Blog

NAF inaugurates Air Force Girls Comprehensive School

NAN-DS-6

School

By Yahaya Isah

Abuja, Sept. 23, 2016 (NAN) The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) on Friday in Abuja inaugurated an Air Force Girls Comprehensive School to improve girl child education in the country.

The Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, inaugurated the school at the Air Force Base, Abuja.

The minister was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Dr Folashade Yemi-Esan.

He commended the Chief of Air Staff and other personnel of the Service for the “remarkable project”.

The minister said the present administration had resolved to make education accessible for the good of the country.

Adamu noted that one of the major factors militating against girl child education in the country today was poverty as well as cultural and religious believes.

“These factors have clearly undermined the role of the girl child who naturally is meant to be a friend, a teacher, a confidant, a councilor, a mother and the hand that feeds.

“Available records from the NBS showed that the girl child education as compared to boys is ratio one to three in some states and two to four in others.

“This clearly shows the disadvantage position of the girl child in the area of education.

In his remarks, the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sidique Abubakar, said it had become imperative to improve on the girl child education in the country.

He thanked Nigerian Air Force Officers Wives Association (NAFOWA) for their vision about the project.

“As chief of Administration, I was actively involved in the genesis of this project and NAF had to come in from due to their inability to complete the project,’’ he said.

He said provision of quality education to families and personnel of the Force had been an invaluable tool for the motivation of officers and men for higher performance, commitment to duty and effective service delivery.

“In building this school for girl child education, various thoughts came to my mind, first, there was the need to enhance the welfare of personnel which is a key driver of my vision.

“Our experience of fighting insurgents in the North-East indicates the exploitation of girl child education due to low literacy level.

“Against this background, we thought it wise to establish the school as our modest contribution to the president’s efforts at enhancing the Girl Child Education In the country.

“ With the opening of this school, it will shield them from societal vices when you open the door of a school you open the door of liberty,’’Abubakar said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the Nigerian Air Force had already established an Air Force Comprehensive School in Jos, and has promised to establish the third one in its base in Bauchi State. (NAN)

YI/AMY

=====

Edited by Abdullahi Yusuf

NAN-DS-5

Drugs

By Muhammed Nasir Bashir

Dutse, Sept. 23, 2016 (NAN) The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Jigawa said it had arrested five suspected hard drugs sellers.

The Spokesperson of the corps in the state, DSC Adamu Abdullahi, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Dutse that the suspects were apprehended in Gumel Local Government Area of the state.

Abdullahi said that the suspects were arrested in Gumel central market by men of the command operating in the area.

He explained that the suspects (names withheld), hailed from Kaura, Dadin Sarki and Rukutu villages in Suletankarkar local government area of the state.

The spokesperson added that one of the suspects was from Baure town in katsina state.

According to him, a total of 34 sachets of Tramadol, consisting of tablets and capsules were recovered from the suspects.

Abdullahi said the tablets are 120 milligrams, while the capsules are 225 milligrams.

He added that suspects who confessed to committing the offence, had been handed over to the office of National Drugs Law and Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for further action.

The spokesperson, however, advised the public to stop patronizing  local drugs vendors, saying drugs bought from such vendors are not good for use.

According to him, such drugs are not kept under the required temperature thereby rendering them harmful for human consumption.

” Each drug carries information concerning the temperature under which it is supposed to be kept.

“But these local and illegal vendors exposed their drugs to the  sun all the time, and for this, these drugs became expired and dangerous to consume.,” he said. (NAN)

MNB/HS/MTM/

Edited by Halima Sheji/controlled by Tukur Muntari.

NAN-H-61
Principals
By Toba Ajayi
Ilorin, Sept. 23, 2016 (NAN) Alhaja Mariam Ayo, the Permanent Secretary in the Kwara Ministry of Education and Human Capital Development, has urged school principals to be pragmatic in the discharge of their duties.

Ayo made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Ilorin on Friday.

According to her, the essence of being dedicated to their duties is to move the education sector of the state forward.

She said that principals were expected to show more commitment in order to revolutionise the education sector in the state.

“The head must lead by example if we want to take our education to the next level.

