The minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Muhammad Musa Bello has promised to refund to Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC), the sum of N6.3 million which it used to refurbish nine broken down vehicles and machinery.
The Minister, who inspected the vehicles today, Friday in Abuja, encouraged other Secretariats, Department and Agencies (SDAs) of the FCTA to emulate the example of the AMMC which has saved the Administration more than N225 million it would have cost it to procure new vehicles.
“We are going to refund you the money you have spent in undertaking the refurbishment of the vehicles,” Bello assured them.
“This is judicious utilization of funds and I must commend the management of the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council for this initiative. This demonstrates that the anticorruption stand of the Buhari Administration and its commitment to prudent management of public resources is bearing fruits.”
The minister directed the management of the Council to use the money he promised to refund as a revolving fund to continue the rehabilitation work on the remaining 25 defunct vehicles in its yard.
He observed that most of these vehicles and machines still had lives in them but were abandoned on very flimsy repair excuses even as he said: “there is nothing wrong with auctioning of unserviceable vehicles but it becomes a matter of great concern when it is done when the affected vehicles are still very serviceable.” [myad]
Senate has asked the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Idris Ibrahim and Chief of Army Staff, Lt-General Tukur Buratai to appear before it for the purpose of briefing it on step taken so far to ensure freedom of kidnapped of secondary school girls in Chibok and Dapchi by Boko-Haram.
The decision of the Senate was sequel to a motion sponsored by Senator Biodun Olujinmi on international women’s day celebration who expressed dissatisfaction with reoccurring kidnappings of young school girls in the North East.
Olujinmi, who was apparently angry over the kidnapping of the school girls said, that the development may prevent Nigeria from achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
Presenting a motion on the International women’s day, Senator Olujinmi said that the international women’s day is a day set aside to honour the achievements of women and call attention to their rights.
“Achievement of the goals including ending poverty, promoting inclusive and sustainable economic growth, reducing inequality and empowering women and girls rests upon unlocking the full potential of women through the instrumentality of education.”
“The recent kidnap of 110 school girls in Dapchi, Yobe state and the earlier kidnap of over 200 schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno state is ugly trend that is yet to be tackled , the girl child education which is part of the objective of goal number of 4 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) would have been lost in Nigeria even before the 2030 target year.”
Supporting the motion, Senator Attai Aidoko who described herself as half woman, asked the lawmakers to collectively support women in view of continued marginalization and targeted attacks on women by terrorists.
The Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu who presided over the plenary session said: “We need to celebrate our women every day.
“We must commend them for the jobs they do in their offices and in our homes. We encourage them to hold more leadership positions in the country.” [myad]
The Minister of Interior, General Abdulrahman Dambazau has lamented that the Port-Harcourt Prison which was built for 804 prisoners is currently accommodating 4,204 inmates.
Dambazau, who spoke when he visited Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State in his office in Port-Harcourt, said that Stakeholders Panel on Prison Decongestion had already recommended Rivers as one of the states from the six geopolitical zones in which 3,000 capacities Prison will be constructed.
According to him, the Federal Government’s proposed Prison Project would be carried out on a land that was allocated to the Prisons Service in 1979 in Bori, Rivers State.
This was even as Governor Wike promised to provide necessary supports and cooperation towards the commencement and completion of the new prison project.
The Governor called on the Federal Government to complete the ongoing construction of a prison at Omoku so that it would decongest other prisons in the state.
The Controller General of Prisons, Ja’afaru Ahmed, told the Governor that the contractor handling Omoku Prison had been contacted to hasten the project for early completion. [myad]
Publisher of an online newspaper, the Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, has announced his intention to contest the 2019 presidential elections but without saying on which political party platform he will do so.
In an interview with Premium Times, Sowore said: “it will be the largest mobilization of Nigeria’s ignored and dispossessed people. It will be the most direct engagement of a people in their own political future, said the former student union leader.
