Blog

NAN-H-30

Delta

By Adekunle Williams/Solomon Asowata

Lagos, Nov. 23, 2016 (NAN) Delta Airlines on Wednesday said it had conveyed nearly one million passengers between Nigeria and the United States since it began operations into Lagos in December 2007.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mr Bobby Bryan, Commercial Director, East and West Africa, Delta Airlines, gave the figure while briefing newsmen in Lagos.

According to Bryan, the airline continues to focus on the African continent and the Nigerian market as it celebrates its 10th anniversary of service to the continent.

He said: “Delta has carried nearly 1 million passengers between Nigeria and the United States since December 2007, a milestone we expect to reach early in the new year.

“Delta started its operations to Nigeria nine years ago and is the only US airline to operate service to the United States from Nigeria.

“Nigeria is a very important market for Delta and is a key market in its international network.”

According to him, the airline currently offers up to seven weekly nonstop flights from Lagos to Atlanta, which has strengthened the commercial and tourism links between both countries.

Bryan said customers using the airline’s service benefit from convenient onward connections to more than 200 business and leisure destinations throughout the US.

He said these include key destinations such as Atlanta, Boston, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Dallas, and Washington.

“While we continue to expand travel options for our customers, we are also committed to offering our customers the best overall travel experience on our Lagos flights.

“Delta has invested heavily to enhance its facilities and global products and services and these have directly benefited to our trans-Atlantic customers.

“We will continue to build on our presence in the Nigerian market, and next year will be an important year here in Nigeria as we celebrate our 10th year of service to Lagos,” he said. (NAN)

WAC/ASO/SOA

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Edited by Oluwole Sogunle

NAN-AE-8
Reforms
By Chidinma Agu
Lagos, Nov. 23, 2016 (NAN) The Lagos State Government will, on Jan. 1, 2017, inaugurate its waste management reforms that will
provide an enabling environment for investors to pump money to the sector.

The state’s Commissioner for Environment, Dr Babatunde Adejare, disclosed this in Lagos on Wednesday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

He said the reform would encourage investors in different areas of waste management to get involved.

The commissioner noted that there were many ways to dispose
waste, saying “it can be through incinerating them, exporting them to other countries or converting them to energy sources.”

He said that the state government, through the reform, would ensure that waste-to-wealth projects manifested in every nook and cranny of the state.

He advised the people to always put their refuse in a bag and to drop them at designated places where the Lagos Waste Management Agency workers would pick them.

Adejare said that the government would ensure that collection of waste was not seen as jobs for the uneducated but means of self employment and empowerment.

On the refuse dumpsite at Olusosun, Ojota, the commissioner said the site would be closed to the public by Dec. 31, adding that the closure would give way for proper management of the area.

“The Lagos State Government will have a new dumpsite in another location.

“The Epe landfill, which is a World Bank project, is still ongoing and it is going to be an engineered landfill.

“The state has to put many things on ground before accessing the World Bank fund for it,” he said. (NAN)
ACA/MOL/HA
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Edited by Mustapha Lamidi/Hadiza Mohammed-Aliyu

NAN-H-29

Pastor

By David Adeoye

Ibadan, Nov. 23, 2016 (NAN) Pastor Gideon Johnson of No 4, Boripe St., Basorun-Ibadan, Oyo State, on Wednesday accused his wife of poisoning his driver who then allegedly ran mad after eating a meal she prepared for him to eat.
Gideon said this at a Grade C Customary Court sitting at Agodi-Ibadan, where he had gone to seek the dissolution of his 17-year-old marriage to with his wife -Oluwatoyin.
He accused his wife who had four children for him of bad character and threats to his life and other members of his family.

Gideon in his testimony told the court that he gave the food his wife prepared for him to his driver to eat.

“The innocent driver ran mad few hours after he had eaten the food and was chained before we could take him to his family for solution.

“She intended to run me mad, she is fetish, diabolical and a threat to my life; in fact she killed my senior brother and my father through her fetish ways.