“The ministry is ready to support your actions and provide a workable environment for the principals, teachers and students in Kwara,’’ she said.

Ayo also urged principals to ensure that discipline and quality education was restored back in schools.

“My office is open for everybody, so any complaint will be fairly entertained and treated with the deserved attention as communication is vital for development,” she said. (NAN)
LEX/GOM/OJO
============
(Edited by Gregory Mmaduakolam and controlled by Mufutau Ojo)

NAN-H-43

Entrepreneurship

By Nabilu Balarabe

Jalingo, Sept. 23, 2016 (NAN) The Bank of Industries (BoI) in partnership with Africa Community Bridge Foundation, an NGO, on Friday in Jaingo  concluded the training of 100 youths on entrepreneurship skills.

Presenting certificates of participation to the participants, Alhaji Dahiru Bala, the BoI Manager in charge of Adamawa, Gombe and Taraba states, said the training was part of efforts to create jobs for the youth.

Bala added that the training was designed by the Federal Government to equip the youth with skills in finance, marketing, sales, and business law, among others, to enable them create jobs with small businesses.

He said the bank would provide the trainees with loans to help them set up various trades.

“This training is Federal Government’s deliberate policy to create jobs though entrepreneurship skills for its teeming unemployed graduates.

“We are training you not just to become self-employed, but to also be employers of labour as you access the loan and begin your businesses,’’ he said.

According to the manager, the trainees are expected to repay the loans within three years, afetr which, their businesses are expected to have flourished.

He urged other young people under the age of 35 years to apply to BoI online to benefit from the bank’s training and loan.

He said the move would enable the youth to contribute their quota to the growth of the nation’s economy.

Dr Lucky Onmony, the Programme Director, Africa Community Bridge Foundation, advised the trainees to make maximum use of the skills they had acquired.

On his part, Alhaji Iliyasu Ajibu, the Taraba Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, commended the Federal Government for the initiative, saying it would go a long way in tackling the unemployment situation in the country.

Ajibu, who was represented by Alhaji Umar Bambur, a top official in the ministry, said the state government would do all it could to ensure that the programme succeeded.

Responding on behalf of the trainees, Mr Kumachivir Iorkohol expressed appreciation to the BoI management for the programme.

He said the implementation of the programme was an indication of the Federal Government’s commitment to tackling unemployment in the country.

He also said that it was an indication of the government’s determination to get the country out of the current economic recession.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the trainees were drown from Adamawa and Taraba. (NAN)

NB/YEE

Edited by Emmanuel Yashim

======================

Court remands 6 men in prison custody over breach of peace

NAN-H-59

Remand

By Dorcas Elusogbon

Ile-Ife (Osun), Sept. 23, 2016 (NAN) An Osun Magistrates’ Court sitting  in Ile-Ife has ordered six defendants to be remanded in prison, pending the perfection of their bail conditions.

The defendants, Abiola Lateef, 48; Abanise Omoniyi, 49; Etim Elijah, 38; Wasiu Adepoju, 36; Tajudeen Adeyeba, 31 and Mattew Balogun, 36, were remanded in prison custody over breach of  public peace.

The Magistrate, Mr Olalekan Ijiyode, granted the accused bail in the sum of N100, 000 with two sureties each in like sum.

The defendants  were arraigned on a two-count charge of public fight and breach of peace.

Earlier, the prosecutor, Inspector James Obaletan, told the court that the defendants committed the offence on Sept. 21, 2016, at Odesan Village, Ife South Local Government Area.

Obaletan said that the defendants engaged in a fight and inflicted injuries on one another with machetes.

He added that the defendants disturbed the peace of the public .

According to him, the offence is punishable under sections 83 and 249 (d) of the Criminal Code Cap 38, Vol 11, Laws of Osun, 2003.

The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to the offence levelled against them.

The Defence Counsel, Mr Ola Ibrahim, appealed for their bail in the most liberal terms, with an assurance that they would not jump bail.

