It isnot surprising that the recent directive by the Minister of Education, Mr. Adamu Adamu, to the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) to expunge Sex Education from the basic education curriculum in Nigeria has been greeted with serious opposition from groups and persons who 0bviously derive some of benefits from the callous sexualisation of the tender minds of Nigerian pupils.
I am sure that many parents and concerned persons who have heard about the minister’s directive are highly relieved and happy and hoping that no amount of pressure from these misguided interest groups will compel the government to have a change of mind. Indeed, this is a major move towards sanitizing our primary and secondary education curriculum and salvaging the moral health of the younger generation which has been badly corrupted and diseased by very pernicious teachings that can only mould them into badly flawed characters.
When some years ago I was shown the topics covered in “Sexuality Education” or “Sex Education” which was being taught as a compulsory subject in both junior and secondary schools in Nigeria, it was shocking to see that mere kids, some as young as ten or even nine, were put in the hands of teachers, who deploy every energy, talent and creativity to saturate their tender minds with every detail about sexual immorality and the use of contraceptives.
When I first raised alarm on this issue in my now rested newspaper column, a concerned parent wrote me to say that the ‘Teacher’s Guide’ given to the Integrated Science teachers (who handled this subject) mandated them “to teach the children that religious teachings on issues like pre-marital sex, contraception, homosexuality, abortion and gender relations are mere opinions and myths! They are also to teach the students how to masturbate and use chemical contraceptives (designed for women in their 30s). The ‘Teachers Guide’ equally lays a big emphasis on values clarification; this empowers teenage children to decide which moral values to choose since the ones parents teach them at home are mere options.”
It was difficult to imagine that any normal person could have the mind to design such a subject even for the children of his worst enemy! In my view, this clearly qualifies as child abuse, which, sadly, was unabashedly endorsed by the authorities. But many Nigerian parents are highly elated today at the intervention of the Education Minister which has put an abrupt end to the whole sickening madness!
How can parents and concerned citizens smother the tormenting fears that some of the Sex Education teachers might aim to deftly deploy this subject to titillate their tender victims instead of giving them healthy education? One can imagine how easy it would be for a teacher who has been targeting a female student to use his creative elaboration of this subject, to get the girl so overwhelmed she would become easy meat.
I am told that there are two main reasons for the introduction of this subject in our schools. One is to empower school children with adequate knowledge about their bodies and how to “safely” indulge in pre-marital sex without falling victims to teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, especially HIV/AIDS.
The second reason is to demystify sexual immorality, give it a positive image as something to be cherished and enjoyed without any fear, as long as it is done “safely” and consensually. The belief is that with the age-long “superstition” built around sexual immorality which ‘stigmatizes’ it as an evil and sinful activity, some kids tend to go into it with fear and dread, and so develop psychological problems arising from the guilt they feel afterwards.
But these reasons are simply hollow and unconvincing. They are built on the assumption that in the present age, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, for unmarried people to abstain from sex. And so, instead of teaching the kids to place appropriate value to their bodies and maintain their self-esteem by abstaining from sexual immorality as our own parents had taught us, they are emboldened to behave like dogs. But the difference between human beings and animals ought to be the ability to reason and determine the consequences of actions, and then exercise discretion and self-control. Why not tell a kid the consequences of an action and use that to dissuade him from indulging in it? Has that not worked for ages?
Looking at the earnestness with which this policy is being pursued despite oppositions from informed parents and other concerned parties, one is forced to suspect that there may also be some commercial angle to it. Are we sure that substantial profit is not accruing to the initiators of this programme and their collaborators in government from the sales of the several books being written and printed on the vile subject? Support may equally be coming from manufacturers of contraceptives and the well-oiled NGOs they are promoting who certainly see in Sex Education a lucrative venture to promote and sustain.
Now, how far has this subject helped in reducing teenage pregnancies and STDs in the Western nations where it has been taught, assimilated and practiced for many years now? It is a fact that these teachings have, for instance, been introduced in both the United States and Britain for many years now, but as I write now, I have before me, a BBC report saying that Britain has the highest record of teenage pregnancy in the whole of Western Europe. Also, another report has it that the United States has the highest number of teenage pregnancies in the entire Western world. Again, in the United States, it is reported that new infections of HIV are still on the increase.
That naturally leads us to the contentious issue of “safe sex.” So, what is all this fetish about “safe sex” and how “safe” can sex actually be? The truth is that a lot of studies and findings have effectively punctured the dubious confidence built over the years on condom-use. We know that with an effective magnifying lens, it is easy to see that several objects, especially rubber and plastics, have tiny holes through which very minute micro organisms could pass.
I read somewhere recently that the “HIV virus is only 0.1 micron in size while the naturally occurring holes in a latex condom is of the order 5 to 50 microns in diameter.” So where then is the “protection” we have heard so much about if the deadly virus can indeed pass through the wall of a condom? Is this not why we have often heard reports of people contracting HIV even though they had practiced the so-called “protected sex”? This is the time to rethink all this stuff behind which some fellows have hidden to pollute the minds of kids with ruinous teachings.
