06072021 - We must okay FG's security operations in our states- Southern Govs

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8 — Vanguard, TUESDAY, JULY 6, 2021 :Vanguard News :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058 ANNIVERSARY: From left, Managing Director, Stratech Properties, Ambassador Moses Obisesan; Chairman, Project Advisory Board, Nurudeen AbdulQuadri and Promoter, Abuja International Housing Show, Festus Adebayo, during the 12th anniversary of Stratech Properties and Promoter of one million houses in Nigeria held in Abuja, yesterday. 42 CSOs allege plot by NASS to manipulate key provisions of Electoral Act Amendment Bill By Henry Umoru & Luminous Jannamike A BUJA — A coalition of 42 civil society organizations yesterday alleged that the National Assembly was planning to pass a manipulated copy of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill in a plenary scheduled for July 8. The CSOs, under the aegis of Alliance of Civil Society Organisations for Expansion of Electoral and Democratic Space, made the allegation in an emergency briefing in Abuja. Organisations represented at the briefing were Enough Is Enough, Yiaga Africa, Centre for Liberty, The Electoral Hub, and 38 others. Speaking on behalf of the group, a former Chairman of Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, Mr Sam Amadi, claimed there were discrepancies between the approved version of the Bill and the alleged final copy where some key provisions have been allegedly manipulated. He cautioned the National Assembly that such plot to manipulate the electoral process would be a direct invitation to a crisis. He said: “The worst thing that anyone can do for the government and people of this country is to deliberately implant an electoral process that is not credible. “In the alleged final copy, some key priority amendments were rejected by the leadership of the National Assembly as follows; the electronic transmission of results has been prohibited, the limits on campaign expenses have been increased, and the proposal empowering INEC to review the declaration of scores and return of candidates made by a Returning Officer under duress or contrary to the provisions of the law has been rejected. “If it is passed, we would perceive it as an elite conspiracy to ensure Nigeria fails as a country.” Speaking also, the spokesman of National Consultative Front, Dr. Tanko Yunusa, said the alleged final copy of the Electoral Amendment Bill, which they have reviewed, does not represent the interests of the Nigerian people. “We, therefore, consider it a forged document that must not be substituted for our le- *Presiding officers can’t determine outcome of amendment, says Lawan gitimate demands. The National Assembly should give us an electoral law that will stand the test of time in promoting credible elections,” he said. While calling on the Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, and the Speaker of House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, to declare that they were not part of the alleged attempt to subvert the voices of Nigerians, the 42 CSOs urged the people to stand up to resist any attempt to manipulate the approved version of Electoral Act Amendment Bill for selfish reasons. Speaking on the isue yesterday, President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, said presiding officers of both chambers of the National Assembly were not in any position to determine the outcome of amendments to the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill under consideration. Lawan made this known against the backdrop of insinuations and misgivings by some Nigerians that the leadership of the National Assembly was bent on accommodating contentious clauses in the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill currently before it, that would stop the transmission of election results electronically. Speaking at the inauguration and swearing-in ceremony of the Chief Commissioner and Commissioners of the Public Complaints Commission in Abuja, Lawan disclosed that the upper chamber would consider the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill within the next two weeks upon presentation of a report by the Committee on INEC. He, therefore, advised Nigerians to engage their representatives in both chambers of the National Assembly on whatever issues they feel strongly about in the bill. Lawan said, “The National Assembly is embarking on the amendment of the Electoral Act, probably by next week or within the next two weeks. “It is very important that those who feel very strongly about any amendment that they think should be effected in the Electoral Act should contact or talk to their members of the House of Representatives as well as Distinguished Senators. “I want to state categorically here that presiding officers are not the ones to determine what is carried or what is not. “So, it is very important that in the same way, the Public Complaints Commission is utilized properly by the general public.” The Senate President further charged the newly sworn-in Commissioners of the Public Complaints Commission to shun acts