Nation
FCT Minister Tasks Town Planners On Urbanisation
The FCT Minister of State, Dr Ramatu Aliyu has urged members of the Nigeria Institute of Town Planners (NITP) to tackle the consequences of rapid urbanisation in most cities across the country.
Special Assistant on Media to the minister, Mr Austine Elemue, in a statement yesterday, said Aliyu made the call during the 13th investiture of the NITP FCT Chapter.
Aliyu was represented by Zaliha Ahmed, the Director, FCTA Department of Urban and Regional Planning.
She called on the institute to join the FCT Administration in working for improved legislation on physical planning and urban development in support of the regeneration of Nigerian towns and cities.
The minister revealed that the Administration was collaborating with the African Development Bank (AfDB) on urban improvement projects in eight satellite towns of Jikwoyi, Gwagwalada, Kuje, Dutse Alhaji, Abaji, Orozo, Zuba and Kwali.
Aliyu added that the FCT Administration was committed to providing increased budgetary allocation to support critical infrastructure development outside the city centre.
This infrastructure include roads and bridges, water supply and sanitation, primary healthcare and renewable energy solutions.
“The onus is on us to continue to find solutions to the attendant multi-dimensional consequences of rapid urbanisation as we strive to provide liveable spaces both within and outside urban centres.
“To the FCT Chapter of the NITP, this challenge is even more significant. We are witnessing the evolution of the territory at a breath-taking pace.
“ While we appear to be grappling with finding solutions to the problems of the past, new ones are cropping up almost daily and we must, as a necessity, be in a position to anticipate future problems and seek solutions to them.
“The FCTA shall be looking forward to working with you to find innovative solutions that guarantee the right development balance between the city centre, the satellite towns and hinterlands,” she said.
In his inaugural speech, Chairman of the FCT Chapter of the institute , Mustapha Mubdiyu assured members of the institute that steps would be taken to digitise all records and processes of the chapter in line with global standard.
Mubdiyu, who stated that a website design was already underway, thanked the past leaderships of the chapter for laying the foundation on which to build.
He said that his leadership would embark on capacity building and development for members especially in areas of best practices and standards.
He also promised to focus on improving corporate social responsibility to communities and vulnerable groups within the FCT.
The Chairman of Malumfashi Local Government Council of Katsina State, Maharazu Dayi, has been impeached.
Maharazu Dayi was impeached yesterday by 11 out of 12 councillors, barely two days before the local government elections in the State.
The councillors reportedly took action following allegations of misconduct and poor governance against the chairman after a dispute over the distribution of the council’s Paris Club funds.
The development has sent shock waves across the local government area, especially as the impeached chairman is among those who failed to secure the ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to contest in the forthcoming election.
The Rumuwoji Ultra Modern Market Traders Association, Mile 1, Port Harcourt, has urged the state government to utilise the available spaces within the area to build phase 3 of the Rumuwoji Market in order to solve the ever increasing needs of traders.
The association, which said this at a media briefing in Port Harcourt, also described as a welcomed development the decision by the state Governor to open the phase 2 of the market for business.
According to the association, “We consider it as an answer to the various cries of the people, because he is a man on a mission who is out to place the interest of Rivers people first. It is a dream come true for the first time for the market to be dully allocated and open for business”
Chairman of the association, Hon Godspower Wobo, who briefed the press shortly after a meeting of the association in Port Harcourt, also urged the public to disregard the activities of some persons whose stock in trade is to cause disaffection in the market.
He said the attention of the association was drawn to the activities of some strange fellows who went about misforming the people about situation in the market, stressing that apart from his association, no other group exists in the market except subdiary unions.
Wobo also tasked the reallocation committee to tread with caution so as to avoid being deceived by any group.
According to him, time has come for the state government to engage in robust discussion with aggrieved shop owners who went to court and those who paid monies to the state coffers and issued with allocation certificates for the overall interest of peace.
He also advised the public to deal directly with his association, stressing that the meeting was to review activities for the last year as well as unveil their new Constitution.
Also speaking, former Chairman of the association, Deacon Kenneth Eze urged the Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara to open the phase 2 of the market, as it is long overdue.
Eze who is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the association also urged the public to do business with only the Rumuwoji Ultra Modern Market Traders Association as it is the only union recognised by the traders.
The President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Akinwunmi Adesina, has debunked reports linking him with the race for Nigeria’s presidency in 2027.
Reacting to the report on his X handle yesterday, following a recent interview with Arise TV, the AfDB boss said his quotes were misrepresented and misinterpreted in several Nigerian media reports.
However, the AfDB president denied the media reports, stating that he never said that he wanted to contest for President.
“A segment of my recent interview on @Arise TV has been both misinterpreted and misrepresented in several Nigerian media outlets. What I said was, “I will be available to serve in any capacity, globally, in Africa, anywhere, including my own country.”
“A listen to the substantive and robust interview, which is available online, will show this to be the case. For clarity and for the record, I did not say that I am running for the office of President of Nigeria,” Adesina said.