Fortunately, we have one precaution that does not fail. And that is the good old abstinence, which has been proven and tested to be the only reliable protection against deadly STDs and teenage pregnancies? We must hasten to realize that what is at stake here is human life, and should not be toyed with, for whatever reasons. It is becoming increasingly difficult to understand this desperation to create an immoral and ungodly society by misleading the youths? Now, if not for reasons that are less than noble and wholesome, why would Nigeria be eager to import a policy that is failing even in more advanced nations?
Okay, here is another point to ponder: HIV is 500 times smaller than spermatozoa, yet research has established that spermatozoa are able to sometimes pass through the wall of a latex condom to cause conception. Now, if this is the case, are we not by this subject leading our youths through the minefield? The example cited earlier of the worrisome rise in fresh infections of HIV in a place like the US where years of successful Sex Education has achieved overwhelming attitudinal change in favour of condom-use should serve to buttress this point.
Now, with this policy in place and flourishing, where is this nation really heading to? What is the use living, if one must live like a dog?
I would, therefore, want to advise the school boy or girl reading this piece to please pause awhile and ask himself or herself what the initiators of this policy hope to achieve in his of her life by giving him or her these teachings? Such a youth should wonder how they still expect him to concentrate on his studies after they have saturated his mind with filthy teachings that only fill his mind with distractive lusts.
Now, if his instructors (who are mostly parents) are encouraging him to freely indulge in sexual immorality at this early stage of his life, what type of future leader do they expect him to become? After “empowering” him to go on the rampage, wouldn’t they have succeeded in giving him a disease deadlier than even the AIDS they are presuming to save him from – which is the destruction of his moral fibre?
What is the guarantee that he would be able to build a healthy family afterwards by shunning the promiscuity that this subject is surely preparing him for, and which, as we all know, results in the proliferation of broken homes which has become the nightmare of today’s world?
It is instructive that The Guardian on Sunday, July 18, 1999, carried a report that a cross section of American college (mostly female) students were regretting the limitless freedom their parents had allowed them and had resolved to devote themselves to pursue a “no-sex” campaign. But in Nigeria of today, sexual immorality has been deregulated and democratized.
But concerned Nigerian parents cannot afford to be intimidated and just watch helplessly as some fellows whose intentions are less than noble go all out to ruin their kids for them. And so, they should be able to ask: To what extent should the government interfere in people’s lives and families?
Where does the government derive the authority to invade somebody’s home with ungodly teachings and inflict them on the person’s kids, just because he gave his kid to the government to educate in its schools? Shouldn’t an open and clear expression of disaffection towards this gross violation by stakeholders have since led to its reappraisal and possible removal from the school curriculum?
Again, and very importantly too; most people have strongly accepted and hold very dear to their hearts the teachings they have received from the religious faith of their choice (which we as civilized people must respect) that sexual immorality which is a grievous sin against God attracts eternal damnation; and they are eager to ensure that both themselves and their kids escape this terrible doom; how then can we accommodate and respect this their belief (which is sacred to them) in this unwholesome insistence on teaching and encouraging their children to freely indulge in fornication? Should we just dismiss and callously tear down a belief they hold so sacred and dear, and with which they have determined to successfully raise their children to become morally healthy kids? As if it does not matter?
It is heartwarming that, at last, the Minister of Education has agreed with those of us who have continued to insist that this policy is ruinous and has ordered its removal from the school curriculum since it denies a large a number of people the option of choice. Many parents are not even aware that such a teaching is being generously forced down the throats of their precious children, thereby destroying all they have taught them at home.
Certainly, there are centres where some NGOs have established to propagate these pro-pre-marital sex teachings. Interested parents can take their children to those centres, while the objecting parents are spared the trauma of watching their kids being subjected to a menu they firmly believe is terribly unhealthy and ruinous. Their right to dissent must be respected.
The Department of State Services (DSS) has advised the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and oil marketers to make Premium Motor Spirit, known as petrol, available for Nigerians. DSS Spokesman, Peter Afunanya, who spoke to newsmen in Abuja after a closed-door meeting with stakeholders in the petroleum sector said that failure to comply, the DSS will activate its operations across the country. According to Afunaya, the challenge of fuel scarcity has assumed a dimension that is detrimental to the security of the country. He said that during the meeting, the NNPC agreed that there is enough product that will serve Nigerians during and after the Yuletide season. For weeks now, vehicle owners, especially in Lagos and Abuja have had a tough time getting petrol from filling stations. Whilst many outlets are closed, the few ones that are open sell the indispensable commodity for as high as N250 per litre from the uniform price of N169/litre. The shortage of supply has led to long queues at the few open filling stations as motorists and business owners jostle to buy fuel while others resort to black market. The situation has also worsened traffic on major roads as vehicle owners block at least one lane to join queues to filling stations. Source: PRNigeria.