Ijiyode, however, adjourned the case till Oct 19. for mention. (NAN)

EDA/HS/NKO

============

(Edited by Halima Sheji/Nkechi Okoronkwo)

NAN-H-50
Dealers
By Kazeem Akande
Lagos, Sept. 23, 2016 (NAN) The Phones and Allied Products Dealers’ Association of Nigeria (PAPDAN), Lagos Chapter, on Friday appealed to the state government to reopen  shops of  its members sealed  about two weeks ago.

The marketers told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that in two weeks, they had lost revenues running into millions of Naira.
NAN reports that over 200 shops in the Lagos Central Business District, Ikeja, were sealed up by the state ministry of environment for illegal extension and non-beautification of the business community.
Mr Obieze Ochokwu, the Chairman of PAPDAN in Idowu Lane Business axis, said that the taskforce which locked up the shops hinged it on non-compliance with the state beautification code for the community.
Ochokwu said all the shops situated in the affected area were supposed to comply with unique colors of beautifying the environment.
According to him, some of his members did not receive any notice from the government before the enforcement.
“We are appealing to the state government to reopen the sealed shops to allow our members continue their business.
“Majority of the shops have complied and have been painted in the unique way that government wants them to be.
“We have also found solution to the alleged extension that government has termed illegal along the major roads.
“So, we are appealing to the government to come to our aid and open the shops for our members to continue their trading,’’ the PAPDAN official said.
Ochokwu, also the Head of Taskforce Compliance at the computer village, said the association had directed all its members who were yet to comply with government’s demand to do so.
A PAPDAN member, Mr Tony Okereke, whose shop was sealed, said that the action of the government had affected his business seriously.
“Government did not give us notice before embarking on the enforcement.
“My brother, I must confess I have lost nothing less than N800,000 for the two weeks my shops were locked.
“We did not receive any notice from the government on the beautification of the major roads before they sealed our shops.
“We are begging the government to open our shops, because we are starving,’’ Okereke said.
Mrs Janet Akpan, a major distributor of phones and their accessories, also pleaded with the state government to reopen their sealed shops for business.
Akpan said that majority of the shops along the major roads had complied with the government directive and painted their shops in the designated way for proper beautification. (NAN)
AKA/COF/SOA
=============
(Edited by Oluyinka Fadare)

NAN-DS-4
Protest
By Chukwuemeka Opara
Abakaliki, Sept. 23, 2016 (NAN) The Ebonyi Police Command on Friday said that the protest at Abakaliki was not carried out by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) but by traders and artisans at the Mechanic Village.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that IPOB had ordered people in the South East Zone to observe a sit-at -home action on Friday in support of their demand for self actualisation.

But Mr George Okafor, the Police Public Relations Officer, told NAN that the Force ensured that no IPOB protest was carried out in the state.

“We are in touch with our divisions across the state and can confirm that the state is peaceful with people going about their businesses.

“We only witnessed disturbances at the auto mobile village in Abakaliki where traders and artisans protested over alleged discrepancies in the levies stipulated by the state government,” he said.

The spokesman said that the command had deployed officers to the area in order to restore normalcy.

“The traders were protesting that their leaders connived with the contractors hired by the government to defraud them and will only pay directly to the government through a designated account.

“They were unruly; they damaged police vehicles, injured some of our officers but we are unrelenting in ensuring that calm returns to the area.

“Their officers tried to pacify them but they continued being unruly, insisting that their arrested members must be released before they conduct themselves peacefully.

“This made us to use tear-gas to disperse them and the market would only be re-opened when normalcy returns to the area,” he said.

Mr Rapheal Ugo, Vice Chairman of the market’s Amalgamated Union, condemned the action, noting that traders in a section of the market instigated the crisis.

“It is only traders and artisans at the ‘A’ Line area that refused to pay the levies despite efforts made by others to make them pay.

“Those who perpetrated the act could have considered the economic consequences on the generality of members as we will cooperate with the police in restoring order to the market,” he said.

A NAN correspondent, who monitored the development, reports that Abakaliki and surrounding cities were calm with citizens going about their normal businesses.

