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8 — Vanguard, TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2020 Visa ban against Nigerians ill conceived, Lai Mohammed tells US LONDON (UK)— MINISTER of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has said that the speculated plan by the United States government to add Nigeria to its existing list of visa travel ban countries was ill conceived. It added that though the report was speculative, but if it turns out to be true, the government will respond comprehensively. Mohammed stated this, yesterday, in London during an interview session with Reuters. The minister is in London to officially engage with international media and other think tank. He said, “On the issue of the travel ban our position is that it is still speculative because we are yet to be communicated. When we are communicated we will respond comprehensively. “However, in our view it is not well thought out but based largely on negative narratives spread by naysayers. “I know that we are working very well with our neighbours to ensure that terrorism is addressed. We are working with the international community FG crafting a 10-year National Development Plan — MINISTER By Emma Ujah A F BUJA—THE e d e r a l Government is crafting a 10-year National Development Plan, the Minister of State, Budget and National Planning, Prince Clem Agba, has revealed. He spoke at a meeting with the Japanese Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenitpotentiary to Nigeria, Yutaka Kikuta, in Abuja, yesterday, according to Victoria Agba- Attah, Director of Information in the Ministry of Budget and National Planning, in a statement. Agba disclosed that the National Development Plan would be broken down into two 5-year medium term plans, from which the annual budgets would be drawn from. He expressed government’s readiness to make the process of the national development plan very inclusive. The minister claimed that the Federal Government had made tremendous progress in its effort at repositioning the nation’s economy and working to sustain the January- December Budget cycle. “We want to sustain what happened last year in terms of early budget passage, we will continue to work with the National Assembly to repeat the feat. If we fail to repeat it, it means that :Vanguard News :@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058 including the European Union, EU and the US. “Our advice to the US is that it should have a rethink on the issue because any travel ban is bound to affect investment and growth in the country and those who will be affected are the most vulnerable people in Nigeria.” Last week, there were reports that the Donald Trump administration planned to add Belarus, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nigeria, Sudan and Tanzania to the list of countries on US visa travel ban. Speaking on the border closure, the minister told Reuters that Nigeria took the hard decision because the neighbours, notably Benin Republic and Niger Republic, failed to respect the ECOWAS treaty on transit of goods. “Not only that they are sabotaging the economy of the country but also the security of the nation was being threatened.” “Under the guise of smuggling rice, a lot of small arms and light weapons are being smuggled into the country.” Mohammed said the what happened was just a chance or a fluke but if we do, it means that we have a process and a plan that we intend to build on,” the Minister said. Agba commended the Government of Japan for the development assistance and the cordial relationship that has existed between the two countries in the past 60 years and promised to do everything in his power to ensure that the plans were realized. The Ambassador said the meeting was to discuss ways of crystallizing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s promise of assisting to strengthen the National Center for Disease Control, NCDC, with a grant of 2billion Japenese Yen, as well as support to the National Defence College. FORMER media aide to former President Goodluck Jonathan, Mr Reno Omokri, has berated President Muhammadu Burari’s Senior Special Assistant on Media, Femi Adesina, for being economical with the truth in his recent interview with a private television station. Omokri in a statement, yesterday, said “I watched Femi Adesina’s interview on Channels Television on January 26, 2020, and I felt Many terrorists killed, more ISWAP command staging posts destroyed ....As NAF strafes Sambisa Forest By Kingsley Omonobi REPRIEVE FOR SANI: Senator Shehu Sani, who is standing trial for bribery was granted bail by a Federal High Court, Abuja yesterday. Wike/Dickson’s feud about oil wells — SEN JIBRIN By Dirisu Yakubu A B U J A — CHAIRMAN, Board of Trustees, BoT, of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Senator Walid Jibrin has said the lingering feud between Governors Nyesom Wike (Rivers) and Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa) was largely a fallout of dispute over the ownership of oil wells by the two Niger Delta states. Jibrin, who disclosed this yesterday at the 88th National Executive Committee, NEC, meeting of the party