Popular content creator and Special Assistant to the Kwara Governor on Creative Industry, Abdulgafar Abiola, has said he shared his first salary in his new post with aged women and widows in fulfillment of his covenant with God.
The aide, who is popularly called Cute Abiola, said that he promise to always make old people happy.
He was appointed Special Assistant by Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq after he quit the Nigerian Navy following a disciplinary action taken against him for violating the social media policy of the force.
In a video he shared on his Instagram handle where he was seen handing out sealed envelopes believed to have contained money to widows in his constituency, the actor said that he had made a covenant with God to share his first salary as SA to the governor with widows and aged women.
The content creator extended his love to the people as they in return prayed for him and urged him to keep up the good work he has embarked upon.
“This is in fulfilment of my covenant with God and the people of my constituency, particularly the old women and widows.”
Professor Ibrahim Gambari, Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari has dropped a hint that nobody can become a Permanent Secretary in the Federal Civil Service of the Federal Republic of Nigeria anymore, unless he or she has a solid ICT background.
”You cannot become a Permanent Secretary in the Federal Civil Service of the Federal Republic of Nigeria anymore, unless you have a solid ICT background.
”The State House is supposed to be an epitome of excellence and that’s why whether it’s the Press Centre, or the ongoing Presidential VIP Wing of State House Clinic, this new Centre is an addition to the standard of excellence expected at the Villa.”
Professor Gambari spoke today, December 8 at the commissioning of the 54-seater State House Multi-Purpose Training Centre at the Auditorium, fitted with state-of-the-art multimedia equipment, renovated ward and three new ambulances at the State House Clinic.
The Chief of Staff said that President Buhari is determined to leave Nigeria better than he met it.
”If everybody does their best to improve on what they find, by the time President Buhari leaves office at the end of his administration, he will leave facilities much better than he found it.”
Professor Gambari said, at the inauguration of the New Ward, housing the Medical Out-Patient Department (MOPD), Dialysis unit, HIV/AIDS unit, among others, at the State House Clinic, commended the significant improvements at the Clinic, saying that the renovated ward would improve the quality of service to staff members and other beneficiaries of the medical centre.
He acknowledged the good style of leadership of the President, saying that the President would be remembered for leaving a legacy of leadership by example and excellence.
He also lauded President Buhari for enhancing the capacity of State House staff and all Agencies of government to deliver to the best of their abilities.
He said that the Buhari administration is committed to promoting excellence in public service, driven by ICT development.
Earlier in his remarks, the Permanent Secretary, State House, Tijjani Umar, said the training centre would enhance the ability and capacity of staff as well as other users, in the public sector, in service delivery.
The Permanent Secretary recalled that the State House ICT Training Centre was commissioned last year, noting that the management recognises that ICT is the driver of development and a positive workforce.
Umar announced that Galaxy Backbone in collaboration with State House has concluded arrangements for a training session on ICT with all Federal Permanent Secretaries at the newly inaugurated 54-seater auditorium.
At the Clinic, the Permanent Secretary told the Chief of Staff that the medical centre has some of the ”best hands in their various fields” in Abuja and around the country, adding that some of the medical staff can compete with their peers globally.
He commended the medical staff for their dedication and cooperation, adding that the management is on the verge of upgrading an ICT-driven system for the supply of drugs, consumables and everything needed to run the Clinic more effectively.
The House of Representatives has asked the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to suspend the new policy on the limits of daily and weekly cash withdrawals set by the bank for individuals and corporate entities.
The lawmakers also summoned Godwin Emefiele, CBN governor, over the new policy, scheduled to take effect on January 9, 2023.
The resolution was passed during a plenary session today, December 8 following the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance sponsored by Aliyu Magaji, a lawmaker from Jigawa.
At the plenary, the lawmakers resolved that CBN should halt the implementation pending the conclusion of probe.
Leading the debate on the motion, Magaji said that small businesses are drivers of Nigeria’s economy and most small business owners transact their businesses, trade and transactions in physical cash and are in most cases, not inclined to the use of electronic banking system as most of them are either illiterate, half-educated or not learned at all.
“These set of Nigerians who are the drivers of Nigeria’s economy will be seriously negatively affected and their business and source of livelihood may be seriously impaired with these new directives of CBN.
“The new policies rolled out by CBN will hurt the already dwindling economy, and further weakens the value of Nigeria as Nigerians may resolve to use dollars and other currencies as a means of trading and thus further de valued Naira and weakens the economy.”
Aminu Suleman from Kano, said that the CBN issued the directive without taking into consideration of Nigerians in remote and rural areas.
He said lawmakers in the national assembly may be voted out by their constituents if they do not intervene and demand that the CBN suspend the policy.
