As public secondary and primary schools resume in Ekiti state, for the 2022/23 academic session, some principals have been accused of ripping off unsuspecting parents, which the state government has vowed not to allow.
The State ministry of education revealed that some school heads contract out uniforms, which are later sold to parent at high prices, while others collect money before offering admission to new intakes.
The Commissioner for Education Science and Technology, Dr Olabimpe Aderiye stated that monitoring teams that were sent out to monitor how schools are settling down discovered the sharp practices among school heads.
The commissioner, who led some top officials in her Ministry on an inspection tour of some schools in Ado Ekiti and as well investigated the insinuation of illegal collection of levies, warned that any staff caught would face the full wrath of the law.
Dr. Aderiye noted that some schools management in collaboration with parents teachers association (PTA) were in the habit of extorting parents/guidians and scare them of sending their wards to their first choice of schools.
She echoed that the State, under the leadership of Dr Kayode Fayemi runs an absolute free and compulsory education, which would not tolerate any unapproved collection of fees under whatever circumstance.
The Commissioner, who reminded the management staff of public secondary schools that admission into JSS one could only be made by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, cautioned principals against admitting pupils without recourse to the ministry, describing such action as impersonation.
While admonishing the school principals and registrars to ensure proper screening of candidates for admission to guide against enrollment of unqualified pupils, Dr Aderiye advised them to base their admission on merit, no matter the parental background.
Dr Aderiye opined that some schools’ principals were of the habit of contracting school uniform to vendors and in turn sell at exorbitant prices to parents, with a charge that they should be concerned with the parents’ provision of basic needs for their pupils and not to short-change them.
She also advised the principals to rehabilitate pupils that were not promoted to the next class last session saying that failure today does not determine the one’s future.
At various schools visited, the Commissioner disclosed that work is ongoing to provide conducive accommodation for teaching and learning.
At Ekiti State Government College, Ado Ekiti, the Commissioner expressed her displeasure at the negligence and uncaring attitude on the path of the school management towards the pupils’ welfare, calling on the school principal, Mr Olawale Olaleye to be responsive to his duties.
In her own reaction, the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Education Science and Technology, Dr Folakemi Olomojobi said that the principal has failed in his administrative assignments and will be sanctioned for negligence.
This is a sigh of relief for Parents and Undergraduates who have been languishing and idle at home following the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU.
The National Industrial Court of Nigeria on Wednesday ordered the Union to call off its ongoing nationwide strike.
Since February 14, 2022, ASUU has been on strike to press home the demands for improved funding for universities, a review of salaries for lecturers, among other issues.
The Federal Government and the Union have had several meetings that ended in a deadlock.
The defiance of the Union prompted the Federal Government to take ASUU to court challenging the strike.
The government, through its counsel, James Igwe, prayed the court for an interlocutory injunction restraining ASUU from taking further steps as regards the strike, pending the determination of the substantive suit.
Chairman of Igbo Elders Consultative Forum, IECF, Chukwuemeka Ezeife has described the All Progressives Congress Presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, as unfit to rule the country because of ill-health.
The former Anambra State Governor speaking from the United States of America, USA, said that only people who were not well informed, or have lost sanity, would vote for Tinubu at the 2023 Presidential Election.
Ezeife made this assertion with about one week to the commencement of campaigns, after the IECF and the Ohaneze Ndigbo were at a fix when Ezeife visited Tinubu’s infusion, Kashim Shettima few weeks ago, leading to mixed questions about his loyalty lies.
Responding to Ezeife’s statement, Spokesperson for Tinubu Campaign Organization, Adebayo Onanuga said that Ezeife was acting the script of the Presidential candidate of Labour Party, Peter Obi.
According to him, Tinubu had been hale and hearty, fit and most qualified for Nigeria’s highest office.
Ezeife made the statement in reaction to a recent report published by The PUNCH on Monday, September 12 that after his visit to Shettima, the Igbo Elders Consultative Forum which he chairs had been seriously divided.