“She almost succeeded in ruining my ministry when she ganged up with my enemies to spoil me before the big personalities that usually come to my church for prayers,’’ he said.

The pastor also told the court that he had not slept with his wife in the last 11 years because of her bad characters.

Gideon said that he would kill his wife if the court should decline his request to separate them.

However, Olwatoyin Johnson  in her defence, objected to the allegations levelled against her and denied ever killing his father and brother- in-law.

The mother of four told the court that her husband abandoned her 11 years ago when he married another woman who had bore three kids for him.

“He neither cared for me nor for the four children of the marriage but was always abusing me whenever he was preaching on the pulpit in the church.

“He accused me of being a witch and possessed spiritual power and I had challenged him to do deliverance for me since he is a pastor,’’ she said.

She, however, pleaded with the court not to dissolve the marriage for the sake of the children.

The court’s president, Chief Mukaila Balogun, dissolved the marriage and ordered two children to be with the plaintiff while the custody of the remaining two children should be with their mother.

Balogun also ordered the plaintiff to be paying N8, 000 monthly as maintenance allowance for the two children that are in the custody of their mother.

He also directed the plaintiff to pay N12, 000 as house rent and N5, 000 as transport fees for the defendant to pack her load from the plaintiff’s house.

The president warned the parties to maintain peace and stay clear of anything that could bring disharmony. (NAN)

DAK/FF/PAD
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Edited by Fela Fashoro, Peter Dada

NAN-H-48
Boxes
Bauchi, Nov 23, 2016 (NAN) Bauchi State Police Command on Wednesday placed “Suggestion Boxes” in strategic locations of the state capital to encourage people proffer suggestions and provide information to the police.

Unveiling the boxes, State Commissioner of Police, Mr Zaki Ahmed said that the measure would encourage people who wanted to remain anonymous,  make useful suggestions or provide information for effective policing .
Ahmed, who also launched the slogan “Change Begins with Me” also distributed Public Complaint Rapid Respond Unit (PCRRU) flyers in the state.
“Unveiling the suggestion boxes is to avail members of the public who do not want to go to the nearest police station to provide useful information due to one reason or the other.
“All information received will be treated with absolute confidentiality,’’ he said.

The commissioner said that the command would also organise training on combat operation geared towards preparing his men on how to tackle challenges in the course of the discharge of their duties.

A novelty football match between police team and members of the public has been scheduled for evening. (NAN)

AE/ASH/ASH

NAN-HG-14
Partnership
By Vivian Ihechu
Lagos, Nov. 23, 2016 (NAN) The management of Federal Medical Centre, Ebute-Meta, Lagos, on Wednesday called for increased funding and the involvement of private sector in the development of its permanent site.

The acting Managing Director of the institution, Dr Olubukola Aseru, made the call during a verification visit by a team from the Fiscal Responsibility Commission, Abuja, to the institution in Lagos.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the verification team had visited selected health institutions in Lagos to inspect projects, assess challenges as identified by the institutions and make recommendations.

Aseru said, “The Lagos State Government was magnanimous to give us four hectares of land along the Badagry-Lagos Expressway axis, a some short distance off the Administrative Staff College of Nigeria (ASCON), Badagry.

“Out of our capital budget, we have tried to put in a primary healthcare facility that it is staffed by nurses and doctors.

“We have walk-in patients who come, and after seeing them, go back to their communities.

“However, there is a crying need for funding; we are actively looking to collaborate with the private sector to fully develop the place.

“In our layout, we have places that are purely designed for the private sector participation.

“For us to start off, we need part of our capital budget to start the diagnostic and probably, the therapeutic area, while the ancillary areas can be taken up by private sector participation.’’

He said that due to the location of the site, when fully developed, the centre could also be serving the health needs of some countries in the West African Coast.

Aseru said that the current site would still be functional.