“This could be an exit board for many of us if we allow this radical decision to succeed and there my voice must be heard on this.
“There are several government chief executives in this country that have outlived the essence of their positions because I cannot simply understand how we can wake up one day and introduce this draconian approach to businesses, giving Nigerians one month to adjust their belts.
“I think that beyond rhetoric we should search our books and impose necessary legislation to ensure we arrest the situation, we have more powers and we can look into the powers of the CBN and remove the excess powers for us that we can act on behalf of Nigerians.”
However, Ndudi Elumelu, minority leader, spoke against the motion, saying the cash withdrawal policy will eventually tackle insecurity.
“On the issues of cashless policy, I think that is the best thing that can happen to this country even though the timing might be difficult, we may ask for an extension of time for it to be well implemented.
“If there is a cashless policy and people use their phones to transfer money, some of such things will not happen and that is the truth.”
In his remarks, Femi Gbajabiamila, speaker of the house, asked Emefiele to appear before the senate and house of representatives.
“I think you will allow me to speak to the senate president and see whether in compliance with the act we can have a joint session.
“I think this is important enough for him to brief the national assembly but if that fails, appearing before the national assembly does not necessarily mean in a joint session.
“If he appears before the senate separately and appears before the House separately, he has appeared before the National Assembly but to save time, I will ask if that is possible.”
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Eluonye Irabor, has said that a foreign media report alleging 10,000 illegal abortions by the Nigerian Army in the Northeast is fake news.
Speaking today, December 8, at the 61st edition of the ministerial briefing, organized by the Presidential Communications Team at the Presidential Villa, General Irabor said that the Armed Forces can never be involved in such scandals.
According to him nothing of such occurred during his time as Theater Commander of Operation Lafia Dole, the anti-insurgency operation of the military in the Northeast.
“I was informed by my Director of Defence Information that he received a mail from Reuters requesting to have an interview with me, he gave me a letter written by one Alexandra Xavis , making all manner of spurious allegations many of which have now been published by the same Reuters.
“When I went through, I asked myself how could man be so laden with evil to contemplate the content to which he want me to respond, I said he should go back.
“You are saying the military since 2013 have been engaged in a planned abortion program, and it is the military that is running the program, and in the letter he also indicated that it is part of government design.
“In that letter, he indicated 12,000 abortions have been conducted but they have now published yesterday that it is 10,000 and he went on say their sources, I said which source?”
General Irabor said that he was not in charge of the Northeast operation until 2016 when he was appointed Theater Commander, adding that such allegations are untrue.
“In 2013 I was not in charge, I took over the leadership of the operation in the Northeast in 2016 and that I did till the later part of 2017, close to two years.
“The allusions they made is news to me, it never occurred, I never saw anything like that, both from the decision center project, down to Mai Malari cantonment where I lived.
“We have seven hospitals that were our major hospitals for the treatment of our personnel and their families especially the wounded.”
The Army Chief reiterated that his officers won’t be deterred by malicious allegations, adding that Nigeria can never be involved in such things.
”I am not going to be deterred, I don’t think any of my officers are deterred, we will work as part of the security architecture of our country, and I am glad my Commander-in-Chief has absolute confidence in what I do, what we do, I believe Nigerians are also giving us the support that is required.
“I think Nigerians are better informed as to the disposition of the Armed Forces or relative to allusions of Reuters for them to take a stand and to know the military. The Nigerian Armed Forces can never be involved in such things.”
Reuters news agency had published a report, claiming that Nigerian Army was running a “systematic secret illegal abortion program in the Northeast, among women and girls who were kidnapped and raped by Boko Haram militants.
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor has said that politicians are already mounting pressure on the armed forces to rig the 2023 general elections.
General Irabor, who spoke to newsmen at the Presidential villa, Abuja today, December 8, said that soldiers and officers are often induced and pressured to influence elections.
He, however, said that the officers will remain committed to free and fair elections as efforts are being made to ensure that the personnel obey President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive on neutrality.
He said that the rules of engagement before, during and after the elections have been handed to the officers, even as he assured that the military will remain neutral and apolitical.
General Iranor called on members of the public to maintain confidence in the military.
Nigerians will head to the polls in February and March next year to elect new leaders at both state and federal levels. Eighteen candidates are jostling for the Presidency.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan has vowed never to contest for Nigeria’s Presidency again, saying that doing so will amount to diminishing himself.
In an interview published in a book: “My Time As Chaplain In Aso Rock,” which was presented to the public yesterday, December 7, the former President said: “If you wake up tomorrow and see that I am President again, that means there may have been circumstances beyond my control.
“But not to go and pick one form and go and start lobbying people and running for campaigns; I can’t do that again. If I do that, I will diminish myself.”
Jonathan said that he enjoyed the drama that characterized the rumour earlier in the year that he had purchased a nomination form of the All Progressives Congress (APC), to enable him to contest for the party’s presidential ticket.