“I’ve always offered Nigerians a platform for amplifying their concerns and dreams for Nigeria. I am continuing that struggle. Yes – we will be part of a coalition of parties. These will all be progressive parties – committed to nothing other than the advancement of the Nigerian nation. It is Nigeria’s moment to see revolutionary politics in action!”
Swore said that it is time the country moved forward as the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration has failed in entirety.
“No single major victory has been notched in the anti-corruption fight. Boko Haram is still alive and kicking. And the president’s inaction and lack of leadership is causing the herdsmen-farmers conflicts to take on an even more dangerous dimension. The Nigerian state is in shambles, he said.
“If there is anything we have learned in the last few years, it is the fact that the Nigerian electorate has become impatient with purposeless leadership. My candidacy is generating significant interest across Nigeria, especially amongst the youth. The youth demographic is the largest single voting bloc.” [myad]
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in its resolve to guarantee liquidity in the market, has again, injected the sum of $355.43 million into the Retail Secondary Market Intervention Sales (SMIS).
Information from the apex bank today, Friday, said that the figure is to meet requests in the agricultural, airlines, petroleum products and raw materials and machinery sectors.
The Bank’s Acting Director in the Corporate Communications Department, Isaac Okorafor confirmed the figures, adding that the CBN interventions in the market were aimed at sustaining liquidity in the market as well as boosting production and trade.
He said that with increasing accretion to the country’s reserve, the Bank is in a much better position to ensure liquidity in the inter-bank sector of the market and as such would continue to intervene in order to drive growth in the economy and guarantee stability in the market, particularly now that the economy had gained steam due to an upsurge in the non-oil sector.
He said that with the rates now at N360/$1, it is obvious that the Bank’s forex intervention will maintain the country’s external reserves in order to safeguard the international value of the Naira.
It will be recalled that the CBN, in its last SMIS in February 2018, injected the sum of $321.4 million in the interbank market, while also intervening in the inter-bank Foreign Exchange Market to the tune of $210,000,000, comprising of $100million for the wholesale segment and $55 million for both the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and invisibles segment. [myad]
National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has told Vice President Yemi Osinbajo that the respect and affection he has for him for a long time are deep.
Asiwaju, in a letter to congratulate Professor Osinbajo as he marked his 61st birthday today, March 8, wondered that the high office occupied by the vice president has not changed him as he remains humble and committed to the principles of justice, honesty and equality of all people.
“Your birthday gives me the chance to tell you that the respect and affection I have for you as a brother and friend are deep and abiding. Your life has been one of commitment to the principles of justice, honesty, fairness and equality of all people under God.
“As a lawyer, you plied your knowledge of the law to advance the welfare of the common man and thus protect those ideals and beliefs integral to the exercise of our collective humanity.
“During your eight years as Attorney-general and Commissioner for Justice, you continued to stand for profound and worthy causes just as you did in private practice. You did not allow high office to change you or dilute your humanity.
“You vitally contributed to most of the landmark cases and laws passed in the state, which paved the way for the ongoing development of the state. Those same rare talents and traits you continue to live by today.
“Holding the office of the Vice President has not changed you. You remain as humble, as brilliant and as committed to performance as you have ever been.
“Your performance and service to the nation is a source of pride to those who know you. Along with President Buhari, you have helped to show that assumption of high office does not have to lower one’s sense of morality or lessen their humanity.
“Thank you for being a champion for those who are without. Thank you for your service to the country. Thank you for your loyalty to President Buhari.
“May God grant you more years, good health, strength and wisdom. I wish you a most happy birthday dear brother.” [myad]
Wife of the President, Mrs. Aisha Buhari has introduced a local theme tagged: “Leave Our Daughters Alone,” a strong call for the end to frequent abductions of school girls, especially, in the Northeast.
Speaking today, Thursday at an event to mark the 2018 International Women’s Day at the National Center for Women Development, Abuja, Aisha Buhari asked the media to own the campaign and spread message.
