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8 — Vanguard, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2020 :Vanguard News :@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058 WORKSHOP: From left; Chairman, Nigeria Diaspora Voting Council, Prince Ade Omole , representative of the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, Sen. Babafemi Ojudu, Speaker, House of Representatives, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila, chairperson, House Committee on Diaspora Matters, Rep.Tolulope Akande-Sadipe & representative of the Senate President, Sen. Ahmed Lawan, Chairman, Senate Committee on Diaspora Matters, Sen. Ajibola Basiru at a workshop organised by the Nigeria Diaspora Voting Council in Abuja yesterday. 2ND ANNIVERSARY OF DAPCHI KIDNAP: Leah’s dad pleads with Buhari to fulfill pledge •No price is too much to pay for her release — CAN By Sam Eyoboka FOLLOWING recent controversies over rejection of ransom by Boko Haram to release Leah Sharibu, ahead of the second anniversary of the abduction of Dapchi schoolgirls tomorrow, father of the lone Christian captive, Mr. Nathan Sharibu, yesterday appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure the safe return of his only daughter, Leah. This came as chairman of Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, in the North West, Bishop David Bakare, said no price was too much to pay to secure Leah Sharibu’s release. Unverified reports emerged recently that the Federal Government acceded to grant the request of the Islamic fundamentalist group for a ransom in exchange for the teen Christian girl who was abducted on February 19, 2018 alongside 109 other girls from Government Girls’ Science and Technical College (GGSTC), Dapchi, but they later backed off from the deal at the last moment. A top government source said senior Presidency officials are encouraging the Federal Government to remain actively engaged with the channels of communication and the negotiators until a positive resolution was secured, saying “the President has set a firm target and resolve to ensure the freedom of Leah and others by any means necessary.” In a telephone interview yesterday, Mr. Sharibu again appealed to President Buhari to fulfill his pledge to the family to ensure the safe rescue of his daughter, so she could continue her education. “As a father and even a grand father, I appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari to have great pity on my family and intensify efforts to release our daughter who has spent two years in the captivity of strange persons in strange environment. “President Buhari called her mother on telephone in October of 2018 and pledged that his administration will do everything to bring our daughter safely back home and tomorrow will mark the second anniversary of the nightmare and over 500 days after the presidential pledge. “I wish the President who is the father of the nation would spare no effort to appreciate our trauma in the last two years of our daughter’s absence especially as her school mates are in their school while Leah is in a place we don’t even know. President, please make good your promise to the Presidency warns Nigerians against fake news •Says Buhari isn’t travelling to UK for 20 days By Johnbosco Agbakwuru A Presidency BUJA—THE yesterday warned Nigerians against fake news, debunking report that President Muhammadu Buhari was billed to travel to the United Kingdom for 20 days and then proceed to Saudi Arabia and Austria from there. The Presidency in a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Chief Femi Adesina, described the purported traveling plan as fake and warned Nigerians to beware of marchants of fake news which it said was on the prowl. Adesina said members of the first family, ministers, top government functionaries and even the military had become victims of fake news. He said: “Purveyors of fake and concocted Information are currently on overdrive, and Nigerians should be careful what they consume as news, and also share with others, particularly on the social media. “An unfounded information has been making the rounds that President Muhammadu Buhari is billed to travel to the United Kingdom for 20 days, and from there proceed to Saudi Arabia, and then Austria. Fake. It is nothing but falsehood from mischievous minds. “Members of the First Family, Ministers, top government officials, the military, and other key institutions, are also objects of this orchestrated falsehood from enemies of national cohesion. “We urge Nigerians to be discriminatory about what they accept as credible information, and restrain themselves from sharing what they have not authenticated as genuine. “That is how we can all collectively beat the malevolent minds at their pernicious games.” There had been news on social media that President Buhari would proceed on vacation to the United Kingdom where he would stay for about 20 days and from there proceed to Saudi Arabia and Austria. family and free our daughter now. “The world at large heard your promise and rejoiced at the commitment but up till now we are yet to see or hear anything towards the fulfillment of that presidential pledge. So please, as the world is praying for the release of our daughter, help us to reduce our agony,” Mr. Sharibu pleaded from Yola. Asked if there had been any official communication to confirm or deny the reports that made the rounds that his daughter was now a mother, he said nobody has reached them on any issue concerning his daughter. He said in frsutration: “We are completely in the dark. Nobody has called us on anything concerning my daughter. The mother and I are in complete darkness. Nobody! Nobody at all!” On his part, the North West chairman of CAN, Bishop Bakare, affirmed that there was a report that the insurgent group has rejected a