Nation
THE STATES
Bauchi
The Director-General of Bauchi State Christians Pilgrim
Board, Pastor Zakka Magaji, said the state government sponsored 400 Christian Pilgrims to Israel in 2012.
Magaji made this known in Bauchi last Tuesday, when he embarked on sensitisation tour of communities in Bauchi Southern Senatorial District in preparation for the 2013 pilgrimage to Israel.
He said that Bauchi State Government was the only government that sponsored 400 pilgrims to Israel during 2012 Pilgrimage and explained that the aim of the tour was to encourage the Christian communities to sponsor themselves to Israel in order to complement government’s efforts toward such venture.
Benue
Governor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State said his ad
ministration would soon commence implementing the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) to strengthen the state’s accounting standards.
Speaking at Makurdi, Tuesday, at a sensitisation workshop on IPSAS, Suswam stated that such a step would bring about transparency and accountability in the system
The governor, represented by the Head of Service, Dr David Salifu, said all local governments in the state would be directed to adopt the standards in line with global best practices.
Earlier, the Commissioner for Finance, Omadachi Oklobia, said IPSAS would be entrenched in all the tiers of government in the state.
“This will also bring about transparency and adherence to accounting standards in all sectors,’’ he said.
FCT
The Legal Aid Council of Nigeria says it will not rest on
its oars in developing new strategies to tackle prison congestion across the country.
The Director-General of the council, Mrs Joy Bob-Manuel, said in an interview last Tuesday in Abuja that as part of its mandate, the council had begun to work closely with relevant stakeholders to speed up the criminal justice system by decongesting the prisons.
Bob-Manuel said that the council was working hard to ensure that all indigent Nigerians had access to justice and called on lawyers to contribute their quota to the speedy delivery of justice and prison decongestion by offering free legal services.
Kaduna
A member of the Kaduna State House of Assembly, Mrs
Esther Habu has advised women in the state to take more active interest in politics, by vying for elective positions.
Habu said in an interview last Tuesday in Kaduna that women had the capacity to appreciate the problems of the society and proffer better solutions to them.
She said as mothers, the women would also use their positions to mentor young people and guide them into becoming responsible citizens.
According to her, politics was about leadership, which women could also offer as enshrined in the Holy Books, and appealed to the various political parties and the government to accord concessions to women contesting elections.
Katsina
The Katsina State Government says it has procured
a mobile ambulance and drugs for the Almajiri model schools in Daura.
The Commissioner for Health, Alhaji Hussaini Garba, disclosed this to newsmen during the presentation of the items to the Emir of Daura, Alhaji Faruk Umar, at his palace in Daura, Tuesday.
He said the items were procured for Daura Senatorial District under its Free-Medical-Care programme for the Almajiris, adding that the new ambulance was procured to replace the one damaged during the recent robbery attack in the town.
The commissioner said the state government had purchased three ambulances under the Almajiri model schools to provide free medical services to the pupils across the three senatorial zones of the state.
Kebbi
The Kebbi Ministry of Environment is to send 19 unemployed
youths to Kano State to be trained as forestry guards under the Great Green Wall Programme of the Federal Government.
The state Commissioner for Environment, Mr Ishaku Daudu, said this while supervising the programme at the two designated local government areas of Dandi and Arewa last Tuesday in Dandi. Daudu said the youths would be selected from four communities in Unguwar Hassan and Marina in Dand Local Government Areas and Garun Ango and Bachaka in Arewa Local Government Areas.
“These communities were selected considering their proximity to Niger Republic and also desert-prone zones that pose a great challenge to afforestation in the state.
“The youths will be sent to Kano for three months training on forestry guarding from September to November,’’ he said.
Kogi
Acting Managing Director of Kogi State Sanitation and Waste
Management Board (SWMB), Mrs Florence Joseph, has appealed to residents of the state to stop indiscriminate dumping of refuse.
Joseph, who spoke with newsmen in Lokoja last Tuesday, appealed to the people to dump their refuse in waste disposal bins provided by the government.
The managing director said the government had provided all the necessary materials like trucks and waste containers for public use and declared that the government sanitation programme had provided jobs for unemployed graduates in the state.
She thanked the government for approving more comprehensive recycling sites meant for the conversion of waste after collection from different parts of Lokoja, stating also that very soon, government would provide more waste disposal trucks as promised in order for other parts of the state to benefit.