“Because, we are in the middle of the metropolis, though, the facility is small, we have thousands of clients that come here to access healthcare daily,’’ he said. (NAN)
VIV/GOK
Edited by Olagoke Olatoye

NAN-H-9

Bill

By Bushrah Yusuf-Badmus

Ilorin, Nov. 23, 2016 (NAN) An Ilorin based legal practitioner, Mr Adeoye Are has called on the National Assembly to facilitate a bill against jungle justice to serve as deterrent to perpetrators.

Are told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ilorin on Wednesday that it was important due to the increased cases of such crimes in the country.

He said it was high time people got punished for taking laws into their hands.

“The rising cases of jungle justice are becoming worrisome and it is better our lawmakers move a bill against such.

“People have to be punished for taking laws into their hands because we are in a sane society but people are behaving like animals.

“So, I think it is until it is formally made illegal and perpetrators get punished for it before they take the campaign against it seriously,’’ Are said.

The legal practitioner described the act as purely man’s inhumanity to fellow man which should be discouraged.

“No matter the kind of grievous act anybody might have done, no one deserves to die by beating and burning to death.

“And those that engage in such are not in any way better than the so called criminals because they have also committed a crime by taking lives.

“So, it behooves on the lawmakers to help us out on this,’’ Are said. (NAN)

BAY/MNA/EEE

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Edited by Maureen Atuonwu/Ese E. Ekama

NAN-DS-7
Board
By Yahaya Isah
Abuja, Nov.23, 2016 (NAN) The Military Pensions Board (MPB) on Wednesday reaffirmed its commitment to serve military pensioners better in order to improve their welfare.

The Chairman of the Board, AVM Muhammed Dabo, made the statement during the Military Pensions Stakeholders Interactive Session, at the Military Officers’ Mess, Abuja.

Dabo said that the primary responsibilities of the Board were the prompt payment of retirements benefits to all retired and discharged armed forces personnel and death benefits to kith and kin of the deceased personnel.

“I have observed with a deep sense of concern the challenges being faced by our retirees, especially at this time of economic recession,” he said.

Dabo said most of the complaints or problems faced by pensioners today were as a result of lack of adequate communication between the Board and its stakeholders, particularly the retirees.

This, he said, informed the reason for the meeting which would avail them with the opportunity to bridge the communication gap and to enhance the understanding of ways of alleviating their plights.

“Today’s event is therefore, a continuation in fulfillment of goals set by the Board for better service delivery in military pension’s administration,” Dabo said.

He commended President Muhammadu Buhari for approving the harmonisation of military pensions in spite of the challenges the country was facing as a result of dwindling revenue.

The Minister of Defence,  Mansur Dan-Ali, said that the quest for sound pension administration in any organization, be it military or civil, was very important toward improvement in the lives of pensioners.

The minister was represented by the Director of Army in the ministry, Mrs Oture Irio.

Dan-Ali noted that pension administration nowadays was a major concern worldwide and military pension was not an exception.

“It is on this premise that the interactive session was conceived, aimed to create awareness, update the knowledge of the stakeholders, share information and receive feedback from the pensioners.

“In recent times, we have witnessed a lot of agitations and complaints by military retirees over issues regarding their pensions, especially on harmonisation,’’ he said.

The minister stated that the recent approval of the harmonisation of pensions by the Federal Government should not be misunderstood for increment of pensions, but to bridge the gap among pensioners.

Dan-Ali said that efforts were also underway by the Ministry of Defence, the MPB and the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) to present a Bill for an Act to amend the Armed Forces Pension Act. (NAN)
YI/ORO/AMY
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Edited by Razak Owolabi/Abdullahi Yusuf

NAN-HG-63
Ethics
Nasarawa (Nasarawa State), Nov. 23, 2016 (NAN) The Makama Dogo School of Health Technology, Nasarawa, on Wednesday, urged its graduating environmental health students to eschew unethical and sharp practices in the medical profession.

Alhaji Umar Sarki, the proprietor of the school, made this remark at the school’s maiden graduation of the students of Environmental Health Department in Nasarawa.

“I want to advise the graduating students and other health practitioners to avoid unethical health and other sharp practices in order to save human lives.

”This is because unethical practices among some health practitioners have affected the lives of many Nigerians negatively,” Sarki said.