in Abuja, noted that he had the assurance of both governors that the feud would soon be laid to rest. He said: “About two weeks ago, I called the Rivers State governor and I talked to him about what is happening between him and Governor Dickson of Bayelsa State. I was so happy with the way the governor of Rivers State responded. He asked me, chairman, are you an oil merchant? I said no, I will never be. He then said, do you have an oil well? The matter is about oil well and the case is before the court. But he politely talked to me that he would contact me later. “The governor of Bayelsa sorry, very sorry for Buhari. First, his own wife, Aisha Buhari, exposed one of his spokesmen, Garba Shehu, as one economic with the truth, and agent of the cabal, whose loyalty to her husband is directed by what he would gain. “And now, the other spokesman, Femi Adesina, has shown himself to be not just economic with the truth, but an unintelligent one at that. “During the said interview, Femi Adesina State also responded by saying he’s going to contact me later. I am waiting for him to contact me.” Senator Jibrin also expressed dissatisfaction with the gale of defections hitting the PDP in recent times, saying, “There is an uncertainty in my mind and I don’t know whether you people will share it. It is the decamping (defection) of our members who worked with the then A BUJA—FIGHTER aircraft of the Nigerian Air Force, NAF, have destroyed an Islamic State of West Africa Province, ISWAP, staging area at Gashigar and taken out the terrorists’ hideouts at Tumbun Rego on the fringes of Lake Chad and at Bula Bello near the Sambisa Forest all in Borno State, killing many terrorists in the strikes. Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, Director, NAF Public Relations and upbraided Nigerians for complaining about the spate of insecurity in Nigeria. He then went on to say that ‘Nigerians should be thankful that bombing has reduced.’ “Continuing, Adesina said: “It is not as bad as you make it seem..because we know what the situation was as of 2015 and we know what it is today despite the reversals in security, it is still not as bad as it used to be in this country. •As new PDP govs forum chair, Tambuwal vows to unite aggrieved party members governor of Imo state, Emeka Ihedioha to the new All Progressives Congress, APC, government in the state-about nine of them. There is also the moving away from our party by the chairman of PDP in Kano State to APC.” The BoT boss chided an unnamed chieftain of the PDP whom he alleged, recently mooted the idea of changing the party’s name ahead of future elections. Information made the disclosure, yesterday, stating, “This was achieved in air strikes conducted by the Air Task Force, ATF, of Operation Lafiya Dole on January 24 and 25, 2020, on the heels of credible intelligence reports. “The attack on Gashigar was executed on January 25, 2020 after Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance, ISR, missions indicated that the location, with its defensive parapets and underground tunnels, was being used by the ISWAP elements as a staging area, where some Yes, there was a bomb or two today (Sunday). There was a time that there were five, six, 10 bombings in a day in this country.” “It is said that no matter how far falsehood has traveled, it must eventually be overtaken by truth. And the truth is that there was never a day throughout the five year administration of former President Jonathan when and where there were ‘five, six, 10 bombings in a day in this country. On his part, newly appointed chairman of the PDP Governors Forum and governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal pledged to unite all aggrieved members of the party and reposition it ahead of future polls. He also promised the readiness of the governors to embark on membership drive to strengthen the party across every states of the federation. of their leaders and fighters meet to plan and launch attacks. “Accordingly, the ATF detailed its fighter aircraft to attack the identified location, destroying the structures, killing several terrorists in the process. “Similarly, fighter jets were dispatched to attack Tumbun Rego and Bula Bello on January 24, 2020, after ISR aircraft detected significant activities in the two settlements. “The attack aircraft effectively engaged the targeted locations equally destroying terrorist assets and neutralizing several of their combatants.” TV INTERVIEW: Jonathan's aide lashes at Femi Adesina ''I challenge Femi Adesina to give us specific dates, and we will produce documents from the Global Terrorism Index, which shows the number of bombings, shootings and other acts of insecurity, measured daily. “According to the Global Terrorism Index, published annually by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), Nigeria is now more terrorised under Buhari than at anytime under former President Jonathan.''