Although the official statement had claimed that it was a courtesy visit, sources said it had thrown the IECF into confusion as members who had been champions of a President of
Igbo extraction and supported the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi.
The division among members of the organisation was fuelled by the cancellation of two press conferences earlier scheduled for 1 pm on Tuesday, June 14 and Friday, June 24 2022 at Ezeife’s residence in Asokoro at the last minute, while no explanation was given.
Since that time, the IECF had maintained a deafening silence, thereby fuelling more speculation that politicians may have infiltrated its members.
Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu
But Ezeife in the statement titled, ‘Why I went to Shettima’, said he visited the former governor of Borno State to assist a businessman whose warehouse was bulldozed by the Borno State Government.
He said that aside from Tinubu “being too old for the office of President of Nigeria”, the Muslim-Muslim ticket adopted by the former governor had knocked off his chances.
Ezeife said, “Yes, I went, uninvited, to Shettima. I was accompanied by a Maiduguri-born and brought-up businessman of South-East extraction. Why? More than a year ago, a well-built young man came to my office in Abuja crying desperately. He talked like someone considering suicide! He told me that he was finished, that the clothes on him were the only property left for him. He inherited a hotel from his father and built two more hotels by himself. All three hotels and a warehouse were bulldozed by the Borno State government.
“His other properties were also seized. He had helped the campaign efforts of the current Borno State Governor (Babagana Zulum). He also bought a bus for the campaign. He was directed to come and see me. I made efforts to see the Borno State Governor but did not succeed.
“Recently, the young man rushed to my office and told me that Shettima, who handed it over to the current Governor can influence him to listen to his (the businessman’s) case and do some justice. He told me that if I met Shettima and pleaded with him, the problem would be solved. He added that Shettima was in town (Abuja) that day.
That if we went, we would meet him at his Abuja residence. As he saw it, my meeting with Shettima would end his frustration, suffering and threat to his life.
“I did not give it a second thought because the young man spoke from the depth of his heart. I jumped into the car with him and we headed to where he knew Shettima was.
“Shettima received me with great respect and did not keep me waiting too long before calling me in for discussion. I pleaded with Shetima to appeal to his successor for some justice to be done to the businessman.
“He listened carefully and I was amazed by his positive responses which included a commitment to help the businessman directly by himself if the Governor does not do enough. I was elated and I thanked him profusely.
“As we were leaving the office, Shettima bade me goodbye with a handshake. I did see camera men taking pictures of us. But I knew what I went for. I shall go to anybody who can genuinely help a person in life-threatening distress.
“There was nothing political in the visit. Truly, I do not consider Shettima an opponent in the 2023 Presidential election. Why?
“His principal, Jagaban Tinubu, is really not well. Only people who are not well informed, or have lost sanity, will vote for him to go and die in AsoRock.
Also, Tinubu is too old for the office of President of Nigeria. A very representative group of Northern youths came to my house and declared that nobody above 65 years old should contest for the office of the President of Nigeria.
“The greatest problem of the old is brain power deficiency, especially loses of memory. I explained this to Yoruba youths who proposed my joining the race for President of Nigeria. Should everything have been alright for the Tinubu ticket, it’s Muslim- Muslim nature knocks it out – removes it from consideration.
“I appeal to Nigerians of every ethnic group and religious faith to bow to the will of the Almighty God, who seems to have taken over from our conscienceless politicians, to bring about a new Nigeria, to rescue Nigeria and revive her destiny – the country to which He poured an abundance of His blessings, making her the very most gifted Country on earth.
“Yes, Ecclesiastes says there is a time and a season for everything under the sun. This appears to be the time and the season for the manifestation of the new Nigeria which must develop to a world superpower, raising the respect and dignity of all blacks on earth and participating in, and improving the leadership of the world. God’s design and will dominate man’s will in, and mess up, of Nigeria.”