Kwara
No fewer than 1,950 people have registered for family planning
services at the Okelele Primary Healthcare Centre in Ilorin between January and August, following the intervention of the Nigeria Urban Reproductive Health Initiative (NURHI).
Head of Health Department, Ilorin East Local Government Council, Hajiya Fatima Kuranga, disclosed last Tuesday in Ilorin, that the number of beneficiaries during the eight month period under review increased considerably when compared with the about 680 recorded in 2012.
Kuranga explained that NURHI had helped in training and retraining of health care personnel and family planning supervisors.
She also stressed that NURHI had created awareness at the community level, adding that this had made residents of the area to embrace the free service being provided.
Lagos
Educationists have urged the governors of states in the South-
West geopolitical zone to be cautious in adopting Yoruba as the official language of instruction in primary schools.
Some educationists told newsmen in Lagos that implementation of the proposed policy would face some challenges.
The governors had on August 30 proposed that primary schools in the region would soon begin to use Yoruba as the language of instruction.
This was parts of their decisions at a meeting on the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) in Ibadan.
Nasarawa
The Nasarawa State Government has concluded plans with a Chinese
firm to build a five-star hotel at Farin-Ruwa in the Wamba Local Government Area of the state.
The state’s Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Alhaji Adamu Adogi, made the disclosure last Tuesday at the inauguration of a hotel in Keffi, near Lafia.
Adogi said that the construction of the hotel would boost the state’s revenue base and improve its tourism potential.
He stated that the Chinese partner, who recently visited the site of the proposed hotel, would soon sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the State Government for the commencement of the project.
The commissioner assured that the government would explore ways to to ensure the development of the state’s natural resources for the benefit of the people.
Sokoto
The Commissioner of Police, Sokoto State Command, Alhaji Shaibu
Gambo, has solicited the support of members of the public in the fight against crime in the state.
Gambo said in Sokoto, Tuesday that the officers and men of the command were determined to give their best to protect lives and property in the state, noting however, that this would not be possible without the cooperation of members of the public.
He said the personnel in the state command had received operational order on how to tackle insecurity in the state, adding that they were doing their best to ensure full compliance.
The commissioner, also solicited the support of traditional leaders in the fight against crime, pointing out that they play strategic role in mobilising their subjects for public policing.
Taraba
The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) fact-finding Committee on the
health condition of Governor Danbaba Suntai of Taraba State has affirmed Alhaji Garba Umar as the Acting Governor of the state.
Briefing journalists after about a two-hour close door meeting, the Committee Chairman, Senator Hope Uzodima, stated that the impasse had been resolved with all stakeholders including Suntai’s wife, Hauwa.
He said the Ag. Governor should from time-to-time consult with Suntai on major political issues in the state, while he (Suntai) continued to recuperate, and further stressed that the issue was a purely PDP in-house problem which, as a family, could be sorted out amicably.
Suntai returned to the state on Sunday, Aug. 25, after 10 months of medical treatment abroad, following his involvement in a plane crash in October, 2012.
Zamfara
The Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Alhaji Musa
Sada, has urged miners in Zamfara State to form cooperative groups in order to attract Federal Government support.
Sada said last Tuesday at the opening of three-day training on health and safety issues on miners’s operations in Gusau that formation of cooperatives by the miners would also promote safety in their operations.
The minister, who was represented by the Director of Planning, Policy Analysis and Monitoring, Mr John Mshelia, pointed out that the Federal Government was concerned about mining operations in the state.
He said the outbreak of lead poisoning in the state and subsequent death of victims since 2010 was worrisome.
Nation
NUJ backs proposed strike by Lagos-owned media workers
The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Lagos State Council has thrown its weight behind the proposed industrial action by the Lagos State-owned media organisations.
The proposed industrial action is set to begin on Monday, Jan. 13.
In a letter jointly signed by the Lagos State NUJ Chairman, Mr Adeleye Ajayi, and the Secretary, Mr Tunde Olalere, on Thursday, the union expressed its support for the strike.
The letter, dated Jan. 9, was addressed to the General Manager of Lagos Television, Agidingbi, Ikeja.
The NUJ, along with the Radio, Television, Theatre and Arts Worker’s Union (RATTAWU) of the Lagos State Broadcasting Corporations, including Lagos Television, Radio Lagos/EKO FM, and Lagos Traffic Radio, had announced the proposed strike.