that would stifle fairness, transparency and accountability in the discharge of their duties. Lawan reminded them that the Commission is a machinery for the control of administrative excesses, noncompliance or non-adherence to administrative procedures or abuse of power. “It is principally an organ of government setup to redress complaints lodged by aggrieved citizens or residents of Nigeria against administrative injustice”, he said. The Senate President assured the Commission of the support of the National Assembly in the area of funding and amending the Public Complaints Commission Act 1975, which has not been amended in the last fortyfive years since its enactment. “We are not unaware of some challenges confronting the Commission, the a National Assembly is making efforts to overcoming the challenges facing the Commission, and that is largely funding. “The Ombudsman institution is acclaimed worldwide as the machinery for the control of administrative excesses and providing the due reliefs and redress to citizens and foreigners residing in Nigeria”, Lawan added. Earlier, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, said the Public Complaints Commission was conceived to, amongst other things, address issues of Human Rights abuses. “It is clear that the Public Complaints Commission is a product of necessity due to Human Rights abuses, societal victimization, high-handedness and other forms of practices of maladministration. “Such ugly practices had long been noticed in Nigeria IPAC rejects exclusion of electronic transmission of results in Electoral Act By Johnbosco Agbakwuru Why we suspended Kano anticorruption chair — Majority leader By Bashir Bello KANO — The Majority leader, Kano State House of Assembly, Labaran Madari, said yesterday that chairman, Kano State Public Complaint and Anti-Corruption Commission, Muhyi Magaji Rimingado, was suspended for rejecting an accountant newly posted to the commission by the state’s accountant general. According to him, the antigraft chief breached and violated the financial management law in place in the state. The lawmaker said the law ABUJA—THE Inter-Par ty Advisory Council, IPAC, has rejected the exclusion of electronic transmission of results in the final version of the Electoral Act amendment bill by the National Assembly expected to be passed into law this month. IPAC described the decision of the National Assembly to remove electronic transmition of results as a coup against Nigerian people. In a statement issued by Ambassador Agbo Major, National Publicity Secretary in Abuja yesterday, IPAC said: “It is a coup against Nigerian people who desire and deserve credible elections, and turned the recent stakeholders meetings and public hearings on the matter with federal legislators to mere jamborees. It is unacceptable and repugnant to free and fair polls that have impeded our democratic process. “IPAC as the umbrella body of the 18 registered political parties by INEC and a critical stakeholder submitted its memoranda on Electoral Act and Constitution amendments, and demanded for electronic voting system and transmission of results in the quest for free, fair, credible, transparent, generally accepted, inclusive and peaceful elections in Nigeria. “This was the consensus of all stakeholders at various meetings and public hearings. It is unfair and unjust for the leadership of the National Assembly to thwart and sabotage the will, desire and expectation of Nigerians for credible elections that meet international standards. “More importantly, political parties are deregistered for failure to win a legislative seat among others. It will be an uphill task for political parties not in government to win elections if the process is grossly flawed.” IPAC said election is the beauty of democracy as sovereignty resides in the people, adding that the mandate of the electorate in a free and fair election must be respected. The statement further said: “To do otherwise, is an invitation to anarchy that characterized most elections in Nigeria since independence in 1960. ‘’The National Assembly must rise to the occasion, defend the nation’s frail democracy and expunge the obnoxious Section 50(2) of the proposed electoral bill which states, “Voting at election under this Bill shall be in accordance with the procedures determined by the Commission, which may include electronic voting provided that the Commission shall not transmit results of the elections by electronic means. “This provision makes mockery of the entire electoral amendment and dashed the hopes of patriotic Nigerians of having key reforms in the electoral process. “With the insertion of the anti- people clause into the bill legislators have shown clearly that do not mean well for Nigerians and undercut the gain made by INEC during the last Edo and Ondo Gubernatorial Polls which they also plan to do during the upcoming Anambra Polls coming up November 6, 2021. “IPAC demand immediate expunging of the clause to save Nigeria democracy and credibility of the nation’s elections. (Section 28 D) empowered the State’s Accountant-General to post accountants to Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, in the state. Madari said Rimingado rejected the accountants posted to his commission and chose to work with a junior staff with grade level 4 as head of the account section of the commission. He said: “We received a complain from office of the Accountant-General of the state over Muhuyi Magaji Rimingado’s rejection of an accountant newly posted to his commission. Unremitted funds: NCDMB recovers $100m from oil companies By Obas Esiedesa ABUJA — THE Execu tive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Wabote has disclosed that the board recovered close to $100 million from oil and services companies in unremitted levy to the Nigerian Content Development Fund in seven years. Wabote, who disclosed this at the opening of the 2021 Nigerian Oil and Gas conference, NOG, in Abuja on Monday said the money was recovered from the companies in the undisputed obligations from the Third-Party Forensic Audit of remittances between years 2010 to 2017. He warned companies which are failing to comply with the provisions of the NOGICD Act that the agency was not helpless and would impose necessary sanctions on defaulters. He stressed that in line with the law, priority would continue to be given to Nigerian companies in granting oil and gas licences, award of oil blocks, and other contracts in the industry. “We continue to deploy the provisions of the NOGICD Act to fortify the oil and gas industry against these attacks such as Sections 3, 12, and 28 of the NOGICD Act which state that first consideration shall be given to Nigerian operators in the award of blocks and licenses, to Nigerian goods and services in the evaluation of bids, and for the employment and training of Nigerians in any project executed in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. “Let me emphasize that this is the law of the land and the default mindset for any reputable local or international operator or service provider is to comply”, he added. Wabote cautioned those companies which consider cost first in determining where projects are manufactured that after exporting jobs, they may return to find the environment less conducive for their operation. “Great companies self-regulate to do the right thing within the confines of their business environment thus making their interface with agencies of government seamless." Local Content must not be seen as a cost centre but part of the business with several benefits to all nations, businesses, and investors involved in the practice. “Let me highlight that we are not helpless or oblivious of what to do as a regulator when it comes to dealing with recalcitrant defaulters. We are very pragmatic and only resort to the deployment of our powers when all efforts to bring offending parties to compliance fail”. He praised Total Energies for having faith in Nigeria by executing the bulk of the Egina project in-country thereby boosting Nigeria’s fabricating capacity from 60,000MT to 250,000MT.
Vanguard, TUESDAY, JULY 6, 2021 — 9 2021 UNIVERSITY OF LAGOS CONVOCATION LECTURE •The 2019 Convocation Lecture of University of Lagos held at the school in Lagos, yesterday. PHOTOS: KEHINDE SHONOLA. From left; Guest Lecturer & Central Bank Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, Chairman of the occasion, Pastor Tunde Bakare, his wife, Mrs Tunde Overseer, Citadel Global Community Church, Pastor Tunde Bakare; Governor of From left: Chairman of the Council, UNILAG, Senator Lanre Tejuosho; The Serving Bakare, Pro Chancellor, University of Lagos, Dr. Lanre Tejuosho and Vice Central Bank of Nigeria, and Guest Lecturer, Mr Godwin Emefiele; Vice Chancellor, Chancellor, University of Lagos, Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe. UNILAG, Professor Oluwatoyin Ogundipe and other principal officers of UNILAG. Bandits attack another Kaduna school, abduct about 150 students •26 escape attack, over 100 still missing •As soldiers foil attack on Oyedepo’s school, Faith Academy •El-Rufai condemns kidnap of Bethel Baptist students•Kaduna Assembly speaker laments attack •Kaduna orders 13 schools to close By Ibrahim Hassan KADUNA—OVER a hundred students of Bethel Baptist High School, Damishi in Chikun Loxcal Governent Area of Kaduna State are still missing, while only about 26 have returned, after bandits attacked the school in the early hours of yesterday and abducted unspecified number of students. This is even as military also foiled another bandits’ attack in Faith Academy, owned by Bishop David Oyedepo, in another area of the same local government area, hours after the Bethel Baptist Academy attack. The bandits were said to have stormed the school at about 2:00am shooting sporadically to instill fears in the students and their teachers. Reuters quoted the school’s founder as saying that about 150 people had not been seen since the attack. President of Christian Association of Nigeria, Kaduna branch, Reverend Joseph Hayab, who confirmed the attack, said his son was among the students who managed to escape the attack. While the number of students abducted by the bandits is unknown, Reverend Hayab said on Friday, ‘’we counted about 180 children who were part of the dormitory but this morning (yesterday), the number of people we received was not more than 24 to 27.’’ Rev. Hayab, who noted that the school was surrounded by security forces, said: “They (bandits) overpowered the school’s security guards and made their way into the students hostel where they abducted an unspecified number of students who they took into the forest.’’ The state police command also confirmed the attack, saying security agents were on the trail of the bandits to rescue the abducted students. In a statement by spokesman of the command, ASP Muhammed Jalige, the police stated: “In the early hours of today, (yesterday), Monday, July 5,2021, at about 14:00hrs, the command received a report that armed bandits in large number had gained access into Bethel Baptist Secondary School Kujuma in Chikun LGA of Kaduna State. “They shot sporadically, overpowered the school’s security guards and made their way into the students’ hostel where they abducted an unspecified number of students into the forest. “On the receipt of the unfortunate incident, a joint team of the Nigeria Police, Army and Navy Operatives were immediately mobilised to the area with a mission to rescue the abducted students unhurt. “The Operatives gave the bandits a hot pursuit occasioned by a tactical application of weapons and succeeded in rescuing twenty-six students, including a female teacher safely. “However, the rescue operation is still ongoing to ensure that all victims are safely returned. Officers involved in the said operation are charged to ensure no stone is left unturned to successfully accomplish the rescue mission since resources will be availed to them without delay. “The Command is, therefore, encouraging parents not to be deterred by the recent bandits’ activities in the state targeting schools and learning institutions as strategic measures will be emplaced to forestall further occurrence of such dastardly act of criminality against innocent children.” Gunmen suspected to be bandits have killed seven people over the weekend in Kaduna State. Baptist High School is a coeducation college established by Baptist church in 1991 at Maramara village in Chikun district outside the state capital, Kaduna. Monday’s attack was the fourth mass school kidnap in Kaduna State since December. Kaduna State governor Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai had been one of the most vocal local leaders insisting he would not pay ransom to kidnappers or bandits. Also yesterday, military personnel foiled bandits’ attack on Faith Academy, located at Mararaban Rido, Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State in the early hours of Monday. The school, owned by the Living Faith Church Worldwide, better known as Winner Chapel, was founded by Bishop David Oyedepo. Vanguard learned that the bandits broke part of the perimeter fence to enter the school, before soldiers foiled the attack. A parent, who confirmed the development, said the school management had met and planned to relocate some of the students to an undisclosed location “to continue with their preparation for their exams.” The governor of Kaduna State, Malam Nasir El-Rufai has condemned the kidnapping of an unspecified number of students from Bethel Baptist High School, Damishi, Chikun local government area. Samuel Aruwan ,Commissioner, Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs, Kaduna State, said in a statement that the governor described the development as unfortunate and an untold evil to humanity and the cause of education. It would be recalled that distress calls were received in the early hours of Monday detailing an incursion of bandits into the school. The bandits shot sporadically as they advanced to the hostels and abducted an unspecified number of students. A team of Military and Police personnel were mobilised to the school and pursued the bandits in a bid to avert their evil intention. The governor is following the development and receiving hourly situation reports. Meanwhile, speaker of the State House of Assembly, Yusuf Ibrahim Zailani, condemned the kidnap of the Baptist students, decrying attack on key sectors of the economy. Zailani, who was reacting to the Baptist’s attack and last weekend’s abductions at the Leprosy Training Centre in Zaria, commiserated with families of victims. The speaker in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ibrahim Dahiru Danfulani,said such attacks were worrisome, noting that everything possible was being done to protect life and property of citizens. “We woke up this morning to yet another depressing news of abduction of students of Bethel Baptist High School, Kaduna. “This is not a cheering news, coming a day after the abduction at the Leprosy Training Centre, Zaria. “While commiserating with families of those affected, I am greatly worried by the fact that these two recent abductions are targeted at key sectors of our society, we are doing everything possible to ensure the protection of lives and property.'' KMeanwhile, the aduna State Schools Quality Assurance Authority, yesterday, ordered 13 schools in areas vulnerable to bandits’ attacks to shut down immediately. This was contained in a letter to the proprietors of the affected schools from the authority, dated July 5, signed by its Director- General, Umma K. Ahmed. The statement reads: “Sequel to the information reaching the Authority on the security threat at the Bethel Baptist High school, Damishi, a meeting with the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, NAPPS, and some key stakeholders was held on Monday 5th July, 2021 with the resolution that the following schools should close with effect from Monday 5th July, 2021.” In a letter titled: ‘Notice of closure of some identified vulnerable schools’, the authority warned of sanctions against schools that fail to comply. The affected schools listed included, Faith Academy, along Kachia Road adjacent to Jakaranda, Deeper Life Academy, Maraban Rido, Ecwa Secondary school, Ungwar Maje and Bethel Baptist High School, Damishi. Others are, St. Peters Minor Seminary, Katari, Prelude Secondary School, Kujama, Ibiso Secondary school, Tashar Iche, Tulip Interational (Boys) School and Tulip international (Girls) School. And also Goodnews Secondary School, St. Augustine, Kujama, Comprehensive Development Institution (CDI), Tudun Mare 9m pupils benefit from FG’s home-grown school feeding programme — Minister K ADUNA—HAJIA Sadiya Farouq, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajia Sadiya Farouq, has said that no fewer than nine million pupils are currently benefiting from Federal Government’s National Home- Grown School Feeding Programme (NHGSFP) across the country. Farouq made the disclosure during the launching of NHGSFP enumeration exercise in Kaduna yesterday. The minister, who was represented at the event by Alhaji Dabo Tijjani, said that the exercise was aimed at verifying and updating the number of beneficiaries in the state, with headcount to be conducted alongside relevant MDAs in Kaduna. While stating that the programme was designed to reduce poverty in all its forms, she added that arrangement had been concluded to reach additional five million pupils by 2023. “With more than 100,000 cooks employed and over 100,000 smallholder farmers participating in this value chain, NHGSFP is a serious potential for socioeconomic development and needs to be strengthened, scaled up and sustained nationwide. “This has also created massive employment opportunities within the school feeding ecosystem in transportation, agriculture, energy supply and food materials packaging sectors,” she said. The minister explained that NHGSFP was designed as a multi-faceted intervention to drive school enrollment, enhance pupils’ nutrition, support local production of food and encourage employment and income generation. “Specifically, it is aimed at providing one nutritious meal to all pupils in public primary schools in classes I to III,” she said. We spend N60bn yearly to repair vandalized pipelines — FG By Emmanuel Elebeke A federal BUJA—THE government spends N60 billion annually to repair and maintain vandalized oil pipelines across the country. It also revealed that the country loses an average of 200,000 barrels per day to the wanton damage to pipelines and other oil and gas facilities. Minister of Information and Culture, Alh. Lai Mohammed, who disclosed this at the Town hall meeting on protecting oil and gas infrastructure in Abuja yesterday, noted that the town hall meeting was important, considering that the destruction of the infrastructure had socioeconomic and environmental implications on the government and host communities. He said this was so, as oil provides 80 per cent of Nigeria’s budgetary revenues and 95 per cent of foreign exchange earnings. “With oil providing 80 per cent of Nigeria’s budgetary revenues and 95 per cent of foreign exchange earnings, one can only imagine the impact of the incessant destruction of oil pipelines on the economy. “Between January 2019 and September 2020, 1,161 pipeline points across the country were vandalized. “Apart from the impact on the nation’s earnings, consider also the environmental problems caused by the incessant vandalism, in terms of freshwater pollution, air pollution, soil pollution, etc., and you will appreciate the enormity of the problem,’’ he said. According to him, the town hall meetings is focusing on creating in the public mind that government property are, indeed, citizens’ property which must be protected for the benefit of all sensitized communities, especially those where such infrastructure are located. ‘It is also aimed at sensitizing the larger citizenry to support the widespread campaign on the protection and ownership of public infrastructure/assets, especially in the railways, roads and aviation sectors,’’ he said. While underscoring the need to protect public infrastructure, Mohammed further stated that the present government had embarked on massive investment in infrastructure since coming into office, despite dwindling resources.
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06072021 - We must okay FG's security operations in our states- Southern Govs

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