25022021 - Way out of Nigeria’s security problems

Vanguard, , THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021 — 11
:Vanguard :@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES:
MEETING—From left: Lanre Olusola, Secretary General, Association of Professional Bodies
of Nigeria, APBN; Akin Oyegbola, President/Chairman, APBN; Dr. Danazumi Ibrahim,
Director General, National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion, and Rawlings
Elaumadu, Publicity Secretary, APBN, during APBN 2021 board meeting, in lagos,
Yesterday.
REHAB: Lagos to shut 3rd Mainland
Bridge for 24hrs
By Olasunkanmi Akoni
LAGOS—LAGOS
State
Government said, yesterday,
that it has concluded plans to shut
down the Third Mainland Bridge
from midnight Friday February
26, to midnight Saturday 27th.
The bridge was slated to be
reopened to traffic by February
ending, after over six months of
rehabilitation.
The Commissioner for
Transportation, Dr. Frederick
Oladeinde, said the closure of the
bridge was slated to enable the
contractors to move the equipment
used, during the rehabilitation
process, off the bridge completely
to allow both the Oworonshoki
and Adeniji bound lanes to open
....Sets to launch FMLM scheme
Decay in education, source of Nigeria’s crises,
says Babalola
By Rotimi Ojomoyela
A DO-EKITI—FOUNDER
of the Afe Babalola
University, Ado Ekiti, ABUAD,
Chief Afe Babalola, SAN,
yesterday, attributed the decay
in the nation’s educational
system as the source of the
crises confronting the country.
Babalola said this in Ado-
Ekiti, while playing host
simultaneously to leaders of
Bursars’ Association of
Polytechnics and Colleges of
Technology, BURSCON, and
Glo leads Internet growth rate
….As telecom sector contributes 12.45% to GDP
N
A
T I O N A L
telecommunication
Company, Globacom, grossed a
total of 11,172,220 new internet
subscribers between December
2019 and December 2020, thus
emerging the highest percentage
gainer for year 2020.
This is according to statistics
released by industry regulator, the
Nigerian Communications
Commission, NCC, and
published on its website.
According to the data, the
telecom industry’s acquisition of
28,145,458 new data subscribers
represents 22 per cent increase,
as the number of data users in
Nigeria moved from 125,728,328
subscribers, as at December 2019,
to 153,873,786 in December 2020.
Leading other operators,
Globacom recorded 39 per cent
fully to traffic.
Meanwhile, the Managing
Director of Lagos Metropolitan
Area Transport Authority,
LAMATA, Mrs. Abimbola
Akinajo, has affirmed that the
agency was working towards 'a
connected Lagos' with the various
transport projects being
implemented through it by the
state government.
Akinajo spoke, while
addressing officials of the Office
of Transformation, Creativity and
Innovation, (Office of Head of
Service), who led consultants
engaged for scoping assessment/
situating structure of MDAs
whose mandate directly impact
the T.H.E.M.E.S agenda of the
state to the agency.
the Federal Government’s Gas
expansion Committee, who
paid a courtesy call to ABUAD.
While addressing the
gathering of professionals,
administrators and academics,
the ABUAD founder said: “The
problem we have today is
decay in quality education in
this country. That was why,
after turning down ministerial
appointments thrice, I agreed
to go to the University of Lagos
as Pro-Chancellor and
Chairman of the Governing
Council, where I had an
insight into what was
happening to our education
growth in the telecoms sub-sector,
adding 11,172,220 new data
subscribers in 2020. It ended the
year 2019 with 28,934,439
subscribers and moved to
40,106,659 at the end of 2020, thus
surpassing the 22 percentage
growth recorded in the sector in
the year under review.
Globacom's performance has,
thus, lent credence to the NCC
statement, Monday, which said
that Nigeria telecoms sector’s
contribution of 12.45 per cent to
the country's Gross Domestic
Product, GDP, played a huge role
in getting Nigeria out of
recession.
In the second place is MTN with 21
per cent growth, closely followed by Airtel
with 20 per cent, while reverse was the
case for 9mobile, which dropped figures,
recording 12 per cent loss.
She said: “We have a transport
master plan, which speaks to the
vision of Mr. Governor on
transportation. We have six rail
lines and one monorail, 14 Bus
Rapid Transit, BRT, corridors, over
20 water routes and are sure that
when all of these are properly
harnessed, Lagos will join the
league of cities with an efficient
transport system.
“We have advertised four other rail lines
for the private sector to invest in. We are
working on the private sector so they
could bring in about 1500 high-capacity
buses by 2022; we would be launching
our First Mile Last Mile, FMLM, scheme
very soon. We are working on the
construction of two interchanges at Mile
2 and CMS. We want to ensure that
Lagosians travel in comfort.”
system.
“At times, they used to close
down the schools under the
guise of strikes for almost a
year, this is criminal. I want to
be an example, a leader in the
transformation of education,
and that was why I established
ABUAD.
“Added to the foregoing was
also our very selfish leaders.
There are many Nigerians
who could buy me; they are
expected to set up a university
like this to give functional
education to Nigerians at
affordable fees, but they never
did.
“I want you to be committed
to financial discipline. But the
problem has been that some
wanted to be Bursars to steal
because money is there.
“The government is not doing
enough to fund education.
UNESCO directed governments
to set aside 26 per cent to fund
education, but what have they
done? During the Western
region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo
set aside 22 per cent; the military
came and reduced to nothing.
Chief Olusegun Obasanjo in 1999
budgeted 12 per cent and now, it
is just six per cent.
“Looking at all these, we are not
serious with education in this
country. What are we doing about
endowments? We must set up
endowments in our schools. The
endowment is the main source of
funding for universities. If you
check American universities, they
were being majorly funded
through endowments.”
The 9 months cannot arrive oo, when your
grammar has arrested the pregnancy
...Including all the goodies that come with
the vow. Smart man!
...And for the mutual ‘gains' thereof!
C
M
Y
K