Vanguard, TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2020 — 9 :Vanguard News :@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058 MASARI VISITS NAF HQTRS: Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar (middle); Governor Aminu Masari of Katsina State (4th left); with Air Force Branch Chiefs and Advisers of the governor during the governor's visit to the Nigerian Air Force Headquarters in Abuja yesterday. RMAFC begins review of salaries of political office holders •Demands for details of sacked legislative members' refunds By Michael Eboh AMobilisation BUJA—REVENUE Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RMAFC, yesterday, said that it has commenced the review of the salaries and emoluments of political office holders to reflect current economic realities. Addressing newsmen in Abuja, Chairman of RMAFC, Mr Elias Mbam, disclosed that at the conclusion of the review process, the entitlements of the political office holders might either go up or down. He said, “The review is a process and preliminary issues are currently being worked on. If the process is followed judiciously, we would get to the appropriate entitlements due the office holders. The review is to ensure that their remunerations reflect current realities.” Mbam said RMAFC plans to undertake an audit process that would help it recover over N100 billion outstanding money, noting that since 2015, the commission had recovered over N75 billion from money due the Federation Account. He maintained that the responsibility of collecting ‘illegally-earned’ salaries and remunerations from individuals sacked from the National Assembly lies within the purview of the Clerk of the Assembly. HEALTH TIPS By Sola Ogundipe Coping with blisters FOR a blister that has not popped, try not to pop or drain it. Leave it uncovered or cover loosely with a bandage. Try not to put pressure on the area. If the blister is in a pressure area such as the bottom of the foot, put a donut-shaped moleskin on it. For a blister that has popped wash the area with warm water and gentle soap. Do not use alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, or iodine. Smooth down the the skin flap that remains. Apply antibiotic ointment to the area. Cover the area loosely with a sterile bandage or gauze. To drain a blister that is large, painful, or in an awkward spot, wash the area. Sterilize a needle with rubbing alcohol and water. Make a small hole at the edge of the blister. Gently squeeze out the fluid. Wash the blister again and pat dry. Don’t remove the skin over the blister. Smooth down the skin flap. Apply antibiotic ointment. Cover the area loosely with a sterile bandage or gauze. Blisters can result from an ill-fitting shoe, a bug bite, or a serious health problem like shingles. Change the bandage daily and whenever it gets dirty or wet. Avoid wearing shoes or doing the activity that caused the blister until it heals. Wear thick socks or work gloves for blisters on the feet or hands. See a doctor for signs of infection, including pus, fever, red or warm skin around the blister, red streaks leading away from blister, swollen lymph glands, or increased pain or swelling. Seeks details of sacked legislative members refunds Mbam said that all questions on if the sacked legislative members complied with the directives of the court to refund all the salaries and emoluments they earned before their removal and the total amount recovered from them, should be directed to the Clerk of the National Assembly. He stated that RMAFC cannot unilaterally stop the salary of a former governor and current senator who was recently jailed. According to him, “The commission does not make laws. It uses available laws in addressing issues within its mandate. It is not the By Innocent Anaba THE Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, has constituted the Technical Committee on Conference Planning, TCCP, for the 60th annual general conference of the association, slated for sometime in August. National Assistant Publicity Secretary of NBA, Habeeb Lawal, in a statement, yesterday, said, “In fulfillment of the promise of the NBA President, Paul Usoro, SAN that the preparations for NBA's 60th annual general conference would start in earnest, the NBA President has duly constituted the Technical Committee on Conference Planning, TCCP. “The committee has been mandated to consolidate and improve on the remarkable successes recorded last year. “The membership of the TCCP is drawn from the Sections and Fora of NBA. The Chairmen of the branches of NBA are also responsibility of the commission to determine whether the jailed senator should be paid or not. The law of the land would determine what should be done. Ours is to determine what salary or entitlement is appropriate for public office holders. “Who is qualified at a particular time is granted by the law. It is not for us to know whether he is a serving senator or not. As far as he is still regarded as a senator, he would be entitled to his entitlements as a senator. It is the law that would determine, not the commission. “Concerning recovered monies from sacked legislative members, it is the duty of the Clerk to collect the money from them. RMAFC does not micro-manage issues and we do not audit individuals.” 