Onanuga challenged anyone who has a contrary opinion about Tinubu’s perfect health to come forward with proof.
He said, “We have said many times that Asíwájú Tinubu is hale and hearty, fit and most qualified for Nigeria’s highest office. Let anyone who has a contrary claim prove otherwise. Enough of all these malicious statements from quack doctors, saying things they are not qualified to say.
“Like Peter Obi, the Labour Party candidate who groundlessly pronounced on Tinubu’s health without being a medical doctor two weeks ago, Ezeife has merely shamelessly regurgitated his candidate’s statement.
“We know Ezeife as an economist, not a medical doctor unless he is now making a claim to be a quack. We know him as a rabid supporter of Peter Obi. And we do not begrudge him for his political views.
“It is a shame that the 83-year-old tried to hide under a so-called youthful group to canvas for his candidate while knocking out Tinubu and Abubakar Atiku on the ground of age. According to his warped logic, only anyone who is below 65 should lead Nigeria. We are surprised that the octogenarian is making the claim when the leader of the world’s second leading democracy, Joe Biden is close to 80. “Two years ago, Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia retired at 95 as prime minister. He retired not because of brain power deficiency, but because he had fulfilled his term in office.”
Despite receiving support from home state, Osun and Alumni association, vice Chancellor designate of University of Ilorin, (UNILORIN) Prof Wahab Egbewole, has been described as “the least qualified” for the job.
Some Ilorin indigenes under the aegis of Ilorin Association of Friends, faulted the process of appointing Prof Egbewole by the Governing Council.
The Governing Council of the institution about two weeks ago announced Egbewole, a professor of law and jurisprudence, as the vice chancellor-designate to take over from Prof Sulyman Abdulkareem.
The tenure of Prof Abdulkareem, will expire on October 15.
Prof Egbewole, an indigene of Osun State, had stretched hands of friendship to his co- contestants, saying: “The university is bigger than all of us.” and promised to be fair to all the stakeholders in the running of the affairs of the university.
The Coordinator of Ilorin Association of Friends, Alhaji Bashiru Aliyu, admitted that as a federal institution, its head can emerge from any part of the country.
“We have not called this news conference to bore you with the rhetoric or sentiment that an Ilorin man must always emerge as the vice chancellor of the University of Ilorin.
“Even though the process must not be programmed to edge out qualified indigenous candidates of the community, as the university in question is a federal institution opened to any qualified Nigerian; neither are we here to attack any personality.
“However, we are here to register our grievances on the sordid process that produced the least qualified as the new VC-designate against the established standard and convention of the university.
“As stakeholders and concerned citizens of Kwara, where the university is sited, we will like to call on relevant organs of the government and those who have responsibility to oversee the affairs of the university to look into the activities of the council and the entire process that produced the new VC-designate of the University of Ilorin.
“As stakeholders in this community with peace track records, we have resolved to ward off any shenanigan that may threaten the hard- earned peace.
“We, therefore, want to call on relevant authorities to see to it that there is no miscarriage of justice in this matter.”
A major crack has hit the Presidential Campaign Committee of the People’s Democratic Party, (PDP) as some Governors announced their withdrawal from the committee.
Membership of the Campaign Committee was unveiled last Friday and contained names of serving Governors, political office holders past and present with Governor Emmanuel Edom as chairman of the 278 members.
The Governors who announced their withdrawal include Rivers, Nyesom Wike and Oyo,Seyi Makinde.
The camp of Governor Nyesom Wike in the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) made known its official position on Wednesday after a marathon meeting hosted by Wike at his personal residence in Portharcourt.
The camp announced its withdrawal from participating in the presidential campaign of the party for the 2023 elections.
According to reports monitored on Channels Television, members of the group said none of them will participate in whatever capacity in the campaign council unless the National Chairman of the party, Iyorchia Ayu, resigns for a southern candidate.
Some members of the group were recently appointed as leaders and members of the campaign council for the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.