She also charged wives of the Governors to propagate the campaign in their various states and that the message must echo through all corners of Nigeria and be on everyone’s lips.
The President’s wife warned perpetrators of abductions and various harmful practices against women and girls to stop the acts forthwith even as she wanted the International Women’s Day to be marked with a difference in view of the sad incidence of the abduction of girls, especially the case of Chibok and Dapchi.
“As a mother, I share the sorrow and agony of the parents at this time, it is my sincere hope that efforts by government will soon lead to their release.”
Speaking earlier, wife of the Vice President, Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo, said that it is sad that Nigerian women are witnessing the worst of times because of many negative things that are happening. [myad]
President Muhammadu Buhari has commended the governor of Plateau State, Simon Lalong for the positive roles he had played to unite all the ethnic groups in the state, thereby ending the protracted crises in the state.
“I wish to encourage your Excellency to continue with the good work you are doing, and I wholeheartedly congratulate you for uniting the people of Plateau State. I am indeed quite impressed with gains and successes recorded in the area of conflict management and peace-building, which has returned this state to the path of relative peace.”
President Buhari, who spoke today, Thursday in Jos, Plateau State capital, at a Town Hall meeting in the course of his two-day official visit to the state, added: “let me express the Federal Government’s commitment to support and assist the Peace Building Agency in its effort to arrest the vicious cycle of violence and lay the foundation for sustainable peace in our country.”
The President, who also launched the Plateau State Roadmap to Peace, commended Governor Lalong for his achievements in the development of the state and ensure that salaries and pensions are being paid regularly.
He expressed satisfaction on the strides which the governor had made in the area of Agricultural sector even as gave assurance that the Federal Government will continue to work with the State government.
“I am glad that the state government has fully keyed into the All Green Initiative and the Anchor Borrowers’ Scheme of the Federal Government considering the strategic importance of agriculture to our national development. Equally commendable is Plateau State’s commitment to the African Development Bank-funded Potato Value Chain Support Project, which is targeted at wealth creation, employment generation and food security.”
The President lauded Governor Lalong for continuing with the projects that were abandoned by previous administrations , adding that this has saved the state from white elephant projects and assured that the federal Government will speed up refunds on federal works executed by the state.
“I have noted the request for refund of funds expended on the rehabilitation of the Jos-Bukuru-Mararaba Jema’a Road which is a Federal road project and other interventions. Federal Government will expedite action towards the refund of verified claims by the Plateau State Government,” he said.
President Buhari also listed some of Federal Government intervention activities such as the construction of the Pankshin-Tapshin-Gambrar-Sara-Kai-Gindiri Road to Metropolitan Construction Company Ltd; Execution of TETFUND Projects; Bail-Out Funds; Paris Club Refunds and N-Power Scheme and assured that the request for dualization and construction of the road from Abuja to Jos will be put into consideration given its economic viability and status as gateway extending to the North East.
Responding to a request by the Governor for the inclusion of more Plateau State indigenes in federal appointments, President Buhari assured that, the request will be looked into so as to reflect federal character in line with the Federal Government’s determination to address issues of marginalization in the spread of appointments and other privileges.”
President Buhari also reminisced on his time as General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 3 Armoured Division Jos, recalling that it was from this position that he was summoned to become Head of State in January 1984.
The President had earlier commissioned some road projects executed by the State Government and paid a courtesy call on the Gbong Gwom Jos, Dr. Jacob Gyang Buba. [myad]
The Nigerian Army has made it clear that its men and officers across the country have no interest in taking over the democratically elected government of the country, either now or in future.
“The Nigerian Military has come of age and is in tune with best international military practices of complete and total subordination to democratic governance. The present crop of personnel in the Armed Forces of Nigeria right from the Service Chiefs to the men; are made up of the balance of re-professionalized officers and fresh intakes from 1999, who do not nurse political ambitions. They are fully committed to their oaths of allegiance to serve their fatherland Nigeria, with total submission to our democratic government.” In a statement today, Thursday, by the Acting Director, Defence Information, Brigadier General J. A Agim, the Nigerian Army said that any suggestion to the fact that its men and officers are still eying the political governance of the country, “is derogatory to the Army.”