Agroup, Nomadic Pastoralists and Almajirai Community, led by Ibrahim Abdullahi, had purchased the N100 million nomination and expression of interest forms in Jonathan’s name, ahead of the June 2022 APC presidential primary
Jonathan speaking on the controversy that trailed the group’s decision, said: “I was enjoying the drama. At least they are not insulting me. After all, I was pursued out of the office that I was not good enough. So, if now, Nigerians are saying, ‘Oh, this man should come,’ that means they are cleaning me up. So, let me enjoy the drama.
“I was not disturbed. I know I cannot go and start struggling to be President again. It wasn’t only Nigerians who were asking me such questions, even most of the top ambassadors -the American ambassador, the UK High Commissioner, France, and all of them. They came to ask me whether I would contest. I don’t think I would contest any election.
“If you wake up tomorrow and see that I’m President again, that means there may have been circumstances beyond my control. But not to go and pick one form and go and start lobbying people and running for campaigns, be it PDP power or APC broom and moving across Nigeria. I can’t do that again; if I do that, I will diminish myself.”
He said that the only roles acceptable to him now involve stabilizing democracy in troubled African states.
“Assuming there’s some confusion, and sometimes things like that happen in countries. So, they tell me to come and play a role in stabilising things; a stable democracy where one leader hands over to another is what we all want.
“Let us go through that process and not interrupt the democratic processes. We pray such things should not happen. Otherwise, to go and say I’m contesting on the platform of any party at all. No!”
He argued that the APC’s same-faith ticket would eventually lead to a lapse in the representation of Nigeria’s religious diversity.
“When I took over as the vice president, the tradition then was that if the President were a Christian, the Vice would be a Muslim and vice versa. We have religious festivals in Nigeria and, of course, National Day, where there will be Jummah prayers and Christian prayers.
“Nigerians are religious people, this is why I get worried about the issues of Muslim-Muslim or Christian-Christian ticket. Yes, Muslim-Muslim or Christian-Christian can run the state. But I always ask, ‘who will represent this other bloc whenever we come to the national days that we celebrate?”
The book, written by Nathaniel Bivan, contains the accounts of the Chaplain of the Aso Rock Villa Chapel during the Jonathan administration, Obioma Onwuzurumba.
Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele has dispelled the wide spreading fears over the policy of cashless economy that has just begun with redesigning of the naira notes and placement of cash withdrawal limits. According to the apex Bank boss, between 2012 and now, 2022, a lot of electronic channels have been put in place that will aid people in conducting banking and financial service transactions in Nigeria. “We heard people talk about some of the people in the rural areas and the truth is that even online banking, as I was coming out to Daura, I saw a kiosk that has super agent today. It’s because of the way we felt that there was a need for us to deepen the payment system infrastructure. “We have 1.4 million super agents that are all over different parts of the country, all local governments and all villages in this country.” Emefiele, who spoke to newsmen today, December 8 in Daura, Katsina State shortly after visiting to, and briefing of, President Muhammadu Buhari, said that some of the names of the agents are already on the CBN website “and we will publish all the names of all the super agents.” He said that having super agents is different from the banks, microfinance banks and other financial institutions. “Having 1.4 million of them is as good as having 1.4 million banking points where people can conduct services. ” Responding to the Senate whose members raised eyebrows yesterday, December 7 on the withdrawal limits, the CBN governor said that as the legislative arm of the government, the CBN would from time to time brief them about what is happening and about the policies. “And I’m aware that they have asked for some briefings and we will brief them. “But I think it’s important for me to say that the cashless policy started in 2012. But almost three to four occasions, we had to step down the policy because we felt that there is a need for us to prepare ourselves and deepen our payment system infrastructure in Nigeria.” He said that Nigeria as a big country, the biggest economy in Africa, needs to leapfrog into the cashless economy. “We cannot continue to allow a situation where over 85 per cent of the cash that is in circulation is outside the bank. “More and more countries that are embracing digitization have gone into cashless. “And I said it at different fora, that this is not targeted at anybody; it’s just meant for the good and development of the Nigerian economy and we can only continue to appeal to Nigerians to please see this policy the way we have presented it. “We will be reviewing from time to time how this is working because I cannot say that we are going to be rigid. But it is not to say that we will reverse, it is not to say that we will change the timing, but whether it is about tricking some amount to be a little bit higher or a little bit lower, and all the rest of them. “We will do so because we are humans. We want to make sure that we make life good for our people. We do not want to make life difficult for them. “So’ there is no need for anybody to worry. The central bank is monitoring what is happening and I can assure everyone that we are up and alive to our responsibilities and we will do what is right for Nigeria and Nigerians.” Emefiele assured that the CBN is more than prepared to handle the situation “because, I said on December 15 when we announced it, that December 15 is when we will issue the cash but we have to move it forward because it leaped. “The President launched it in November 26 instead of December 15 that the President unveiled it. And I just told you now that yesterday, the banks have received the new cash