He expressed the determination to uplift the institution to a world class standard to enable it tackle health challenges at the grassroots for the overall development of the country.

“The institution will strive to ensure that the standard of teaching and research among others is the best in the country.

”It will also strive to create an avenue for foreigners to study as well as make parents and other stakeholders to have confidence in the institution,” he said.

Sarki urged the graduating students to be good ambassadors of the school anywhere they found themselves.

He also urged students of the college to be serious with their studies and excel in their academic pursuits in their own interest and in the interest of the country.

The proprietor expressed the institution’s determination to give premium to the welfare of staff and students.

Sarki lauded Gov. Tanko Al-Makura for creating a conducive environment for the private sector to operate in the state and called for its sustenance.

He recalled that the school was established in 2013 with the objective of producing human resources to tackle the people’s health challenges.

“The establishment of this school has not only added value to education in the state but has also improved the people’s standard of living through job creation, thereby reducing restiveness,” he said.

Also speaking, the provost of the school, Mr Sabo Godwin, advised the graduating students to put into practice what they had learned in order to contribute their quota to national development.

He also urged the State Government and Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) to absorb the outgoing students.

According to the provost, the students are well-trained and they have what it takes to render services to the members of the society.

Some graduating students, who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), lauded the school for impacting knowledge on them and promised to be good ambassadors of the school.

AKW/JEO/YEMI

Edited by Jane-Frances Oraka/Yemi Idris-Aduloju

NAN-H-50
Relief
Madagali (Adamawa), Nov. 23, 2016 (NAN) The Presidential Initiative for North East (PINE), on Wednesday, presented relief materials to more than 250,000 returnee Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Madagali Local Government Area of Adamawa.

Speaking

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Babachir Lawal, said during presentation in Gulak, headquarters of Madagali, that the gesture was to bring succour to the returnee IDPs affected by insurgency in the area.

Lawal, who was represented by Sen. Binta Garba (Adamawa Northern Senatorial District), said the Federal Government would do her best to rebuild destroyed infrastructure and restore confidence among affected communities.

Alhaji Yusuf Muhammed, the Chairman, Madagali Local Government Council, who received the materials on behalf of the returnees, thanked government for the gesture.

Muhammed thanked President Muhammadu Buhari in particular for his unalloyed support for the North East and the country as a whole.

He urged the people of the area to make use of the items given to them properly and not to sell.

He said “selling the items will bring more hunger to the area.”

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that relief materials worth hundreds of millions of naira were distributed.

The materials include food and non-food items. (NAN)
AMA/ORO/HA
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Edited by Razak Owolabi/Hadiza Mohammed-Aliyu

NAN-HE-12

Budget

By Abbas Bamalli

Kano, Nov. 23, 2016 (NAN)  Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State on Wednesday presented a 2017 budget proposal of more than  209.8 billion naira  to the state House of Assembly.

Ganduje said the 2017 budget, christened `Budget of Sustainable Self-Reliance’, would focus more on developmental projects in the state.

According to him, more than  130.4 billion naira has been proposed for Capital Expenditure, while more than 79.3 billion naira has been set aside for Recurrent Expenditure.

The governor said more than  143.7 billion naira would be generated from recurrent revenue, just as more than  47.7 billion naira would be sourced as internally generated revenue.

“More than 96.9 billion naira will be generated from the Federation Accounts Allocation”, he said.

He stated that the budget is coming at a turbulent period in the life of the state.

He, however, assured that his administration would continue to execute developmental projects in the state through the proper use of available resources once the budget was passed.

The speaker of the Assembly, Alhaji Kabiru Rurum, also gave the assurance that the lawmakers would do everything within their powers to properly deliberate on the proposed budget.

“The Assembly will conduct public hearing on the proposed budget so as to allow direct involvement of the public in the process,” Rurum said.

He also assured the governor that the Assembly would work closely with the executive to ensure the development of the state. (NAN)

ABS/OSA/YEE

Edited by Shittu Obassa/Emmanuel Yashim

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