60th annual general conference: NBA sets up Technical Committee on Planning well represented. The committee will be chaired by the cerebral Prof. Konyinsola Ajayi, SAN. The NBA President thanks the members of the committee for accepting this call to service. Other members of the committee are George Etomi, Uche Obi, SAN, Sani Garun-Gabbas, SAN, Oyinkansola Badejo- Okusanya, Mfon Usoro, Ayotola Jagun, Sule Shu’aibu, Chukwuka Ikwuazom, Chinyere Okorocha, Akin Ajibola, Toyosi Alabi, Kelechi Obi, Adetola Bucknor-Taiwo, Hannatu Simon, Sylvester Udemezue, Tosin Iyayi, Yusuf Abdulkadir, Oludayo Olorunfemi, Dr Paul Ebiala, Mohammed Akande, Paschal Ugwuanyi, Sylvester Adaka, Seni Adio, SAN, Oluseun Abimbola, Dr Paul Ananaba, SAN, Prof Oluyemisi Bamgbose, SAN, Tobi Adebowale, Banke Olagbegi-Oloba, Joshua Usman, Kunle Edun, Asue Ighodalo, and Gbenga Oyebode. $1.1BN MALABU SCAM: Court rules on Adoke, others’ bail request Thursday By Ikechukwu Nnochiri ABUJA—AN Abuja High Court sitting at Gwagwalada, yesterday, adjourned till Thursday to determine whether the immediate past Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adoke, SAN, who is currently in detention, should be released on bail pending his trial. The former AGF is facing trial over alleged role he played in the “fraudulent” transfer of ownership of an oil bloc, OPL 245, regarded as one of the biggest in Africa. He was answering to a 42- count corruption charge the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, preferred against him and six other defendants. Others on trial over the alleged oil block fraud are Aliyu Abubakar, Rasky Gbinigie and four companies, Malabu Oil and Gas Limited, Nigeria Agip Exploration Limited, Shell Nigeria Ultra Deep Limited and Shell Nigeria Exploration Production Company Limited. Trial judge, Justice Abubakar Kutigi had after all the defendants pleaded not guilty to the charge last Friday, remanded them in custody of the EFCC, even as he adjourned hearing on their respective applications for bail. At the resumed proceeding, yesterday, all the defendants, through their various lawyers, pleaded with the court to release them on bail, pledging to be available for their trial. Though Adoke’s team of lawyers was led by a former AGF, Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, his bail application was argued by Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN. Ozehkome prayed the court to grant Adoke bail on Self-recognizance or in most liberal terms. Likewise, counsel to the 2nd defendant, Abubakar, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, also prayed the court to release his client on bail. He urged the court to discountenance a counteraffidavit the EFCC filed to oppose the bail request, insisting that his client never breached terms of administrative bail he was previously granted by the anti-graft agency. EFCC had in its counteraffidavit, alleged that the 2nd defendant failed to appear before it on four occasions in violation of terms of the administrative that was granted to him. APC created to fight poverty for the vulnerable — OSINBAJO By Johnbosco Agbakwuru A BUJA—VICE President Yemi Osinbajo, has said that the primary objective for the formation of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in 2014 was to fight poverty among the larger Nigerian population, especially the most vulnerable and the poor. Osinbajo, at the 5th edition of the Airtel Touching Lives event held in Lagos, said the writers of the APC’s manifesto, one of whom he is, decided that the party’s work book must include a social safety initiative for the people. He said the APC, while being put together was strongly of the opinion that government owed a duty to the poor, the weak, the vulnerable and those who cannot work, hence choice to be dedicated to creating a system that fights poverty, among other things. In a statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Office of the Vice President, Laolu Akande, Osinbajo said, “listening to each story of a life touched this evening must remind us of the many others who need our help, our comfort and our kindness. The poor and vulnerable always need a voice. “In 2014, Mr Wale Edun, Prof. Pat Utomi and I met at Pat’s home to write portions of the manifesto of the APC. We all agreed that a fundamental pillar of our party’s plans must be to create a social safety net for the people. We were convinced that government owed a duty to the poor, the weak, the vulnerable and those who cannot work. “Social safety nets are not merely acts of sovereign kindness; they are a sovereign obligation - a responsibility.” Making reference to the Social Investment Programmes of the Federal Government, the Vice President said, the effort of Airtel was commendable especially in complementing the work already done by government in tackling poverty. He said, “Today, the social safety net scheme is the fore of our Social Investment Programmes where we are feeding about 9.5 million children in public schools in 34 states across Nigeria. We are giving monthly cash to about nearly a million households as part of our conditional cash transfer scheme. We have given, as at the last count, 2.2 million loans to petty traders whose inventories are no more than N5, 000.''
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