Present at the gathering at Wike’s residence in Port Harcourt include Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State; former Governors Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo, Ayo Fayose of Ekiti, Donald Duke of Cross River, Ibrahim Dankwambo of Gombe and Jonah Jang of Plateau, former Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke.
Others at the meeting are elder statesmen, Olabode George, Jerry Gana; South-South Chairman of the PDP, Dan Orbih; former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chibudom Nwuche; Senator Suleiman Nazif, Nnenna Ukeje, among several others.
After over seven hours of private meeting from 7pm on Tuesday, September 20 to past 2am on Wednesday September 21, they gather to brief journalists on the outcome, with Chief Olabode George stating the shocker.
Former Governor Ayo Fayose, who was at the meeting had announced that he remains part of the group but would mobilize and vote for the Presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar and others during next year’s election.
What is the way forward for the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU now that the union has been ordered by the National Industrial Court to return to work seems to be the big question on the lips of many Nigerians who have been watching the industrial action which started seven months ago.
The university teachers embarked on strike in February this year and have refused to go back to class until their demands are met by the federal government.
The demands Include payment of salary arrears and increase funding for the nation’s ivory towers.
On its part, the federal government has insisted that it will not pay the lecturers for the period they were on strike in line with its no work no pay policy. The stalemate forced the federal government through the minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige to drag ASUU to the NIC few days ago.
The court has now ruled that the lecturers must return to class pending the detrmination of the substantive matter. Delivering a ruling on the interlocutory injunction filed by the Federal government, Justice Polycarp Hamman restrained ASUU from continuing with the industrial action pending the determination of the suit.
The court ordered “ASUU, whether by themselves, members, agents, privies or howsoever called, from taking further steps and doing any act in continuance of the strike action pending the hearing and determination of the suit filed.”
During a meeting with the Speaker of the House Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila on Tuesday in Abuja, the president of ASUU, Emmanuel Sodeke warned that ordering the striking lecturers to go back to work will be counterproductive.
The union also vowed not obey any court order to return to work.
“If the court forces the lecturers to go to work tomorrow, which type of teaching will they do? If the court forces the Nigerian academics — say go and teach against your will — just like the court forcing a doctor to go and treat a patient against your will, how many of us will go and meet that doctor,” Osodeke said.
The question remains whether the lecturers will now disobey the court order to return to class.
The magazine learnt from competent sources in the union that ASUU executive is trying to convey a meeting shortly to decide a way forward following the court order.
“We are trying to meet so that we can present a unified position on the matter. All the state chapters of the union will be involved in deciding what is to be done next. We are law abiding but the interest of the members will be consider first before taking a decision,” a NEC member of the union told the magazine in Lagos.
But those watching the ongoing event told The Source that it’s a very dicey and challenging situation for the Union following the court order. “The union cannot afford to disobey a valid court order. Secondly, the pressure will be on the union’s executive from their members not to obey the court order. Both ways, the head of its president and other executives are already in the plate. What they do next will make or mar the union,” Banji Ola, a dispute resolution expert said.
He said it’s wrong for the government to weaponised the court to punish the lecturers who have not been paid for months, adding that their are other disputes resolution mechanism other than the judiciary. “You don’t expect them to teach while their families are hungry. A hungry dog is an angry dog,” he said.
Meanwhile, the National Association of Nigerian Students, NAN has been warned by the Kaduna State government not to block the Abuja/ Kaduna expressway, saying such action will lead to the breakdown of law and order.
The students have vowed to continue the blockade of national assets, including all the airports, seaports and major roads across the country until the federal government resolved issues with ASUU.
The angry students had on Monday, blockaded the Murtala Mohammed International Airport Lagos, leading to a serious traffic gridlock on the ever busy road.
Ondo State Government has carried out a mass burial of 496 unclaimed corpses at two of its health facilities.