Government and private offices remained open while markets and business centres among others opened for daily activities without molestation. (NAN)
RCO/IS/OJO
=========
(Edited by Ismail Abdulaziz and controlled by Mufutau Ojo)

Use technology to shape society, ensure development, Buhari support group urges youth

NAN-H-6
Emancipation
By Shuaib Sadiq
Kaduna, Sept. 23, 2016 (NAN) Ahmed Suleiman, National Coordinator, Buhari Youth Emancipation Strategy, on Friday urged youths in the country to adopt the use of technology to shape society and ensure sustainable national development.

Suleiman gave the advice in Kaduna on Friday at the opening of a two-day retreat organised for political appointees in Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC).

The theme of the treat is: Conceiving and effecting change at the grassroot.

Suleiman said expertise in information technology was necessary to tap from the enormous opportunities in the country and across the globe.

“The youths of the 21st century are more equiped with information than any other previous generation.

“ This due to the technological advancement and this has further increased our level of dynamism, idealism and creativity as a people.

“ This, if properly combined and utilised, can shape the society and help to create more financial opportunities that will lead to sustainable development.“

According to the coordinator, President Buhari’s change mantra, is meant to take back Nigeria to its rightful position as the leader in Africa.

He said the retreat was holding at a time Nigeria was facing inflation, insecurity, unemployment and financial hardship.

“This is due to the unprecedented level of corruption in the system”, he said.

According to him, the government is seeking to evolve a new Nigeria, “where all persons will live in peace and harmony with equal opportunities and hope.“

Suleiman urged the political appointees, who are mostly youths, to utilise the opportunity given them to serve the people diligently.

He said that the retreat was to enable them understand their roles and responsibilities, and chart a direction for the AMAC administration to succeed.

“As we embark on this journey of new beginning by looking out of the box, we must be mindful of the challenges and the expectations ahead,“Suleiman said.

It would be recalled that the first retreat was held in Jos for Councillors of the local government.

In his message, the AMAC Chairman, Abdullahi Candido, challenged the participants to utilise the opportunity to develop skills that would translate into efficient and effecitive service to the people.

Candido, who was represented by the Council’s Head of Personnel Management, Haliru Yakubu, said the cuncil would strive to redeem all its pledges to the electorate.(NAN)
SSA/MZA
========

Edited and Controlled by Maharazu Ahmed

NAN-H-54

Challenge

By Monday Ijeh and Salisu Sani Idris

Abuja, Sept. 23, 2016 (NAN) Mr Aderogba Obisesan, a veteran journalist, on Friday charged members of staff of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) to brace up, considering the challenges of modern day journalism.

Obisesan, who recently retired from Agence France Presse (AFP), the French News Agency, threw the challenge while delivering a lecture entitled “Modern Day News Agency: Challenges and Survival Strategies” to NAN staff in Abuja.

The lecture, organised at the instance of the Managing Director, Mr Bayo Onanuga, was aimed at improving the capacity and performance of NAN staff, particularly, journalists in the agency.

Obisesan noted that social media competition posed a challenge to news agency journalism due to the speed with which their reports were published.

He, however, urged NAN to regard social media reports as alerts and maintain credibility by always cross-check facts before publishing its reports.

“The social media poses a real challenge to a news agency and the entire media world.

“Let us not be frustrated or devastated by the seeming negative impact of the social media.

“ But for a news agency worth its salt, what remains as its Unique Selling Point (USP) is credibility.”

“This stands it out. it does not only have to get the news fast, it has to get it right and accurate.”

To achieve this, Obisesan therefore, underscored the need for the agency to recruit competent reporters and media managers.

He further said that acquiring modern equipment would enable NAN to compete with its counterparts in other countries as well as guarantee timely service delivery to its subscribers.

Obisesan, who worked with NAN for six years before joining AFP, also advised NAN management to ensure regular training and re-training of its reporters.

This, he maintained, was critical to exposing them to modern day journalism practice with a view to increasing their efficiency, performance and productivity.

He congratulated NAN management for launching the subscribers’ portal and introducing reporters’ bylines to copies.

These recent innovations to the agency’s operations, he said, were in sync with the modern trend as foreign news agencies had long adopted the system, adding that they would also give the agency more credibility and visibility to its reporters.

