The special adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and publicity, Femi Adesina, has said that those who are calling on the President to resign as result of ill health are entitled to their opinions.

Adesina, who spoke on Friday, during an interactive session with journalists at the launch of ‘Against The Run of Play, a book written by Olusegun Adeniyi, chairman of THISDAY Newspapers editorial board, said: “Saying the president should resign is an opinion but don’t forget that fifteen million people elected the president.

“So if one or two people express their opinion, will their opinion override that of 15 million people that voted for him?

“Those who are expressing their opinion have rights to their opinion,” he said.

The spokesman said that there is no need for apprehension over the health of President Buhari, saying that  the speculations of his ill health are not necessary as God would spare him.

“God spared the president the first time. Remember he said that he has never been as ill as he was before. The same God that spared him will also ensure that he returns to full health,

“Nigerians prayed and God answered, Nigerians are still praying and God will still answer.”

The book launch took place at the Nigeria Institute of International Affairs, NIIA, in Victoria Island, Lagos, and was chaired by former Head of State, Abdulsalam Abubakar. [myad]

Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom has set up a committee, headed by his deputy, Enginneer Benson Abounu to work out modalities for the settlement of salary arrears to workers in the state.

At a meeting today, Friday, with labour leaders at the New Banquet Hall of the Benue Peoples House in Makurdi, the governor picked the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Matthew Uyina, as Secretary.

Other members are Commissioners of Finance, Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice, their colleagues in the Ministries of Health and Information as well as Advisers on Labour, Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Development Cooperation, Rural Development and Cooperatives.

Labour leaders on the committee are Comrade Godwin Anya, State Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Comrade Terungwa Igbe, President, Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees, NULGE, Comrade Philip Ter Nongu, State Chairman, Joint Councils one, two and three, and Comrade Ordue Tartenger, Trade Union Congress chairman.

Governor Ortom said that the state government had decided  to prioritize salary payment as well as the exploration of every means to obtain funds, including borrowing to clear arrears.

He gave the committee’s terms of reference as include pruning of the State wage bill, fishing out ghost workers and perpetrators of fraud with regard to the issue. [myad]

The Presidency has assuaged concern in many corners across the country about the health of President Muhammadu Buhari, saying that despite his eagerness to fully swing into action since his return from medical treatment in London, he needed rest and relaxation.

“President Buhari himself, on his return to the country, made Nigerians aware of the state of his health while he was in London. Full recovery is sometimes a slow process, requiring periods of rest and relaxation, as the Minister for Information, Lai Mohammed, intimated in his press briefing after the FEC meeting on Wednesday.”

A statement today, Thursday, by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on media and publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, assured Nigerians that there is no need for apprehension over the health of the President.

The Presidential spokesman, who was obviously reacting to insinuations in a number of media organizations about the health of the President, said that Buhari’s absence at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting yesterday, Wednesday, April 26, was a last minute decision, adding that if it were not so, members of the cabinet and the public might have been alerted in advance.

“As eager as he is to be up and about, the President’s doctors have advised on his taking things slowly, as he fully recovers from the long period of treatment in the United Kingdom some weeks ago.

“Despite his lack of visibility, Nigerians should rest assured that President Buhari has not abdicated his role as Commander-in-Chief of Nigeria.

“He receives daily briefings on the activities of government, and confers regularly with his Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo.

“His private residence, in which he has been spending the majority of his time recently, also has a fully equipped office.

“God is the giver of life and health. We are grateful that He has seen our President through the worst period of his convalescence in London.

“We are thankful that the President has passed a number of benchmarks already. We pray that God continues to see him through this period of recuperation.” [myad]

The Senate majority leader, Senator Ahmed Lawal has assured the nation that the 2017 appropriation bill before the Senate will be ready for the Presidential assent next week.

He said that the bill would have been passed on April 25, but for the incidence that happened whereby police raided the residence of the chairman of the appropriation committee, Senator Danjuma Goje, carting away parts of the documents relating to the budget.