Government explanation stated that the measure is part of efforts geared towards decongesting the morgues at the Akure and Ondo complexes of the State University of Medical Science Teaching Hospital (UNIMEDTH).
The Special Adviser to the State Governor on Health, Prof. Dayo Faduyile, who disclosed this in Akure, explained that the move was a follow up to an assessment your of morgues in the two hospitals.
Faduyile noted that he and some other government officials had recently embarked on an assessment tour of the morgues in the two health facilities and observed with dismay their gory state, having been jam-packed with unclaimed bodies spanning a year and above.
The Special Adviser said the development prompted him to put up a strong memo to the State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN on the urgent need to decongest and rehabilitate the morgues, which had literally turned to an eye-sore.
Faduyile added that Mr. Governor did not hesitate to approve the memo to carry out the proposed mass burial activities, so as to avoid an imminent outbreak of epidemic diseases in the state.
As a professional pathologist, Faduyile stated that his office followed all due processes by putting necessary machineries in place for a quality and hitch-free mass burial activities.
He said these include obtaining mass burial permit from the Chief Magistrate Court Akure, securing a parcel of land at Odigbo Local Government, from the State Ministry of Lands and Housing for the mass burial, advertising the mass burial on the print and electronic media, giving a 21-day period to reclaim the unclaimed bodies, in compliance with the extant laws of the land.
Others, according to Faduyile are the auditing of the unclaimed bodies in the morgues of Akure and Ondo UNIMEDTH complexes for record purposes and the certification of the unclaimed bodies to ascertain their individual causes of death.
“In all, 87 bodies were identified/known with their name tags while 409 were unknown and a total of 496 bodies underwent mass burial.
“The 21-day ultimatum as publicized on prints and electronic media commenced on the 1st of August and lapsed on the 21st of August, 2022.Thereafter, preparations for the mass burial commenced.
“On Friday, September 2nd, 2022, the mass burial was carried out, with the protection of security operatives and a handful of pressmen. The bodies were buried in a deep grave of 10 by 10 feet wide, and 18 feet depth, at the allocated land by the State government.”
Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State has lost out in leadership struggle of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. The faction of the Vice Chairman, South-South of the Party, Dan Orbih, has been recognised by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC. The Commission has recognised the candidates produced by the Orbih faction in the Primary conducted in May.
Both factions have been at loggerheads having held different primaries that produced candidates for different elective positions.
But Electoral Umpire at its office in Benin City, the Edo State capital, on Tuesday, pasted a comprehensive list on its notice board and all the PDP candidates in the list are the ones who emerged winners at the primaries conducted by the Orbih’s faction.
INEC in the published list remarked that its action was ordered by the court.
It would be recalled that Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court 5, Abuja, had in earlier judgment in the Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/808/2022 issued an order directing INEC to only accept and recognise the candidates that emerged from the Orbih faction on May 18.
INEC had written to the PDP, Edo State Chapter, insisting that it only recognised the list of candidates produced at the primary election held by the Dan Orbih’s faction in May.
Ihama, Ogieva, Omagbon, Giwa and others had approached the Federal High Court 5, Abuja, seeking an order for INEC to only recognise the Dan Orbih-led faction of the party’s primary.
Following Justice Ekwo’s judgment, INEC in a letter dated June 27, 2022 and signed by its Secretary, Rose Oriaran-Anthony and addressed to the National Chairman of the PDP, Iyorchia Ayu, asking the party to forward the list recognized by court to the commission.
INEC in the letter seen by SaharaReporters titled, “Notification of pending orders in suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/807/2022 between Dr. Michael Onolememen & 2 Ors. V. INEC; Suit No. FHC/ABJ/808/ between Barr. Nosa Adams & 8 Prs. V. INEC and Suit No. FHC/ABJ/809/2022 between Christabel O. Ekwu & 23 Ors. V. INEC and the need to Comply with them” asked PDP to comply with the order.
The letter read, “The Commission hereby draws the attention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the order of the Court arising from the three (3) suits listed above.