and they have started dispensing them. “I can only just assured you that it will come round. Let us just be calm, luckily the old currency will continue to be legal tender till January 31, 2023. So, I want to crack a joke: both the painted (new notes) and unpainted (old notes) will operate concurrently as a legal tender. But by January 31, the unpainted one will not be useful to you again. “So, please take it to your bank as quickly as possible.” On how much of the old notes have been returned to the banking system, the CBN boss said: “we have taken more than have a trillion and in the bank, we also have close to have a trillion. “But what we have done in the central bank is to move more people from different departments into currency processing so that they can process this cash as quickly as possible and from there, banks can now move what they have with them.” Emefiele said that he was in Daura to see the President and used the visit as part of the normal briefing that he used carry out. “The briefing has been overdue and I thought that he should be briefed about what is happening in central bank and what is happening in the economy, and generally, recent happenings in the central bank of Nigeria and the Nigerian economy.” He said that there are so many things happening concerning issues bothering on the currency and the fact that only yesterday, the new currency has now reached the banks “and we believe that the banks will begin to distribute these currencies to the members of the public who are their customers; and to assure the president that things are going on well about the currency as well as issues bothering on the cashless policy that we recently introduced.” He said that president Buhari was very happy with his briefings, adding that he asked CBN to “carry on with our work. No need to fear; no need to bother about anybody.”
Nigeria’s Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo has told the Vietnamese President, Nguyen Xuan Phuc that Nigeria remains the largest economy in the African continent, accounting for over 20 percent of the continental Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Osinbajo, who paid a courtesy visit on Nguyen Xuan Phuc to end his three-day official visit to Vienam today, December 7, stressed that Nigeria remains the most intuitive place to do business, saying that despite the economic slowdown in the aftermath of the pandemic, GDP growth has been positive for the last seven quarters.
He admitted that though the GDP slowed to 2.3 percent on a year-to-year basis in the third quarter of this year, but that it was a 9.7 percent increase over the second quarter. “Apart from being the most populous country in Africa, Nigeria also has the continent’s largest economy, accounting for over 20% of continental GDP.
“The Nigerian private sector has undertaken large path-breaking investments in the country in agriculture, manufacturing, petrochemicals, finance, telecommunications and the digital economy.” In terms of market viability, Prof. Osinbajo said that Nigeria continues to rank very high in terms of market stability, saying: “our people are renowned for being energetic and tech-savvy, with over 60% of the population below 25 years of age.” In the tech space, The Vice President said that between 2015 and last year, six Nigerian tech-based companies have been certified as unicorns.
“These are companies valued at over a billion US dollars each. “Nigeria is also now home to over 200 stand-alone FinTech companies, plus a number of FinTech solutions offered by banks and mobile network operators as part of their product portfolio. Between 2014 and 2019, Nigeria’s bustling FinTech segment raised over $600 million in funding and attracted a quarter of the almost $500 million raised by African tech startups in 2019 alone.” “The creative sector which employs over 4 million people and has the potential to add 2.7 million by 2025, is ranked the second largest employer of labour after the agricultural sector. “We are on course to become the 3rd largest national market, based on headcount by the year 2050. We are already the largest financial market in Africa with a market capitalization in excess of US$50 billion as of the end of last year.” The Vice President told President Phuc about his engagements in Hanoi and restated that there is great potential for stronger and more fruitful collaborations between Vietnam and Nigeria. “Building on our friendship, we are looking forward to a greater number of Vietnamese investments in Nigeria and Africa by extension.” He re-emphasized the advantage of Nigeria’s membership of AfCFTA, saying: “Nigeria offers one of the best investment destinations in Africa, some of the best investment conditions in Africa because, among other things, Nigeria is the gateway to Africa. “We believe that if Vietnam investments come into Nigeria, it will have the potential of penetrating the gates of West Africa and the entire continent.” The Vice President identified areas of investments for the Vietnamese business community to include renewable energy, solar power plants (in furtherance of international agreements to reduce gas emission by 20%) and telecommunications, noting that “Nigeria is a fantastic opportunity for investment.” This was even as President Phuc said: “we appreciate the gesture of you coming from Africa based on our cherished friendship and partnership.” He assured Osinbajo that further discussions would be held on the aspirations of Vietnamese entrepreneurs investing in Nigeria, especially in the areas of agriculture, technology, telecommunications, oil and gas, among others. President Phuc said that rice production is one of the strengths of the country, and that collaboration between both countries can enhance Nigeria’s rice production capacity. The President said that the outcome of the interactions has been good, adding: “we have reached a consensus on many issues; we have a lot of potentials to explore.”
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
Popular content creator and Special Assistant to the Kwara Governor on Creative Industry, Abdulgafar Abiola, has said he shared his first salary in his new post with aged women and widows in fulfillment of his covenant with God.