ransom offered by the Federal Government on Leah Sharibu, urging the Buhari administration not to relent on its negotiation because no price will be too much to pay on Leah Sharibu who has spent two years in captivity. He said: “The Federal Government must read the mood of the nation, especially after the gruesome murder of the chairman of CAN in Michika Local Government Area, Rev. Lawan Andimi, by the terrorist group, Boko Haram, over inability to meet their demand for the •2 million. “It will be one tragedy too many if the Federal Government plays any more politics over the rescue of Leah who is spending a second year in the den her young mind can hardly cope with.'' Buhari wants NASS to exempt aviation agencies from taxes, revenue remittances •Seeks to impose 5% Tax on flight tickets By Tordue Salem A B U J A — PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has forwarded to the House of Representatives three executive bills which seek to stop three aviation agencies from paying taxes to government and remitting funds generated from their operations to the Federation Account. The agencies include the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN; Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, NAMA and Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA. The prayer of the NCAA Bill, especially, contravenes sections 162 and 80 of the 1999 Constitution, which compel all aviation agencies of government to remit revenue generated to the Federation Account. Copies of the bills exclusively obtained by Vanguard, as sent to the House of Representatives and Senate, are to repeal Acts setting up the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN and the Nigeria Airspace Management Authority, NAMA and to reenact fresh laws to give the agencies more regulatory and financial powers. The bill that seeks to repeal the NCAA Act, titled “Civil Aviation Bill, 2019”, states in section 21(3): “Notwithstanding the provision of any other law, policy or circular in force, any fee imposed by or on behalf of the Authority, shall not be subject to any deduction by or remittance to any other body.’’ It goes ahead section 22(1) to state: “The Authority shall be exempted from the payment of tenement rates and income tax or any other tax in force”, adding that in section 2, “the provision of the law relating to the taxation of the income of any company or contribution to any trust fund shall not apply to the Authority.” The new NCAA law also seeks to impose a 5% tax on sales of air tickets by airlines in the country. The proposed law states in section 23(1): “There shall be a 5% of airfare, contract, charter and cargo sales charge, payable to the Authority which charge shall apply on all International and domestic air transportation originating in Nigeria, irrespective of place of issuance of air ticket or execution of the contract of carriage.'' SERVICE CHIEFS: Buhari’s breaking the law — FALANA HUMAN rights lawyer, Femi Falana, said yesterday President Muhammadu Buhari was running foul of the law in his decision not to terminate the appointment of the current crop of service chiefs. Falana, who appeared on Sunrise Daily, argued that the laws regulating military officers required the retirement of military officers who have served for 35 years or have reached the age of 60. He vowed to file a lawsuit on the matter this week, insisting President Buhari must be prevailed upon to acknowledge the possibility of “internal sabotage” within the military in the war against insurgency. Responding to statements from the Presidency cautioning against public protests against the government, Falana said such comments should be “embarrassing” to the President who, before he took the country’s reins, had led public demonstrations. He said: “Under the public service rule, under the harmonised rules for military officers in Nigeria and under Section 6 of the armed forces act, which empowers the President to make rules and regulation for the military, there is no provision for extension of tenure (for Service Chiefs) beyond the period stipulated by law. ‘’It has been done in the past, but that does not make it right. There is equality before the law, so you can’t extend the service of certain officers while you ask others to go after 35 years of service or the attainment of 60 years of age. “To the best of my knowledge, a suit will be filed during the week, in respect of this matter. The President must be prevailed upon to appreciate that we may also be undergoing what you might describe as internal sabotage (in the fight against insurgency) by many members of the armed forces who simply feel since these are the people who can stop insurgency or terrorism, let them go ahead. ‘’This is because the Chief of Army Staff himself has had an occasion to accuse members of the armed forces of not doing enough. “The Service Chiefs are retiring officers who have served for 35 years or have reached the age of 60 – it is their fault not to appeal to the President for them to go or to resign.’’
