14082018 - Saraki: Showdown on hold as NASS fails to reconvene

38—Vanguard, TUESDAY, AUGUST 14, 2018
Opticians laud Obaseki, vow to
flush out quacks in profession
By Alemma-
Ozioruva Aliu
B ENIN-CITY—THE
Nigerian Optometric
Association, NOA, Edo
State in its bid to reform,
sanitize the profession has
vowed to fish out bad heads
and quacks and inject
modern concepts of the
profession into the
association.
Chairman of NOA in Edo
State, Dr Joe Owie stated
this position yesterday at a
press briefing to address
issues affecting the
association in the state.
He said the crisis that
enveloped the association
has been resolved and
appreciated the
intervention and support of
all stakeholders in the
health sector.
“This sector, in every
given society, such as ours
is one that must be given
very serious attention it
deserves, so as to ensure
that members of the society
are given unimpaired and
seamless access to health
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care in the state, as it is commonly
said, “ Health is
Wealth.”
Owie said some of the
challenges affecting his
members and the
profession included
insufficient manpower,
funding and infrastructural
development.
He also lamented the non
payment of allowances for
its interns at the Stella
0basanjo Women and
Children hospitals just as
he called for approval for
the employment of
0pttometrists, in Primary
Health care Centres across
the state, so as to prevent
avoidable blindness
He commended
Governor Godwin Obaseki
for his strides in the state.
“I want to use this
opportunity to commend
Governor Godwin 0baseki
the Ambassador of Eyecare
in Nigeria for his
financial support during
the 2017, national
conference, which was
held in Edo State."
By Anayo Okoli
U MUAHIA—
CHAIRMAN of the
South East Caucus of Inter
Party Advisory Council,
IPAC, Prince Emeka
Okafor has condemned last
week’s siege on the
National Assembly by
operatives of Directorate of
State Service, DSS,
describing it as “an
aberration and a coup”.
Okafor also urged the
leadership of the ruling All
Progressive Congress,
APC, to stop meddling into
the leadership affairs of the
Senate and allow the
Senators to sort themselves
out over who leads them as
an independent arm of
government.
According to the IPAC
leader, who spoke to
Vanguard, APC is
overheating the polity with
the way and manner the
National Chairman is
talking and beating drums
of war over the removal of
<strong>Saraki</strong> as if he is in a
military regime, and urged
him to allow the Senators
to handle their affair in a
very democratic way.
“I join my voice to
condemn the action of the
DSS. It is a political
nonsense, an atrocity for
this nation. It was
undemocratic; simply put,
it was a coup.
“If tomorrow the DSS
operatives barricade and
lay siege on Aso Rock, it
simply amounts to a coup,
no argument about that. So
what they did at the
National Assembly last
week was a direct coup.
“We borrowed democracy
from the Western World, but
we are not emulating the
way they practice it”,
Okafor lamented.
He commended the
acting President, Prof. Yemi
Osinbajo for the swift action
taken to sack the former
DSS director general,
Lawal Daura, saying his
action shows that “he is a
leader and a lawyer who
understands the
implications of the evil act
Ebonyi govt spends N400m for
renovation of NYSC camp
By Peter Okutu
A BAKALIKI—
GOVERNOR David
Umahi of Ebonyi State
yesterday doled out N400m
for the renovation of Ebonyi
State Orientation Camp of
the National Youth Service
Corps, NYSC, at Afikpo
North Local Government
Area of the State.
The governor further
approved N5,000 travel
allowance to each of the
2,200 Batch B stream 1
corps members who ended
their orientation course
yesterday and also gave the
corps members who took
part in the parade another
N2 million.
He also gave out various
cash sums to the staff of
NYSC and the military
officers who trained the
corps members.
committed by the DSS director”.
“He used his powers well
because as acting
President he has the full
powers of the President,”
Okafor said.
On the impending
leadership crisis in the
Senate, the IPAC chairman
called on the National
Chairman of APC and the
party to steer of the Senate
and allow the Senators to
sort themselves out.
In his remarks, Umahi
urged them not to allow
themselves to be used by
selfish politicians to
truncate the nation’s
democracy.
According to him,
"politicians are planning to
rig next year’s election and
the corps members owe a
duty to the country not to
give in to the nefarious
plots of such politicians."
C
M
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