Professor Ibrahim Gambari, Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari has dropped a hint that nobody can become a Permanent Secretary in the Federal Civil Service of the Federal Republic of Nigeria anymore, unless he or she has a solid ICT background.
The House of Representatives has asked the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to suspend the new policy on the limits of daily and weekly cash withdrawals set by the bank for individuals and corporate entities.
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Eluonye Irabor, has said that a foreign media report alleging 10,000 illegal abortions by the Nigerian Army in the Northeast is fake news.
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor has said that politicians are already mounting pressure on the armed forces to rig the 2023 general elections.
Is Sex Education Not Child Abuse? By Ugochukwu Ejinkeonye
It is not surprising that the recent directive by the Minister of Education, Mr. Adamu Adamu, to the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) to expunge Sex Education from the basic education curriculum in Nigeria has been greeted with serious opposition from groups and persons who 0bviously derive some of benefits from the callous sexualisation of the tender minds of Nigerian pupils.
I am sure that many parents and concerned persons who have heard about the minister’s directive are highly relieved and happy and hoping that no amount of pressure from these misguided interest groups will compel the government to have a change of mind. Indeed, this is a major move towards sanitizing our primary and secondary education curriculum and salvaging the moral health of the younger generation which has been badly corrupted and diseased by very pernicious teachings that can only mould them into badly flawed characters.
When some years ago I was shown the topics covered in “Sexuality Education” or “Sex Education” which was being taught as a compulsory subject in both junior and secondary schools in Nigeria, it was shocking to see that mere kids, some as young as ten or even nine, were put in the hands of teachers, who deploy every energy, talent and creativity to saturate their tender minds with every detail about sexual immorality and the use of contraceptives.
When I first raised alarm on this issue in my now rested newspaper column, a concerned parent wrote me to say that the ‘Teacher’s Guide’ given to the Integrated Science teachers (who handled this subject) mandated them “to teach the children that religious teachings on issues like pre-marital sex, contraception, homosexuality, abortion and gender relations are mere opinions and myths! They are also to teach the students how to masturbate and use chemical contraceptives (designed for women in their 30s). The ‘Teachers Guide’ equally lays a big emphasis on values clarification; this empowers teenage children to decide which moral values to choose since the ones parents teach them at home are mere options.”
It was difficult to imagine that any normal person could have the mind to design such a subject even for the children of his worst enemy! In my view, this clearly qualifies as child abuse, which, sadly, was unabashedly endorsed by the authorities. But many Nigerian parents are highly elated today at the intervention of the Education Minister which has put an abrupt end to the whole sickening madness!
How can parents and concerned citizens smother the tormenting fears that some of the Sex Education teachers might aim to deftly deploy this subject to titillate their tender victims instead of giving them healthy education? One can imagine how easy it would be for a teacher who has been targeting a female student to use his creative elaboration of this subject, to get the girl so overwhelmed she would become easy meat.
I am told that there are two main reasons for the introduction of this subject in our schools. One is to empower school children with adequate knowledge about their bodies and how to “safely” indulge in pre-marital sex without falling victims to teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, especially HIV/AIDS.
The second reason is to demystify sexual immorality, give it a positive image as something to be cherished and enjoyed without any fear, as long as it is done “safely” and consensually. The belief is that with the age-long “superstition” built around sexual immorality which ‘stigmatizes’ it as an evil and sinful activity, some kids tend to go into it with fear and dread, and so develop psychological problems arising from the guilt they feel afterwards.
But these reasons are simply hollow and unconvincing. They are built on the assumption that in the present age, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, for unmarried people to abstain from sex. And so, instead of teaching the kids to place appropriate value to their bodies and maintain their self-esteem by abstaining from sexual immorality as our own parents had taught us, they are emboldened to behave like dogs. But the difference between human beings and animals ought to be the ability to reason and determine the consequences of actions, and then exercise discretion and self-control. Why not tell a kid the consequences of an action and use that to dissuade him from indulging in it? Has that not worked for ages?
Looking at the earnestness with which this policy is being pursued despite oppositions from informed parents and other concerned parties, one is forced to suspect that there may also be some commercial angle to it. Are we sure that substantial profit is not accruing to the initiators of this programme and their collaborators in government from the sales of the several books being written and printed on the vile subject? Support may equally be coming from manufacturers of contraceptives and the well-oiled NGOs they are promoting who certainly see in Sex Education a lucrative venture to promote and sustain.
Now, how far has this subject helped in reducing teenage pregnancies and STDs in the Western nations where it has been taught, assimilated and practiced for many years now? It is a fact that these teachings have, for instance, been introduced in both the United States and Britain for many years now, but as I write now, I have before me, a BBC report saying that Britain has the highest record of teenage pregnancy in the whole of Western Europe. Also, another report has it that the United States has the highest number of teenage pregnancies in the entire Western world. Again, in the United States, it is reported that new infections of HIV are still on the increase.