Vanguard, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2020 — 9 BRIEFING ON CORONAVIRUS: Minister of State for Health, Sen. Olorunwambe Mamora (left); with the Director-General of the West African Health Organisation (WAHO), Prof. Stanley Okolo, during a joint press briefing on regional preparedness for Coronavrus Epidemic in Abuja yesterday. HEALTH TIPS By Sola Ogundipe :Vanguard News :@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058 State of the Nation: No Northern leader can be happy, Emir Sanusi laments at El Rufai’s 60th birthday •El Rufai small in size but a mighty engine of ideas, performance — Ooni •Nigeria’s at crossroads — Senate President, Lawan •El Rufai, a special gift to Nigeria — Oyegun •He’s an outstanding public servant — Buhari •He’s courageous, fearless, blunt — Oshiomhole By Soni Daniel & Ibrahim Hassan K A D U N A — NIGERIA’S political class converged on Kaduna yesterday and poured encomiums on Kaduna State governor, Mallam Nasir el Rufai, who turned 60 on Sunday, singling him out as one of the selfless public servants who has rendered critical public service with rare courage, bluntness and fearlessness. The adulation of the governor, however, coincided with the lamentation of the Emir of Kano, Minimise your cancer risk You don't have to be scientist to understand how you can protect yourself and your family from cancer. Simple measures like avoiding tobacco in all its forms, including exposure to secondhand smoke remain crucial. Eat properly. Reduce your consumption of saturated fat and red meat, which appears to increase the risk of colon and prostate cancers. Limit your intake of meat and avoid deepfried foods. Increase your consumption of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Exercise regularly. Physical activity has been linked to a reduced risk of colon cancer, and it may even help prevent prostate cancer. Exercise also appears to reduce a woman's risk of breast and possibly reproductive cancers. Exercise will help protect you even if you don't lose weight. Stay lean. Obesity increases the risk of many forms of cancer. Calories count; if you need to slim down, take in fewer calories and burn more with exercise. Muhammadu Sanusi II, who cautioned that no Nigerian leader of northern extraction had any reason to be happy given the sorry state of insecurity, education, poverty, health care, nutrition and almajiri problem in that part of the country. Similarly, Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, sounded a note of warning that Nigeria was at crossroads and needed the support and cooperation of all to wriggle out of the woods. Sanusi said it was worrisome that the North had the largest chunk of poverty, out-of-school children and beggars in the Excess alcohol increases the risk of cancers of the mouth, larynx (voice box), esophagus (food pipe), liver, and colon; it also increases a woman's risk of breast cancer. Avoid unnecessary exposure to radiation. Avoid exposure to industrial and environmental toxins such as asbestos fibres, benzene, aromatic amines, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Avoid infections that contribute to cancer, including hepatitis viruses, HIV, and the human papillomavirus. Many are transmitted sexually or through contaminated needles. Consider taking low-dose aspirin. Men who take aspirin or other nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs appear to have a lower risk of colon cancer and possibly prostate cancer. Lifestyle changes yield cancerpreventing benefits. If you stay healthy, you won't need cancer treatments (chemotherapy, radiotherapy, drugs that suppress the immune system) that have the ironic side effect of increasing the risk of additional cancers. country and called for immediate efforts to reduce the poor statistics so as to place the region at par with other parts of the country. He said: “If the North does not change the situation it is grappling with today, it will destroy itself. We need to get our northern youths to study harder, get the required educational qualifications to compete with Nigerians for jobs and other positions instead of relying on quota allocations. This is because the rest of the country may not wait for the north forever.’’ On the governor, Sanusi described him as an enigma who understood what the state and Nigeria needed by devoting 40 percent of his state budget to education, a vital area that required more investments in order to take the country out of poverty and insecurity. The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, who presented a symbolic talking drum to el Rufai, described the governor as a man of the moment who was doing in Kaduna what Nigerians really wanted to see. “We want leaders like you who will continue to work for all Nigerians. It is obvious that you stand out of the crowd, given what you are doing and preaching in the northern states. “You are a drummer and we want to hear from you loud and clear. We want you to continue to beat the positive drum for Nigeria,” the monarch said. President Muhammadu Buhari, who was represented by the Minister of Environment, Mohammed Mahmoud, described el Rufai as a true public servant who has served Nigeria diligently, dispassionately and conscientiously, bringing smiles to the people in the process and urged him to continue to render selfless service to his people. Buhari said: “Your service to Nigeria and mankind marks you out as an outstanding public servant and we are very proud of your work.” Chairman of All Progressives Congress, APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, described el Rufai as a committed, fearless, blunt and courageous public servant who was implementing a welfare programme for all in Kaduna. Oshiomhole said: “El Rufai is fearless, blunt and courageous and he has succeeded in implementing a socialism policy in Kaduna catering for the weak, the poor and powerful. He is a great man with ideas who speaks truth to power wherever he finds himself and we are very proud of him.” Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, also praised el Rufai, saying Nigerian leaders must imbibe the story of his rare courage and fearlessness in dealing with the myriads of challenges facing the nation. “Nigeria is at the crossroads and requires unity and cooperation of all to come out of the current predicament. “I strongly believe that what the country really needs now is not only infrastructure, but to address the educational challenges that have afflicted the country. Until we solve the educational challenges in the land, particularly in the north, the problem of insecurity would persist,” Lawan said. Ekiti State governor and Chairman of Nigeria’s Governors’ Forum, Kayode Fayemi, commended el Rufai for steadily and successfully handling many critical assignments for Nigeria, and remaining on the side of the people all the times. Also speaking, the former National Chairman of APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun described el Rufai as a special gift to Nigeria, adding that at 60, el Rufai had achieved more than what other Nigerian leaders had achieved in their entire lifetime and praised the governor for standing for what he believed to be right, no matter the thinking of others. “You are working honestly for this country and you are creating a name that will go down in the annals of Nigeria. We pray God helps you to achieve all the things you have outlined to do I was never attacked by bandits — AMAECHI By Victoria Ojeme MINISTER of Transport, Rotimi Amechi, said yesterday he was never attacked by bandits at Rigasa in Kaduna State. He also said the provision of security by the federal government for passengers travelling by train from Abuja to Kaduna ends at the train stations. Amaechi, who stated this at Rigasa train station on his way back to Abuja, insisted there was no truth in the report that he escaped abduction in the hands of bandits when his convoy made a detour to Rigasa road on Sunday night. The Minister said he neither heard nor saw any bandit nor heard any gunshot, contrary to report which said there was an for Nigeria,” he prayed. The birthday celebration was climaxed with the launching of two volumes of books, entitled These Times: Selected Speeches by Nasir El Rufai. The event was attended by the governors of Ekiti, Lagos, Plateau, Jigawa, Edo states and former governors of Zamfara, as well as the Ministers of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, and Finance, Zainab Ahmed, among others. exchange of fire between bandits and some mobile policemen and soldiers in an armoured car which saved train passengers from an ambush around Mando area. He said: “Nothing happened, I came down here, entered my car and went to the hotel. I don’t know if anybody was attacked but me, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, wasn’t attacked. I didn’t hear any gunshot; I didn’t see anybody. “If people were attacked after I left, I have no idea. If I was attacked, why should I hide it; I should be proud to say I was attacked and they were repelled by soldiers or policemen and then advise the state government. “Whether its true or not, they still need to put security on the road because when I passed yesterday, I didn’t see soldiers.” However, an unidentified person who was with the minister at the time, interjected, saying there was a bandit attack which was repelled by security agents. “They (soldiers) were around, they are the ones that replied the bandits. They attacked passengers but didn’t kill anybody. They attacked around past 8 : 15 pm,’’ he said. But Amaechi responded, saying the attacks must have happened after he left the premises of the train station, but advised passengers to stop following shorter route out of the train station. Protesters storm APC hqtrs, demand Oshiomhole’s sack • Call for Oshiomhole’s sack mischievous – Edo APC chieftain By Ozioruva Aliu A group of protesters yesterday stormed the All Progressives Congress, APC, secretariat in Abuja, demanding the removal of the national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole. The protesters, under the aegis of Concerned APC Youths, said their demand was based on the fact that the party has lost more states under him, the most recent being Bayelsa State. But former Edo State Publicity Secretary of APC, Godwin Erahon, described call for Oshiomhole’s removal as mischievous. However, the protesters carried various placards with inscriptions calling for Oshiomhole’s sack. One of the leaders of the protesters, Agricola Ejembi, said the group was appealing to President Muhuammadu Buhari to intervene in the affairs of the party in order to arrest what they claimed to be the dwindling fortunes of the party under Oshiomhole as National Chairman. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had on Friday declared the candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Duoye Diri, as the winner of the Bayelsa election issuing the certificate of return to him immediately. This was after the Supreme Court ruling which sacked David Lyon of the APC. Justice Ejembi Ekwo, who read •North has lost its privilege in APC under Oshiomhole – Babachir Lawal the lead judgment on Thursday made the orders after disqualifying the APC’s deputy governorship candidate, Degi-Eremienyo, as a candidate in the election for submitting forged certificates to INEC. In a swift reaction yesterday, Erahon, described call for Oshiomhole’s removal as mischievous, saying: “It is never the responsibility of the national chairman to screen candidates for election.'' Meanwhile, former Secretary to Government of the Federation, SGF, Babachir Lawal, has described the APC, as a “funny” organisation. Speaking with journalists in Abuja at the weekend, Lawal said Oshiomhole and his loyalists, suspended Lawal Shaibu, deputy vice-chairman (north), and Inuwa Abdulkadir, vice-chairman (northwest). Shaibu and Oshiomhole were at loggerheads before his suspension, while Abdulkadir was accused of anti-party activities before he was suspended. He said Oshiomhole’s action has disenfranchised members of the party from the north. He said: “This APC is funny, For more than one year or so, a very substantial part of the country is not represented in the decision making. The national vice-chairman (North West) which is the largest geographical zone with seven states has been suspended and no longer attending NWC meeting.
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