They said this was in response to the non-payment of the minimum wage and integration into the Oracle database by the state government.
The union leadership stated that it was fully aware of the several discussions, congresses, and notices given to the state government regarding the need for state-owned media house workers to be integrated into the Oracle database.
“You will agree with the union that these were enough notices given to address the issues at stake,” the letter read in part.
The leaders recalled that an initial 10-day ultimatum was issued, followed by a 21-day ultimatum, and finally, a seven-day final ultimatum.
“It is imperative that our members working in the state-owned media organisations should also enjoy the new minimum wage like other workers of the state,” the NUJ stated.
The union further noted that the revenue generated by state-owned media organisations could no longer sustain the payment of workers’ salaries and benefits, highlighting the urgent need for the state government to intervene for their survival.
“The welfare of our dear members is paramount and this is why the union deems it fit to support and pledge solidarity with our members going on strike,” the union stated.
The union also acknowledged the commitment and dedication of protesting workers to their duties in propagating state government policies and activities, stating that such dedication should be rewarded by the state government.
“The union, therefore, advises that only an amicable resolution and approval of the demands of our members can stop the industrial action,” the union stated.
Nation
New Rivers CP assures of non partisan …moves against human rights violation
The new Rivers state commissioner of police ,CP Olugbenga Adepoju has assured that his administration will remain apolitical in the discharge of his duties in the state.
Adepoju who officially assumed office last Friday as the 47th police commissioner of police stated this during his median press briefing held at state police command over the weekend in Port Harcourt.
He assured that under his watch as the police helmsman in the state his administration will ensure protection of human rights and warn that any police officer who violate the rights of people will be sanctioned in accordance with the police act and
urged Rivers people to hold the Police accountable, share view of people with police.
“We are committed to transparency.
My priority is to ensure safety, security and welfare of all residents in the state.
Being an economic hub of the country,the state faces challenges of crisis from political interest, economic sabotage illegal oil bunkering.
“I will ensure Rivers people sleep with their two eyes close. I have what it takes to keep the command safe.We do Intelligence gathering work with community and public engagement to proactively prevent crime.We have meetings and seminars with members of the public.”
“We will enforce discipline and ensure zero tolerance for corruption.I have my team.I will put them to work.There will be improvement on the part of my officers.
“We will Combat youth restiveness and cultism, oil theft, environmental crime. we will work with other agencies to ensure is reduce to the barest minimum.
“We will enhance response time and police visibility. We do all we can for our men to respond to distress call in time. We will deploy more men in metro. More visibility policing.
“We will address land grabbing issues.We will work with our legal team. If we have to partake in any execution order, we will look at it critically.
“We will enforce all vehicle regulations with human face. Especially tinted glasses. We may excuse those that have it from the factory. Either the vehicle will be impounded, the tinted glass removed or they are charged to court.
“Our men will not violate rights of citizens. If there is any violation of rights, it should be reported to the police for necessary actions. Our men will be more professional and polite to the people “he stated
CP Adepoju however urged residents of the state,the media and all necessary stakeholders to give the Police the relevant cooperation and support for effective policing of the society.
Akujobi amadi
Nation
Police invites assaulted female victim, assures of protection
The Rivers State Police Command says it has acknowledged a social media report on alleged assault of a lady by police officers along Evo Road, Port Harcourt.
A statement signed by the police public Relations Officer (PPRO),SP Grace Iringe Koko in Port Harcourt, yesterday said the police acknowledged the report of such alleged assault and invite the lady involved to visit the command so as to enable the command to commence investigation with a view to apprehend the officers involved.
“We urge the lady involved to visit the Police Headquarters to enable a thorough investigation into the matter. This step will assist us in identifying the officers involved and ensuring that appropriate actions are taken.”
“The Command appeals to members of the public to cooperate with police officers during stop-and-search operations, as these measures are essential in combating crime and maintaining security.”
“We also encourage residents to report any misconduct by police officers through the following channels:
• PPRO: 0816 135 5218
• Control Room: 08032003514, 08098880134
• Complaint Response Unit (CRU): 07057605256, 08120822987, 07072323049, 07057605209”
“Your cooperation is vital in helping us maintain accountability and professionalism within the Rivers State Police Command.
Thank you.”
Akujobi Amadi
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