The statement was in reaction to a comment by the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu yesterday, Wednesday, during which time he was quoted as saying: “The Problem in Nigeria is that our democracy is receding. Who says army cannot take over? Let us not joke with our democracy that is the issue,” The Army said that this statement by the Deputy Senate President might appear cautionary and sincere in the atmosphere of discourse but that “it is however derogatory to the Army used in the expression and by extension to the Armed Forces of Nigeria. “The statement in the true sense has the capacity to denigrate the Nigerian Military in every ramification, including its loyalty to the President, Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and the confidence of the general public to defend Nigeria’s democracy. “In this regard, it is worthy to remind the general public about some key measures among others that guaranteed the present sustainable status of politically un-ambitious members of the Armed Forces: “a. Shortly, after the transition from a military to a democratically elected government in 1999, officers of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, who were quasi-political, were honourably eased out of service. This was done to avoid indoctrination of other officers in the Military in order to enable the democratic government commence a re-professionalization process of the Armed Forces. The process commenced in collaboration with international organizations such as the United States Armed Forces and the British Military. By 2009, from the basic military training institutions through units and formation reorientation programmes to top management workshops and seminars for the military, it became clear that the Armed Forces of Nigeria has been re-professionalized to be totally subordinate to political leadership and democracy in the Country. “b. In addition, the Nigerian Military began to take the lead at ensuring that the West African Sub Region is stable democratically through military diplomacy and physical actions where it is highly desirable and supported by ECOWAS. The case of the Gambia last year is still fresh in our memories, where democracy was enforced by an ECOWAS Military Coalition led by the Armed Forces of Nigeria, under the focused and able leadership of Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General A. G Olonisakin (NAM).” “Defence Headquarters hereby assures the international community, Nigeria’s democratic institutions and the general public, of its unalloyed loyalty to the President Commander in Chief, provision of all necessary support for the sustenance of our democracy and carrying out our constitutional roles. Therefore, the apprehension by the Deputy President of the Senate should be totally disregarded.” [myad]
President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed gratitude to the Saudi Arabian Government for providing material assistance to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), especially in the Northeast, worth $10 million.
The President, who received in audience, a delegation from King Salman of Saudi Arabia at the Presidential Villa, Abuja today, Thursday, particularly thanked King Salman Aid and Relief Centre and the Saudi Development Fund for the relief materials.
Buhari said that Nigerians in the areas affected by Boko Haram insurgency are in the best position to provide correct assessments of the changes that have taken place since he assumed office in 2015.
He said that his administration is mindful of the three-pronged promises made to Nigerians before the 2015 elections, assuring that he remained undeterred and focused on securing the lives and properties of all Nigerians.
“From the very time we came until now, we have been able to do our best, and we remain focused on delivering on our promises.”
President Buhari told the Saudi Arabian delegation that the priority of his administration had so far been on securing the country, buoying the economy and curbing corruption so that Nigerians would start benefiting from the rich natural and human resources of the country.
In his remarks, the Minister of Defence, Mohammed Dan-Ali said the delegation from Saudi Arabia had already visited the Ministry of Defence, Defence Headquarters and taken a tour of IDP camps in Maiduguri as part of their schedule.
The Leader of the Saudi Arabian delegation from King Salman, Nasser Bin Mutlaq, said the visit and the donation of materials was an extension of the good relations both countries had shared over the years.
“We are directed to offer materials and food for the displaced persons in the North East worth 10 million dollars. We have had a field visit to the places and seen the humanitarian situation ourselves.” [myad]
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The Nigerian Army has made it clear that its men and officers across the country have no interest in taking over the democratically elected government of the country, either now or in future.