In his remarks, Onanuga, commended Obisesan and pledged the commitment of his administration to ensure that the agency`s reporters were well motivated to source stories.

He, therefore, challenged the reporters to ensure that they justified the agency`s investment in them by being diligent and committed to their job.

“When you are given money for news sourcing, do not make it a singular assignment; ensure that other news on the sidelines of the assignment are reported,” Onanuga said.

The Editor-in-Chief of NAN, Malam Lawal Ado, said the lecture could not have come at a better time than now, as the agency was doing everything possible to advance its course.

Ado maintained that the agency`s reporters were ready to accept the challenge and learn to improve their capacity.

On her part, the Managing Editor, NAN Metropolitan Desk, Mrs Nkechi Okoronko, thanked Obisesan for sharing his wealth of experience and ideas spanning over three decades with the reporters and editors of the agency.

She recommended the lecture to every NAN journalist who wished to pursue a career in journalism. (NAN)
SSI/IMC/EEM/NKO

===============

Edited by Emmanuel Mogbede/Nkechi Okoronkwo
===================================

NAN-H-44

Concession

By Solomon Asowata

Lagos, Sept.23, 2016 (NAN) Sen. Ben Murray-Bruce, Chairman, Senate Committee on Privatisation, on Friday backed the plan of the Federal Government to concession the four major airports in the country.

Murray-Bruce also said his committee was prepared to facilitate whatever laws were required to fast track the process.

He spoke at a Stakeholders’ Conference on Privatisation/Concession of Nigerian Airports organised by CheckinNigeria, an aviation and travel consulting firm, in Lagos.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the government had indicated interest to concession the Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt Airports, towards increasing their capacity and efficiency.

The senator said: “As I speak to you today, all the nations with thriving aviation industries and the best and most successful airports are nations that have privatised their aviation industry and their airports.

“My committee is prepared to facilitate whatever laws are required to fast track the privatisation of our airports.

“We are also determined to ensure that Nigeria’s privatisation laws have irrevocable and irreversibility clause, so that no new government can just come in and reverse what the previous government did with the strike of a pen.”

According to him, Nigeria cannot make progress if the privatisation exercise is in jeopardy every time there is change of government.

He said that local and international investors must be made to have confidence in the system.

“It is my job and the job of the Senate Privatisation Committee to ensure Nigeria has good, practical and workable laws for the advancement of her national economic interests.

“We are committed to this task as well as to oversight duties for the purpose of ensuring that what needs to be done ends up being done,” Murray-Bruce said.

The lawmaker also urged the government to find an urgent solution to the challenges in the aviation industry.

“The alarming rate at which airlines are either failing or leaving Nigeria must be halted.

“If people cannot move from point A to point B quickly, business will suffer, the economy will not improve, and the recession will last longer. This is an emergency!

“I urge the government to take firm action to save our aviation industry; help them with soft loans, reduce their taxes.

“Government officials should patronise domestic airlines rather than foreign airlines. Help them secure insurance.

“But above all, we must do something to intervene before we all have no choice than to drive from place to place.”

Also speaking, Dr Harold Demuren, former Director General, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) advocated good corporate governance, transparency and reduction of government interference in the activities of the aviation agencies.

Demuren said that though concessioning of the airports was a good development, the failure of government to honour previous concession agreements had led to unending court cases in the sector.

“My advice is that government must review all existing issues and litigations which arose from previous concessions before getting into another concession agreement with new investors,” he said.

However, Capt. Noggie Meggison, Chairman, Airline Operators of Nigeria and Capt. Dele Ore, a former President of the Aviation Round Table, said concessioning of the airports was the best move by the government.

According to them, this will increase the operational efficiency and profitability of the airports, stimulate growth in the non-oil sector and make Nigeria more attractive as a regional hub.

Earlier in his welcome address, Mr Michael Chikeka, Chief Executive Officer, Checkin Nigeria, said the conference was organised to deliberate on the current issues affecting the aviation industry and proffer solutions on the way forward. (NAN)

ASO/SOA

===========
(Edited by Oluwole Sogunle)