That naturally leads us to the contentious issue of “safe sex.” So, what is all this fetish about “safe sex” and how “safe” can sex actually be? The truth is that a lot of studies and findings have effectively punctured the dubious confidence built over the years on condom-use. We know that with an effective magnifying lens, it is easy to see that several objects, especially rubber and plastics, have tiny holes through which very minute micro organisms could pass.
I read somewhere recently that the “HIV virus is only 0.1 micron in size while the naturally occurring holes in a latex condom is of the order 5 to 50 microns in diameter.” So where then is the “protection” we have heard so much about if the deadly virus can indeed pass through the wall of a condom? Is this not why we have often heard reports of people contracting HIV even though they had practiced the so-called “protected sex”? This is the time to rethink all this stuff behind which some fellows have hidden to pollute the minds of kids with ruinous teachings.
Fortunately, we have one precaution that does not fail. And that is the good old abstinence, which has been proven and tested to be the only reliable protection against deadly STDs and teenage pregnancies? We must hasten to realize that what is at stake here is human life, and should not be toyed with, for whatever reasons. It is becoming increasingly difficult to understand this desperation to create an immoral and ungodly society by misleading the youths? Now, if not for reasons that are less than noble and wholesome, why would Nigeria be eager to import a policy that is failing even in more advanced nations?
Okay, here is another point to ponder: HIV is 500 times smaller than spermatozoa, yet research has established that spermatozoa are able to sometimes pass through the wall of a latex condom to cause conception. Now, if this is the case, are we not by this subject leading our youths through the minefield? The example cited earlier of the worrisome rise in fresh infections of HIV in a place like the US where years of successful Sex Education has achieved overwhelming attitudinal change in favour of condom-use should serve to buttress this point.
Now, with this policy in place and flourishing, where is this nation really heading to? What is the use living, if one must live like a dog?
I would, therefore, want to advise the school boy or girl reading this piece to please pause awhile and ask himself or herself what the initiators of this policy hope to achieve in his of her life by giving him or her these teachings? Such a youth should wonder how they still expect him to concentrate on his studies after they have saturated his mind with filthy teachings that only fill his mind with distractive lusts.
Now, if his instructors (who are mostly parents) are encouraging him to freely indulge in sexual immorality at this early stage of his life, what type of future leader do they expect him to become? After “empowering” him to go on the rampage, wouldn’t they have succeeded in giving him a disease deadlier than even the AIDS they are presuming to save him from – which is the destruction of his moral fibre?
What is the guarantee that he would be able to build a healthy family afterwards by shunning the promiscuity that this subject is surely preparing him for, and which, as we all know, results in the proliferation of broken homes which has become the nightmare of today’s world?
It is instructive that The Guardian on Sunday, July 18, 1999, carried a report that a cross section of American college (mostly female) students were regretting the limitless freedom their parents had allowed them and had resolved to devote themselves to pursue a “no-sex” campaign. But in Nigeria of today, sexual immorality has been deregulated and democratized.
But concerned Nigerian parents cannot afford to be intimidated and just watch helplessly as some fellows whose intentions are less than noble go all out to ruin their kids for them. And so, they should be able to ask: To what extent should the government interfere in people’s lives and families?
Where does the government derive the authority to invade somebody’s home with ungodly teachings and inflict them on the person’s kids, just because he gave his kid to the government to educate in its schools? Shouldn’t an open and clear expression of disaffection towards this gross violation by stakeholders have since led to its reappraisal and possible removal from the school curriculum?
Again, and very importantly too; most people have strongly accepted and hold very dear to their hearts the teachings they have received from the religious faith of their choice (which we as civilized people must respect) that sexual immorality which is a grievous sin against God attracts eternal damnation; and they are eager to ensure that both themselves and their kids escape this terrible doom; how then can we accommodate and respect this their belief (which is sacred to them) in this unwholesome insistence on teaching and encouraging their children to freely indulge in fornication? Should we just dismiss and callously tear down a belief they hold so sacred and dear, and with which they have determined to successfully raise their children to become morally healthy kids? As if it does not matter?
It is heartwarming that, at last, the Minister of Education has agreed with those of us who have continued to insist that this policy is ruinous and has ordered its removal from the school curriculum since it denies a large a number of people the option of choice. Many parents are not even aware that such a teaching is being generously forced down the throats of their precious children, thereby destroying all they have taught them at home.
Certainly, there are centres where some NGOs have established to propagate these pro-pre-marital sex teachings. Interested parents can take their children to those centres, while the objecting parents are spared the trauma of watching their kids being subjected to a menu they firmly believe is terribly unhealthy and ruinous. Their right to dissent must be respected.
Ugochukwu, a Journalist, wrote in from Abuja and can be reached on scruples2006@yahoo.com.