News
Federal Lawmakers Kick Against Extension Of Rivers LG Chairmen’s Tenure
Members of the opposition parties in the House of Representatives under the aegis of the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) have vowed to resist the move by the Rivers State House of Assembly to extend the tenure of local government chairmen in the State.
The federal lawmakers also vehemently kicked against impunity being allegedly perpetuated by some State lawmakers who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in November last year.
The State lawmakers were being accused of plan to extend the tenure of the 23 chairmen of local governments, whose tenure is expected to end in a few months.
The CUPP spokesman, Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere, who spoke on behalf of the federal lawmakers during a press briefing held in Abuja, last Friday, condemned in strong terms the grand plan by the embattled members of the River State House of Assembly to override Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s veto without sending the controversial bill to the governor for assent.
Hon. Ugochinyere, who described the passage of controversial legislation as a recipe for chaos and lawlessness, argued that the purported tenure elongation of the Rivers State Local Government Chairmen is “legislative rascality and a coup against democracy that is dead on arrival.”
While condemning the flagrant abuse of the legislative process that cannot be enforced, the CUPP spokesman maintained that the ugly development is an “invitation to anarchy and an attempt to sabotage the presidential peace accord signed by the embattled lawmakers with legitimacy questions.”
Ugochinyere, who reiterated the CUPP stance against the development, urged the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately conduct a bye-election for the replacement of the lawmakers who defected from the PDP to the APC in breach of the provisions of the Electoral Act and the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
He further said: “Assuming without conceding that the Rivers House of Assembly sent the law to the Governor, the Governor has 30 days within which to assent to the law or withhold his assent, and it can only be at the expiration of the 30 days that the House of Assembly can adjudge that the Governor has withheld assent and not earlier.”
According to him, “Illegally extending the tenure of local government chairmen just a few weeks to the expiration of their tenure is an abuse of the legislative process that cannot be enforced. It is the height of legislative rascality and a coup against democracy that is dead on arrival.”
The opposition parties’ spokesperson further stated that the plot was a deliberate invitation to anarchy and an inglorious attempt by the Rivers lawmakers to sabotage the Presidential Peace Accord.
“These Rivers Assembly men are truly acting like people and do not hold the sacred mandate of the people. Otherwise, they should have known that this plot was a deliberate invitation to anarchy and an inglorious attempt to sabotage the Presidential Peace Accord. We hereby call on the President to call them to order to avert a total breakdown of law and order in the State.”
Ugochinyere noted that about two months ago, “the same group of members with a questionable mandate purported to have amended the same local government law. Less than two months later, they are purporting to amend it again. They are now clearly playing Ping-Pong with Rivers State laws.”
He further questioned, “How could the agenda of people who call themselves lawmakers in a State be to strip the Executive Governor of their State of all executive powers, and they are comfortable with it? If they attach any value to the lives of the people of Rivers State, they would support the Governor of Rivers State to succeed, for the benefit of the people, rather than support anything that would undermine him and set him up for failure, including instigating anarchy.
“Every reasonable and right-thinking citizen of Rivers State should rally around the governor to ensure he succeeds and brings the dividends of democracy to the people. The rate at which the Martin Amaehwule-led House of Assembly is moving and trying to ignite violence in Rivers State should tell the police that these are most likely the persons who set the House of Assembly Complex ablaze, and because they got out of it, are now willing to set the entire State on fire.”
While acknowledging that the ongoing legislative crises rocking the Rivers State House of Assembly have created constitutional crisis, he disclosed that CUPP is already mobilising towards the National Assembly to take over the activities of the Rivers State House of Assembly in line with extant provisions of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The Nigerian rail system generated N1.69billionn in revenue from passengers in the second quarter of 2024, reflecting a 53.14 per cent increase compared to the N1.10billion recorded in the same period of 2023.
This data was disclosed by the National Bureau of Statistics in its report released yesterday.
According to the report, a total of 689,263 passengers travelled by rail in Q2, representing a growth rate of 45.38 per cent compared to 474,117 passengers in the corresponding quarter of 2023.
The volume of goods transported via rail also saw a significant increase, with 143,759 tons moved in Q2 2024, up from 56,936 tons in Q2 2023. Additionally, the Nigerian Railway Corporation reported a volume of 5,940 tons of goods transported through pipelines in Q2 2024, an increase from the 2,856 tons recorded in the same period of the previous year.
Revenue from goods conveyed via rail stood at N537.36m in Q2 2024, a remarkable increase of 206.68 per cent compared to N175.22m in Q2 2023. The movement of goods through pipelines also contributed to revenue generation, with N42.08m collected in Q2 2024, compared to N12.81million in Q2 2023.
Other revenue receipts amounted to N994.68million in Q2 2024, representing a staggering increase of 5,206.68 per cent from the N18.74m recorded in the corresponding period of last year.
In the first quarter, of 2024, The Tide source reported that Nigeria spent more on servicing the debt incurred for building its railways than the revenue generated by its railway system. The country spent 2,470 per cent more on railway debt servicing than it made from revenue from rail services in the first quarter of 2024.
The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) says it is committed to advancing projects and programmes that enhance food security and sustainable growth in the region.
Chief Monday Igbuya, the Delta State representative on the NDDC Board, made this pledge in a statement issued in Port Harcourt, yesterday by the NDDC’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Mrs Seledi Thompson-Wakama.
Igbuya spoke at the inauguration of a training and empowerment programme for women and youths in livestock and agro processing in Amukpe, Sapele area of Delta.
He stated that the NDDC was prioritising livestock training in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
“NDDC is focussed on implementing programmes to ensure food security and agricultural growth in multi sectors, aiming to improve living standards.
“It is our belief that for socio-economic development to take place, there is need to develop manpower in the agricultural sector,” he said.
Igbuya expressed confidence that training farmers would enhance livestock production, create jobs, and alleviate poverty in the Niger Delta.
Mrs Winifred Madume, NDDC Director of Agriculture and Fisheries, said that training farmers and entrepreneurs was essential for improving productivity and market access.
“The commission has been promoting research and development through various institutions and providing farming techniques to beneficiaries,” she said.
The Project Consultant, Dr Simon Akhaine, said that 200 women and youths had registered for the livestock and agro-business skill acquisition programme.
According to him, the programme aims to equip them with the essential knowledge and skills for self-sufficiency in livestock farming, thereby boosting regional food security.
President Bola Tinubu will not attend the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York this year.
In his stead, Vice President Kashim Shettima will lead Nigeria’s delegation to the annual summit.
Tinubu “wants to focus on domestic issues and address some of the country’s challenges, especially after the recent devastating flooding,” a statement from the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, revealed yesterday.
The statement is titled ‘Vice President Shettima to Lead Nigeria’s Delegation to the 79th United Nations General Assembly.’
It reads, “President Bola Tinubu will not attend the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York this year.
“Therefore, the President has directed Vice President Kashim Shettima to lead Nigeria’s delegation.”
Tinubu, who returned to the country last Sunday after his trips to China and the United Kingdom, “wants to focus on domestic issues and address some of the country’s challenges, especially after the recent devastating flooding,” said Onanuga.
At UNGA 79, Vice President Shettima will deliver Nigeria’s national statement to the General Assembly, attend important sideline events, and hold bilateral meetings.
The high-level General Debate, with the theme “Leaving No One Behind: Acting Together for the Advancement of Peace, Sustainable Development, and Human Dignity for Present and Future Generations,” will run from Tuesday, September 24, through Saturday, September 28, 2024.
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