“In line with the order of Court, the Commission is restrained from accepting and recognizing any list of candidates other than the list containing the names of the plaintiffs as the PDP’s duly nominated candidates for the election of the seats of senators representing the senatorial zones of Edo North, Edo South and Edo Central of Edo State; the twenty-four House of Assembly constituencies across Edo State.
“Accordingly, the Commission expects the PDP to forward the nomination forms of the respective candidates as ordered by the Federal High Court, Abuja.”
The PDP had conducted parallel primaries by the factions loyal to the party’s National Vice Chairman, South South, Dan Orbih and the faction loyal to Governor Godwin Obaseki at different locations across the state. But the court rejected Governor Obaseki’s faction.
Nigerians continue to groan under high cost of living especially upkeep of family members as the National
Bureau of Statistics, (NBS) rolled out cost of gas and kerosene in previous months.
Gas is under consumables being used in various homes for cooking.
NBS, in its latest report stated that the average price of five kilograms of cooking gas increased from N4,397.68 in July to N4,456.56 in August.
In its current edition of Cooking Gas Price Watch, it was mentioned that the pricing showed a 1.34% month-over-month increase in August compared to July.
The report added that in Taraba, five kilogramme sold for N4,925.44, followed by Adamawa, which cost N4,920, and Lagos, selling for N4,782.50.
It stated that Katsina recorded the lowest price of N4,020 in August, followed by Ogun and Yobe at N4,057.14 and N4,078.46, respectively.
Analysis by Geopolitical zones showed that the North-Central recorded the highest retail price of N4,615.95 for five-kilogramme cooking gas, followed by the North-East at N4,548.03.
The North-West recorded the lowest retail price at N4,285.51.
The NBS also disclosed that the average retail price of 12.5kg of cooking gas increased to N9,899.34 in August 2022 from N9,824.07 in July, representing a 0.77 per cent month-on-month increase.
It added that “On a year-on-year basis, the price rose by 119.26 per cent from N4,514.82 in August 2021.”
According to the report, the highest retail price was recorded in Ebonyi at N11,225 for 12.5kg, followed by Cross River at N10,982.14 and Delta at N10,965.42.
The lowest price was in Katsina State at N8,150, followed by Yobe and Taraba at N8,212.63 and N8,886.30, respectively.
Price of Kerosene, another petroleum product being used for cooking at home rose to N809.52 per litre in August, showing a 2.5 per cent increase over the N789.75 for which it was sold in July.
The report noted that on a year-on-year basis, the retail price per litre of kerosene rose by 102.38 per cent from N400.01 recorded in August 2021.
Further analysis showed that the highest price per litre of kerosene in August 2022 was recorded in Imo at N1083.33, followed by Ekiti at N1,026.92 and Enugu at N1,017.74.
The report showed that the lowest price was recorded in Nasarawa at N625, followed by Rivers at N627.45 and Adamawa at N633.33.
Analysis by geopolitical zones showed that the South-East recorded the highest retail price per litre at N953.88, followed by the South-West with N910.85.
In South-South, the lowest average price was at N749.51. The agency added that the retail price per gallon of kerosene in August was N2,947.65, showing an increase of 2.12 per cent from N2,886.41 in July 2022.
The August 2022 price was a 122.4 per cent increase over the price of N1,325.39 paid in August 2021.
Analysis by states showed that Abuja paid the highest price of N4,050 per gallon of kerosene in August, followed by Abia, where it sold at N3,825 and Enugu at N3,574.52.
Zamfara recorded the lowest price at N2,280 for a gallon of kerosene, followed by Lagos and Benue, which sold at N2,526.32 and N2,566.67, respectively.
The NBS further stated that analysis by geopolitical zones showed that the South-East recorded the highest average retail price per gallon of kerosene at N3,276.78, followed by the South-West at N3,073.27.
It added that the Northeast recorded the lowest average retail price at N2,687.63 per gallon.
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