15092022

8 — VANGUARD, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2022
:Vanguard
News
:@vanguardnews :@vanguardnews NEWS HOTLINES: 08052867023, 08052867058
COMMISSIONING—From left: Pastor Yemisi Kudehinbu, Pastor Tom Obiazi, and HRH Onojie of Ewu
kingdom, Abdulrazak Isesele Ojiefoh III, commissioning the building, in Ewu Esan Central Local
Government Area of Edo State.
Nigeria not on track to meet many
SDGs by 2030 —UN
By Juliet Umeh
THE United Nations, UN,
yesterday, said Nigeria is not
on track to reach many of its
Sustainable Development Goals,
SDGs, by 2030, lamenting that
the situation has been
compounded by the COVID-19
pandemic and the ongoing war
in Ukraine.
UN Resident/Humanitarian
Coordinator in Nigeria, Mr.
Matthias Schmale, disclosed this
in his speech at the opening
ceremony of a three-day capacity
building workshop for the Nigeria
Labour Congress, NLC’s
educators on the UN Strategic
Development Cooperation
Framework, UNSDCF.
The empowerment was
organised in collaboration with
International Labour
Organisation, ILO, with the
support from the UN office in
Nigeria, to understand the SDGs
and the reforms going on in the
United Nations.
Benue Govt to Buhari: Pay attention to
humanitarian crisis in Benue
By Peter Duru
MState AKURDI—BENUE
Government has
pleaded with President
Muhammadu Buhari to pay
attention to the humanitarian
crisis in the state, as being done
in the North East, to end the
sufferings and further loss of lives
in the state.
Executive Secretary of Benue
State Emergency Management
Agency, SEMA, Dr. Emmanuel
Shior, who made the appeal,
yesterday, while flagging off the
monthly distribution of food and
essential items to Internally
Displaced Persons, IDPs, in the
state, urged the President to use
the remaining months of his
administration to give succour to
persons of concern in the state.
Shior, who lamented the
overwhelming burden the state
government was shouldering by
catering for the needs of the
IDPs, said: "it is unthinkable to
have IDPs in camp for over five
While emphasising on the
significance of the training,
Schmale who was represented by
ILO Senior Specialist in Workers’
Activities, Country Office, Abuja,
Ms Inviolata Chinyangarara,
said: "As it stands, Nigeria is not
on track to reach many of its
SDGs by 2030, a situation
compounded by the COVID-19
pandemic and the ongoing war
in Ukraine. With women and
youths hit especially hard by
growing unemployment,
spiraling inflation, and insufficient
access to quality education and
health services, we must take a
fresh look at how best to support
the most vulnerable in society.
"Our guiding principle is to
leave no one behind. A businessas-usual
approach of small-scale
interventions is unlikely to
significantly move the needle in
a country with a GDP of USD
$432billion.
"The Cooperation Framework
will focus on a number of
Transformative Initiatives that
years, and you are left with the
responsibility of catering for them."
While lamenting that the
Federal Government had
abdicated its responsibilities to
distressed Nigerians, the
Executive Secretary blamed the
federal government for the
inability of the displaced persons
to return to their ancestral
homes.
"We urged the President to
please pay equal attention to the
humanitarian crisis in Benue as
being done in the North East.
The situation in Benue is dire and
it is our earnest desire to have
Presidebt Buhari come in to assist
us becaue the burden is
overwhelming for the state.
"This will help him write his
name in gold. He is a father and
we will not be tired of crying to
him until he gives us listening
ears because he has abandoned
the IDPs in Benue. We hope that
our continued cry to him will
eventually get his attention to
come and do something here
will be catalytic in the lives of
Nigerian people. We must think
big and aim high if we are to make
a difference to the 100 million
living below the poverty line, the
53 percent of youth who are
unemployed, and the 18 million
children out of school.
"The UN system in Nigeria is
fully committed to bringing about
sustainable economic growth,
decent work for all, gender
equality, a protected
environment, more equitable
access to basic services, and
opportunities for meaningful,
participatory engagement for
every one of this nation’s
citizens."
In her remarks, ILO Country
Director, Ms Vanessa Phala,
represented by the Senior
Programme Officer, Country
Office, Abuja, Ms Chinyere
Emeka-Anuna, among others,
said: "The purpose of this
workshop is to bring together a
cohort from NLC national
educators to empower them to
before he leaves office especially
as we are entering the election
period."
Dr. Shior, who raised concern
over the increasing number of
displaced persons in the state
disclosed that 600 households
were recently sacked from their
ancestral homes in Logo and
Gwer West LGAs by armed
herders in fresh attacks stressing
that the state was planning an
expansion of the IDPs camps to
solve the problem of
infrastructural deficits with the
figure of the IDPs rising to over
diesel
By Godfrey Bivbere
OPERATIVES of the
Federal Operations Unit,
FOU, Zone A of Nigeria Customs
Service, NCS, have intercepted
two tankers laden with poorly
refined 80,055 liters of
understand the UN reform
process—particularly regarding
the Cooperation Framework (CF)
and the role of trade unions in
relation to the formulation and
implementation of the DWCP for
Nigeria within the context of
National priorities of the Nigeria,
UN Sustainable Development
Cooperation Framework
(UNSDCF), and the other
development frameworks.
"I have reviewed the agenda. I
am confident that the workshop
will equip NLC educators to
enable them to act at national,
regional, and international levels
to ensure that decent work
agenda becomes a central goal
in development agenda," Phala
added.
Also in an interview, General
Secretary, NLC, Mr. Emmanuel
Ugboaja, said the workshop was
a formal effort to get the workers
through the trade unions to be
involved and acquainted with the
works of UN in the country.
He explained that "This is the
initial take off to build the capacity
of trade unions to understand the
workings of the UN particularly
with regards to development
goals.”
two million.
He said: "Because of the huge
population of IDPs, it is not easy
for the state government to cater
for the IDPs alone. We have
shared the concern that the
Federal Government has
neglected the humanitarian
crisis in Benue which also has
another leg which is crisis of
infrastructure.
“The attackers have not only
attacked the farming
communities and killed and
maimed and displaced people,
they have destroyed farmlands,
homes, schools, bridges, churches
and others."
Pastor Chris Foundation
commissions 100% free
school in Edo
Customs intercepts 2 tankers with 80,055litres of
Automotive Gas Oil, AGO,
popularly called diesel, in Ijebu
Ode area of Ogun State.
Acting Comptroller of the Unit,
Hussein Ejibunu, who handed
the petroleum product to officials
of Nigeria Midstream and
Downstream Petroleum
Regulatory Agency, NMDPRA,
said the drivers of the trucks
escaped, upon sighting Customs
THE InnerCity Mission for
Children has commissioned
its 11th tuition-free school for
vulnerable children at Ewu in
Edo State.
The mission, under the
auspices of the Chris Oyakhilome
Foundation International,
commissioned the largest school
within its network of schools, on
September 9.
According to Pastor Omoh
Alabi, the Executive Director of
the mission, the network of
schools provide quality, tuitionfree
education, along with free
scholastic supplies and school
meals all through the primary
education journey of the pupils
enrolled.
She further stated that: “The
InnerCity Mission School, Ewu,
is a representation of the
continued commitment of its
Founder, Rev. Chris Oyakhilome,
to education, community
development and nationbuilding,”
Pastor Omoh Alabi emphasised
that through this newly
commissioned school, the
foundation is giving the children
in Edo State a platform, equipping
them with tools that would help
them grow to become adults, who
will be actively involved in the
development of their
DR. Abimbola Olayinka
Asagba, a former Director of
Public Health, Federal Ministry
of Heath, is dead. She was aged
84 years.
Dr. Asagba (Nee Ogunleye),
established the New system of
Disease Surveillance,
Notification of Diseases and
Control of Epidemics in Nigeria.
A Public Health Physician, She
was an advocate of the review of
the obsolete Nigerian Public
Health laws.
Her eldest son, Tokunbo
Asagba, confirmed her death.
officers on patrol.
The Customs boss said after a
scrutiny of the documents being
used to convey the product and
analyses of samples of the
product, it was discovered that
the papers were forged and the
diesel of poor standard.
He said Customs then wrote
to NMDPRA to verify the status
of the products and authenticity
communities and nation.
“With our humanitarian
footprints in over 89 countries
Particularly in Nigeria, The
InnerCity Mission under the
auspices of the Chris Oyakhilome
Foundation International has
been working towards creating
an enabling environment where
every child survives, and lives
above poverty irrespective of
race, colour, religion, or gender.
"We are able to achieve this
through our interconnected
programmes, cutting across
Education, Healthcare, Food,
Livelihood, Shelter, Advocacy,
and Humanitarian aid
programmes,” she added.
The mission, founded in 2006,
has been serving communities in
Nigeria and other African
countries, and many in Asia.
Pastor Yemisi Kudehibu, who
spoke on behalf of partners of the
Chris Oyakhilome Foundation
International, in her comment,
recapped how the first school was
launched at Ikeja, Lagos.
"Presently, the mission has
established 10 tuition free schools
distributed in the following
locations: three schools in Lagos
State; one in Ogun State; one in
Adamawa State; one in Taraba
State, one in Imo State, one
in Abia State, one in
Cambodia and one in
India,” she said.
INSECURITY: Nasarawa
orders reopening of schools
LAFIA—NASARAWA State
has approved the reopening
of its primary and secondary
schools, shut 49 days earlier on
reports of threats of insecurity.
All boarding public and private
schools shall resume on Sunday,
September 18, for the First Term
of the 2022/2023 academic
session, while day schools shall
resume on Monday, September
19.
Permanent Secretary in the
Ministry of Education, Malam
Mohammed Sani-Bala, stated in
Lafia, yesterday, that parents and
guardians should return their
children and wards to school as
scheduled.
He stated that the
Commissioner for Education,
Asagba dies at 84
Hajiya Fatu Sabo also directed
that outstanding promotion
examinations not concluded
because of the sudden shutting
of the schools in July should begin
on September 19, 2022.
The commissioner also directed
Chief Evaluation Officers to
monitor and ensure compliance
with the directive.
She assured members of the
public, particularly parents, pupils
and students that security had
been enhanced in the schools to
ensure the safety of students and
teachers.
Hajiya Sabo announced the
shutting of the schools on July
27 on account of intelligence
reports about security threats in
neighbouring FCT
•Late Asagba
of documents found in the
vehicles which were both
confirmed to be forged.
Giving a breakdown of the
seizures, Ejibunu, said one of the
tankers with registration number
DBT 599 XA was laden with
44,450 liters while the other one
with registration number USL 561
ZC had 35,605 liters of the AGO