Senator Lawal, who spoke to newsmen today after a closed door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, said: “let me say that there is nothing to worry about. The National Assembly had intended to pass the budget in March but because of some parameters that we didn’t have control over, we couldn’t pass it. It was our design and desire to pass it within this month, April, but somehow, something happened.

“One of our colleagues, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation, Distinguished Senator Danjuma Goje’s house was raided by the police after a whistleblower gave information and when parts of those documents were taken away, it was reported that parts of the budget papers were included.

“This and other things that happened and essentially, the trauma that the Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation had to go through, affected the process of budgeting.

“When we were going on Easter recess, members of the Senate Committee on Appropriation, including that of the House, did not go on recess. They stayed back because that was the arrangement, so that by the time we returned on April 25, that was Tuesday, they should lay the report of the budget.

“Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible because of what happened. But the good news is that we are doing everything possible to ensure that we catch up with the lost time.

“So, by the grace of God, I’m thinking that by next week, we should be able to finish our own work and pass the budget for Mr. President to sign.”

The Senate leader said also that screening of the two ministerial nominees, from Kogi and Gombe states, will begin next week

“Certainly not this week because this is the last legislative day of the week but l have the feeling that the Senate may be looking at that and indeed others, by next week In Sha Allah.”

Senator Lawal wanted lobbying to form the nation’s democratic culture, adding that lobbying is being fully practiced by lawmakers, especially to get private bills and motion through.

“ In a democracy like ours, presidential system of government, when we talk of lobby, lobby is such an extensive work in the sense that it is not what you narrowly define it to be. In Nigeria, most often, when we say lobby, people narrow it and limit it to be giving somebody money to buy his conscience to do something for you.

“But in the United States of America,  after which we have decided to design and shape our democracy here, it’s to talk and engage continuously; talk with some people who have some mandates and some jurisdictions on some issues and therefore, what l meant is that there should be continuous engagements; continuous and sustained interactions between the President and the legislature, especially at the level we are.

“And l know clearly that there is independence of each arm but l also know equally well that there is so much inter-dependence between the two arms and even among the three arms of government in Nigeria. Therefore, we need to always close and narrow the gap and that is what l mean.” [myad]

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Muhammad Musa Bello has inaugurated a Ministerial task force to decongest traffic along the Abuja-Nyanya- Karu-Jikwoyi-Karshi road as well as evacuate accumulated refuse from that area.

Addressing the Task Force, the minister said that it is unacceptable that a dual carriageway well constructed to the highest engineering standards to cater for the residents of that axis has become a long stretch of refuse dump.

“For the first time in my life, I have seen a place inhabited by very vibrant people, very affluent, yet it is one aspect of Abuja where I see that people will collect their refuse and drop on the road median.

“I have never seen that anywhere in the world and definitely you all agree with me that this is not acceptable and should not be part of the Abuja of our dream.”

According to him, the initiative is aimed at working out a sustainable action that will improve both the aesthetics and traffic situation along that axis and one that would be owned by the people after the Task Force might have completed its work.

Musa Bello charged the Task Force to reach out to traditional, religious and political leaders along that corridor as well trade groups, to communicate with them and have them buy into the project, which he said is for their collective benefit.

“The ultimate goal of course is to have a clean environment. A clean environment means a healthy people; a healthy people mean a productive people; a productive people mean a very vibrant community. Once our community is vibrant economically, a lot of our social and political problems will be reduced.

“You have to be very diplomatic, very kind, very accommodating, very understanding as much as possible, that is why all the key departments are in this task force. If for any reasons, relocations have to be made, make sure you make alternative arrangements for whoever is going to be relocated.”

The Minister expressed confidence that given the caliber of the membership of the Task Force,  the city would be the better after they completed their assignment in six months.

Chairman of the Task Force, retired Major General Emmanuel Nienge, solicited for the cooperation of the stakeholders and the general public, saying that members are going to carry out adequate sensitization of members of the public. [myad]