholders unanimously recommended extension of the gesture to host communities where IDPs reside, having over-stretched the existing facilities before returning to their communities,” the secretary said.

    Stakeholders that attended the retreat include; Dr Mariam Masha, representative of the Vice President, Alhaji Tujjani Tumsah, Vice Chairman, Presidential Committee on North-East Initiative (PCNI), Alhaji Sani Sidi, Director-General, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and Prof. Sunday Ocheche, Executive Director Victims Support Fund (VSF).

    Others were; United Nations Agencies, National Commission on Refugees Migration and IDPs, Borno, Yobe, Adamawa, Gombe, Bauchi and Taraba State Emergency Management Agencies (SEMA) and local and International Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs)