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“My Daughter Told Me How She Was Bullied At NYSC Camp,”  Gov Makinde

By
Ayodele Oni
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Seyi Makinde and His Daugher at NYSC Camp

By Ayodele Oni

  • Says he met his wife at NYSC Camp

Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde has charged the youth to be focused and responsive during their mandatory one year national service under the National Youth Service Corps Scheme, (NYSC).

The Governor advised the youths to face the future with confidence despite the challenges facing the country, noting that the challenges will be surmounted in due course.

The Governor gave the charge on Tuesday, while addressing the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members during the passing out of the current batch of the NYSC at the Lagos State Orientation Camp in Ibadan, Oyo state.

Governor Makinde, whose daughter was among the Corps Members, admonished the youth to explore the opportunity provided by the compulsory service to the nation to lay a solid foundation for the future and not to take the assignment lightly.

According to the Governor, some of the youths would meet their life partners during the youth service as he did about 34 years ago, while some will form business alliances that will last into the future, hence the need to be focused and responsible

He said: “I want to thank the Camp officials for having me here today. It is a great opportunity for me to address the future leaders of our country.

“I did this exactly 34 years ago when some of you were not yet born. But I want to tell you that you are starting a journey that will take some of you to the peak of your ambitions.

“Thirty four years ago, I would not have thought I would become a governor in Nigeria. So, we have future governors and presidents here.

“I can only point out just two things; my own daughter is among you today. This means some of us as your leaders are also human. We also go through what you go through and we also go through what your parents go through.

“When I was talking to the representative of the Lagos State Governor, I said I couldn’t believe my daughter would stay here for three weeks, because she wanted to stay for one night but it turned to three weeks.

“She told me that she enjoyed herself, though she said some people bullied her. And I told her ‘welcome to the real world where there is no protection and you have to do whatever it is that they are doing out there.

“I want to specially thank the Camp officials for accommodating her and for making her feel welcome here.

“For all you corps members, I already heard the State Director mention that you should not travel out of the state without permission.

“A lot of corps members get involved in accidents that are unnecessary, because they embark on journeys that are not really necessary.

“I also want to say that this is an opportunity for you to lay the foundation for whatever it is you want to become in the future.

“Don’t take this assignment lightly at all. Be confident and face the future. The challenges we are currently going through as a nation will also be behind us at some point. I wish you a successful service year.”

Bala Mohammed To Wike: You Cannot Set Bauchi On Fire

By
Ayodele Oni
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Bala Mohammed and Nyesom Wike

By Ayodele Oni

  • Says since PDP left Govt, no meaningful development has taken place

Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum, Bala Mohammed has observed that the internal wrangling within the party is not unsurmountable.

Mohammed, who is Governor of Bauchi State, also, maintained that nobody can set the State on fire from outside no matter highly placed.

The Governor made the remarks on Tuesday, while receiving a delegation from the National Secretariat of the main opposition PDP that visited him at the Governor’s Office in Bauchi.

His remark comes in response to the recent threat by Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike to set opposition PDP states on fire.

The Governor pointed out that the crisis rocking the party is not personal, stressing that nobody should misunderstand the party as it is still united.

According to him, “If we have quarrel, it is not personal, nobody should misunderstand us, we are together.

“This is not a splinter group, this is just a delegation from the National Working Committee of the PDP. We are going to discuss some of the issues in the party

“This unsolicited visit by the National Working Committee shows that in Nigeria we have people of conscience and we are connected by the values that established the PDP by our founding fathers.

“Yes, none of the political parties are insulated from crisis here and there, but crisis is there and that why leadership is there. We have to take the bull by the horns to discuss and look at the constitution of our party.

“We must do things by the rule of law, we must respect people, we must put our interest aside, we must respect our diversities, we must bring and close rank, especially for party like the PDP that has a history.

“We have a pedigree, most of the developments in the country were done by the PDP, since we left nothing has happened. As you can see all the members of the National Working Committee that are here are square heads in square holes”

He then assured that as the Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum, he will continue to give effective and efficient leadership and meaningful opposition in the country.

Model School Fees Hike: No Going Back – LASG

By
Akinwale Kasali
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Babajide Sanwoolu and the Memo

By Akinwale Kasali

Despite the protest that rocked the increase in the School Fees of Lagos Model Colleges from N35,000 to N100,000, the  Lagos State Government has categorically stated that there is going back on the increment.

The LASG insisted that to stay in business, the New boarding fee of N100,000 per term (against the old fee of N35,000) charged each student of its Model Colleges across the State has come to stay.

The Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education stated this position in a statement released Tuesday 17th, September, 2024.

The statement was signed by the Deputy Director of Public Affairs unit of the Ministry, Ganiu Lawal, explained why the fee increment is inevitable.

According to the Ministry, it is aware of dissenting views by some parents to the inevitable increase in boarding fees in the  Model Colleges.

Lawal stated: “This is not an easy decision but the welfare of the children is a priority for the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education and Lagos State Government.

“Lagos State Government provides free education in 1,021 Primary schools, 369 Junior Secondary and 329 Senior Secondary schools which include 32 model colleges across the State. Except for Vetland Junior and Senior Secondary Schools, all the model colleges are boarding schools.

“Since enrolment of a child into a boarding school is an individual choice of every parent, they are expected to pay boarding fees.

“The boarding fee is paid every term and it is used basically for feeding, janitorial and other miscellaneous cost related to keeping them in the hostels per term. The schools also take care of energy cost on fuel and cooking gas, which are essential for preparing their meals.

“The concern of ensuring a better welfare for our model college students, who are over one percent of the entire basic and secondary school student population in public schools in the state, necessitated the increase in boarding fees.

“The model college students enjoy all other privileges of free education vis- a- vis provision of education infrastructure, free tuition, technology support (free devices) provision of adequate security in schools and payment of terminal examination fees (LASG pays WAEC fees for all public school students).

“So, the N35,000 boarding fees being paid since 2021 is not realistic in 2024.

“Ideally, none of our parents will testify to the reasonability of feeding a child of 12 to 18 years with 35,000 for three months.

“A comparative analysis of Federal and State public schools with boarding facilities across the country shows Lagos State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education is still very considerate with the reviewed rate despite the incomparable cost of food and other expenses.

“So, our parents should show understanding for the sake of the children.”

There was mass protest by Parents of Students across the State Monday, as the Parents’ Forum of the colleges also stormed the Lagos House of Assembly Complex, despite the Public Holiday, and called on the Lawmakers to reverse to the old fee of N35,000.

The Deputy Chairman of the Parents’ Forum of the Colleges, Ifeukwu Samuel, who led the protesters to the Lagos State House of Assembly Complex at Alausa,Ikeja, disclosed that the House of Assembly had directed that the students should resume and check into the hostels across the model colleges in the state on Tuesday.

He explained that an agreement was reached at the meeting between the House Committee on Education, led by Hon. Sangodara and the protesting parents led by the Chairman of the forum, Dapo Dawodu.

According to him, the old fee of N35,000 per term was said to be sustained at the meeting.

Speaking further, he said the parents at the meeting presented to the House the template of how to effectively manage the funds that is coming into the colleges on the basis of the old fee of N35,000 per term and with a promise by the House to invite the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education to present its own calculation to justify the new fee.

He said, “So in the interim. We are to constitute a school management board committee for each college.

“The committee will comprise the representatives of the parents and that of the school and to be shouldered with some responsibilities as regards the management of the funds that are coming into the colleges.

“The committee will know the amounts of money that are coming in and also oversee the mangement of such funds alongside the college principal.”

Samuel added that the implication of this new arrangement is that it would now be clear to everyone, especially, the parents how the money that is coming into the colleges through the fees is being spent on the feeding of the students and if there would be the need or not for an upward review of the boarding fee and by how much.

But for now, the old fee of N35,000 per term for each student will be sustained as agreed at the meeting,” he emphasised.

It would be recalled that the Lagos State Government had on Friday night, 13th of September, shockingly announced an upward review of boarding fee for each student across its model colleges from N35,000 to N100,000 (representing 286 percent increment ) and this to be effective from this first term.

The students were supposed to resume originally last Sunday, 7th of September alongside their peers in other primary and secondary schools in the state but their resumption date was shifted by one week.

Model colleges are special secondary schools owned by the state government and spread across the six educational districts of the state.

They are 32 in all, operating boarding facilities except Vetland Grammar School, Ifako- Ijaiye, which is being run as a day school.

For resumption, almost all the parents had already paid their children’s fee of the old amount in readiness for resumption, but the Lagos State Government had stated that any Students that want to resume must pay the New School Fof N100,000.

NAF To Provide Military Cover For Katsina Farmers During Harvest Season

By
Suleiman Anyalewechi
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Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

The Nigeria Air Force, NAF, has said that it has increased the level of its airstrikes at identified camps of banditry and other criminal elements in the North West region of the country.

This is just as it assured of its readiness to deploy  the Quick Response Wing of the Service ,to further the battle against insurgency and terrorism in the region.

The Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshall Hassan Abubakar, who gave the assurance during a working tour of the facilities within the air component of the Operation Hadarin Daji and the 213 Forward Operating Base in Katsina State noted that the deployment of the Quick Response Wing is aimed at maintaining a strong military presence in vulnerable communities amidst banditry and other criminal activities.

A statement on Tuesday September 17, 2024, from the NAF Deputy Director of Public Relations and Information Kabiru Ali, a Group Captain, quoted the Chief of Air Staff as underscoring the need for a comprehensive strategy towards achieving lasting peace in all the security challenged areas

Air Marshall Abubakar noted that kinetic actions alone in the fight against insurgency and terrorism cannot eliminate the scourge completely.

He assured the Katsina State Governor, Dikko Umar Radda, and the people of the commitment of NAF to  provide adequate protection for the people particularly farmers,whose activities have suffered untold set back as a result of banditry and other criminal activities.

The Chief of Air Staff highlighted the significant progress so far made in securing the state ,noting that the recent planting season was largely free from interference from bandits ,a feat attributed to the Governor’s robust security measures .

The COS assured Governor Radda of the NAF’s continued support in protecting farmers during the upcoming harvest season, and emphasized the importance of safe and productive agricultural activities to the Katsina state economy.

While appreciating the NAF promise to enhance security around farmers, Governor Radda, expressed the optimism that Service will continue to collaborate with the State Government to safeguard the lives and properties of the entire residents.

The Katsina State Governor, noted that the planned enhanced military presence would no doubt provide an enabling environment for the growth of farming and other economic activities in the State.

Fubara Is Being Undermined By PDP NWC – Ologbondiyan, Party Chieftain

By
Adesina Soyooye
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Kola Ologbondiyan

By Adesina Soyooye

A former National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, has said that the Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara, is being undermined by the National Working Committee of the PDP.

Ologbondiyan spoke Tuesday morning on Arise Television’s Morning Show Programme.

Asked why the PDP is not able to discipline the immediate past Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, over his obvious anti-party activities, Ologbondiyan put the blame on the door steps of the NWC led by Ambassador Umar Illiya Damagum, the Acting National Chairman of the Party. He pointed out that instead of Damagum and the NWC which he leads to sit down and work, they are busy endorsing corrupted and controversial Congresses.

Using Rivers State as an example, he lamented that the NWC is undermining the Governor of the State by endorsing the recent Congress in the State, and thus, not doing the right thing in the State.

According to the PDP Constitution, he said, the leader of the Party in any of its State is the Governor of the State, unless the Governor decides to cede it to somebody else.

He then wondered at the aberration in Rivers State where Wike, a Minister, serving under an APC Federal Government, has been handed over the structure of the Party as well as its Leadership.

However, when told that the PDP is already a dead Party, he said Damagum, very soon, will revert to his position as Deputy National Chairman while the Party’s substantive National Chairman will emerge from the North Central.

INEC To PDP: Edo Election Will Not Be Held At REC’s Office But Polling Stations

By
The Source
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Prof Mahmood Yakubu

By Adesina Soyooye

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has dared the Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

The Commission has rejected their request to redeploy the Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, in Edo State, Dr. Anugbum Onuoha, because of his blood relationship with the Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike.

In rejecting it, INEC told PDP that the Edo Governorship Election will be held at polling stations, not REC’s office.

In the run-up to the September 21 Governorship Election, Obaseki and the PDP had raised the issue of  the REC’s relationship with Wike, a fact confirmed by Wike when he boasted on television that yes, the REC is his  cousin, and that the REC is not one to be intimidated.

Because of that, the PDP Candidate, Dr Asue Ighodalo, and the PDP refused to sign any peace accord. They, also, noted that the new Commissioner of Police in the State,  has a relationship with Wike. He is, reports said,  Wike’s friend and classmate in the University.

However, INEC has called the bluff of the PDP and Obaseki. INEC said it would not succumb to PDP’s request to redeploy the REC.

INEC’s response stemmed from an official letter of protest by the  Edo State PDP Chairman, Anthony Aziegbemhin, on Thursday to INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, that Onuoha be immediately redeployed.

Aziegbemhin: “The ties between these two are too close to ignore as they share familiarities and are also close associates.

“The said Edo REC is a cousin to the Minister of the FCT, Mr. Wike. He also served as a former Commissioner and Special Adviser for Lands, Survey, and Housing to Mr. Wike during his tenure as Rivers governor”.

However, in response to the development, the Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi,  emphatically stated that Wike’s cousin will not be redeployed as Edo REC.

He chided the PDP by asking them to focus on how to deliver their candidate than the redeployment of the REC.

His words: “The REC for Edo State will not be redeployed. The governorship election will be conducted on 21st September 2024 in 4,519 polling units, not in the REC’s office.

“In the same manner, polling unit results will be declared by the respective Presiding Officers after the voting, ballot sorting and counting processes, in the presence of accredited party agents and other stakeholders.

“The PO will also take a picture of the PU result in each polling unit with the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, and upload the same to the INEC Result Viewing portal. This process is not the same as electronic voting or electronic transmission and collation of results.

“The IReV is for transparency purposes. The Nigerian constitution does not yet recognise electronic voting. Copies of the PU results will be given to accredited party agents.”

As the election approaches, the tension is so thick, so high, that not a few people fear that violence could be the order of the day on September 21, 2024.

Cardoso CBN Likely To Maintain Current Interest Rate As Inflation Slows- Bloomberg

By
Tosin Olatokunbo
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Yemi Cardoso - CBN Governor

Nigeria’s Central Bank is likely to maintain the current interest rate due to the fall of inflation rate, Bloomberg said in a report.

According to the United States of America, USA based media company, Nigeria’s inflation rate has fallen to a six-month low in August, making a new hike in the rate almost  unnecessary.

The report comes ahead of the meeting of the CBN Monetary Policy Meeting, MPC next week. The MPC is the apex bank’s body responsible for fixing the benchmark interest rate in the country.

The MPC had during its last month meeting raised the Monetary Policy Rate, MPR,  or interest rates by 50 basis points, from 26.25 percent to 26.75 percent amid soaring inflation and skyrocketing food and commodities prices.

According to The Punch report citing the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS figures, consumer prices rose 32.2 per cent from 33.4 per cent in July. The figure matched the median estimate of nine economists in a Bloomberg survey.

The receding impact on prices of currency devaluation and the temporary removal of fuel subsidies instituted a year ago contributed to the slowdown. The measures formed part of reforms introduced by President Bola Tinubu after he entered office in May 2023 to attract investors, float the currency, and ease budget pressures.

Higher corn yields and a six-month window to import the crop and wheat duty-free also contributed to the softening in price increases.

Data collection was concluded before mid-August, so the effect of a 45 per cent increase in gasoline prices in early September, which saw a bump in transport costs, was not captured.

The slowdown raises the prospect that policymakers will pause a tightening cycle that’s lifted the benchmark rate to 26.75 per cent from 11.5 per cent in just over two years. It will also give the monetary policy committee, which will announce its decision on Sept. 24, time to assess the impact of recent currency volatility, devastating floods in northeastern Nigeria and the increase in gasoline prices on inflation.

Food inflation slowed to 37.5 per cent in August from 39.5 per cent a month earlier. Core price growth, which excludes agricultural produce and energy, quickened to 27.6 per cent from 27.5 per cent.

The CBN has consistently increases the benchmark rate for months, citing the need to tame inflation. The Governor of the bank, Yemi Cardoso said there is no other way out.

Edo Decides: Battle Between Darkness And Light, PDP Ighodalo Says

By
Tosin Olatokunbo
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Asue Ighodalo
Asue Ighodalo

Ahead the governorship election in the state , the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Asue Ighodalo has described the election as a contest between light and darkness.

Ighodalo, the preferred candidate of the incumbent governor, Godwin Obaseki however urged the people of the state to vote PDP which he described as light.

“My people, this matter concern all of us. At this critical moment in the history of our great Edo State, the decision that lies before us this Saturday is very crucial;

“To choose Light or to choose Darkness! To go forward on the Pathway to Prosperity or to choose Poverty, Hunger and Insecurity.

“Choose Wisely!” the PDP candidate said on his X handle.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has fixed the election for September 21, 2024 as many political parties have signified their interest to participate in the election.

Barely few days to the election, not a few people have expressed fears of violence considering the dangerous rhetoric coming from key political actors in the state.

For instance, the governor of the state, Obaseki had last week described the election as a “do or die”. The governor said his party was prepared to match violence with violence, as the party’s supporters will not sit by while other rival parties are doing so.

Speaking at a political rally organised by the PDP at the Garrick Memorial Secondary School in Benin, Obaseki described the election as an existential threat, stating, “This election is do or die. If they do, we will die.”

His party, the PDP, had initially refused to sign the Peace Agreement, a document put together by the Gen Abubakar Abdulsalami-led  National Peace Accord Committee, NPAC, to discourage political parties from engaging in violence during the election.

The Committee has other respected Nigerians, including the Catholic Archbishop of Sokoto state, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah, among others as members.

The ruling party in the state had cited the deployment of Special Forces by the Nigerian Police as one of the reasons for its action. Governor Obaseki had disclosed that the Agreement will be signed by the PDP after the Inspector General of  Police, IGP, addressed the fears raised by his party.

Borno Flooding: More Donations Pour In To Assist Over 1m Victims

By
Tosin Olatokunbo
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Borno Flood

Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauch state has announced the donation of N250 million to the victims of the Borno state flooding.

The governor made the donation on Sunday when he paid a courtesy visit to the state governor , Babagana Zulum.

The donation also comes barely a week after Vice President Kassim Shetima dislcosed that the federal government  has donated N3 billion to assist the state to mitigate the humanitarian crisis caused by the flooding.

Mohamed said the donation reflects the bond between the people of the two states, adding that the money will assist the flood victims, noting that the people of the state have so far shown their resilience in spite of what has happened to them.

The gesture from the Bauchi state government followed the $8 million approved by the United nations, UN, to the state, to assist in dealing with the humanitarian crises arising from the flooding at the weekend.

The magazine reported that no fewer than 500,000 persons have been displaced by the flooding, while dozens of others are believed to have died, aside other humanitarian problem arsing from it.

Speaking on the donations at the weekend, Mohammed Malick Fall, the U.N. resident coordinator, told journalists that the fund will assist the Governor Zulum-led government to deal with the problems arising from the severe flooding.

Fall said the UN will ensure that the fund get to the state on time so that the victims can get help quickly.

“We’re all behind you not only in sympathy but in solidarity. We will not spare any of our resources in this response,” Fall said.

“Probably we might not be where we want it to be in terms of resources, but as we speak, we’ll try to refocus resources that have been designed for some other intervention to see how we can bring them toward scaling up and speeding up this response. We’ll prioritize our response around the immediate need.”

The U.N. has provided hot meals and facilitated food air drops in hard-to-reach areas cut off by flood waters.

Meanwhile, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on Sunday visited the state promising to deploy resources to assist those that have been affected by the disaster.

Last week, a dam burst caused millions of liters of water to pour into communities in the state’s capital  Maiduguri.

Kano Seeks NDLEA’s Assistance To Combat Drug Abuse Among Its Youths

By
Suleiman Anyalewechi
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NDLEA officers

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

The Kano State Government has solicited the assistance of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency NDLEA to combat the menace of hard drug trafficking and consumption among its youths.

Dr Ibrahim Jibril, Commissioner for Finance, who made the appeal on Monday September 16, 2024, while receiving in audience the Kano state Commandant of the agency , Abubakar Ahmad,also called for  the setting up of an  NDLEA operational unit within the precinct of the Audu Bako State Secretariat Complex.

The Source reports that Kano, with a dense population, and a towering commercial value within the Northern region of the country, is considered the epicentre of drug trafficking and consumption.

A large percent of its teeming youths are also perceived to be involved in the consumption of hard substances ,with its attendant negative consequences on societal values .

The authorities are not unmindful of this hard fact and have been engaged in concerted efforts to combat the situation.

The Kano state Electoral Commission,  KANSIEC,

In the count down to the October 24, 2024, local Council Polls in the insisted on a mandatory drug test for all aspirants for the election.

As at last week, initial tests by the NDLEA on some of the Chairmanship and Councilorship aspirants indicated that 20 have so far failed the test.

The Prof Sani Malumfashi- led KANSIEC  said the insistence on drug test on the aspirants is to ensure that those at the  helm of the Local Governments are both mentally and physically fit.

Most of the hard drug abuses are believed to occur at the grassroots level.

“The issue of drug abuse  among youths in Kano is alarming. We need NDLEA’s presence to mitigate the situation and the security challenges it poses”, Ahmad lamented .

“The Kano Finance Commissioner noted that the State Government has been concerned about the ugly development and has been engaged in several efforts towards curtailing it .

“Part of the State Government strategies for the control of drug menace, he noted, is its  commitment towards meaningfully engaging the youths through vocal training and skill acquisition programmes.”

According to him, about 21 of such skill acquisition centres have been activated in the last one year .

Similarly, Ahmad lauded the efforts of the Governor Abba Yusuf-led State administration in reforming victims of drug abuse .

The Commissioner informed that abandoned  Drug Rehabilitation Homes, across the state have been completed and equipped for the task of assisting integrating drug victims into the society.

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